{companions} baked cauliflower

baked cauliflower by amy twomey

one head of cauliflower, cut into small pieces

handfuls of shredded cheddar cheese

whipping cream

salt & pepper to taste

This is one of those recipes that is never the same as far as measurements and always great! So have fun playing around with guesstimating your measurements here because you simply can't go wrong. Heat the over to 375. Steam your cauliflower over stove top until done. Then cut it up into smaller pieces. Then place the steamed cauliflower in a baking dish, pour over a generous amount of whipping cream(about one fingernail high if you were to put your finger to bottom of pan), add salt & pepper, and add a handful of shredded cheddar cheese to top. Bake uncovered

for 30 minutes or until lightly browned.

{delightful} Gluten Free Apple Pie

There is nothing like my man strumming a little Elliot Smith to get me in the mood to bake an apple pie. So, while he strummed...

I peeled, cut and sliced my Macintosh and Empire apples in thin slices

And turned my oven to 450 degrees while adding the following ingredients to a mixing bowl:

1 egg white, whisked

3/4 white sugar

1/2 brown sugar

3 T. gluten free flour

1/2 lemon juice, squeezed fresh

1 T. lemon rind

1/4 t. salt

3/4 t. cinnamin

1/2 t. nutmeg

Mix all together and pour into your gluten free pie crust. I get mine at Whole Foods, frozen.

After pouring all into crust, use the second pie crust and ball it together crumbling the dough on top of the pie as a topping. I use about 3/4 of the dough and toss the remaining. Add a handful of brown sugar on top of pie and bake it on 450 for 20-25 minutes on pre-heated baking pan. Then reduce heat to 375 for about 30-40 minutes.

Must serve with vanilla ice cream. yummy. Then serve a plate for your loved ones.

Best to cool and serve at room temperature...

but I can never wait.

Smile.

{rise 'n shine} black bean and poached egg ranchero

photo by ann west

brin l ner brinner def. noun. breakfast for dinner. Substituting breakfast (usually eaten in the morning) instead of a typical dinner (usually eaten at night). Brinner is prepared in times of desperation when time is short, budget is low and there is nothing else in the house. origin: stressed out moms that need a break.

black bean and poached egg ranchero by ann west

Canned black beans. Add 1 bay leaf and a dash of cumin. Heat and mash with a potato masher.

saute peppers (if you have them - if not skip it)

poach eggs (or fried if you like)

salsa

tortilla

feta cheese (or your preferred cheese)

avocado (to really jazz it up!)

on a tortilla or a bed of left over rice layer black beans, veggies (if you have them), poached eggs. Sprinkle with feta cheese and serve with salsa!

*** This meal can be served in the morning as well :)

{the dish} tamale tradition - year 02

tamales tradition - year 02: Last year my good girl friends and I embarked on what I hope is a yearly and long lasting tradition of making tamales. Renee, a wonderful friend, generously gave us her mothers tamale recipe and gingerly guided us through our first tamale making experience. Tamale making, like any great tradition, takes time and preparation. But it is the social interaction around the making of the tamales that must make them taste so good. For over four hours we sat and made masa, rolled our tamales, and then cooked them. We laughed and teased about the shape and size of some of our attempts. We delved into stories of past and present and basically had a blast. And to top it off we all walked away with 4 dozen or so delicious tamales.

This weekend we are making tamales again! (My meat is cooking as we speak.) I can't wait. We are going to start at 10 am and hope to be done by 3 pm. I am going to share with you the first part of this tamale making adventure. I will post the rest on dollop later during the weekend. Once we are done I will combine the post so if you want to return you will have a full recipe. Wish me luck!

{also I want to give huge credit and a very special thank you to Delfina Carrizales, Renne's beautiful mother. I hope one day we can make tamales with her!)

tamales by delfina carrizales

step 1 : soak the corn husks : 24 to 48 hours prior to assembly : soak in water making sure you separate the leaves

step 2 : prepare the chili paste : 1 day prior to assembly : in a sauce pan place 4 - 6 ancho chilies (per lb of meat I used 12 - 14) and cover with water and boil. Remove the chilies and reserve the liquid. If you are able peel and seed the chilies. (I buy dried chilies and sometimes it is hard to peel. I just put the whole chili skin and all in). Sautee 1 or 2 onions. Place chilies, onions and handful of garlic, salt and pepper into a food processor and blend until smooth. Add the liquid from the boiling to the paste as needed (1/2 - 1 cup).

step 3 : cooking the meat : 1 day prior to assembly : I use a crockpot and it worked fine. You will be cooking these roasts for a long time 6 hours or so. 3lbs pork shoulder and 3lbs beef rump roast. Place them in the pot with a cup or so of the paste, more garlic, cumin, salt and pepper (you might want to add 1 cup of water or liquid from the chili boiling). Delfina says to use our color sense. "it should be a deep red color and the meat should be red and tasty." Once the meat is done adjust the seasoning. " you might need to add something. your meat must taste the way you want your tamale to taste."

I like my meat with a little more fire. I am going to roast some jalapenos, and some poblanos and probably add some red chili to the meat.

Ok that is it for now. My paste is made. My meat is cooking. We meet on Saturday. Check out dollop to see the rest.

happy tradition!