Pip's Plate

Dinner is always fun when you randomly throw some ingredients together and hope they turn out. In last night’s case, dinner was a major success … and a surprise!

If I’m not making tacos, I’m thinking about tacos. And if I’m thinking tacos aren’t quite the right dinner option, I’ll figure something else out along the same lines: enchiladas, burritos, quesadillas. Last night, quesadillas won!

These quesadillas have a great balance of smoky, spicy, sweet and savory. Plus, there’s extra peach salsa left over to dip chips in. This recipe is a pretty healthy quesadilla if you make sure you purchase part skim mozzarella cheese.

Peach Salsa

Chipotle Chicken and Peach Salsa Quesadilla
Makes 2 quesadillas

Ingredients
Chipotle Chicken
1/2 pound hormone-free, skinless, boneless chicken breasts
1/2 Tablespoon canola oil
1 chipotle pepper in adobo sauce, diced
1 Tablespoon adobo sauce
2 teaspoon ground cumin

Peach Salsa
1 ripe peach, diced
1 medium tomato, diced
1/2 small yellow onion, diced
1/2 jalapeno, minced (remove seeds for less spice)
1 Tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro
juice of half a lemon
salt and pepper to taste

Quesadillas
2 8-inch tortilla shells (flour or spelt)
1/2 cup shredded part skim mozzarella cheese
olive oil cooking spray

Directions
1. Cut 1/2 pound of hormone-free, skinless, boneless chicken breasts into 1/2-inch dice.

2. Heat 1/2 tablespoon canola oil in a medium sized skillet over medium-high heat. When canola oil is shimmering, add diced chicken breast. Cook chicken breasts until cooked through, stirring frequently, about 8 minutes.

3. When chicken is about done, add 1 diced chipotle pepper, 1 tablespoon adobo sauce, and 1 teaspoon cumin to the skillet. Stir to combine and cook an additional minute. Salt and pepper the chicken mixture to taste.

4. While the chicken is cooking, make the salsa. Combine 1 diced peach, 1 diced tomato, 1/2 minced jalapeno, 1 Tablespoon chopped cilantro, juice of half a lemon, and salt and pepper to taste. Combine and let sit to allow flavors to meld. (This is a good opportunity to snack with chips too.)

5. Once the chicken is done cooking with the spices, remove from heat. Heat a medium-sized nonstick skillet over medium heat. Assemble the quesadillas like this:

• Lay tortilla on a flat surface
• Add 1 handful of cheese to half of the tortilla
• Add half of the chicken on top of the cheese
• Add 2-3 tablespoons of salsa on the chicken
• Add 1 handful of cheese over the salsa
• Fold the other half of the tortilla over
• Spray with cooking spray

6. When the nonstick skillet is hot, add one quesadilla to the pan, cooking spray side down. Lightly spray the top of the quesadilla (this is the half without the cooking spray). Cook the quesadilla for about 2-3 minutes per side. Remove from heat and repeat with the second one.

7. Allow the warm quesadilla to sit for a couple of minutes to let the cheese hold everything together. Enjoy!

note: peach salsa recipe inspired by this recipe

One of my favorite foods in the summer time is corn on the cob. I remember as a kid, my mom would give me and my sisters a paper bag and all the corn to sit on the back porch and shuck away.

It might be a bit early for corn on the cob and I spent a little more on it just to have it the other night. But it was totally worth it. The first nice day of 75 degrees in Minneapolis was begging for a grill out. So why not grill corn on the cob? It’s really easy and you can grill it while your burgers cook so you don’t have to go back into the house.

Chili Lime Grilled Corn on the Cob

Makes: 4 servings (easily doubled)

Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients

4 corn on the cob, shucked

1/2 T adobo chili powder

1 T salt

1/2 T fresh ground pepper

1/2 stick unsalted butter (you may not use all of it)

4 slices lime

Directions

1. Heat grill to medium-high heat (around 375-400 degrees).

2. To make the seasoning, combine the adobo chili powder, salt and pepper in a small bowl. (If you have a shaker, make a lot of this and keep it for use throughout the summer.)

3. Place corn on the cob on the grill. Cook for about 8-10 minutes, turning every few minutes to ensure even cooking. The corn will blacken in some places – this is ok.

4. When the corn is done, remove from the grill and place on a serving plate. Set out the butter, limes, and seasoning. To finish the corn on the cob, butter the corn, then squeeze a lime over the corn, then sprinkle some seasoning over the corn. Now enjoy!

This recipe is a great side dish to serve with Garlicky Green Turkey Burgers and Strawberry Citrus Salad for a complete quick and easy grilling meal.

Mmmmm….gotta love tacos. If you’ve read any of my blog, you know that tacos are one of my favorite things to make. I don’t even know if I’ve ever made the same taco twice – it always depends on what I have in my fridge.

I was looking for something to make the other week (yeah, I know, I’m way behind on blogging) and came across this recipe on Food Network. I will definitely be making it again! It’s really easy, and the tomatillo “pesto” (if you will) is divine. The honey makes this piece of the recipe top notch.

This is not only a very healthy recipe, it’s extremely quick. It took about 25 minutes to make this meal. Add the rice, and you’ve got a complete meal. Heck, start out with some chips and salsa if you’re feeling snacky. Oh, and don’t forget some Mexican beer to wash this down.

The taco recipe calls for grilling most of the ingredients, but I made do with a stove top and I’ll include my notations.

Shredded Chicken and Tomatillo Tacos with Queso Fresco

Serves 4

6 tomatillos, husked, washed, and grilled until blackened*

1 serrano, grilled until blackened*

olive oil

1/2 small red onion, coarsely chopped

2 cloves garlic

1 cup chopped fresh cilantro

1 lime, juiced

2 T honey

1 1/2 cups shredded rotisserie chicken**

8 tortillas

1 cup crumbled queso fresco

Preheat the grill to medium. Add the blackened tomatillos and serrano to a small saute pan and briefly saute in a little olive oil on the grates of the grill.

*If cooking inside on stovetop: using tongs, hold tomatillos and serrano over open High flame until blackened (they’ll pop so be careful). Cut the tomatillos in quarters and roughly cut the serrano. Add to saute pan with a little olive oil over medium-high heat. Saute until soft.

Place tomatillos, serrano, onion, garlic, cilantro, lime juice, and honey in a blender and blend until smooth. Place tomatillo mixture in a large saute pan and place on the grates of the grill. (Alternately, add to saute pan on medium-high heat on stovetop). Bring themixture to a simmer, add the chicken, and heat through.

Place the tortillas on the grill (or warm in a 200 degree oven, wrapped in foil) and grill for 20 seconds on each side. Spoon the chicken mixture into the tortillas and top with a few tablespoons of the queso fresco.

**You can also purchase 1.5# organic chicken breasts and poach them in water, then shred. This keeps it healthier and you can control what additives are in the meat. In a medium pan, heat water over high heat, add chicken, when boiling, reduce to a simmer, cover and cook through. Remove chicken breasts from water. Using two forks, pull the chicken apart.

source Food Network

Toasted-garlic Rice with Fresh Herbs and Lime

Serves 6

You can really use any combination of fresh herbs, keeping cilantro and parsley as the base. My grocery store didn’t have mint or marjoram that day, so I substituted fresh tarragon. You could throw some basil in this too and I’m sure it would be delish.

You can also make this dish in a rice cooker (which is WAY easier). I’ve noted the changes below.

1 1/2 cups uncooked long-grain white rice

3 cups low sodium chicken broth

2 T fresh lime juice

2 T extra virgin olive oil

12 large garlic cloves

3/4 t salt

1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

1/4 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley

2 T chopped fresh mint

1 T chopped fresh marjoram

1 1/2 t grated lime peel

IF NOT USING RICE COOKER

Place rice in strainer. Rinse under cold water until water runs clear. Drain well. Bring broth and lime juice to simmer in medium saucepan.

Heat oil in large saucepan over medium heat. Add garlic; saute until golden and sticky, about 1 minute. Add rice, stir 2 minutes. Add hot broth mixture and 3/4 t salt and bring to boil. Reduce heat to low, cover. Cook until rice is tender, about 20-25 minutes. Turn off heat; let stand covered for 10 minutes. Add herbs and lime peel to rice. Fluff with fork. Season with additional salt if desired.

IF USING RICE COOKER

Heat oil in large saucepan over medium heat. Add garlic; saute until golden and sticky, about 1 minute. Place rice in rice cooker. Add garlic and oil, stir to coat rice. Add chicken broth and lime juice. Cook for 20 minutes. Let stand for 5-10 minutes. Add herbs and lime peel, fluff with fork.

source Bon Appetit March 2003 on epicurious