Marinated Skirt Steak Tacos

The sky has been so blue this week, breaking through a huge rainy spell, that I got the feeling for something a bit summery. I couldn't help it - so much snow and rain begin to wear you down. So I thought some tacos would fix the winter funk. And steak tacos are extra yummy.

Marinated Skirt Steak Tacos
1 skirt steak - about 1.5 pounds
1/4 cup fresh lime juice
1/4 cup canola oil
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon white vinegar
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon ground cumin, divided
1 teaspoon ground ancho chili powder, divided
Whole wheat tortillas
Low fat sour cream
Fresh broccoli slaw
Tomatoes
Red onions
Shredded lettuce
Low fat shredded cheese
Karen's Salsa with Fresh Cilantro or Salsa Verde

Remove membrane from skirt steak. Marinate overnight in bag with juice, vinegar, oil, soy sauce, half of the cumin and ancho chili powder. Heat stovetop grill until it's nice and hot. Cut steak into manageable sizes and sear quickly for a couple of minutes on each side. Remove steak and let it rest. Sprinkle the remaining cumin and ancho powder on the meat. Slice thinly against the grain and serve on tortilla with your favorite taco fixings.

Spicy Beef Chili

My mother used to make chili often, but I have no idea what her recipe was. It's all lost now, and that is a sad thing. But back then when she was alive and I was young her chili didn't impress me at all. It had big scary looking beans in a rather smooth meat sauce and a flavor that was not exactly memorable. Now I crave something spicy and beefy and chili is the obvious choice. Since I don't have my mom's recipe to tinker with, I made my own. The beans are too valuable nutritionally to take away, so I did some fancy footwork to make them less obtrusive.

Spicy Beef Chili

2 pounds Ground beef
1 medium Onion chopped
3 cloves Garlic minced
1 can (4 oz) Mild green chiles diced
1 can (28 oz) Crushed tomatoes
1 can (8 oz) Tomato sauce
1 tablespoon Ground cumin

3 tablespoons mixed ground chiles:

    2 teaspoons Ground Ancho pepper;
    2 teaspoons Ground Anaheim pepper;
    2 teaspoons Ground Chipotle pepper; 
    1/4 teaspoon Ground Cayenne pepper;

    or

    3 tablespoons your favorite chili powder
1/2 teaspoon Kosher Salt
1 tablespoon Canola Oil
1 can (16 oz) Pinto beans drained
 

Rinse and drain pinto beans and pulse once or twice in a food processor to break them up. Set beans aside. Saute onion in canola oil until just golden. Add minced garlic and continue to saute for one minute and remove from pot. Brown ground beef in pot and drain fat. Combine all ingredients back into pot and allow to heat for an hour. Serve with shredded cheddar cheese and bread, or Cincinnati-style with cheese and onions over spaghetti. You can also serve it on brown rice. Garnish with sour cream if desired.

Carne Adovada

Something strange is happening to my taste buds. There was a time when they were compliant inhabitants on my tongue. But I think they were plotting a revolution and decided to take over. Maybe they are noticing my new eating habits and have decided that the lack of sugar and refined carbohydrates should be replaced by heat. Lots of heat. They are also controlling my mind. I found myself purchasing a large bag of dried chiles from The Spice House mindlessly obeying the prodding of my tastebuds. Must buy chiles! Must buy chiles! Time to cook something spicy from south of the border.

Carne Adovada
2-3 pounds pork shoulder trimmed of fat and cut into 2 inch cubes
16 dried Anaheim or Ancho chiles
2 cups low sodium chicken broth
1 medium onion, cut in quarters
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 teaspoons dried Mexican oregano
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 300°F. Spread chiles on a large baking sheet and toast gently in the oven for about 5-6 minutes until fragrant. Once they are cooled, remove stems and seeds and crush into a blender. Add broth, onion, garlic and seasonings into blender and puree into a red paste. Place pork cubes in a dutch oven or slow cooker and pour chili paste over and combine. Cook slowly in the oven at 325°F for at least three to four hours, or in slow cooker set on high for 4-6 hours (or set on low for 8 hours). The longer the pork slowly braises, the more tender it becomes. When done (when you can't stand waiting any longer), skim off all fat from the surface, stir and serve pork on whole grain tortillas with brown rice, chopped onions and shredded cabbage.

Salsa Verde

The last of the fresh vegetables are coming in from friends and family who have gardens. It won't be long before the vegetable stand down the road shuts down until next year. My thanks to everyone who shared their green thumb with me - Steve and Audrey for the cucumbers, tomatoes and chili peppers, Burt for the tomatillos. Actually I had never eaten a tomatillo before. But last weekend I received a whole bag, so I decided to improvise a nice salsa verde.

Salsa Verde
2 pounds fresh tomatillos
4 jalapeño peppers
1 large onion, diced
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
2 tablespoons lime juice
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
fresh ground black pepper to taste

Remove stems from peppers, slice and remove pith and seeds. (This will make the salsa mild. If you want extra heat, leave the pepper intact) Slice the pepper and put in a food processor. Set aside. Remove outer papery skin from tomatillos and rinse well under lots of warm water to remove the sticky film. Put into a sauce pan and fill with water to two inches above the vegetables and bring to a boil. Turn down heat and simmer tomatillos for about five minutes. When they are done, remove from the water and put them into the food processor with the lime juice, cumin, salt and sugar. Pulse until the salsa is thick and lumpy. (You can also use a hand blender in a mixing bowl, pureeing to a thick consistency.) Add onions, cilantro and pepper and chill. Serve with chips or over grilled meats.

Salsa with Fresh Cilantro

Local Mexican restaurant Compadres serves up the most delicious salsa. Never before did I have a salsa that kept me dipping in the bowl and wanting more. I often went there begging for takeout salsa like a junkie looking for a fix and having it packaged with fresh cooked tortilla chips for munching at home. I began to search everywhere for an equally good jarred salsa. I opened jar after jar of flat tasting cooked tomato chunks that didn't make my tongue happy at all. So I started experimenting, and came up with this delicious salsa. Compadres is still a favorite, but this one makes my tongue cry for mama!

Salsa with Fresh Cilantro
2 14.5-ounce cans of whole peeled tomatoes
1 14.5-ounce can of diced tomatoes with jalapeños
1 14.5-ounce can of diced tomatoes with green chilies
1 large yellow onion, diced
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon Goya hot sauce
1 bunch fresh cilantro
fresh ground black pepper

Combine all ingredients except onion and cilantro. Blend with hand blender until salsa is preferred consistency (I like mine to be on the smooth side). Add diced onions and chopped cilantro and chill for several hours to blend the flavors.