Cilantro Lime Rice and Beans

I really like burritos, but unfortunately they have a lot of carbs. Not that I am scared of carbs, but the tortilla typically will hold 200+ calories--all carbs. So while I was at Barbacoa one day I noticed they offered a "burrito bowl". This intrigued me as it had all the goodness of the burrito, but without the tortilla. So one day I thought to make my own "burrito bowl" with cilantro lime rice and beans (not refried). These are the recipes that I have come up with.

Yatyk's Pinto Beans

In a saucepan combine (leave out the bullion for vegetarian):
1 15 oz can of Pinto beans (drained and rinsed. I mash 2-3 Tbsp to help thicken the liquid.)
3/4 C water
2-4 Tbsp Salsa (I use Tostito's brand. After 14 years of marriage Jen finally mentioned that she didn't like Pace--get a rope).

Bring the above to a boil and then reduce to a simmer. Cook until the liquid is reduced to the desired consistency. Serve warm over Cilantro-Lime Rice.

Cilantro-Lime Rice

2 C Water
1 C White Rice
1-2 Tbsp Garlic--minced
3/4 tsp Salt
Sprig of Cilantro or dried cilantro

Bring the above to a boil, and then reduce and simmer for 15 minutes or until fully cooked and the water absorbed.

To the cooked rice mix in:
2-4 Tbsp Chopped Cilantro (to your tastes)
3-4 Tbsp Lime Juice (to your tastes)

Putting it together
Rice on bottom, topped by the beans. To the rice and beans I add cheese, sour cream, and salsa. Serves 2 easily, 3 with smaller portions. (Don't try to feed 4 on this recipe as it always leaves me wanting more when I do.)

Mark's Buffalo Wings

I love chicken wings. This recipe is one that I adapted to fit my needs and in an attempt to replicate the wings from Ruby River (which are my favorite) that include Grape Jam in their recipe.

Mark's Hot Wings

3 lbs of Drummets (the upper portion of the wing, more meat, less fat)
4 Tbsp Butter
1 Tbsp Grape Jelly
2 tsp Cider Vinegar
1/2 C Louisiana Hot Sauce (I prefer Western Family or Crystals, though Frank's is fine)
0-2 Tbsp Tabasco Sauce (add to your heat preference)

Dashes of Habenero Tabasco Sauce for extra heat if you choose (optional)

Bake the drummets per the instructions on the package. I usually strip off most of the larger fat pads, but keep some of the skin on. I bake them, rather than fry them, to cut down on the amount of oil in the recipe.

While the chicken is baking, in a medium sauce pan melt the butter and then add all of the other ingredients and stir until the jam is disolved. I add a bit of cornstarch to thicken the sauce. If you don't have grape jelly on hand, I have seen other recipes use 1 Tbsp of Brown Sugar.

I have marinated the ckicken in the Louisiana style hot sauce prior to baking to give the meat a little more flavor, but it is up to you.

The only problem with this recipe is that as the sauce cools, the butter solidifies, making a slighly unpleasant texture when eating the wings cold. Note sure how to solve this problem.

Sourdough Bread

Most of the recipes that I have found online start with a small amount of sponge and then build it to a full size loaf using additional water. My recipe is an adaptation on how my Mom and Grandma make their loaves. Rather than building our dough from a small amount of starter, my Mom, Grandma, and myself make our sponge with all the liquid in the final dough, and then add enough flour and salt to make the final dough. The main adaptation that I use over my Mom and Grandma is that I use bread flour rather than All-purpose flour, I cook it for a shorter period of time at a higher temperature, and that I take up to 3 days to make it (depending upon when I start the sponge). Every time I make my sponge I reserve 2 C for future use. This way I always know how much I put in to begin the process, and how much to take out once the new sponge is complete.

Prepare the Sponge

Combine your reserved sponge (2 C) with:

4 C Water, warm
5 C Bread Flour

(My Mom and Grandma use a 1:1 ratio of measured water to flour. The above ratio is more a 1:1 ratio when the ingredients are weighed out. It makes for a slightly stiffer sponge and gives the yeast and bacteria (flavor givers) more to feed on over the time that I give the sponge to ferment).

Mix until relatively smooth (small lumps are fine). Try to incorporate as much air as you can. Let stand and ferment at room temperature until very bubbly (3-4 hours). After about 4 hours cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 12-24 hours. This refrigeration retards the growth of the yeast, while giving the good flavor-enhancing bacteria time to work. I have found that this gives my bread a sweeter and more pungent sour taste than if I immediately took the sponge and made bread.

Dough Time

The next day beat down your sponge and remove your starter reserve (2 C). Place the remaining sponge in your mixer and add the following:

2 1/2 Tsp Salt
4 C Bread flour

Using your mixers dough hook kneed the above until it is thoroughly combined (5 minutes). It will still be a moist and sticky dough. Let stand for 5 minutes to allow the flour to become fully hydrated.

Next slowly add an additional 1-2 C of bread flour until your dough is slightly tacky to the touch but does not stick to the sides or bottom of the bowl while kneading.

Once you have achieved a slightly tacky dough remove from mixer and let rest for 5 minutes. After the dough has rested I kneed by hand for an additional 3-5 minutes to form a nice stiff dough.

Place dough in a lightly greased bowl and let rise until it has doubled in size. Once doubled punch the dough down and kneed into a new ball. At this point you can either let the dough rise a second time (more flavor without the overnight rest), or you can form into loaves.

After the first or second rise form the dough into the desired shape. I usually make 3 1.5lb rectangular loaves (loaf pans). Let the dough rise until it is about an inch above the top of the loaf pan, or if making round loads until it has doubled in size.

Baking

If baking in metal loaf pans:
In an oven safe pan, boil 1-2 Cups of water and once boiling place at the bottom of the oven. Place the loaves on a middle shelf and turn the oven on to 375° F. After the oven has reached 375° use a spray bottle to spray the bottom and sides of the oven with water to generate steam. Do this again after 5 minutes and then again 5 minutes later. Total time baking at 375° will be 40-45 minutes. Remove loaves from pans and place on a cooling rack for at least 30 minutes, I prefer an hour.

If baking round loaves:
Cut a # sigh using a sharp oiled knife, being careful not to deflate the dough. In an oven safe pan, boil 1-2 Cups of water and once boiling place at the bottom of the oven. Place the loaves on middle shelf and turn the oven on to 450° F. After the oven has reached 450° use a spray bottle to spray the bottom and sides of the oven with water to generate steam. Do this again after 5 minutes and then again 5 minutes later. Total time baking at 450° will be 30 minutes After 30 minutes at 450° remove the pan of water and change the oven temperature to 375° and then cook the loaves an additional 5 to 10 minutes.

As an aside. If I have only allowed the dough to rise one time and do not have time to let the loaves rise, bake, and then cool (approximately 4 hours) I will spray the newly formed loaves with oil, cover loosely with plastic wrap, and then refrigerate overnight. I then complete the rise the next day and then cook as above. I use this modification when I make my loaves in the middle of the week, over 3 days. I make the sponge after work on the 1st day, make the dough, let it rise the 1st time, and form the loaves on the 2nd day. And then on the 3rd day I let the dough rise in the pans and bake the loaves and let them cool. I actually prefer this method over the 2 day method as it gives me a slightly moister, flavorful loaf.

Grandma Kiser's Sourdough Pancakes

Some 50 years ago my Grandma Kiser made her own sourdough starter, and since then has been happily making some of the best bread and other things sourdough. Being that she lives in Colorado and does not have the naturally occuring bacteria that occurs in San Francisco, her sourdough bread is much milder than that found in San Francisco. Nevertheless, time spent at Grandma's ranch would not be the same without regular doses of her bread and sourdough pancakes.

Grandma Kiser had a stroke this past year towards the end of June/ start of July. One of the first things she did was to make sure that my Mom prepared a large batch of sourdough pancake batter for the local LDS 4th of July breakfast. Below is the recipe that I received from my GMa several years ago. It is a bit different than that of my Mom's, which can be found here.

Prepare your Sponge

The night before, in a plastic or glass bowl, mix your reserved starter with

3 C Water
3 C All-purpose flour

Mix well until only small lumps are left. Incorporate as much air as you can into the mixture. I cover mine loosely with plastic wrap to prevent crusting over.

Pancake Batter

The next morning beat down the spnge and remove your starter reserve (equal amount as to what you put in the previous night) and return reserve to the refrigerator.

To the remaining sponge (about 4 Cups) add:

2 Eggs, beaten
3 Tbsp Oil

Mix this well. Let rest.

In a seperate bowl combine the following:

3 Tbsp Sugar
1 Tsp Salt
1 Tsp Baking Soda

Sprinkle the sugar mixture over the batter and then fold in trying to incorporate as much air as possible. Let rest for at least 15 minutes. The batter is ready when the batter is begins to inflate and is filled with tiny air bubbles.

Cook over a hot griddle (350° - 400° F)

Serve with butter and your favorite syrup. I like mine with 100% pure maple syrup. Jen likes her's with only butter.

My Mom's recipe is slightly different as it uses powdered milk, less suger and salt, and more oil. Both are equally good, but I prefer the recipe above, as do my kids (though they love sourdough bread, they much prefer "regular" pancakes to sourdough pancakes).

Chicken Marsala

The recipe below has quickly become one of Jen's and my favorites.

Marsala-Mushroom Sauce

2 Tbsp Olive Oil
2 Slices Prosciutto, diced
1 Shallot, diced
4 Tbsp Butter
8 oz of fresh mushrooms, sliced
1/2 C Marsala Wine
1 1/2 C Chicken Stock
2 Tbsp Cornstarch
2 Tbsp Heavy Cream
Salt and Pepper to Taste
Parsley

In a medium sauce pan brown the prosciutto in the olive oil. Next add the shallots and cook till tender (2-3 minutes). When tender add the 4 Tbsp of butter and mushrooms. Cook mushrooms till tender, 3-4 minutes.

Once the mushrooms are tender add the marsala wine to the pan and deglaze. Reduce the marsala wine for 3-4 minutes or until syrupy. While the wine is reducing, mix the cornstarch and chicken stock together till the cornstarch is dissolved.

Once the marsala wine is reduced, add the chicken stock and bring to a boil. Once the liquid boils, reduce the heat and simmer for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. After 5 minutes stir in the 2Tbsp of Heavy Cream and simmer for an additional 2 minutes.

Add salt and pepper to taste. Top with parsley as a garnish.

Grilled Chicken

Season 4 Chicken Breasts with your favorite italian seasonings. I usually use: salt, pepper, garlic, and oregano. Grill till done.

Serving

Plate your chicken and garlic mashed potatoes and then spoon the sauce over both.

The last time I made this I forgot to buy the heavy cream. As a substitute I mixed 2 Tbsp sour cream with a 1 Tbsp of milk. I added it to the sauce and couldn't taste a huge difference.

Mom's Famous Pie Crust Recipe

So while spending some time with my Mom at GMa Kiser's ranch, I had her teach me how to make her pie crust. So here is the recipe:

This much flour
a little salt
a little sugar
and some shortening

Mix together until it resembles dirt that is ready to plant, or in otherwords so that when it is squeezed in your hand it holds its shape, but falls apart when pressed.

Then add cold water. Start with 3 Tbsp (though my mom didn't measure it and it didn't look like 3 Tbsp) and then slowly add more water till it comes together and holds its shape. This will actually be a very small amount of water and will look like you haven't put in enough, but will come together as you massage it.

This makes one pie crust.

This is my rough guess as to how much Mom actually used.

1-1⅓ cup sifted flour
½ - ⅔ cup shortening
1 t sugar
¼ t of salt
Mix the above together then slowly add cold water, approximately 3 tbsp, but be careful that you do not put in too much.