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Zucchini Goat Cheese Entomatadas

 

Zucchini-Goat-Cheese-Entomatadas_Zucchini-recipe-for-Summer_Yes,-more-please!

Entomatadas;//Adjective, En=in / tomat= from the word tomato /adas adjective termination that denotes action,”adas”
I would say that the closest translation of the word “entomatadas” or “entomatado” would be “smothered in tomato”.

These Entomatadas are the mellow cousins of the Enchiladas. They have the same concept and construction, rolled tortillas filled with infinite possibilities and covered with a sauce made with dry chiles.  The sauce used in entomatadas is made with red tomatoes, as its name suggests. Roma, or Tomboys tomatoes, or jitomate “bola” in Spanish is usually the tomatoes of choice when making this sauce, but certainly any red round meaty and juicy tomatoes, along with mild herbs and spices will work.

The basic Entomatada sauce is very mellow and showcases the best in tomatoes. In this version of mine, I rock it out a little bit by adding a single serrano, that mimics the black pepper and adds deep of flavor to the sauce. The sauce consist of boiled tomatoes, that are skinned, blended, and then sautéed with onion, garlic and fresh epazote or mint. Then its pureed for a second time to produce the most velvety and creamy tomatoey sauce. The creamy sauce contains no dairy however, which makes the sauce light and fresh. Also on the virtue of looking for a healthier, lighter version of the classic way to make entomatadas which calls for frying the tortillas, I warmed up the corn tortillas and I drizzled them with a bit of a delicious green… a grassy extra virgin olive oil! This step not only adds another layer of flavor, but also prevents soggy tortillas when the salsa is added.

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These Entomatadas of mine are filled with sautéed zucchinis, onions, sweet corn, and goat cheese. Once I roll them up, they are smothered with the piping hot tomato sauce which warms them through. These Entomatadas are best eaten warm almost tepid temperature.
Pouring the sauce separately when making any kind of enchilada is my favorite way to make them; It avoids enchilada uni-blocks. Best of all, by using this technique on these Entomatadas, is that it makes them BAKE-FREE!!! keeping you and your house odor free when you have closed the windows to run the A/C. If you don’t understand how that works, then come further South.

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Entomatadas are great for entertaining. I usually have them rolled up and when its time to serve them. I pour the piping hot tomato sauce all over, drizzle of Mexican crema or in this case I use a diluted Greek yogurt and sprinkle of queso fresco to keep them on the lighter side. Take them to the table and serve on a bed of shredded fresh lettuce and avocado wedges. I’m telling you, these Zucchini Goat Cheese Entomatadas scream Summer out loud! Whether its a midweek dinner or a potluck this recipe, its a must try! I know you will like them as much as we do!…

To make this Entomatadas you will need….

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Watermelon Wedge Salad

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Its hot in here! Austin is reaching 100F temperatures. All I can think of is something refreshing. I’m craving lots of juicy ingredients. So what to make?… Watermelon and iceberg lettuce together its the ultimate ode to crisp and fresh.
Inspired by the classic wedge salad, I played with summer flavors and made a Watermelon Wedge Salad. It consists of one head of iceberg lettuce cut into quarters plus a good sweet crisp watermelon dressed with a light and clean, olive oil + salt + black pepper dressing. 
One bite has it all; crisp crunch of the iceberg lettuce, tangy lemony light dressing, sweet juicy watermelon, creamy and salty pancetta, fragrant basil adds a great herb note.

What is not to like ?

This recipe is a pairing of summery ingredients that work divine together. Much like a summer gathering of good old friends having a good time.
Easy, fast and fun to make, in a blink of an eye this salad is ready to cool you down.

Music pairing: Our favorite music band : SPOON just released its new album: “They want my soul “
that is what is playing on the background.

Keep it fresh. Enjoy!

Watermelon-wedge-salad_ingredients

Watermelon Wedge Salad

Serves 4 warm souls

1 head of iceberg lettuce
4 cups seedless watermelon chilled.
½ cup goat cheese crumbs.
2 half inch thick slices of pancetta.
Small bunch 6-8 large leaves fresh basil.
2-3 tablespoons fresh finishing extra virgin olive oil
2 juicy lemons
1 teaspoon Kosher salt
Fresh ground black pepper to taste.

Preparation:

1. Cut the pancetta in small cubes, sauté until crisp and render the fat. Place them over a paper towel to absorb the excess fat.

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2. Remove the hard steam of the lettuce. Cut the head lettuce in four wedges.
3. With a melon baller scoop 4-5 cups of watermelon balls.

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4. Place the lettuce wedges on a plater, and drizzle olive oil, the juice of 1 lemon, generous amounts of kosher salt and black pepper.

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5. Add the watermelon balls, crumbled goat cheese, crispy pancetta.

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6. Tier the basil leaves and sprinkle on top, add the rest of the lemon juice a little extra drizzle of olive oil, serve.

Note: Make sure your watermelon is cold, place it into the refrigerator hours before to ensure maximum chill! This salad taste better when the crisp clean iceberg lettuce and the juicy watermelon are cold.

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Mirror, mirror on the wall who’s the freshest of them all?

Music Pairing: Spoon – They want My Soul

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Leek+Potato+ Goat Cheese Tarte Tatin

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What is a Tarte tatin anyway?.. Basically its an upside down pie. Why would you want to make an upside down pie?..In a word, caramelization. It’s not only the easiest pie-tart you will make, it’s also one of the tastiest. Leeks, green onions, and potatoes are in season. Inspired by the classic of classics Vichyssoise soup, I gave my little spin using the same ingredients I transformed them in to a leek and potato tarte tine that it tastes equally delicious warm or at room temperature.

I used a mix of whole wheat and white flour, to give the crust a nutty flavor and added some thyme, to flavor the crust. Super easy to prepare. The flavors of the leeks, and potatoes shine together,the leeks mellow out the onion flavor and became buttery complementing the potatoes. the little addition of honey adds a little sweet note, fresh cracked pepper , salt and butter is all this tart needs.
Top it all off with the king of fresh cheeses: goat cheese and a little drizzle of extra virgin olive oil.

I made it for dinner with a great green salad and orange slices on the side… The next day we had leftovers for breakfast with a sunny side up egg on the side… Choose your weapon, this is a killer recipe..enjoy!

Leek-Tarte-tatin_ingredients

Leek+Potato+ Goat Cheese Tarte Tatin

Makes 1- 10” round tarte tine

3-4 Leeks upon diameter and length.
4- 6 Small red potatoes or yellow wax potatoes thinly sliced.
1 tablespoon honey
1 glug extra virgin olive oil
4 tablespoons butter
Salt + Pepper to taste

1 dough recipe follow  below

Garnish with:

Liberally amounts of Goat Cheese (until you yodel-adle-eedle-idle-odle!)
Drizzle of extra virgin olive oil
Fresh Thyme
Adjust Salt and Pepper

Preparation Method:

How to wash your Leeks, a leeky matter…

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Leeks are bulbs like onions, the part we are eating is the bulb that is under the soil and believe it on not, this is the cleanest. The part of the plant that sprouts out of the soil that’s were the trouble is. That’s where all the sand sneaks in and there is nothing worse than when you are eating a leek, than to crunch those little particles of sand. Until I understood the anatomy of this vegetable, I couldn’t make sense of how to clean it.
Infinite inner layers, like an onion in a tube form is where the sand goes. Depending on how are you cut them there are different washing methods.
In this case, I removed almost all the green leafy part. As my friend Arin said, “Don’t get greedy!’ The greener parts look pretty but they tend to be more fibrous. Leave those parts to make vegetable stock. Slice in 1”-2” rounds removing the tops.(see picture below)
The parts that are closer to the leafy greens are the ones that needed the most care and to wash the rest are fine. I just submerge the greenest slices and press a little under the running water. I slice them and place them in paper towels that absorb the extra water. Once this procedure is out of your way the fun part begins. Preparing the dough!

For the Dough:

Makes 1- 10″ round  crust

¾ cup unbleached all purpose flour
¾ cup whole wheat flour
2-3 thyme sprigs
½ teaspoon salt
1 stick = 4 oz unsalted butter, cold and cut into small squares.
4 to 6 tablespoons iced water

How to make the crust:

Measure all your ingredients, and place all the dry ingredients in a bowl and mix. Place bowl in the freezer. Meantime cut your cold butter, and iced water ready to measure. Remove the bowl of dry ingredients from freezer and add the butter. Add the thyme. With a pastry Blender incorporate the butter and flour until the mixture resembles to a coarse meal, and the butter pieces are small like the size of a pea. Slowly add the cold water and carefully with your hands form a dough that just holds together. Do not over work the dough. Once that the dough barely holds together cut a piece of plastic wrap and place your dough. Wrap it and shape it into a disk.
Refrigerate for at least 1 hour or 15-20 minutes on the freezer. If you plan ahead you can make the dough the night before.

Leek-Tarte-tartin_making-the-dough

Assembling the tart:

1. In a 9-10” skillet with rounded edges, melt 4 tablespoons of butter, add a glug of extra virgin olive oil, drizzle the honey, sprinkle the sea salt and freshly ground pepper.
2. Place an even and tight layer of leeks, and top this with a layer of the thinly slices of potato.
Sprinkle some salt and pepper.

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3. Once your dough is chilled, roll it out into a 10” circle 1/4” inch thick.

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4. Cover the inside of the skillet with the dough, and tuck the edges.(see picture)
5. With a small pairing knife make 4 incisions. Bake at 425F/ 220C for about 25-30 minutes on the first 1/3 of the oven rack. until the top is golden brown.

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6. Remove from the oven, and cool the tarte tine for about 10-15 minutes.
7. With the help of a round plater, cover the skillet and wrap it with a kitchen towel. Flip.
Flip it with conviction, As Julia Childs said! (you can try to make the voice, some times this works best…)

Leek-Tarte-tatin_how-to-flip!

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The leeks should be perfectly cooked, but not mushy, they hold their shape, they have this beautiful yellowish green color, the butter has done it’s magic. It should glisten…
Sprinkle some kosher salt, pepper, drizzle some extra virgin olive oil, and fresh thyme.

Enjoy!

Leek-potato-goat-cheese-Tarte-tatin_slice-Yes,-more-please!

 

 

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