Mango Habanero Salsa

Spicy.

Spicy never used to be my thing.  I liked all things plain and boring.  I never even tried buffalo chicken until my senior year of college. 

True story.

So, now that I have tried and LOVED most all things hot and spicy, I am obsessing over the combination of mango and habanero.  I love how it's super spicy with a healthy dose of sweetness from the mangoes.  It's an unusual combination, but it totally works!  Plus, for me, I don't really like mangoes as a rule.  I don't like them in freshly sliced the way you might find on a fruit platter.  But like this?  I am absolutely loving it!

I am super into homemade salsas and basically anything I can smother a tortilla chip with.  It's definitely spicier than your average salsa, but it's still got a definite sweetness that a sugar-junkie like me loves.  Plus, the orange and green and purple is eye-catching and screams spring time with all of the colorful,  fresh-from-the-garden veggies.  

Mango Habanero Salsa

 

1 mango, cubed

1/4 cup red onion, finely diced

1/3 - 1/2 habanero chile, finely minced

2 tbsp lime juice

2 tbsp minced cilantro

1 tbsp olive oil

 

Mix all ingredients together in a bowl.

Serve with chips

Mango Habanero Boneless Chicken Wings

Spicy.

Spicy never used to be my thing.  I liked all things plain and boring.  I never even tried buffalo chicken until my senior year of college. 

True story.

So, now that I have tried and LOVED most all things hot and spicy, I am obsessing over this mango habanero sauce.  I love how it's super spicy with a healthy dose of sweetness from the mangoes.  It's an unusual combination, but it totally works!  Plus, for me, I don't really like mangoes as a rule.  I don't like them in freshly sliced the way you might find on a fruit platter.  But in this sauce?  I am absolutely loving it!

I have been putting this mostly on chicken dishes.  Since I have a weird idiosyncrasy about bones in my food, so my chicken wings are always served boneless-style.  I know that they are basically just a big kid version of chicken nuggets but it's the only way I can eat them.  This is a sweet and extra spicy version of wings that you'll love! 










Mango Habanero Boneless Chicken Wings

8-12 boneless chicken wings, cooked to package instructions
1 cup Mango Habanero Sauce


Combine the wings and sauce in a large bowl and toss to coat the wings.

Mango Habanero Sauce

Spicy.

Spicy never used to be my thing.  I liked all things plain and boring.  I never even tried buffalo chicken until my senior year of college.

True story.

So, now that I have tried and LOVED most all things hot and spicy, I am obsessing over this mango habanero sauce.  I love how it's super spicy with a healthy dose of sweetness from the mangoes.  It's an unusual combination, but it totally works!  Plus, for me, I don't really like mangoes as a rule.  I don't like them in freshly sliced the way you might find on a fruit platter.  But in this sauce?  I am absolutely loving it!

I have been putting this mostly on chicken dishes.  It's really great as a wing sauce or a condiment for sandwich, which is exactly how I've been using it.  It gives you the perfect combination of heat and sweet.  However you choose to use it, you will love the interesting and delicious taste and coming up with different ways of using it in your recipes!










Mango Habanero Sauce

2 tbsp olive oil

1/2 white onion, diced

2 1/2 cups finely cubed mango

2-3 habanero chiles, seeded and diced

2 tbsp honey

1/4 cup melted butter

1/4 cup hot sauce

In a saute pan over medium heat, cook onions in olive oil for 2-3 minutes.  Add mango and habaneros and cook and additional 3-5 minutes.  

Stir in honey, butter and hot sauce.  Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook for 5-10 minutes, stirring occasionally.  

Remove from heat and let cool.  Pour sauce in a blender and puree until smooth.

Chicken Caesar Pasta Salad

I can't let things go.

When I get hooked on something, I leech on like a, well, like a leech.

I've been eating ridiculous amounts of this Chicken Caesar Salad lately.  As far as salads go, it's really not the healthiest choice I could be making.  But, I started my salad journey sucking down only iceberg lettuce, which has literally no nutritional value.  Making the jump to romaine lettuce is a big step in the right direction for me.

On another healthy eating note, we have been sucking down massive amounts of venison lately.  As red meat goes, this stuff is probably the best for you considering how incredibly lean it is.  We tried marinating a piece of neck roast in homemade Caesar dressing, but it really didn't impart nearly as much flavor as I'd hoped (back to the drawing board with that one...), but I already had the dressing out so I started playing around in the kitchen while the venison cooked on the grill.

Basically, without sounding like the laziest bum that ever puttered in a kitchen, I took some leftover Caesar salad and tossed in some leftover egg noodles.  I tossed it together and come up with what became the highlight of the meal.

After toying with the ingredients a bit, I finalized this recipe and developed what I consider a clever little twist on salad that could be a hit at summer barbeques this year.  As someone who loves pasta salad, and now loves Caesar salad, the combination of the two may very well be quite dangerous for me when BBQ and pool party season starts up.

This is definitely an interesting variation of traditional pasta salad that works well as a side for anything, but I definitely recommend it with grilled goodies like chicken, beef or venison.









Chicken Caesar Pasta Salad


1 lb. chicken, cooked and shredded
1 lb. short pasta, cooked and drained
4 cups chopped romaine lettuce
2 - 3 cups croutons
1 cup grated parmesan cheese
1 - 1 1/2 cups Caesar dressing


Combine all ingredients in a large bowl.  Add dressing last, just prior to serving.

Funeral Potatoes

Don't let the name fool you.  This is a happy post.

And a happy recipe that will make your tummy extra happy.

I'm not sure why these are called funeral potatoes.  I can only assume that it has something to do with the fact that the potatoes and cheese and sour cream and crispy crunchy topping and all of the other flavorful ingredients that I packed into this baking dish can lift your spirits even when you're inconsolably sad.  It's that good.

And, because I cannot tell a lie, I have to tell you, my internet friends, that I made this because I had absolutely NOTHING in my house except the ingredients to this dish.  I have been an absolute bum lately.  I have barely cleaned my house --- my mother actually did my dishes during her visit today --- and grocery shopping?  I barely remember how to accomplish that task.

Today should have been my big day of getting things done, but..

I severely underestimated the exhaustion of my mind and body after working three night shifts in a row.  I fell asleep sometime around 10:00 this morning and woke up at four in the afternoon.  By that point, I was thinking dinner, but craving breakfast because my circadian rhythm is completely busted.  It didn't matter anyway because I had no food to speak of.  No milk, no juice, no thawed meat, not even leftovers for reheating.  So.... I scoured through my cabinets and refrigerator, finding a few ingredients I might be able to throw together.  Initially I thought twice-baked potatoes given the sour cream and cheese I had handy, but it didn't sound just right.  I scoured through internet recipes until I found this -  a potato casserole that contained everything I had handy!

Turns out... this recipe is phenomenal!  I definitely think if you wanted to save time, you could used frozen hash browns, but I didn't have any so I used whole potatoes that I shredded up.    Crunchy and creamy, cheesy and hearty,  this is a great way to utilize potatoes and change up the carb game in your dinner rotation.

Plus, if you're ever unsure about what to make for a funeral... see below.











Funeral Potatoes

2 tbsp olive oil
1 medium white onion, finely diced
2 tbsp garlic
5-6 large potatoes, peeled and shredded
1 cup sour cream
1 10.5oz. can Cream of Chicken soup
2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese
Salt & Pepper
2 cup panko bread crumbs
1 stick melted butter


Saute onion in olive oil in a pan over medium heat for 3-5 minutes, or until onions are translucent.

Add garlic to onions and cook an additional 1-2 minutes.

Preheat oven 350F.

Transfer onions and garlic to a large bowl.  Add in the shredded potatoes, soup, sour cream and cheddar cheese.  Season as desired.

Pour into a greased 9x13 baking sheet and spread out with a spatula.

In a bowl, combine the bread crumbs and butter.  Sprinkle the mixture thickly over the top of the casserole.

Bake for 1 hour.

Salted Pretzels

Spring cleaning is underway.

I spent all winter with the spare bedrooms of my house closed off.  Doors were closed, windows shut, and any possible drafts were defeated by stuffing old sweatshirts into the places where cold air leeched through.  It cut down on heating costs, but more importantly, it left me with cold, dark areas in my house where I could chuck stuff when I tried to clean up quick.

Fast forward to today, and I've got two bedrooms overflowing with clothes I forgot I had, paperwork with deadlines long past, and all sorts of random things that I meant to throw out but never did.  So here I am, writing to you about pretzels instead of cleaning more!

That's because pretzels are way more interested than cleaning and organizing.

Even if you have OCD neatfreakness (which I do not), you have to agree that not much beats a soft, dough, salty pretzel.  Especially, if you have that pretzel with some freshly made Queso Cheese Dip!

These pretzels are fluffy and chewy at the same time.  I love them best right when they're still warm and fresh.

As someone who had never made pretzels before, I was new to the process.  The baking soda method was foreign to me but it produced the chewiest outer crust I've ever had in a pretzel.  And dunking this warm doughy goodness in a bowl of hot queso is just.... heavenly.

I'm going to go ahead and keep eating these pretzels so I don't have to face real life and responsibilities.  At this rate, spring cleaning will be done somewhere around October....










Salted Pretzels
(adapted from King Arthur Flour)

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp sugar
1 tsp salt
1 packet instant yeast
1 cup lukewarm water (105F)

Soda Bath:
2 cups water
1/4 cup baking soda

Coarse sea salt
Melted butter



In a stand mixer, combine all of the dough ingredients until everything is mixed well and the dough is slightly sticky.  Transfer dough to a greased bowl and cover with a towel.  Let the dough rise in a warm area for at least one hour.

For the soda bath, bring the water to a boil over high heat in a small pot.  Remove from heat and stir in the baking soda.  Let the water cool to lukewarm.

Preheat oven 475F.

Shape the pretzel dough into desired shape and size ( traditional, sticks or bites).  Submerge the pretzels in the lukewarm soda bath for 2-3 minutes.  Place the pretzels on a greased baking sheet.

Top with a liberal amount of coarse sea salt.

Bake for 8-9 minutes.

Remove from oven and apply a liberal brushing of melted butter over the top.

Serve with Queso Cheese Dip or any other desired condiment.

Queso Cheese Dip

Since making Queso Cheese, I've moved on to trying to make my own queso cheese dip.  Something that is melty and gooey and cheesy.  Something that tastes like it should have a whole lot of bad things in it for you, but actually really doesn't.

I made this dip in its true bluest, most natural and plain way.  But, that doesn't mean that it can't be adapted to fit your needs.  This tastes very similar to the jarred cheese you find in grocery stores.  Plus, I think a healthy dose of salsa could make this a nacho lover's dream.

For me, I eat it using just these three ingredients and pour it over vegetables, french fries and tortilla chips.  This is a great substitute for the cheese dip they use on authentic Philly Cheesesteaks too!







Queso Cheese Dip
(adapted from Serious Eats)

8 oz. Queso Cheese
1 tbsp cornstarch
1 12oz. can evaporated milk
1 tsp dry mustard
1 tsp hot sauce
1/2 tsp worchestershire sauce


Melt cheese and cornstarch together in a large pan over medium heat.

Add the rest of the ingredients and stir continuously while ingredients combine and bubble.  Cook while stirring until mixture is smooth and shiny, about 5-7 minutes.