Homemade Corn Tortillas

From the Maseca Corn Flour Bag

This recipe is super easy, but you do need a tortilla press. You can find a tortilla press as cheap as $15 on Amazon.com

Ingredients:

2 Cups Corn Flour
1 1/2 Cups of Water
1 tsp Salt
Canola Oil

Directions:

Combine the corn flour, water, and salt in a medium bowl until it forms a dough. Form 16-20 equal sized balls out of the dough. Place plastic wrap on the top and bottom portion of the tortilla press and place a ball in the center. Press down to flatten the ball into a tortilla. Lift tortilla off the press using a spatula (Using your fingers will result in the tortillas breaking and falling apart). Once all of the balls of dough have been pressed into tortillas, heat up a flat pan with a tsp of canola oil. Fry the tortillas until cooked (They won't get brown, that's ok). Fill your freshly made tortillas with salsa, meat, veggies, and other toppings of your choice.

Baked Ziti with Fresh Mozzarella and Italian Sausage

A Pinterest Recipe

Ingredients:

1 lb of Ziti Pasta
Olive Oil
Salt
1 Yellow Onion, Diced
2 Garlic Cloves, Minced
1 lb ground Italian Sausage, Without the Casings (You can buy regular Italian Sausage and push the filling out of the casings)
3 Medium-Sized Mushrooms, Diced
1 Small Zucchini, Diced
2 14 oz Cans of Diced Tomatoes
1 6 oz Can of Tomato Paste
Oregano
20 Basil Leaves, Torn, and Split Into Two Equal Piles
1 Cup Grated Parmesan Cheese
8 Slices of Fresh Mozzarella

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cook the ziti pasta in boiling water according to the package with a little olive oil and a pinch of salt. Remove from the heat about 3 minutes before the time indicated on the pasta package. Drain well.

Meanwhile, prepare the sauce. In a large skillet, heat 1 tbsp olive oil. Sauté the onions until translucent and slightly golden in color, then add the garlic, mushrooms, and zucchini. Once the zucchini and mushrooms have softened add the sausage. Cook on medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until the sausage is fully browned.

Now add the canned tomatoes, tomato paste and one pile of the basil leaves. Reduce the heat to medium and cook for 10 minutes or until the sauce thickens. Season to taste with salt, pepper, and oregano.

Combine the pasta with 1/2 of the grated Parmesan cheese and 1/2 the sauce (you will use the rest of the sauce shortly). If your skillet is not oven-safe, transfer the pasta to a baking dish and top with the remaining sauce and the mozzarella cheese slices. Bake the ziti pasta in preheated-oven for 20-25 minutes. When ready, remove from the oven and add the rest of the Parmesan cheese and basil leaves.

Café Rio's Sweet Pork Barbacoa

A Pinterest Recipe

This pork is the pork that made Café Rio famous. If you have never been to Café Rio, you are truly missing out and need to make this amazing pork. You do have to marinate the pork overnight, but it is totally worth it!

Ingredients:

2 lbs of Pork Shoulder, Butt, or Rib Meat
3 Cans of Coca Cola (You can use the Non-Caffeinated kind, but do NOT use Diet Coca Cola)
1/4 Cup of Brown Sugar
1/4 Cup of Water
Garlic Salt
1 Can Diced Green Chiles
3/4 of a 10oz Can of Red Enchilada Sauce
1 Cup of Brown Sugar

Directions:

Put the pork in a heavy duty Ziploc bag to marinade. Add about a can and a half of coke and 1/4 cup of brown sugar. Marinade overnight. Drain marinade and put pork, 1/2 can of coke and water in a crock pot on high for about 3-4 hours (or until it shreds easily, but don't let it get too dry) or on low for 8 hours. Remove pork from crock pot and drain any liquid left in the pot. Shred pork and sprinkle garlic salt to taste (about 1 tsp). In a food processor or blender, blend 1/2 can Coke, chilies, enchilada sauce and 1 cup of brown sugar. If it looks too thick, add more Coke little by little. Put shredded pork and sauce in a crockpot and cook on low for 2 hours.

One Pot Greek Meatballs with Lemon Dill Rice

A Pinterest Recipe

Ingredients:

For Meatballs:
1 1/2 lb Ground Lamb or 90% Lean Ground Beef
1/4 Cup of Breadcrumbs or Flour
1 tsp Dried Oregano

1/2 tsp Lemon Zest

1 Clove of Garlic, Minced

1 Egg

1 tsp Salt

1/4 tsp black pepper

1 Tbsp Olive Oil

For Rice:

1 1/2 Cups Arborio Rice or Long Grain Rice

3 1/2 Cups Chicken Broth

Salt and Pepper to Taste

1 Zucchini, Quartered Lengthwise

1/2 Cup Cherry Tomatoes, Halved

1/4 Cup Fresh Dill, Minced

1 Tbsp of Lemon Juice

Directions:

For the Meatballs:

Combine all of the meatball ingredients along with 1 tablespoon of water in a bowl. Mix until thoroughly combined. Shape the meat mixture into balls that are 2-3 inches in diameter. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over high heat. Place the meatballs in the pan and cook for 3-4 minutes on each side or until browned. Pour the chicken broth and rice into the pan, along with ½ teaspoon of kosher salt and ¼ teaspoon black pepper. Bring the mixture to a boil, cover the pan and place it in the oven. Bake for 25 minutes or until the rice has absorbed all the liquid. Place the zucchini into the pan, cover and return to the oven for an additional 5 minutes or until zucchini has cooked through. Remove the pan from the oven. Stir the lemon juice and dill into the rice and place the cherry tomatoes on top. Serve immediately.

Grilled Corn Salsa

A Pinterest Recipe

Ingredients:

3 Ears of Corn
1/2 of a Red Onion
1/2 Cup of Cilantro
1 Lime
1 tsp Salt
1 tsp Garlic Powder
1 tsp Cumin
A Pinch of Sugar (To Taste)

Directions:

Cook the corn on the stove on the grates covering the fire (this works best on a gas stove or grill). Once the corn is grilled, use a sharp knife and cut the corn kernels off the ears. Dice the 1/2 of red onion and chop the cilantro. Put the corn, onion, and cilantro in a bowl and mix. Add the salt, garlic, cumin, and sugar. Stir again, and serve on tacos, or with tortilla chips.