Friday, January 2, 2015

Citrus & Mustard Vinaigrette



All-Time Favorite Mustard Vinaigrette
  • 2 T. honey
  • 1 1/2 T. white wine vinegar
  • 2 T. orange muscat champagne vinegar (from Trader Joe's, so delicious!)
  • 1 T. fresh lemon juice
  • 1 1/2 t. lemon zest
  • 2 t. whole grain mustard
  • 2 t. dijon mustard
  • 1 1/2 t. minced garlic
  • 1/2 cup olive oil
  • salt & pepper
  1. Combine all ingredients in a mason jar & shake, shake, shake.
  2. Will keep for one week in the fridge.
Favorite ways to use this:
  • over sautéed Brussels sprouts. Serve at room temperature or chilled with shaved manchego cheese, marcona almonds & craisins.
  • over a kale salad or spring mix.

Pork Carnitas & Tomatillo Salsas

Pork Carnitas
  • pork butt
  • salt & pepper
  • 2 t. oregano
  • 2 t. chipotle chili powder
  • 2 t. cumin
  • 1 onion, diced
  • 8 cloves of garlic, minced
  • 1 jalapeno, rough chop
  • 3/4 cup fresh squeezed orange juice (approx 3 oranges)
  • juice of 1 lime
  1. Trim the pork of excess fat. Season generously with salt & pepper. Rub with chili, cumin & oregano. Place in crock pot.
  2. Top with the onion, garlic, and jalapeño. Pour the OJ and lime juice over the pork.
  3. Cook on low for 8-10 hours or high for 4-6 hours, until meat is fork tender.
  4. Take the meat out of the crockpot and shred it into smaller chunks. Reserve the liquid.
  5. Heat a pan over medium-high with a small amount of oil. Spread a single layer on carnitas in the pan and cook on one side until it starts to get brown and crispy, drizzle a little of the reserved liquid over the meat, flip and brown for a couple minutes. Repeat with all meat.
  6. Or... if you don't want to take the time to pan fry, you can spread the meat on a baking sheet and broil in the oven until browned and crispy.
Fresh Tomatillo-Avocado Salsa
  • 4 tomatillos
  • 1/4 white onion
  • 2 serrano peppers (I left the seeds in)
  • 1 garlic clove
  • handful of cilantro
  • juice of 1 lime
  • 2 avocados
  • salt to taste
  1. Peel the husks (skins? what do they call those things?) off the tomatillos. Rinse under warm water to get that sticky-waxy residue off.
  2. Rough chop all the ingredients, then blend it all together in a food processor. Salt or add additional lime juice to taste.
Roasted Tomatillo Salsa
  • 1-1.5 lbs. tomatillos, husked and rinsed
  • 2 serranos
  • 4 garlic cloves, still in peel
  • 1/2 white onion
  • 1/2 cup cilantro
  • lime to taste
  • salt to taste
  1. Cut tomatillos in half. Broil halved tomatillos, whole serranos & garlic until the skin is blistered and charred. Let cool. Remove seeds from serranos (or leave them in for a spicier salsa)
  2. Process with the remaining ingredients in a food processor. Done!

PF Changs Style Lettuce Wraps

1 tablespoon olive oil 1 pound ground chicken 2 cloves garlic, minced 1 onion, diced 1/4 cup hoisin sauce 2 tablespoons soy sauce 1 t...