Creative Cooking with Southern Flair!
Weekend
Fajitas
It takes two! To ease the stress in the kitchen, invite your bestest over, pop open a bottle of wine or margarita and create this delicious meal for your family or friends and still have energy left to enjoy the day.
"Pan fried strip steak & blackened shrimp with jalapeño potatoes, sautéed peppers and onions, served with orange, chipotle tomatillo sauce"
Ingredients
3 Valencia oranges
1 lime
Chipotle Puree/Sauce
3 dried, chipotle chiles
1/4 cup fresh squeezed Valencia juice
Mandoline for slicing
¾ cup thinly sliced, small sweet onion
2-3 tablespoons, green onion sliced on bias
Thinly sliced Valencia orange segments
2 small tomatillas sliced thinly, or 1 medium sized, sliced thinly and half mooned.
3 tablespoons chipotle puree (from above)
3/4 cup fresh squeezed Valencia juice
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon sugar
3/4 teaspoon minced garlic
1/3 teaspoon dried oregano
3/4 teaspoon fresh, lime zest
2 teaspoons chopped cilantro
Jalapeno Potatoes
1 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 1/2 teaspoons minced garlic
Non-stick skillet with lid
1 1/2 pounds Russet potatoes
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 jalapeno, seeded, membranes removed and diced. Leave membranes & some seeds if you like heat.
Salt & pepper
Sautéed Vegetables
11 inch skillet
2 tablebspoons olive oil
1 large red, bell pepper
1 medium/large Spanish onion
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
Salt & pepper
Pan Seared Strip Steak
Cast iron skillet
2- 1 inch thick strip steaks
Salt & pepper
1 tbsp oil olive oil
1 tablespoon butter
4 garlic cloves, crushed
Meat thermometer
Blackened Shrimp
1 1/2 dozen large shrimp, peeled, deveined & pat dry
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon pepper
2 teaspoons chili powder
¼ teaspoon ground cumin
½ teaspoon smoked paprika
1 1/2 tablespoons olive
Flour & corn tortillas
Sour cream
Directions
Note:Everything can be kept warm in a 200 degree oven, while making, until ready to serve.
Chipotle Puree/Sauce
Place peppers in a small bowl and pour boiling hot water over the top to soften. Slice open the chipotle peppers and remove seeds and stems. Add the peppers and orange juice to a mini-food processor or a Vitamix blending cup and pulse into a paste.
Whisk the 3/4 cup orange juice with the salt & sugar, then add 3 tablespoons of the chipotle puree, the remaining ingredients and whisk. Place the sliced onion, oranges, etc in a bowl and pour the chipotle sauce over the top.
Jalapeno Potatoes
Melt the butter in a small bowl in the microwave, mix in the garlic and set aside.
Peel the potatoes and slice into 3/4 inch cubes. Heat the olive oil in the non-stick pan over medium-high temperature. Add the potatoes and cook, stirring often, until edges start to brown. Reduce temperature to med- low, cover, stir occasionally and cook until tender.
Add the butter with garlic, diced jalapeño, season with salt & pepper & cook 1-2 minutes.
Sautéed Vegetables
Heat the skillet and oil over medium-high heat. Add the bell pepper and onion and cook, stirring often until edges start to brown. Reduce temperature to medium-low, add the butter, season with salt & pepper and cook to desired tenderness.
Pan Seared Strip Steak
Steaks can be grilled too!
Bring steaks to room temperature and season all sides with salt & pepper. Heat a cast iron skillet over medium high with 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Sear the edges of the steaks first using a pair of tongs.
Lie the steaks flat and sear one side for 1 minute. Reduce the temperature to medium and flip the steaks over. Add the butter and crushed garlic cloves and start spooning over the steaks. Cook 1 minute and keep repeating until the steaks are cooked to preferred doneness. Med- rare 130-135 is best. Medium 135-145. Before serving, slice rested steaks, against the grain into thin strips.
Blackened Shrimp
Spoon all of the spices onto a plate, swirl together and dredge each side of the shrimp.
Heat the olive oil between medium and medium-high temperature. Add the shrimp and spread out evenly. Cook about 2 minutes, then flip shrimp over with a fork and cook 1-2 more minutes, until shrimp are opaque in color. Pour shrimp onto a cool plate.
Toast tortillas in a cast iron skillet, over med-high temperature.
Arrange everything onto a large platter and serve with extra cilantro and sour cream. Serves about 4