Mango Habanero Sauce

1 tbsp cooking oil
3 cups (heaping) mangoes. I used frozen cubed mango from Trader Joe's.
1 cup pineapple. Fresh or frozen would work.
1/2 cup pineapple juice
1/2 cup orange peach mango juice. Orange juice would work as well.
2 large jalapenos (seeded)
2 habaneros (stemmed)
1 medium yellow onion. Chopped.
2 shallots chopped
A splash of beer
A hand full of garlic cloves (add more or less depending on how garlicy you prefer)
Juice from a very juicy lemon (about 1/2 cup)
1/4 sugar
1 tsp salt

In a medium sauce pan heat oil until it begins to smoke then add the sliced shallots and onion. Allow to brown and don't worry if they begin to burn a little. Add sliced chillies and stir for a few minutes then once the chilies are softened add garlic, beer (optional I used it to de-glaze the pan), and fruit. After about 5 minutes add the remaining ingredients and bring to a boil. Once the liquid is boiling reduce the heat to low or med/low. Cover and allow to simmer for 30-45 minutes. Allow to cool then blend smooth. When I make this again I'd double the habaneros and leave out the jalapeno and see how that turns out. The final product is pictured below.

 The bonus picture is of the smoked spicy chicken drumsticks which we used as a vehicle for this magical sauce.

Enjoy!

(Basil) Pesto

Ah pesto. When I make pesto I try to put it on everything, much to the chagrin of my boyfriend! There is something magical about how the basil, garlic and cheese marry together. Plus it is the easiest thing in the world to make if you have a food processor. These days I don't use a recipe, I judge by proportion and taste. I like mine garlicky and I often omit adding any nuts, but I would recommend following a recipe to start out, and figure out from there what you like and don't like. Here is a traditional recipe to get you started.

Basil Pesto
2 cups fresh basil leaves (packed)
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
3 garlic cloves (I use 4-6)
1/3 cup pine nuts (you can use walnuts or almonds too!)
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil

1. Prep: Make sure to wash your basil, remove the large stems, and cut the cheese into small chunks, like cubes.

2. I like to start by adding the cheese by itself in the food processor so I can make sure it is reduced to powder. Next, add the nuts and garlic. When you see them joining the consistency of the cheese start adding the basil slowly. You can do this through the shoot in the top and pushing it in or by removing the lid. Once the basil is incorporated add the oil slowly. You want the pesto to be thick and not runny but it should blend easily. In other words don't feel like you have to add as much oil as the recipe calls for. 

3. The final step is one that many recipies neglect. Storage! Pesto turns a dark green/brown when it it exposed to air, so the key to storing pesto is limiting its exposure to air. You can do this by making sure you pick a container that is close to perfectly the size you need and by changing containers as you deplete your pesto. The last and most important thing is to seal it with olive oil. A layer of oil on the top of your pesto will help keep it fresh and bright green.

Enjoy!

 

A Blog?

Starting a blog has been on my mind for quite a while, but I never took the next step and started one. I couldn't imagine why people would want to read my stream of consciousness, and after all the audience is what a blog is for right? Maybe, but I have decided to blog for me. I need an outlet to express myself and I can't paint so I will write. Most likely my blog will be dominated by food recipes and pictures of my dogs, but hey that's what make me happy. :) So here we (I) go!

Juice (R)evolution

I started juicing a while back when I finally committed to a black and silver Jack LaLanne juicer from Costco after lusting after a variety of juicers for months. I jumped into juicing with no idea what I was doing and no direction or goal other than to let the juice flow. I started reading anything I could find on how and what to juice. I had an image in my mind of my boyfriend and me juicing for breakfast every morning and getting super healthy which of course didn't happen. As it turns out the boyfriend only likes fruit juice which is tasty but not super nutritious and I can drink just about anything. I have finally settled into a routine where I try juice every other day any while my whole life hasn't changed I have seen some positive results. I don't own a scale so my results aren't appearance related. I have suffered from migraines for a handful of years now but recently they have become increasingly debilitating. In the first few days of juicing I was in the last half of a week long migraine which ended up landing me in the hospital. I recovered and I kept juicing partially because I couldn't keep anything solid down and partly to keep detoxing my body. For a week I was able to eat one food meal and two meals of juice until I got completely back on solid food. I also went cold turkey from caffeine in that time period and am now not drinking anything except for tea, which is pretty major since I was drinking an energy drink or espresso every day. Not only that my energy is up, I sleep better, no headaches (and therefore no pain meds), and I generally feel better. Is it 100% the juice? Possibly not but it has put me on the right track.