How you doin’? I love tamales! There are tamale-like dishes in countries all around the world, not just Mexico and Central and South America. What is always interesting are the different wrappers and fillings that are used from country to country—corn, potato, rice for filling and corn husks, banana and tea leaves for wrappers.
 
I attempted to make tamales on several occasions. It can be an all-day affair—one that I don’t engage in anymore. Once you get started you have to make at least a hundred of them to make it worthwhile.  But everyone in our test kitchen knows to bring in some of “mama’s” homemade tamales at Christmas time—that’s the price for a year-end bonus.

Last year, I discovered a novel way to make a limited number of not-so-traditional tamales at home anytime you want them—they are Mini-Tamale Pie Muffins. Inside each crispy cornmeal muffin is a chili of seasoned ground beef and corn and bean salsa.
 
My mini-tamale muffins are made with lean ground beef, corn and bean salsa and plenty of seasoning—you’ll think you’re on a Mexican beach vacation. These mini-muffins have all the tasty goodness of “real” Mexican food, but because the recipe is made from scratch, you won't have all of the added lard you might find in many traditional tamales, yet there is a flavor-thrill in every bite and they’re so much fun to eat.
 
Planning a party? If you have a large group of people to feed, you can't go wrong with this easy tamale muffin recipe. Plan on about two tamale muffins per person with side of roasted corn and salsa. Your guests are sure to love the loaded mini muffins and they might just come back for seconds.
 
Prep time:  20 minutes
Bake time:  20 minutes
Cool time:  5 minutes
Yield:  4 servings
 
Ingredients
For the filling
8 foil muffin cup liners
Food release spray (Pam works well)
2 teaspoons olive oil
8 ounces ground beef (80/20)
2 to 3 teaspoons Ed’s Taco Seasoning (see recipe below)
3/4 cup tomato-chili salsa
1/4 cup corn (frozen or fresh)
2 tablespoons water
 
For the topping
1/2 cup cornmeal
1/4 cup all purpose-flour
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 large egg
1/2 cup milk
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
3/4 cup grated pepper jack cheese
 
Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375°F.
2. Set an oven rack in the middle of the oven.
3. Line 8 standard muffin cups with muffin cup liners.
4. Spray the liners with food release.

To make the filling

1. In a medium skillet heat olive oil over medium-high heat. Cook ground beef in the hot oil, stirring frequently, until no longer pink.
2. Stir in the taco seasoning, salsa, corn, and water.
3. Bring to a simmer and cook until slightly thickened. Evenly divide between prepared muffin cups.

To make the topping

1. In a medium bowl whisk together cornmeal, flour, sugar, mustard powder, baking powder and kosher salt.
2. Whisk in the egg, milk and butter.
3. Top the filling in the muffin cups with the batter and cheese.
4. Bake for 20 minutes or until set.
5. Let stand for 5 minutes before serving.

 
                                                        Ed’s Taco Seasoning
Prep time:  5 minutes
Yield:  1 cup
 
Ingredients
1/4 cup sweet paprika
2 tablespoons chili powder
2 tablespoons dried oregano
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
 
Directions

1. Measure out and whisk all the ingredients into a medium bowl making sure to break up any clumps.
2. If not using the spice mix immediately, transfer to an airtight container for long term storage at cool room temperature.

ChefSecret:  In a pinch, use Jiffy Corn Muffin Mix, add 2 tablespoons of extra butter and 3/4 cup of grated Pepper Jack Cheese.

Covid-19 Quip of the Day: “It may take a village to raise a child, but I swear it’s going to take a whole vineyard to home school one.”
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Do you have a question or comment?  Do you want to share a favorite recipe or pictures with our readers?  Send your thoughts to ed@perspectives-la.com.  All recipes and cooking tips are posted on our website https://www.perspectives-la.com/covid-19-survival-guide.
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To you and everyone dear to you, be strong and positive, stay well and safe and be kind to others. If you have a little extra in your pockets to share with others at this difficult time, please consider donating to Feeding America. Thanks for reading.

#Entrees #Side #Snack #CornMuffin #TamalePie #MiniMuffin #QuarantineKitchen #Covid19 #FeedingAmerica  #PerspectivesTheConsultingGroup

                                           ©Perspectives/The Consulting Group, Inc., 2021

How you doin’? There is only one thing I don’t like about a nice savory dip—I eat so much that my appetite is ruined for dinner. This Hot Corn Dip is the perfect party starter. When you make this dish, you’ll find no one wants to move away from the appetizer table. The best thing to do is have a back-up in the oven ready to go and an extra bowl of chips.
 
We find that dips are among the most snack-able foods to bring to a tailgater or party. It’s the easiest way to make sure everyone gets a taste. Even with all the things going on you can make smaller individual baking dishes or ramekins so each person gets their own portion and you don’t have to worry about crowding around the dip bowl. This dip goes with any style of cuisine (except maybe Asian, although corn on the cob in Indonesia is a pretty hot snack).
 
If you’re looking for a corny-cheesy masterpiece that’s quick and easy to make  there’s a lot to like with this recipe. Clean-up is minimal and you have great flexibility with ingredients.
 
You can use fresh, frozen or canned corn depending on what you have on hand. No matter what, the taste of sweet corn will be irresistible in combination with melted cheese and spicy green chilies.
 
Prep time:  5 minutes
Bake time:  25 to 35 minutes
Yield:  8 to 10 servings
 
Ingredients
1 (11 oz) can of corn, drained
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 (4.5 oz) can chopped green chiles
1 whole chipotle pepper in adobo sauce, seeds removed and chopped
1 teaspoon adobo sauce, from the can of chipotle peppers
1 cup shredded Monterrey jack cheese
2 cups shredded mild Cheddar cheese
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground fine black pepper
1 small tomato, chopped
2 green onions, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons fresh cilantro, chopped
 
Directions

1. Preheat an oven to 350 degrees.
2. Coat a baking dish with cooking spray.
3. In a medium sized bowl combine the corn, mayonnaise, green chiles, chipotle pepper, adobo sauce, cheeses, garlic powder and pepper and mix well.
4. Pour into the prepared baking dish and spread evenly with a spatula.
5. Bake for 25 to 35 minutes in the preheated oven until hot and bubbly. It's up to you how crispy you want your cheese layer to be; some choose to take it out as soon as the cheese is melted, while others will bake this tasty dip to the point of cheesy, crispy perfection.
6. Top with chopped green onions, tomatoes, and cilantro. Serve with fresh-fried tortilla chips.

 
ChefSecret:  Add your own style and flavor thrills to an already great dip. Add onion powder for more flavor or make it extra cheesy with an addition of bleu, pepper jack or sharp Cheddar cheese. If you want to add some spice, use diced jalapeño peppers, Tabasco sauce or add a dash of cayenne or chili powder.

Covid-19 Quip of the Day:  “Imagine this, I went to the local Amazon bookstore to improve myself and asked the salesperson, "Where's the self-help section?" she said, “If she told me, it would defeat the whole purpose.”
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Do you have a question or comment?  Do you want to share a favorite recipe or pictures with our readers?  Send your thoughts to ed@perspectives-la.com.  All recipes and cooking tips are posted on our website https://www.perspectives-la.com/covid-19-survival-guide.
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Here is wishing you the very best for the upcoming holidays. To you and everyone dear to you, be strong, be positive, stay well, stay safe and be kind welcoming in the holiday season. If you have a little extra in your pockets to share with others at this difficult time, please consider donating to Feeding America. Thanks for reading.

#Appetizer #Snack #CheddarCheese #Corn #ChipsAndDips #HolidayRecipes #Holidays2020 #QuarantineKitchen #Covid19 #FeedingAmerica #PerspectivesTheConsultingGroup 

                                                  ©Perspectives/The Consulting Group, Inc., 2020

How you doin’? I love meatballs… do you? Italian, Swedish, Sweet & Sour, Turkish, Spanish and this all-American meatball. This meatball appetizer is a company favorite at my house. It’s meaty, cheesy, spicy and delicious! What else do you have to know?
 
Meat without bones can be traced to its Italian heritage back to ancient Roman times. Apicius, a collection of recipes thought to have been compiled in the 4th or 5th century, includes several varieties of meatballs made of everything from cuttlefish to chicken. As with many ancient texts, scholars have been unable to definitively identify its origins or author; many believe the recipes seem to have been written by different authors over several decades. So, the true origin of the meatball remains unknown.
 
One possible reason for the meatball’s ubiquity: It’s an exceptionally accessible dish, simple and affordable. Meatballs can be made with nearly any kind of meat, and since the meat is ground and mixed with herbs and other flavors, cheap cuts of meat can be transformed into something delicious. Meatball recipes are also perfect for the frugal chef, stretching a relatively small amount of meat into a substantial meal by mixing it with bread, egg, or mashed vegetables.
 
It was exactly this flexibility and affordability that made meatballs so popular and appealing to Italian-American immigrants in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Most of the Italian immigrants who landed in the northeast US came from the impoverished southern regions of their home country (Sicily, Calabria, Campania, Abruzzi, Molise). With very little money, it’s only natural that they turned to their most affordable recipes, so the southern Italian meatball became a staple.
 
Prep time:  20 minutes
Cook time:  20 minutes
Yield:  8 to 10 servings
 
Ingredients
1 pound bulk mild pork sausage
1 pound package bulk hot pork sausage
1/2 pound shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
2 cups biscuit baking mix (such as Bisquick)
 
Directions

1. Preheat an oven to 400⁰F.
2. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil or parchment paper.
3. Mix the mild sausage and hot sausage in a large bowl until evenly blended. Do not overwork.
4. Stir the Cheddar cheese into the sausage mixture.
5. Mix biscuit baking mix in about 1/2 cup at a time until baking mix is moist.
6. Roll meat mixture into 1-1/4- to 1-1/2-inch balls.
7. Arrange meatballs on prepared baking sheet.
8. Bake in the preheated oven until meatballs are no longer pink in the center and cheese is browned (165⁰F internal temperature), about 20 minutes.

ChefSecret:  I like to stuff each meatball with about 1/2 ounce of pepper-jack cheese for a little extra zip.

Covid-19 Quip of the Day:  Why didn’t the sick guy get the joke? It flu over his head. Oh, I’m so ashamed.
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Do you have a question or comment?  Do you want to share a favorite recipe or pictures with our readers?  Send your thoughts to ed@perspectives-la.com.  All recipes and cooking tips are posted on our website https://www.perspectives-la.com/covid-19-survival-guide.
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Here is wishing you the very best for the upcoming holidays. To you and everyone dear to you, be strong, be positive, stay well, stay safe and be kind welcoming in the holiday season. If you have a little extra in your pockets to share with others at this difficult time, please consider donating to Feeding America.

#Appetizer #HolidayRecipes #Meatballs #Snacks #Holidays2020 #QuarantineKitchen #Covid19 #FeedingAmerica #PerspectivesTheConsultingGroup 

                                              ©Perspectives/The Consulting Group, Inc., 2020

How you doin’?  After all the cooking for the holidays, you’re beat. You still have a ton of turkey left over and you can only eat so many turkey sandwiches. What’s a person to do with all that turkey?! Turkey Croquettes, of course!
 
Many younger people have never even heard of Turkey Croquettes (no, it’s not a popular lawn game), but tell them they’re Retro and they will clamor for them.   They are little finger foods that are a great for leftover turkey, mashed potatoes and gravy. They are crispy on the outside, hot and gooey on the inside. This is a favorite that I always try to make around the holidays.
 
Historic food lore describes that the “croqueta” originated in France, where it's called a croquette. The croquette came onto the food scene in the 19th century as a tasty way of recycling leftover meat and scraps during lean times, though it's unclear who should really get the credit for the recipe. Some say it was Monsieur “Chef” Escoffier, the founder of classical French Cuisine, with the aid of Monsieur Philias Gilbert who started to write down his recipes in 1898.
 
My recipe is but a guideline for the basics. Feel free to change the seasonings at will to suite your own tastes.
 
Prep time:  20 minutes
Chill time:  1 to 2 hours
Fry time:  2-1/2 to 3 minutes
Yield:  4 Servings
 
Ingredients
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup whole milk
1/2 cup chicken broth
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon grated onion
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon sweet paprika
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
1-1/2 cups cooked leftover turkey, finely diced
1 large egg, beaten
2 tablespoons water
3/4 cup fine cracker crumbs or dry breadcrumbs (I prefer panko)
oil for deep frying
 
Directions

1. Melt the butter in saucepan; blend in the flour to make a light roux.
2. Slowly whisk in the milk and chicken broth.  Cook and whisk until mixture thickens and starts to bubble; and then continuing cooking and whisking for 1 minute longer. 
3. Add the parsley, lemon juice, onion, garlic, salt, paprika, nutmeg and pepper to the sauce. 
4. Allow the mixture to cool. 
5. Add the turkey to the mixture. 
6. Check the seasoning; add salt to taste if necessary. 
7. Chill the mixture thoroughly. 
8. With wet hands, shape mixture into 8 balls (about 1/4 cup each). 
9. Mix together the egg and water in one dish and portion the crumbs in a separate dish.
10. Roll the balls in the crumbs and lightly shape balls into cones or logs. 
11. Once again, dip them into the mixture of combined egg and water, roll in the crumbs again.
12. Pour about 2” of oil into a Dutch oven or deep fryer; heat to 365⁰F.
13. Add the croquettes to the oil and cook for about 2-1/2 to 3 minutes, or until golden brown.
14. Drain and serve.

ChefSecret:  By adding different spices and sauces you can make Mexican, Italian, German Croquettes, just use your imagination and best tastes instincts.

Covid-19 Quip of the Day:  The Plan vs. Reality: The Plan—update resume, search for jobs, work from home jobs, clean the closets, organize the garage, join an online exercise class and catch up on emails. Reality—Eat another bowl of packaged instant Ramen and take 3 naps before dinner.
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Do you have a question or comment?  Do you want to share a favorite recipe or pictures with our readers?  Send your thoughts to ed@perspectives-la.com.  All recipes and cooking tips are posted on our website https://www.perspectives-la.com/covid-19-survival-guide. We have added a new search feature to make it easier to navigate through our blogs. 
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Here is wishing you the very best for the upcoming holidays. To you and everyone dear to you, be strong, be positive, stay well, stay safe and be kind welcoming in the holiday season. If you have a little extra in your pockets to share with others at this difficult time, please consider donating to Feeding America.

#ThanksgivingRecipes #Thanksgiving #Turkey #LeftOvers #Entrees #Croquettes #HolidayRecipes #Holidays2020 #Thankful #QuarantineKitchen #Covid19 #FeedingAmerica #PerspectivesTheConsultingGroup 

                                            ©Perspectives/The Consulting Group, Inc., 2020

How you doing? This recipe came out of my restaurant, Fanny’s Fish Market, in Foster City, California. I had tasted crab cakes all over the place before putting these on the menu and I always go back to this recipe, not so much because it so easy, but that they just taste great—they’re the best. If you don’t have time to pick your own crab meat during the Dungeness season, your local fish monger usually carries the canned product. The cans are full of jumbo lump crab meat.

Fanny’s original recipe has just the right amount of spices and seasonings. No need to bread the cakes before frying. They hold together well without seeming too bready. Fry the crab cakes in a mixture of butter and olive oil which gives them an amazing golden-brown crust.

I made these a couple of weeks ago as a Crab Cake Benedict topped with a quick and Easy Blender Hollandaise sauce (recipe below). They’re also perfect for a crab cake sandwich. Of course, you can serve them on their own as an appetizer or a dinner entrée, with a tartar or red cocktail sauce and lemon wedge.

Prep time:  10 minutes.
Cook time:  10 minutes
Yield:  10 to 12 crab cakes
 
Ingredients
16 ounces lump crab meat, drained
12 saltine crackers, finely crushed
2 large eggs, separated
1 tablespoon onion, chopped
1 tablespoon mayonnaise
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon seafood seasoning
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
 
Directions

1. Place the crab meat in a bowl and add the crushed saltines.
2. Beat the egg yolks, then pour them on top.
3. Add the remaining ingredients (except the egg whites) and gently fold everything together, being careful to not break up the crab pieces too much.
4. Use an electric mixer to beat the egg whites to soft peaks, then gently fold this into the crab mixture.
5. Shape the mixture into 3-1/2-inch rounded cakes.
6. Fry in a heavy bottomed saucepan in a mixture of butter and olive oil over medium-high heat until lightly browned on both sides. Be careful not to overcook.

 
                         Easy Blender Hollandaise Sauce
Prep time: 5 minutes
Blender time:  5 minutes
 
If you’ve ever made Hollandaise sauce yourself you probably know that it not only builds character, but muscles as well. In many culinary schools it’s known as the sauce of 1,000-strokes. It is time-consuming to make and doesn’t keep well on a steam table without breaking. When you are preparing brunch for hundreds of guests, you don’t want them to wait for their Eggs Benedict. We invented this method to keep both our guests and co-workers happy.
 
Ingredients
5 large egg yolks
1-1/2 tablespoons lemon juice (fresh or reconstituted)
1/2 teaspoon Tabasco
1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
5 fluid ounces of unsalted clarified butter, boiling hot
 
Directions

1. Place egg yolks, lemon juice, Tabasco and salt in a blender jar—cover and blend for 5 seconds only.
2. Heat the butter in a microwave for 120 seconds or until it is very, very hot.
3. Turn the blender on, remove the port from the lid and slowly pour the hot butter into the egg yolk mixture.  Continue pouring slowly until the sauce has thickened.
4. Pour the sauce into a bowl and hold over warm water until ready to serve.

ChefSecret: This is a reduced quantity recipe.  It works well when doubling or tripling the recipes, too.
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Covid-19 Quip of the Day:  I have developed the new Covid-19 testing protocol. At 5pm open a bottle of wine, smell it, then pour it in a glass. If you can smell it and taste it, you’re good. Celebrate by finishing the bottle. You are welcome!
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Do you have a question or comment, want to share a favorite recipe or pictures? Send your thoughts to ed@perspectives-la.com. You can also find past blog posts at https://www.perspectives-la.com/covid-19-survival-guide.

To you and everyone dear to you, be strong, be positive, stay well, stay safe and be kind—that’s the American way.  If you have a little extra in your pocket to share with others at this difficult time, please consider donating to Feeding America. Thanks for reading.

#Entree #Appetizer #Brunch #CrabCakes #Crab #Hollandaise #Tabasco #QuarantineKitchen #Covid19 #FeedingAmerica #PerspectivesTheConsultingGroup 

                                              ©Perspectives/The Consulting Group, Inc., 2020