My attempt at a Gas Station Burrito.

We have this gas station near our house and literally there are tons of people, in line everyday for these burritos. They are a little hot and spicy, which normally is not my thing but they are so good. It's like this thick meat, sauce thing, with peppers and believe it or not...they don't have any cheese. I know...get out, right? Trust me they are fabulous.

 So of course, I thought to myself....I can do this. I don't know if you're like me but I am always taking food ideas and giving it a try. It's fun and most of the time I feel mine is better. Ha!

This still does need some tweaking but all in all they were very good. I did end up adding cheese and sour cream to mine. Which real made it even better, to me. You may just like it without.

First is the ingredients, I ran down to the local grocery store and picked up some:

 Some spices I used are, salt, pepper, parsley, garlic salt, chopped onions, ground pepper and Mexican oregano.

2 Jalapenos
2 Small Tomatoes
1 Large Onion
3 Cloves Garlic
3 Tomatillos
2 packs Thinly Cut Steak
3 New Mexican Chile's (soaked in water to soften)

What I did first was wash all the veggies and then sliced then in half, except the garlic cloves. I place those cut pieces on a greased pizza pan or you can use a cookie sheet. If you'd like to use a grill, you can do so as well.

 Be sure to salt and pepper all the veggies before roasting. It helps release more of their natural flavors. If you want your sauce even hotter, then leave the seeds in the peppers and jalapenos. The seeds add the heat!

Place in oven at 450 degrees for 10-20 mins and watch them. You just want them a little bit blacked but not too much or your sauce will come out bitter.

 Roasted and done. Could have gotten them a little bit darker. Next time, I'll let them go a tab longer.

Next, I chopped up the steak in small pieces and browned that in the frying pan. I added salt and pepper to that as well.

For the sauce, I used my blender and added all those nicely toasted veggies into the blender to blend. 

After everything is blended well, you'll have something like this. 

Next I get out the old crock pot and place my cooked meat inside and cover with the red sauce we just made. Turn that baby on high and simmer for hours. I let mine go a good 3-4 hours. It really tenderizes the meat and cooks down some of the spiciness.  

I make sure and taste and stir as it cooks. You may need to add more salt or other spices per your liking. 

Looks a little like chile but doesn't taste like it. This is spicy hot and full of delicious flavors. 

Any suggestions are always welcome, just comment or email me at pearlbeforeswine15@gmail.com. If you have any recipes you'd like to share, I'd love to do so!! 

Take care and have a great day!! 

Baked Oatmeal Cookies and fun for kids before school starts!

Baked Oatmeal Cookies

One of the family's favorites and super fun to make with the kids. I like to do mine without raisins and instead I add m&m's. 

Ingredients 

6 cups quick cooking oats

1 1/2 cups milk

4 eggs, lightly beaten

2/3 cup chunky applesauce

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/3 cup butter

1/4 cup white sugar

1 Tbsp baking powder

1 1/2 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp vanilla extract

Directions

Prep time: 10 minutes

Cook time: 20-30 minutes

Ready in about 30-60 minutes

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 9x13-inch baking dish.

Mix oats, milk, eggs, applesauce, brown sugar, butter, white sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, and vanilla extract together in a bowl until oats are evenly moistened; pour into prepared baking dish. 

Bake in the preheated oven until set and just golden brown, 20 to 30 minutes.

Super easy and a great way to spend some time with the kids before they go back to school.

How to roast fresh chiles at home.....and then make a red sauce with them!

How to Roast 

chiles at home

It’s easy in an oven, on top of a gas stove, or on an outdoor grill.

Let’s start with green chiles, the ones most frequently roasted. Plan on twenty minutes for oven roasting, putting the green chiles in a single layer on a baking sheet and blistering them at 450° F until the skins have blackened in many spots. Turn as needed for uniform scorching until the chiles look collapsed.

If you are only roasting a couple of pods, hold them with tongs over the flame of a gas burner for a few minutes, turning to blacken all over, or use an asador, a wire-mesh griddle.

On a gas or charcoal grill, place the green chiles on the grate over a hot fire, searing them on all sides for about ten minutes. 

Roast fresh red pods the same ways, but their higher moisture content will keep them from blistering and blackening as fully. To judge readiness, look for loosening skin and a deep brown shade.

How to steam and peel fresh chiles

After roasting chiles, steam them immediately to loosen the skins.

Place pods in a Ziploc plastic bag or a covered bowl and let them sit five to ten minutes or until cool enough to handle.

If dealing with any quantity of chile's, wear rubber gloves to avoid getting capsaicin (the substance that gives the pods heat) on your hands; it doesn't wash off easily and can irritate the skin.

Strip off the peel. You may find yourself wanting to run water over the chiles to help with the process since some peel is bound to stick. Don’t do it any more than absolutely necessary, however, because it dilutes flavor. Instead, rinse your gloved hands under the running water.

Remove stems and seeds unless you are planning to stuff the chiles, in which case it’s better to leave the stem and any seeds still attached to avoid weakening the pod.

Use the sauce in enchiladas, burritos, tamales, or smothered on top of basically anything. This sauce will keep up to 6 days refrigerated and freezes well.

Servings: 4 cups

• 8 ounces (about 20 to 25) dried whole red New Mexican chile pods, mild, medium, hot, or a combination. 
• 4 cups water or chicken stock (divided use)
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 medium onion, minced
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 to 2 teaspoons crumbled dried Mexican oregano, or marjoram
• 1 teaspoon salt, or more to taste

Directions

Toast dried whole chile pods in a heavy skillet over medium heat until they are warm and release their fragrance, 1 to 2 minutes per side.

Remove the chiles from the skillet immediately. When cool enough to handle, break each chile pod into several pieces (wearing rubber or plastic gloves if your skin is sensitive), discarding the stem and seeds.

Place half the chile pieces in a blender and pour in one-half of the water or stock. Puree until mostly smooth but with a few flecks of chile still visible in the liquid.

Warm the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic, and sauté several minutes until the onion is limp.

Pour in the blended chile mixture, then add oregano and salt.

Puree the remaining chiles with the remaining water and pour it into the sauce in the pan. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for a total of 20 to 25 minutes.

After about 15 minutes, taste the sauce and adjust seasonings. When ready, the sauce will be cooked down enough to coat a spoon thickly but still drop off of it easily. 

Use warm or refrigerate for later use