Mexican Pumpkin Burrito

Blogging takes discipline. It's been almost one month since I last posted. I was (and still am) feeling lazy to blog although I haven't stopped cooking since I came back from KL 3 days ago.

Firstly, I was surprised to see the refrigerator stocked with foods and fruits the morning after I came back. Then there, in the kitchen, stood my handsome husband, with knife on one hand, chopping board on the other. He pulled out some mocked crab meat, sun dried tomatoes, rocket pesto (that I made before we left to Oman, which I had forgotten, and astonished to see he had been cooking with while I was away!), eggs, cheese, etc, and made me an omelet! There's also the mixed fruits smoothie that he's very proud of - came with this super awesome date honey that we bought from Oman.

As I tasted the foods cooked by my loved one I was overwhelmed by a sense of joy and happiness, which was contradicted by a sense of loss: like a mother who just realized her child is no longer her baby. LOL. You know that ain't gonna happen. He will soon realize what he did was mere child's play. WAHAHAHA!

We were discussing about dinner. Adrian mentioned a pumpkin taco recipe that he saw (somebody has been doing his homework). I couldn't find anything good from the internet, and hence decided to piece together bits and puzzles from different sources.

I started by putting pumpkin, orange chili pepper and red bell pepper into the oven for roasting. Remember to check on the chili pepper. I pulled mine out on the late side and it turned out a little burnt. I was going to use Jalapeno pepper but couldn't find them at Central Silom. I blame it on the red-shirt protest, which forces the Gourmet Market in Paragon to close (for weeks now!) I seriously need them to dissolve so I can get back to my normal grocery shopping. Anyway, this orange chili pepper was the only pepper available other than Thai chili and green chili. It's actually quite hot. I chose to remove the seeds to keep the hotness low.

One complaint I have about being, and cooking vegetarian: too much chopping. Since this "project" is the brainchild of Adrian, I made him did the hardest part: onions. I wish I had video-taped his teary eyes.

Adrian did the chopping and mashing of the guacamole. We used orange chili pepper (with seeds) and a green sweet pepper for taste. The roasted pumpkin seeds added an excellent touch to the taste and texture.

It happened that George was coming for a game of chess. "Is there enough food for George?" asked the chess maestro's protege - Adrian Cox. OF COURSE, and it's always more fun to cook for more people (no more than 4 at a time though).

As I laid the foods down on the table, I announced we were going to compete and make our own best burrito with the ingredients available: flour tortilla, guacamole, sour cream, rocket leaves, tomatoes, pumpkin seeds, cheddar cheese, roasted spiced pumpkin, roasted spiced red bell pepper, and red kidney beans and corn mix.

The touch of white sesame seeds was something I learned from May-Kay Dee in Khao San. You can cook the red bell pepper without roasting; it's a request from Adrian that I dutifully complied. We weren't sure how long it would take to cook the dried black beans, hence the use of canned beans. The corns though were fresh from the cob.

Adrian looking proud of his burrito that which he wouldn't have its photo taken. George took the contest seriously. I was mostly teasing and laughing at Adrian.


George's vs mine.

Adrian refused to let me take a picture of his burrito. For reason you can think of. It was a very close call between George's and mine. I think mine looked pretty but I have to give it to George because he's our guest :p Prize? George got to finish the last bite of everything! I thought I had made too much for three persons, but turned out everyone had rather good appetite this day. Hurray for Mexican!

Happy eating people.

A good meal is never complete without dessert. For something quick and easy, I made pudding using this Dark Chocolate and Peanut Butter Pudding recipe from my first post. Instead of chocolate, I used organic black sesame paste. It was surprisingly better than I thought it would be - it's delicious and taste healthy. I thought of Tam as I made this because she was begging for some the last time I made it for Adrian.

Ingredients:

(serve 3)

For the Veggie Filling:

• 2 roasted red bell pepper, skins and seeds removed, julienne
  
• 1 red onion, chopped
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• Sea salt to taste

1. Saute onions and red bell pepper with a pinch of salt. Add spices and cook until well coated and fragrant.
2. Keep warm in the oven at 100C.

For the Pumpkin Filling:

• 1/2 roasted pumpkin
• 1 Tablespoon cumin
• 1 Tablespoon chili powder
• White sesame seeds
  
• 1 roasted orange chili pepper, seeds removed and chopped
• Sea salt to taste
• 1 can organic red kidney bean
• 1 corn, niblet only
  

1. Scoop pumpkin out and mash to a smooth consistency. Saute pumpkin, with the remaining ingredients until it becomes golden in color. Taste and adjust with sea salt. Sprinkle with white sesame seeds.
   
2. Keep warm in the oven.
3. Use the same pan to cook together red kidney beans and corn niblet. Taste and season with sea salt.
4. Keep warm in the oven.

To Assemble:

• Arugula leaves
• Sharp white Cheddar cheese, grated
• 8 cherry tomatoes, diced
• Guacamole
• Sour cream (lemon juice + Cream)
• Toasted pumpkin seeds
  
• Flour tortilla
  

1. Wrap tortilla with aluminum foil and warm in the oven at 180C for 10 minutes.
2. Make your own burrito using all the ingredients above!
   

Mango and Avocado Salsa

Nook Thanyaporn has mango trees growing around her house. It's mango season and she has more produce than she and her family can stomach. So she brought me 6 of them, still green. I gave away three and wrapped the other three with towel, and stored them in the kitchen cabinet. I was told to wait for a few days.

5 days in the closet and still no sign of ripening. I patiently await. Two weeks and the mangoes still look suspiciously premature. By this time, not only has Nook's family eaten whatever left of their harvest, but people whom I gave the mangoes to, too, had enjoyed the sweetness from these homegrown fruits. I was told my kitchen is not as warm. Hmmm....

16 days after first received and TA TAA!!! Not uniformly yellow but I could smell the sweetness nonetheless. First mango was used in an impromptu mixed fruit salad - not much to rave about. Since they were gifts from friend I felt they deserve better. Dessert? Mango lassi? Sticky rice?

For some reason Adrian craved for avocado coconut milk shake the other day and bought more than needed for a one-time fling. I decided to put two together and make a Mango Salsa. It's easy to put together and refreshing to serve in many way. In any case I know Adrian would definitely approve of the sweet tartness of the salsa. This would at least keep him happy and more opened to the Beet Hash Brown that came with it on breakfast table.

And it did.

Ingredients:

• 1 mango, diced
• 1 avocado, diced
• 4 cherry tomatoes, diced
• 1/2 jalapeno pepper, chopped
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1/2 red onion, chopped
• 1 Tablespoon lemon juice
• 2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 Tablespoon cilantro leaves, chopped
• salt and black pepper to taste
  

Mix all the ingredients together, toss to coat well. Adjust and season with salt and pepper. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before serving.

Mexican Grilled Peppers and Corn Salad

I'm improvising the Pinto Beans, Persimmon and Avocado Salad and calling it Mexican because I threw in to it habanero chile and cilantro. You see, they are basically the same except there's no persimmons in this recipe but more hearty with the addition of grilled bell peppers and corn. To the dressing, I added some honey. It did taste more flavorful than without.

If you have a tiny kitchen the size of mine and no grill. This is what you do when the recipe calls for grilling. Just make sure you raise the rack high enough that the vegetables don't touch and burn by the electric hot plate.


Serve it as a side with a Double Decker Quesadilla.

Ingredients:
(makes 2 servings)

For the Salad:

• 1/2 red bell pepper, grilled and diced
• 1/2 yellow bell pepper, grilled and diced
• 1/2 con of fresh corn, grilled, use niblets only
  
• 1 habanero chili, core and seed removed, diced
• 1/2 cup cooked pinto beans
• 1 avocado, peeled and diced
• 4 cherry tomatoes, quartered

For the Dressing:

• 2 TB extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 small clove of garlic minced
• 1/4 medium-size red onion, chopped
  
• 1 TB fresh orange juice
• 2 TB lime juice
• 1 TB organic raw honey
  
• Ground cumin
• Sea salt and ground black pepper to taste
• Cilantro leaves as garnish
  

1. Simply toss all the salad ingredients together with salad dressing.
   

Guacamole

I like Mexican cuisine for its varied flavors, colorful decoration, and variety of spices and ingredients. The latter makes it a challenge to cooking Mexican here in the South Eastern region of the world: although there are many prepared, canned Mexicans for sales, raw ingredients such as chillies with varying degree of hotness are hard to come by. Clever use of the right chili is an art unto itself, too. I always resort to Foodsubs for advises of substitution.

This recipe, for instant, uses habanero chile, which is one of the most intensely spicy species of chili peppers. I intended to use serrano chilies, a less spicy chili, but they were not available. If you are using serrano chillies, double the amount used. If it's too hot for your liking, temper it with sour cream (lemon juice + cream). A quicker way to guacamole is to mix chopped avocado with 1/4 cup of salsa. Tomatoes are an optional garnish.

Ingredients:
(makes 2 side servings)

• 1 ripe avocado, peel and chopped
  
• 1/4 large red onion, minced
  
• 1 habanero chile, stems and seeds removed, minced
• 1 tablespoons cilantro leaves, chopped
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• sea salt and ground black pepper to taste
  
• 4 vine-ripened cherry tomatoes, seeds and pulp removed, chopped

1. In a medium bowl, mash avocado. Add onion, habanero chile, cilantro and lemon juice. Stir, taste and season with salt and pepper.
2. Cover with plastic and store in refrigerator to prevent oxidation. Add chopped tomatoes just before serving.
   

Refried Bean

I used to wonder why is refried bean called refried bean. I thought they were like refried oil and got disgusted by it. Actually the word "refried" is a misnomer. It comes from refritos which actually means "well-fried". Now doesn't that sound agreeable to the taste buds than "refried"?

Since we don't have a pressure cooker, I used the regular method of cooking the dried pinto beans: boiling water. It took closed to 2 hours to get all 500gram of them soft and done (I freeze whatever amount that I'm not using for future cooking so I don't have to go through the 2 hours boiling time again). If you have a pressure cooker, it cuts down the cooking time a lot.

You can make a whole bunch of them and freeze the extra - It's easy to reheat refried beans: add water and refried beans to pan and fry them over heat.

Ingredients:
(makes 2 servings)

• 2 cups cooked pinto beans, strained
  
• 1/2 medium onion, chopped
  
• 2 tablespoons pure sesame oil
  
• 1/4 cup water
• Salt to taste
• Cheddar cheese, grated

1. Heat pure sesame oil in a saucepan. Sautee chopped onions with a pinch of sea salt until translucent. Add cooked pinto beans and water. Season with salt. Stir in cheese until melted.
   

Tomato Salsa

The original recipe uses canned whole fire-roasted tomatoes. I refused to buy anything that I can make at home.

Ingredients:
(makes 2 - 3 cups)

• 4 medium-sized ripe but still firm tomatoes
• 1 Jalapeno pepper, chopped
• 1 clove of garlic, minced
  
• 1/3 Cup green onions, chopped
• 2 tablespoons pure sesame oil
  
• 2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
  
• 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
  
• 1/4 Cup cilantro leaves, chopped
  
• sea salt and ground black pepper

1. Put tomatoes under a broiler until the skin is blistered all over, remove from the oven, let cool, remove the skin.
2. In a large bowl, shred and break up tomatoes with fork and knife. Add jalapeno pepper, garlic, green onions, sesame oil and balsamic vinegar. Stir in oregano and cilantro. Taste and season with salt and pepper.
3. Keep refrigerated when not using. Can be store for up to 5 days.
   

Breakfast a la Mexican

Huevo Mexicana
It's pronounced "weh-vose", and it means Mexican-style eggs. It's basically scrambled eggs with Mexican salsa.

Ingredients:
(serves 2)

• 4 eggs
• 1/4 large onions, chopped
  
• 1 fresh tomato, peeled and chopped
  
• One jalapeño pepper, sliced
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• Fresh Tarragon, a sprinkle
  
• Salt
  
• 1 Tablespoon Cilantro leaves, chopped
• 1 Tablespoon chives, chopped
  

1 Sautee the onions with a pinch of salt until translucent. Add the chopped tomatoes and let them cook for a few minutes on medium high until they are somewhat cooked and mushy and some of the moisture has evaporated. It's okay if the tomatoes brown a bit. Add tarragon and jalapeno.

2 Crack the eggs directly into the pan with the sauce. Add salt. Stir the mixture with a spatula to mix in the sauce and to lightly scramble the eggs. Remove from heat when the eggs are cooked to the desired consistency.

Sprinkle the eggs with cilantro.

You can serve it with bread or tortilla. I served it with a Chilli Potato Wedges and sour cream. The taste compliment each other very well. Something different for morning eggs :)