Breakfast Enchiladas

Sunday Brunch

Breakfast Enchiladas

This is fucking good. Sunday brunch is always some concoction I make from leftovers from the previous week. In this case, we had some boneless pork ribs that Jenn had grilled with a spicy rub from the night before.

1 onion
1 bell pepper (I used half a green and half a yellow)
1 jalapeno (seeded and diced)
2 pork ribs (cooked- leftovers from the night before)
3-4 eggs
sour cream (low fat)
cream (non-fat half-and-half)
Ground Dried Chipotle spice
Roasted Ground Cumin
Parsley
Cilantro
12-14 corn tortillas
1 ½ limes
Shredded cheese (we used low fat mozzarella)

Saute diced onions and peppers in olive oil. Dice the rib meat and add to the onions and peppers (I guess you could use leftover chicken as well).

Mix eggs, some sour cream, and cream (I use a giant measuring cup to do this-- I put the eggs in first, then add equal amounts of sour cream and cream to double the egg mixture-should be about 2 ½ cups). Add the ground chipotle and cumin (1 tsp each? I just kind through some in). Squeeze ½ lime into the eggs.

Add the egg mixture to the pan. Add some parsley and cilantro right as the eggs are mostly cooked. Remove from heat (it's OK for the eggs to be a little under done,we're going to bake this).

Speaking of baking....Set the oven to 450.

Heat tortillas (I use the microwave),then fill them and place them in a 6 x 9 baking dish sprayed with cooking spray. Spray the enchiladas with cooking spray on top as well. Top with cheese. Bake for 12-15 minutes.

Now, here's the part that, as my daughter put it, "makes the party in your mouth."

While the enchiladas are in the oven, mix 1 cup sour cream, the juice from 1 lime, parsley, a dash of salt,1 tsp or so of ground chipotle, and a dash of hot sauce. Serve as a garnish. I also put out some more fresh parsley, salsa, and chopped green onions. Eat it. It's good.

Taco Rice and Cheese (Okinawa style)

Taco Rice and Cheese (Okinawa style)

Taco Rice and Cheese is the ultimate in hangover food. It's found in its most wonderful and original form in Okinawa. The best place to buy it is the place right outside the Main Gate of Camp Hansen in Kin. They might make the best Taco Rice and Cheese I've ever tasted.....plus, they're stumbling distance from the main gate. That weighs heavily in just how good it is......I think. From what I understand, that place is still standing. It's a little order-out only shack right there to the left as you leave the gate.

Nothing can beat true, mama-san made, Kin-ville Taco Rice and Cheese. But this comes close.

3 cups (raw) sticky rice

1lb ground beef
1 onion
salt
pepper
2 cloves of garlic
1 pkg taco seasoning (McCormick's)
1 tsp ancho chili powder
1/2 tsp dried, ground corriander
1 can tomato paste
3/4 cup beef broth
1 (or more) tbsp hot sauce

2 cups (?) shredded cheddar cheese

Prepare rice.

Preheat oven to 350.

Add ground beef and diced onion to a pan. Add salt and pepper, corriander, and chili powder. When beef is browned and onions transluscent, drain off fat. Return to pan. Add garlic, taco seasoning, tomato paste, and broth. Now.....at this point I gave it a taste and realized it lacked some umf. So, I added about 2 tbsp hot sauce to it. You could probably increase the chili powder or add a serrano or jalapeno to the onions. But, I think it needed the vinegar taste of the hot sauce as well. Let cook on low heat for ten minutes.

In a baking dish, layer the rice, then meat mixture, and top with cheese. Put in the oven 5-10 minutes to melt the cheese.

Let sit for 5-10 minutes (normal stumbling time into the gate and to the barracks.....for some reason, it did taste more like Okinawa Taco Rice and Cheese after sitting a bit.....seriously). Serve. Mmmmmm. Okinawa.

Osso Bucco And Uncle Doug's Most Amazing Spaghetti Sauce

Osso Bucco And Uncle Doug's Most Amazing Spaghetti Sauce

First, make this:

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/tyler-florence/osso-buco-milanese-recipe/index.html

Ingredients
1/2 cup flour
Salt and pepper, to taste
4 pieces veal shank with bone, cut 3 inches thick
3 tablespoons olive oil
3 tablespoons butter
1 onion, chopped
1/2 cup celery, chopped
1/2 cup carrots, chopped
4 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
2 bay leaves
3 tablespoons fresh Italian parsley, finely chopped
1 cup dry Marsala
2 cups veal or chicken stock
2 tomatoes, peeled, seeded and chopped
Saffron Risotto, recipe follows
GREMOLATA:
Grated rind of 1 lemon
Grated rind of 1 orange
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons fresh Italian parsley, chopped
Directions

In a large shallow platter, season flour with salt and pepper. Dredge the veal shanks in the mixture and tap off any excess. In a large heavy skillet or Dutch oven, over medium flame, heat the oil and butter. Sear the shanks on all sides, turn bones on sides to hold in marrow. Add more oil and butter if needed. Remove the browned veal shanks and set aside.
Add onion, celery, carrots, garlic, bay leaves and parsley to the pan and cook until softened. Season with salt and pepper. Raise the heat to high, add the wine and deglaze the pan. Return the shanks to the pan, add the stock and tomatoes, drizzle with olive oil. Reduce the heat to low, cover and cook for about 1 1/2 hours or until the meat is tender. Baste the meat a few times during cooking. Remove the cover, continue to simmer for 10 minutes to reduce the sauce a bit.
For gremolata: combine all ingredients together in a small bowl. Strew the gremolata over the osso buco before serving. Serve osso buco with Saffron Risotto.

I love Tyler. He's one of those on my list Jenn can bring home for a threesome. I don't make the risotto though, that's Jenn Territrory. She makes all the risotto here. I am allowed to wipe her brow as she makes it, and that's it (the Saffron Risotto recipe is in the link at top).

I do things a bit different from Tyler, instead of cooking this on the stovetop, I put it in the oven for 4-5 hours at 200-250. I put just enough chicken stock to cover the meat (1-1.5 cups instead of 2). The other thing I do is use ONLY HALF OF THE VEAL called for in the recipe above. This means a ton of leftover vegetables. Leftover vegeables that are loaded with veal flavor.

The next day you can puree those veggies smooth, add some tomato sauce (and even a can of diced tomatoes if you like). You can also add fresh basil and/or Italian seasoning. If you have any leftover veal, chop that up and throw it in too. Simmer for an hour. In the end you will have the Most Amazing Spaghetti Sauce you have ever tasted.

Jalapeno Bagel Strata

Jalapeno Strata

I had three week-old jalapeno-cheddar bagels sitting in the fridge. Nobody is going to eat those, so.....

3 jalapeno-cheddar bagels
8 oz pepper-jack cheese
6 eggs
1.5 cups milk
1 (4 oz) can chopped Ortega chiles
salt
pepper

Slice the bagels in half, then cut up the halves into 1/2 inch bits. Shred the cheese. Whisk together eggs, milk, chiles, and salt and pepper. Throw the bagel bits into a greased baking dish, mix 2/3 of the shredded cheese with the bagels. Pour the egg mixture over everything. Push down the bagel bits a bit to get them soaking. Cover and refrigerate overnight. The next morning, top with the remainder of the cheese, then bake at 350 F for 45 minutes.

This has now given me the excuse to buy the “half dozen deal” on these bagels at the local market, now that I have something to do with the “leftovers.”

Next time, I'm adding some bacon.

I made these again, and added bacon. It did not suck.