Garlicky White Rice

"March's Monthly Featured Chef : Rick Bayless", the theme for this week at I Heart Cooking Clubs (IHCC).  Rick Bayless was one of the featured chefs at IHCC back in 2012, and the last recipe of his which I've tried was in 2013. Wow, it has been that long!  

I was planning on making chili, and was browsing thru Rick Bayless's website for a simple recipe that would go with the chili. Found his simple and easy Garlicky White Rice, which sounds good with the magic word "garlicky!"! LOL! We love garlic, and any dish which has "garlicky" in it, is a winner in our books! Chili served over garlicky white rice, sounds good to me!

,

I've made half a recipe since I'm making it for my family of four. Medium grain rice is used. Heat some oil in an ovenproof pot, saute the chopped onions and rice together for 5-7 minutes, until the rice turn milky-white, the chopped garlic is then added, stir to combine. I have added one bay leaf. Pour in the hot stock or water, (I've used chicken stock), with a tablespoon of lime juice. Cover and bake in a preheated oven at 350 degrees for 25 minutes. 

Instructions in the recipe says to spread the cooked rice on a baking sheet to cool them, and heat up when needed by covering the baking sheet with foil and reheat in the oven to warm the rice. I have however omitted this step (I was pretty lazy!). 15 minutes after the rice has cooked, I gently fluff the rice with a pair of chopsticks, and then transfer the rice into the rice cooker pot,  press the keep warm function. It will stay warm for hours.

The rice is really nice, but I would prefer if there are more garlic, as I can taste and smell the onions more than the garlic. The next time, I would use a small onion, as I have used a medium sized one for this. And for a more garlic flavour, I was thinking of  some chopped garlic, fried till golden and crispy, then mix them in with the cooked rice, that would be heavenly garlicky fragrant! But overall, this is a lovely rice dish, my family likes it (there's no leftovers!), and it goes really well with the delicious chili, one of Nigella's recipe. Will be sharing the chili recipe in our coming potluck week. 

Garlicky White Rice
(source from rickbayless.com)
6cups chicken broth or water
Salt
1/3cup vegetable oil
4 1/2cups medium-grain white rice
1large white onion, diced
6 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
3tablespoons fresh lime juice
Generous ½ cup chopped parsley

Heat the broth or water in a small saucepan until steaming; stir in 2 ¼ teaspoons of salt if using unsalted broth, 1 ½ teaspoons if using salted broth. Cover and keep warm.
Heat the oven to 350 degrees.In a large (6-quart), heavy Dutch oven or saucepan with a tight fitting lid, heat the oil over medium. Add the rice and onion and stir almost continuously for a minute or so. Continue to fry the rice and onion, stirring occasionally, until the rice has turned milky-white, 7 to 8 minutes. Stir in the chopped garlic.
Add the lime juice to the simmering broth and immediately add the broth to the rice. Scrape any stray kernels from the sides of the pot, cover and bake in the oven for 25 minutes.
Remove the pot from the oven, and gently spread the rice out on a rimmed baking sheet. Cooling the rice completely will ensure that it doesn’t overcook. When it’s time to serve to your guests, cover the baking sheet with foil and reheat in a 325 degree oven until the rice is warm. Scoop the rice into a shallow serving dish, garnish with the chopped parsley and serve immediately.

I'm linking this post with I Heart Cooking Clubs (IHCC), theme for this week,

March's Monthly Featured Chef : Rick Bayless

Spicy Edamame Dip

I'm submitting this post to two events, firstly, Little Thumbs Up, hosted by Mich from Piece of Cake, where the ingredient for this month is Soya Beans. The second event is with I Heart Cooking Clubs, the theme for this week is October Potluck, where we can make any recipe from any of our previous featured chefs. And this Spicy Edamame Dip recipe is from one of our previous featured chef, Rick Bayless. This is my second link with IHCC this week! 

Usually when Edamame Beans are mentioned, the first thing that came to mind are the beans still in their pods, steamed and seasoned, served at Japanese restaurants. Edamame beans are young soya beans usually still in their pods, the beans are soft and edible, unlike the mature beans which are hard and dry, used to make soy milk and tofu. These young pods are usually sold frozen and all you have to do is thaw them, either steam or boiled in hot water still in their pods or remove the pods, for  a few minutes until tender. 

Edamame beans are great in stir-fries and can be added to fried rice. And it is delicious cooked with tofu, which I have posted in my older post, Spicy Tofu and Edamame Beans. 

If you love eating hummus, and have not tried making one with edamame beans before, then I urge you to try it! It is delicious!

Edamame Beans

Ingredients for the dip; olive oil, fresh cilantro, cayenne powder, cumin powder, coriander powder, salt, lime juice, toasted garlic, edamame beans (remove the pods, boil the beans in salted boiling water until tender, about 5 minutes), retain some water to be used later.

Process all the ingredients in the food processor, adding some water from the boiled edamame beans until you get the consistency you like. I have added in about a pinch more of the spices, salt and lime juice, and about 1/3 cup of cilantro leaves, adjust according to taste.

Look at the lovely Edamame Dip. It is not spicy at all! Just plain delicious! And a healthy snack!

I have two pieces of Wholemeal Tortilla Wraps which I wanted to clear. I toasted them in a dry pan over low heat on both sides until crispy. Cut them to triangles and serve with the Spicy Edamame Dip. You can serve the dip with fresh cut vegetables. 

This is really good! I was standing and enjoying myself eating a few pieces of the tortilla crisp dipped in the yummy hummus (very addictive!), until I remember...

.......  the Edamame beans which I've reserved earlier. I always forget my garnishes!

Note : Recipe says this serves 10!  Maybe, if you are serving as a starter! To me it serves two! Or one, if you are eating this as a meal for lunch, like me! wink!

Spicy Edamame Dip
(adapted from Rick Bayless, here)
2 garlic cloves, unpeeled
1 cup shelled edamame beans (fresh green soy beans)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground coriander
1/4 teaspoon cayenne powder
1/8 teaspoon ground cumin
3 tablespoons olive oil
1/8 cup fresh lime juice
1/8 cup chopped fresh cilantro
fresh cut vegetable, for dipping
pita bread, cut in wedges, for dipping

1. In a dry skillet over medium heat and turning frequently, roast the garlic until softened, about 15 minutes, they will be dark in some spots; let them cool and remove the skins.
2. In salted water to cover, simmer the edamame until they are tender, about 5 minutes; drain, reserving 1/3 cup of the boiling water, and set aside to cool.
3. In a food processor or blender, coarsely chop the peeled garlic.
4. Add the drained edamame, salt, coriander, cayenne, and cumin, and process until smooth, adding as much of the reserved cooking water as necessary to make a puree.
5. Add the oil, lime juice, and cilantro, and pulse to combine.
6. Place the dip in a serving dish, and serve with vegetable and pita wedge dippers.

This post is linked to :

This post is linked to the event, Little Thumbs up organised by Doreen from my little favourite DIY and Zoe of Bake for Happy Kids, hosted by Mich of Piece of Cake at this post.

Ingredient for this month is Soy Beans

and to I Heart Cooking Clubs (IHCC), for the theme of this week "October Potluck". 

and I'm sharing this post with :

See Ya In The Gumbo @ Ms. enPlace

Thank You, Rick : IHCC

Adios y Gracias, Rick!  Goodbye and Thank you, Rick! I Heart Cooking Clubs (IHCC) has been cooking from chef Rick Bayless's recipes for the past six months and it is time to say goodbye! We will be starting with another chef for the next 6 months.

My last recipe cooking from Rick ends with this "Creamy Chicken and Greens with Roasted Jalapenos" and I've listed out six of my most favourite recipes from Rick Bayless that I've tried out for the past six months. I wanted to choose only five, but ended up with six instead!

For the recipe, you may get it from here.
This recipes uses poblanos chiles, but since I could not find any poblanos and I have about 6 medium jalapenos left, I used that instead. For the past six months that I have been cooking from Rick Bayless's recipes, this is my least favourite. Somehow, it is just not for me. Just as the name of the recipe says, this is creamy, and tasty too and may be alright for some, like the hubby, he had a second helping! But, hey, considering that this is the only dish that I am not crazy about among all the dishes that I've tried, Rick Bayless is definitely in the list of one of my favourite new-found chefs!

Let's take a look at my favourites:

Here are my six favorites :

Fire-Roasted Tomato Salsa

Love this salsa! It is so simple, yet so full of flavour. First time that I've made salsa and love it. Great with eggs, sandwiches, tortilla chips and just about anything.

Cilantro-Green Chile Chimichurri

This lovely pesto is just so delicious! I finished almost all of it by spreading it on bread, yums! So little ingredients that packed so much taste and flavour! One other thing I've learnt is that Mexican cuisine uses lots of cilantro, and since I'm a cilantro fan, it suits me just fine!

Picadillo Tacos

Another delicious recipe from Rick Bayless. This is a total winner with my kids! The salty olives with the sweet raisins, salsa and minced meat, makes the filling absolutely delicious! 

Moroccan Meatballs in Tomato Sauce

These meatballs are simple delicious! They are chewy and very tasty, along with the cumin scented sauce, is so good eaten over pasta!

Green Chile and Cheese Cornbread

I am a fan of cornbread and these are downright YUMMY! If you love cornbread, you should really give this a try!

Mango Guacomole

I have never made any guacomole before this! And I'm totally into guacomole now! All the wonderful flavours from the avocado, lime, mango, onions, chillies and corianders comes together in one amazing mix! Eaten with tortilla chips is so addictive! 

I have learnt a little more about Mexican Cuisine, which is totally something new to me before this. Sourcing for ingredients like chorizo, poblanos and chipotle among other things is really a challenge, as they are not easily available over here. One thing that I've learnt from these 6 months is that roasted peppers and garlic smells incredibly good! There are lots of other recipes that are new and unfamiliar to me, but in time, hopefully I'll find some time to cover just that. Thank you, Chef Rick Bayless, for the past six delicious months! 

IHCC will be cooking with another chef, Madhur Jaffrey starting from October. We are going for Indian Cuisine and I am pretty excited, as Indian Cuisine is one of my favourites. My spices are all stock up and ready to go!

To view other yummies from my friends, please do drop by IHCC and  if you are interested to join us, check out the Welcome Page for the full details.

Rustic Red Sauced Eggs and Crispy Potatoes : IHCC

"What's In Your Lunchbox???" That's the theme at I Heart Cooking Clubs (IHCC) where we are cooking from Rick Bayless's recipes until end of September. So, what's for lunch??? A simple recipe from Rick Bayless that I knew my kids would enjoy for their lunch. Two of my kids favourites, eggs and potatoes!! Already a winner for sure with just these two ingredients!

This is my lunch, Rustic Red Sauced Eggs with Crispy Potatoes. Well the potatoes are not crispy, they are steamed and then fried till brown all over before the beaten eggs are poured over and gently fried scrambled-like style to create large curds. They are then served topped with Roasted Tomato Salsa, from my previous post. 

A delicious, easy and simple lunch. The salsa is a little spicy and is perfect with the eggs and potatoes, great with some cucumber and juicy cherry tomatoes.

My kids' lunchbox. The salsa is a little spicy for them, so they had some Honey Barbecue Baked Beans, which I made that same morning, to go with the eggs and potatoes. Some toasted garlic bread, slices of fresh cucumber and cherry tomatoes, completes their lunch box. They love the eggs and potatoes and already requested me to make this again!

Have not decided what to have for lunch yet? Please do drop by I Heart Cooking Clubs (IHCC) to see "What's In Your Lunchbox?", you might find what you are looking for!

Rustic Red Sauced Eggs and Crispy Potatoes

(source : Fronterafiesta, Rick Bayless)
Serves 4
2 cups diced red potatoes (about 1/2-inch dice)
1-1/2 tablespoons olive oil
6 large eggs
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 to 1 cup Frontera Roasted Tomato Salsa or Frontera Jalapeno Salsa (I use my homemade Roasted Tomato Salsa)
2 to 3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro

1. Steam the potatoes in a steamer set over boiling water in a covered medium-size saucepan until tender, 8 to 10 minutes. Remove potates from the steamer.
2. Heat the oil in a large (10 to 12-inch), well-seasoned or nonstick skillet over medium. Add the potatoes and fry until golden on all sides, about 5 minutes.
3. Beat the eggs with the salt and 1/4 cup of water in a medium bowl. Add the eggs to the skillet, cook, stirring gently to create large curds, until soft set, about 2 minutes. Serve immediately topped with generous spoonfuls of the salsa and a sprinkling of cilantro.

Fire-Roasted Tomato Salsa

"Dia de Independencia" is this week's theme at I Heart Cooking Clubs (IHCC) , where we are cooking up a feast to celebrate Mexican Independence Day! 

I've made some salsa! Simply because, when I think of Mexico, one of the things that comes to mind is Salsa! And I have never tried making my own before, I bought a bottle of salsa a couple of months ago for my Mexican cooking, and I wonder why did I not make it earlier, when it is so simple, easy and taste absolutely delish when homemade! And definitely much cheaper to make your own! 

When I read the instructions for making Fire-Roasted Tomato Salsa, it seems easy enough! The garlic cloves and jalapenos are being roasted till brownish all over and garlic are tender and soft. Love the smell of the roasting jalapenos and garlic!

The garlic and jalapenos are then thrown into the food processor, whiz to chop and added in the rest of the ingredients, processed to a coarse slightly chunky puree, simple, quick and very easy! Season to taste with some salt and lime juice. The result is a wonderful, tasty and delicious salsa with the spiciness of the jalapenos and also I have used a can of diced tomatoes with mild peppers, a superb choice! This is a little too spicy for my kids, so I get to enjoy it all to myself! This salsa is great eaten with anything. I ate this yummy salsa with another of Rick Bayless's yummy recipe, that's for next week. Craving for some salsa, give this a try!

This post is linked to IHCC, where we are cooking from Rick Bayless's recipes. To view the fiesta menu, hop on over! 

I'm sharing this too with :
Recipe Box hosted by Bizzy Bakes

Fire-Roasted Tomato Salsa

(source : Fronterafiesta, Rick Bayless)

Makes about 1-1/2 cups

1 to 2 fresh jalapeno chiles

3 garlic cloves, unpeeled

1 (15-ounce) can diced tomatoes in juice, preferably fire roasted

1/4 cup (loosely packed) chopped fresh cilantro

2 tablespoons fresh lime juice

salt

1. Roast the chiles and garlic. In a small ungreased skillet over medium heat, roast the chiles and garlic, turning regularly, until they are soft and blotchy brown, about 10 minutes for the chiles, 15 minutes for the garlic. Cool until handleable, then pull the stems off the chiles and roughly chop. Peel the skin off the garlic. Scoop into a food processor and pulse until quite finely chopped.
2. Finish the salsa. Add the tomatoes with their juice. Re-cover and pulse until you have a coarse puree. Scrape into a serving dish. Stir in the cilantro and lime juice. Taste and season with salt, usually about 1/2 teaspoon. Your're ready to serve.

Honey Barbecue Baked Beans : IHCC

It's Esta Rojo! at I Heart Cooking Clubs (IHCC) for this week. It's all about red and shades of red, where we are cooking from Rick Bayless's recipes until end of September.

I have been cooking for the past five months plus now, from Rick Bayless's recipes and only realized that Rick Bayless is an American and not a Mexican! I was really, really surprised, as I have always thought of him as a Mexican guy! I was busy sourcing for his delicious recipes, when it suddenly hit me, that I know next to nothing at all about him, and I only watched two or three of his shows. So I googled for more info and was really surprised to find out that he was born in Oklahoma and his family has no roots at all in Mexico. You may read more about him from Wikipedia.

Since this week's theme is "red", I decided to make Chipotle Honey Barbecued Baked Beans which I  have bookmarked for months. I bought a can of Pinto beans for this recipe months ago. The recipe calls for smoked bacon, but since I do not have that, I use canned luncheon meat, I know it is not the same, but it tastes just as delicious when baked together with the beans. Besides, luncheon meat is great with canned  baked beans in tomato sauce. This recipe also calls for Chipotle Hot Sauce, but I just use what I had, a small bottle of my homemade Rick Bayless Hot Sauce, which I made months ago, and just great for this recipe.

The luncheon meat, onions and red bell pepper are stir-fried, then the rest of the ingredients are added in. I made half a recipe, using only one can of pinto beans and I find that I needed to use the full amount of honey, just adjust to your taste accordingly. And since I do not have a dutch oven, I used a baking dish to bake the beans in the oven. It took about  1-1/4 hours for the sauce to thicken.

And the result is a delicious bowl of baked beans!

Love the vibrant deep rich colour! All the flavours came through really yummy. It is mildly spicy, my son commented on that, but he finished a small bowl, saying that it was good. I served this with another of Rick Bayless's yummies, but that's for another week!

Yum!

I'll be visiting my friends at I Heart Cooking Clubs (IHCC) to see other delicious "Red" yummies from Rick Bayless's wonderful recipes, come join me and see what the others have came up with, who knows, you might just be inspired to try on some Mexican cooking!

I'm sharing this with :

Full Plate Thursday hosted by Miz Helen's Country Cottage

Recipe Box hosted by Bizzy Bakes

 Chipotle Honey Barbecue Baked Beans
(source from : Fronterafiesta, Rick Bayless)
4 thick slices smoked bacon, diced ( I use luncheon meat)
1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1 sweet onion, chopped
1 can (6 ounces) tomato paste
3 tablespoons Frontera Chipotle Hot Sauce (I use my homemade RB Hot Sauce)
3 tablespoons honey
1-1/2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon salt
3 cans (15 ounces each) pinto beans, drained and rinsed

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Cook bacon, red pepper and onion in small Dutch oven or ovenproof saucepan over medium heat, stirring constantly, until onion is crisp-tender, about 5 minutes.
2. Stir in 2 cups water, tomato paste, hot sauce, honey, Worcestershire sauce and salt. Mix well. Stir in the beans. Bake, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until beans are nicely glazed and pan juices thickened, about 1 hour. Serve hot.

Notes : These beans are best when made a day or two in advance and then reheated before serving. Reheat in a 350 degrees oven about 45 minutes.

Sweet and Spicy Shrimps (Mexican Style) : IHCC

This week is "Potluck" week at I Heart Cooking Clubs (IHCC), where we are currently cooking from chef Rick Bayless's recipes. I have bookmarked more than a dozen recipe of Rick Bayless's to try all these months and this Sweet and Spicy Shrimps is one of them. This is so easy and quick to cook, and most important, this is delicious!

Sweet and Spicy Shrimps (we usually call these Prawns, over here)

The recipe calls for Frontera Chipotle Salsa or Frontera Guajillo Salsa, I do not have either of these. What I  have was some leftover La Costena Chipotle Salsa (chunky) and another bottle of Chipotle Salsa (paste). The recipes requires the salsa to be pureed in a blender and press through a medium mesh strainer. Since I have only about 1/3 bottle of the chunky salsa, I pureed that and mix with about half a bottle of the other chipotle salsa (paste). I did not bother pressing the mixture through the strainer. The recipe uses honey to sweetened the sauce, I added in a couple of tablespoons of honey and I still can't taste the sweetness at all, so I added in about 1 teaspoon of sugar, and it was perfect. 

Sweet and Spicy Shrimps, just as it is called, it is sweet and spicy, though for me, the spiciness is rather mild. The tastes all blend together really well, sour, sweet, salty and spicy. An easy and quick dish to put together and delicious too!

I had this with some white rice, and it was good! The taste is similar to our local sambal, only less spicy. 

This is linked to I Heart Cooking Clubs (IHCC), where we are cooking from Rick Bayless's recipes.

Sweet and Spicy Shrimp

(source from : Fronterafiesta, Rick Bayless)

Serves 4

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 jar (16 ounces) Frontera Chipotle Salsa or Frontera Guajillo Salsa

1-1/2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar

1 tablespoon honey or more to taste

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 pound medium-large (about 24) shrimpm, peeled and deveined with last segment of tail left intact

thinly sliced red onion, fresh cilantro to garnish

1. Puree the salsa in a blender and press through a medium mesh strainer into a bowl. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet (I prefer a 12-inch non-stick skillet) over medium. Add the salsa and cook, stirring frequently, until reduced to the consistency of tomato paste (it should have reduced enough for the oil to have risen, leaving a sheen on the surface), 3 or 4 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the vinegar. Taste and season with honey and salt, it should taste slightly salty and have a hint of sweetness.
2. Stir the shrimp into the cooked salsa (there should be just enough to coat everything lightly) and return the pan to the medium heat. Cook, stirring constanly, until the shrimp are just barely cooked through (cut open a shrimp to see that it has turned from translucent to opaque white), about 3 minutes. Scoop onto a platter and let cool to room temperature. In a small strainer, rinsed the sliced onion under cold water and shake until nearly dry. Sprinkle over the shrimp along with the cilantro leaves, and the dish is ready to serve.

Fresh Melon Cooler : IHCC

Wanna join me at the beach? Well, hop on over to I Heart Cooking Clubs (IHCC) where we are heading to the beach for some fun and of course, we are bringing something delicious, made and inspired from Rick Bayless's recipes.  Our theme for this week is "Beach Bum". Weather is pretty crazy these last few weeks, there's no rain for almost three weeks, it is extremely hot and heading to the beach to cool off is a pretty tempting idea!

Would you like a glass of this cool, refreshing watermelon cooler? 

I thought you might!! Go on...take a long slurp!!  :)

This is so refreshing and yummy! I'm drinking this, picturing myself on a beautiful sandy beach, lounging on a comfortable beach lounge chair with a big giant top umbrella to keep off the sun, overlooking the calm blue sea, with the breeze blowing, without a thought to anything, except to just enjoy the moment, while slurping this lovely Fresh Melon Cooler, with a big cool jug right on the beach table next to me. And a plate of crispy cheezy Tortillas chips! Such bliss! And, Rick Bayless is somewhere nearby, preparing some delicious lip-smacking Mexican barbecue, and myself eagerly waiting, to savour and satisfy my hungry tummy!  hahahaha!!  Gosh! Dream on! (but, secretly wishing it will come true!) HAHAHAHA!!

What can I say? Each one of us had two glasses! I can hear my kids sucking on the straw for the last drop! Eer.......me too!  :o)

To view what the others are bringing to the beach, please check it out at I Heart Cooking Clubs (IHCC) where we are cooking from Rick Bayless's recipes until 30th September.

I'm sharing this too with :

Recipe Box hosted by Bizzy Bakes

Fresh Melon Cooler
(source from : Fronterafiesta, Rick Bayless)
4 cups packed fresh melon, peeled and seeded
1/2 cup water, plus more if necessary
1/4 cup sugar, plus more if desired
about 2 tablespoons lime juice, plus more if desired

Scoop the fruit into a blender, then add the water, sugar and lime. Blend until smooth. Add more water, if necessary, to achieve a light, easy-to-drink consistency. Taste and season with more sugar and lime if you think necessary. You can add extra flavorings (mint to honeydew, orange juice to cantaloupe, and blended raspberries to watermelon) if you like. Refrigerate to chill or serve over ice.

*********************************

Updated : 20th August 2012

We went to the beach today! Port Dickson, about 1-1/2 hours drive from where we live. Had a few hours of fun, unfortunately without my Fresh Melon Cooler, and Rick Bayless oceans away!! 

Red Chile Hot Drumsticks : IHCC

Feel The Heat! is this week's theme over at I Heart Cooking Clubs (IHCC), where we are currently cooking from Rick Bayless's recipes. I can definitely feel the heat, everyday, I'm referring to the weather! It is super hot (31C) now, no rain for the past week, dusty roads, some of my plants wilted and what am I doing, cooking up a fiery dish? Well, for one, the hot weather seldom stops me from enjoying my spicy and favourite food, in fact, just cooked some spicy hot prawns sambal yesterday! 

Can you "feel the heat" from the chicken drumsticks above? No, those are not tomato sauce!!! 

This is the Hot Sauce that I've made a couple of months ago, one of Rick Bayless's recipe. I have about half a jar left, since I am eating it alone as it is too spicy for the family. Found this recipe from Rick Bayless, Red Chile Hot Chicken Wings, that uses Frontera Red Chile Hot Sauce. I do not have Frontera Hot Sauce, have not seen his brand here before, but I do have my own homemade Rick Bayless's hot sauce, perfect!

The original recipes uses chicken wings, but I bought some mini drumsticks for these instead. The drumsticks are seasoned with a little oil, salt and black pepper powder. Since these are small drumsticks, I baked them in the oven for about 10 minutes each side and move them to the top rack in the oven to broil them for a couple of minutes on both sides until cripsy. When the drumsticks are done, melt some butter and hot sauce in a saucepan, until the butter melts. Add the drumsticks to the saucepan. The drumsticks are really crispy, I can hear the crunch as I transfer them to the saucepan with the tongs. Toss to coat the drumsticks completely with the hot sauce mixture. 

Then enjoy!

Yum, I had these five drumsticks all to myself! They are small, anyway!  :o)

To see the others' fiery dish from Rick Bayless's recipes, hop over to I Heart Cooking Clubs (IHCC).

I am sharing this too with :
Recipe Box hosted by Bizzy Bakes
Full Plate Thursday hosted by Miz Helen's Country Cottage

Frontera's Red Chile Hot Wings
(source from : Frontera, Rick Bayless)
Serves about 8
24 pieces chicken wings, tips discarded, split at the joint
vegetable oil
salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
1/2 stick butter
1 bottle (5 ounces) Frontera Red Chile Hot Sauce

1. Heat oven to 425 degrees. Coat chicken wing pieces in oil and season with salt and pepper. Arrange in a single layer on a wire rack set over a sheet pan. Roast chicken wings, turning once, until cooked through and skin is nice and crispy, about 20 minutes. Remove from oven.
2. Heat butter and hot sauce or enchilada sauce in a large skillet until butter is melted. (If using Enchilada Sauce, simmer a few minutes to thicken it slightly). Add wings to sauce mixture and toss to coat wings thoroughly. Arrange on a warm platter and serve with plenty of napkins.

Cilantro-Green Chile Chimichurri : IHCC

"Green, Green, Green, Is Everything I'm Wearing" is this week's theme over at I Heart Cooking Clubs (IHCC), where we are cooking from Rick Bayless's recipes. One thing I've noticed is that, Mexican food, besides using lots of chilis like poblanos and serranos, they love using coriander, not that I mind, I love corianders! And is it Mexican style of cooking or just Rick Bayless's own style, I find that he loves to roast his garlic and chilies before using them in most recipes. Which is just fine with me, as I really like the roasted aroma of both the garlic and chilies, there's an earthy smell to them when roasted, which I find really nice and delicious! 

So what do I make that is green, green, green? A fabulous Cilantro-Green Chile Chimichurri/Pesto!

A mixture of fresh coriander leaves and fresh parsley, roasted garlic and roasted serrano chili. I do not have green serrano chili, but I always have the red ones in my fridge, so I used that instead. And much as I love adding more in, I only used one chili, since my kids love pesto and they will be eating this too. The unpeeled garlic and chili are dry roasted in a skillet or heavy saucepan until they have black spots and blistered. The garlic are then peeled and the chili roughly chopped. Everything goes into the food processor, with some olive oil and seasoned with some salt. Process into a paste. I did doubled the amount of fresh coriander, I always do in almost all recipes! 

Rick Bayless suggests 2 generous teaspoons of salt! Firstly I think that is a lot of salt, so I only used 1 scant teaspoon and I find that it is already salty enough. Maybe he used Kosher Salt, but he did not mention that in his recipe, so go easy on the salt.

We had this with some toasted bread, top with Tomato and Coriander Omelete (Jamie Oliver) and a spread of the pesto on top. It was so delicious! My kids love it. The pesto is really tasty, and so healthy without any addition of cheese and no nuts at all too. At first I was curious, as most pesto have cheese and nuts, which gave great flavour to the pesto, so I wasn't sure how this is going to taste like. I was pleasantly surprised that this is just as delicious!

Yum! Definitely making this pesto again! Would be really good with chicken and seafood!

I made some crusty bread that afternoon, and  this is the dinner for both my daughter and myself! I cooked something else for the hubby and son, but my daughter and I, we had a few slices of my homemade crusty bread, sliced thinly, spread with the pesto and have it as our dinner. And I had this again the next morning for breakfast. What can I say, I totally love it! :o)

To see what other delicious greens that the others are making from Rick Bayless's recipes, do drop by I Heart Cooking Clubs (IHCC).

I'm sharing this too with :
Recipe Box hosted by Bizzy Bakes


Cilantro-Green Chile Chimichuri/Pesto
(source from : Frontera, Rick Bayless)
1/2 head garlic, cloves broken apart
2 to 3 serrrano chiles
1 medium bunch cilantro, thick bottom stems cut off
1 small bunch flat leaf parsley, thick bottom stems cut off
1/2 cup olive oil
salt (to taste)

Set a dry skillet over medium heat. Lay in the unpeeled garlic cloves and chiles. Roast, turning frequently, until soft and blotchy brown in spots, about 10 minutes for the chiles and 15 minutes for the garlic. Cool until handleable, then slip the skins off the garlic, pull stems off the chiles and roughly chop (no need to remove the seeds). Place in a food processor along with the cilantro (about 1 cup if packed), parsley (about 1 cup if packed), oil and 2 generous teaspoons salt, (go easy on the salt, I only used 1 scant teaspoon). Process until nearly smooth (it will be pasty). Scrape into a storage container and refrigerate until serving time.

If you plan on saving, cover the top with a thin layer of olive oil.