Yes, I Can Cook on Weekends!-5/22/10

I don't usually cook on the weekends, at least recipes from magazines.  This weekend I was inspired or maybe just hungry.  I even woke up early enough on Saturday to make muffins.  Richard makes fun of my total lack of productivity most mornings so this was quite a feat.  The Chocolate Chip and Banana Muffins in this month's Food and Wine were worth waking up for.  They were basically a moist yummy banana bread with chips wrapped up in a muffin paper.   They did not take an hour to make, even though the recipe said that. 

This weekend also began the culinary tour of North Africa, with a heavy dose of Moroccan food.  The Chicken Chorba with Walnuts from the "Why French Women Don't Stay Fat" article was really simple and really good.  As you can see from my picture I paired this dish with couscous and raisins, one of my all time favorite sides.  Chicken thighs were a great choice for this dish because the richer tasting dark meat stood up to the flavors of the broth and enhanced the whole dish. 

This issue of Food and Wine had a bit of fun with hummus, using it as a flavoring agent for other dishes, but I think the best way to enjoy hummus is by itself with a few crunchy pita chips.  The recipes on page 124 was pretty simple but I did make a few flavor changes to suit our tastes.  The 1/4 cup of tahini was a bit too much sesame for me.  I reduced the amount of tahini and increased the amount of lemon juice and paprika.  I also added a bit of water to make this hummus a bit softer.  Great simple recipe to make use of my new food processor!

Banana Muffins with Chocolate Chips-A

Chicken Chorba with Walnuts-A-

Easy Hummus with Tahini-B

Ode to Guedo's- 5/21/10

Nothing beats Guedo's tacos. Sorry, they just can't. This classic taco stand on the corner of Chandler and Arizona in ironically the city of Chandler, Arizona is my all time favorite taco place. I lived in Chandler for 4 years and went to Guedo's almost weekly. If you ever are in Phoenix, it's worth the trip a few miles south to Chandler. If you're lucky, you will arrive during Ostrich Festival to add to your joy.

Today I made the last two taco recipes in this month's Food and Wine Taco World article. They had nothing on Guedo's. The first taco I actually made for lunch, just for me. The whole concept of the L.A. Gas Station Taco struck me as a bit too odd to try for dinner. In retrospect, I made the right decision. Don't get me wrong, these tacos aren't terrible. They are just a combination of things you could buy at 7-11 or QuickTrip. These tacos were filling but for me, the flavors and textures didn't really work. The beef jerky really threw me off but I've never been a fan of beef jerky. It was too chewy and you were chewing it 5 minutes after the rest of the taco. I will admit I left off the pork rinds. I hate pork rinds! There was just too much going on and way too much gloppy cheese. (Are you with me? Processed American cheese is a textural nightmare.)

The second taco was the Fresh-Chorizo-and-Potato Tacos. Richard mentioned quickly that these would make great breakfast tacos. I agreed. The potato was more of a breakfast taco addition and I plan to heat up the leftovers in the morning for a variation of red flannel hash. These tacos were very good and had good spice but they were heavy.

I added a light summer salad that I will certainly make again. The Santa Fe Quinoa Salad was excellent. I replaced the cilantro with zucchini in this simple salad and it worked great. You could replace just about any fresh and colorful vegetable and it would work with the lime and cumin dressing. The cocktail onions were a brilliant addition with the right amount of tang. Can you tell I really loved this one?

L.A. Gas Station Tacos-C

Fresh Chorizo and Potato Tacos-B+

Santa Fe Quinoa Salad-A