Juice

It's a fresh juice sort of day.
It's funny because I used to be intimidated by my juicer. I tried a couple recipes from the internet, (that were absolutely disgusting), and I gave up for awhile. Recently though, I've decided to just throw in whatever I have in the crisper. For me, it's either all fruit or all veggie, not a big fan of mixing the two. One of my all time faves is pure pear juice. It's thick and creamy and delicious....oh and it's good for you!
Pears can do all kinds of stuff like help lower blood pressure (anti-oxidant and anti-carcinogen glutathione) and cholesterol (pectin), protect against cancer (vitamin C and copper content) and a lot more. Oh it's also a natural anti-inflammatory!

Street Tacos

I'm having leftovers for lunch today and it reminded me that I made some amazing street tacos the other day. I used boneless chuck shoulder steak. The secret is in this marinade that I found in the ethnic section of Albertson's. It's a tall bottle and it says Goya Mojo Criollo Marinade. This must be the world's best kept secret!! I think it was like $1.49!
So I covered the meat with this and left overnight in the fridge. The next day I slow cooked the meat, (on the stove not a crockpot), in some of the marinade and some water. Just enough to almost cover the meat and simmering for a couple of hours, flipping meat occasionally til it almost just fell apart.
Throw it in a tortilla, add whatever toppings you like. Voila!

Chicken and White Bean Chili w/Avacado Lime Sour Cream

My first post and I figured I'd just dive right in. I was inspired to make this recipe after we went to a chili tasting festival yesterday afternoon. This one couple had chicken chili and it was phenomenal! I had never tried it before, (and I don't like chicken all that much), but it was so good that I decided to make my own. I'm not the type to measure anything but I'll do my best to share my version, (which is delicious!)

1 1/2 - 2lb Ground Chicken
4 (different) cans of white beans. I used Cannellini, Butter, Great Northern, Navy
Chicken Broth
Cilantro, chopped, separated
Garlic, minced
Baby Bellas, sliced (optional)
Small Can of Chipotle White Corn
1 Sweet Onion, chopped
Roasted Green Chilies to taste, chopped
1 Jalapeno, tiny diced
Cumin, dry, to taste
Oregano, dry, to taste
corn starch
Green Onion
White Shredded Cheese
Tortilla Strips

Use olive oil to saute the chicken, sweet onion, garlic and mushrooms (if adding), cumin and oregano in a large pot. When chicken is cooked add about 6 cups of broth keeping heat around medium to med/high. Rinse all beans and strain, add to pot. Add chilies, 1/2 of cilantro, can of corn, and a bit of jalapeno. Turn down heat a bit and simmer.

Make avocado/lime sour cream while this is simmering.
Mash up an extremely ripe avocado in a bowl, add sour cream, lime juice and tiny bits of
jalapeno. Add a little sea salt.

Mix about a half cup of water with 2 Tbsp of corn starch until no lumps. Slowly add to the simmering chili and stir to thicken it. Make sure the pot is simmering well or this won't work. After about 2 minutes, if it still isn't thick enough for you, turn up the heat a bit and add more of the corn starch mixture.
Ladle into a bowl and top with a dollop of sour cream, cheese, tortilla strips, a bit of green onion, and a bit of cilantro. Delish!