Author: Tracey

Pork Shoulder Two Ways: Carnitas Tacos

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Yesterday, in honor of Administrative Professional’s Day, my office threw a party for the administrative staff and hosted a chili cook-off.  I originally wanted to enter a white turkey chili that I’ve made many times, but was unable to do so since two white chicken chilies had already been entered. So, back to the drawing board I went and developed a chili based on a pork carnitas recipe that was already a favorite of ours.  Since I was using a very large pork shoulder roast and the chili would take a longer time to cook, I decided to make carnitas tacos for our dinner Thursday evening. Carnitas tacos are my favorite type of taco!  These are the sort of tacos that you get from a little taco stand in Mexico, topped with cilantro, onions and a wedge of lime and they just make me feel like Summertime. “Carnitas” means “little meats” and it is traditionally made by frying pork in lard and then braising it.  The method I use is probably a little healthier, as …

A Healthy Burger and Tarragon-Caper Mayonnaise

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So, today, I was really craving a hamburger.  A big, juicy, drippy hamburger filled with all things naughty.  The only thing, was that the Man of the House had asked me to make something light and healthy for dinner.  It was a fair request, since he’d been on a business trip all week, which usually means lots of restaurant dining (poor guy, right?). So, a good compromise was a turkey burger.  I know what you’re thinking: turkey burgers have the reputation of being rather dry, boring and short on flavor. With that in mind, I set out to create a burger that was juicy and flavorful and would fulfill that naughty burger craving. I also made a jar of homemade mayonnaise.  Mayonnaise is one of those magical foods that always makes me think: “wow, that was easy! why don’t I make this all the time??”  Also in the “magical foods” category is cheese and bread.   Now, I have recently come across a recipe for making my own hamburger buns, and one day soon, I’m …

"Not Broken, Just Bent": Garden Update

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This has been such a difficult week, with so many emotions to process.  There was great sorrow mixed with gratitude for the life we have.  There was even more sadness after learning of the devastation in West, Texas; then there was relief today and the ability to finally tear myself away from constant news coverage.  I don’t have many wise words to share about the events this week, but what has helped me get through the week is spending time outside, watching things grow; seeing life springing up.  There is something deeply meditative about spending time in the garden. The past two weeks have actually been pretty hard on the garden.  Twice we’ve had strong windstorms coupled with a drop in temperature.  The wind really did a number on the plants in the aquaponic bed–I’m not sure why, but it might have to do with it being elevated to waist height.  The morning following the storm, I went out to check on everything and found the tomato plants were really bruised and battered, the peppers …

Farro Tabbouleh Salad with a side of Margarita!

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Parsley and mint are growing exceptionally well in the garden right now and the parsley was starting to get overgrown; so, I wanted to make a dish that allowed me to use it before it flowered.  I find that once it gets to that stage, the flavor is very pungent and I like it a little on the milder side.  Tabbouleh is a classic Middle Eastern salad that is traditionally made with bulgur wheat, chopped parsley and mint, but I wanted to try it using farro, which I have dubbed my Favorite Whole Grain of 2013. The cooked texture of farro reminds me of barley–it’s a little chewy and nutty, and it’s great in salads or cooked into soups.  I’ve even seen it made into a risotto, or, “farrotto”, more accurately.  I usually cook it in chicken or vegetable stock, which gives it even more flavor.  This was a very simple, healthy salad and can be made vegan by simply using vegetable stock or water to cook the grains in.  Let me just say that …

Framboise 75

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This was a rough week for the garden, as we had a huge windstorm on Sunday that left almost everything bruised and battered.  This is one more challenge that we tend to have in Southern Nevada that I may have failed to tell you about.  The wind whipped through on Sunday night with gusts up to 50 mph that lasted through Monday.  By Tuesday, just about everything was bruised, bent or battered. I  sadly had to prune some tomato stalks that were full of flowers, but I’m trying not to let it get me down.  I think everything will recover nicely; it just looks a little sad right now.  So, with that, it’s finally Friday and time for a drink! This drink was inspired by a traditional French 75, which is a cocktail I fell in love with last summer; but I wanted to add a summery, flowery twist to the traditional drink.  This week, I discovered St. Germain liqueur, which is a liqueur made with handpicked Elderflower blossoms.   The flavor is sweet and …

Salmon and Guacamole Sandwiches

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So, yesterday morning, I was flipping through the television channels and landed on Barefoot Contessa on the Food Network.  Now, it’s no secret to anyone who knows me that I want to be Ina Garten when I grow up.  I think she is amazing and I love not only her recipes but also her entertaining style.  I have it Liz Lemon-bad for Ina Garten.  Yesterday on her show, she featured some lovely salmon sandwiches with guacamole and I was inspired to make them for dinner yesterday afternoon. Here is Ina’s Recipe.  Now, because I can never follow a recipe exactly,  I decided to add a little more Mexican flair to the dish.  I also omitted the bacon and for the life of me, I can’t think of why!  Probably because I’m out of the habit of buying bacon!  Believe me, bacon would have been a fabulous addition to this sandwich.  What was I thinking??  I had to substitute mâche for the arugula, but use your favorite salad greens.  That primal scream you heard yesterday was me …

Happy Friday: Ginger Rogers

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I love ginger in major way. It’s funny but I have an actual memory of the first time I tasted it.  My family and I were on vacation and spent a day at Epcot Center in Disney World and we had lunch in Japan Land (this was 1983, by the way). The entree we ordered came with a little dish of almost fuschia-colored pickled ginger.  I can’t remember the entree we had, but I remember the ginger and ever since then, I’ve been known to eat all of the pickled ginger condiment that you get at the sushi bar.  So, that being said, this drink is right up my alley.  This is another gin based drink, similar to the Welcome Back, Cocktail that I posted last week. I think that gin drinks can be so fresh and summery.  The herbal notes in the gin really compliment fresh herbs like basil, thyme and mint. This is a perfect cocktail to celebrate the beginning of the weekend!