Showing posts with label FOTMC. Show all posts


Where does the time go?  It seems like it was just yesterday that the kiddies were getting out of school for summer vacation.  And then BAM!  It's over.  Has it really been six weeks???  My kiddies go back to school tomorrow, although Hope (my 15 year old) started at her new high school on Wednesday.

As short as our summer vacation was, I'm not too sad because I know we packed in as much fun as we could.  And that's all that really matters.  Not how long or short our vacation was.

My kiddies are all pretty excited to go back to school.  Jack's looking forward to finding out who his new teacher is going to be.  Ashley's looking forward to showing off her new short 'do to all her friends.  Nick's looking forward to being an 8th grader.  And Hope is/was looking forward to making new friends at her new school.

This past week I've been busy getting everything ready for the first day of school.  We've gone school supply shopping, picked up the kiddies' new uniforms, and I have their backpacks all packed and ready to go.  All that's left to do is to pack their lunch.  That is actually the easiest of all my back-to-school preparations.  Every year, for as long as I can remember, my kiddies have requested the same thing for their First Day of School lunch...Pizzadillas.  It looks like a quesadilla on the outside, but it's stuffed with all the same goodies you'd put on a pizza.  A pizza quesadilla!


Pizzadillas

Ingredients:
  • Flour tortillas
  • 1 lb. pepperoni
  • 1-1/2 to 2 cups pizza sauce
  • Shredded mozarella, Oaxaca, or Asadero cheese
  • Sliced black olives (optional)
  • Sliced mushrooms (optional)
  • Thinly sliced red onion (optional)
  • Thinly sliced bell pepper (optional)
  • Sliced jalapeño peppers (canned or homemade) 

Directions:
Spread 1 tablespoon of pizza sauce on a flour tortilla.  Top with shredded cheese, sliced pepperoni, and whatever other toppings you love.  My kiddies love jalapeños and olives on their pizzas, but you could also add some sliced mushrooms and/or bell peppers. 


Top with another flour tortilla.  Cook the pizzadillas on a lightly greased comal or skillet over low heat, until both sides of the quesadilla are lightly golden and the cheese has melted.  Serve with pizza sauce on the side.  Enjoy!


For more lunchbox recipes, check out what my #SundaySupper friends have cooked up for you this week:

Sandwiches, Wraps and Entrees:
Munchies, Salads and Sides:
Sweet Treats:
A big thank you to That Skinny Chick Can Bake for hosting this week's #SundaySupper Lunchbox party. Join the #SundaySupper conversation on twitter each Sunday. We tweet throughout the day and share recipes from all over the world. Our weekly chat starts at 7:00 pm EST. Follow the #SundaySupper hashtag and remember to include it in your tweets to join in the chat. Check out our #SundaySupper Pinterest board for more fabulous recipes and food photos.

Would you like to join the Sunday Supper Movement? It’s easy. You can sign up by clicking here → Sunday Supper Movement.


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Pizzadillas #SundaySupper

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Back by popular demand...It's The Food of the Month Club!

But before I get into this month's theme, I want to take a moment to thank you all so much for your patience and understanding, and all of your prayers and emails while I stepped back a bit from blogging to care for my father-in-law. I am very happy to report that is he doing so much better.  It's been a good 6 weeks since he's had any kind of anxiety attack or depressive episode.  It's a major breakthrough and we couldn't be happier about it.  I know he isn't completely out of the woods yet, but slowly and surely we are all getting back to our normal routines and activities, which for me includes blogging on a regular basis.  (More than just once a week.)  

I had hoped to bring back The Food of the Month Club last month, but time got away from me.  But that's not happening this month.  With the kiddies going back to school in just a few short weeks, this month's theme is one I'm sure many will appreciate...Back-to-School Recipes!

And I'm not talking just bologna sandwiches and/or bean burritos!  (Which is what I always carried in my Mork & Mindy lunchbox.)  The Back-to-School theme includes:
  • Back-to-School Lunches
  • Quick & Easy Breakfasts
  • Afterschool Snacks
  • Bake Sale Treats 


How to Participate in The Food of the Month Club:  
1.)  Visit La Cocina de Leslie at the beginning of each month to find out the Food of the Month Club theme or ingredient.  
2.)  Cook up something delicious according to the Food of the Month theme or using the Food of the Month as a main ingredient.  
3.)  Post your Back-to-School recipe(s) on your blog.  You can submit more than one recipe, but no more than 3.  All posts must be current. (Your post must link back to this announcement post!) 
4.)  Come back to this announcement post and add your Back-to-School link(s) to the Linky Tool widget located at the bottom of this post.  Then leave a comment so we don't miss out on your dish. 
5.) Show some love to the other entries by visiting and commenting on their posts and maybe make a new foodie friend in the process.  
6.)  Have fun!  And share about The Food of the Month Club with your friends.

*Linky will be open until 11:59pm (EST) on August 31, 2013 


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August Food of the Month Club: Back to School Linky

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Welcome to another edition of the new & improved Food of the Month Club.  In case you missed last month's announcement, there have been a few changes.  Instead of emailing your entries to me for the round-up at the end of the month, you now just add your links to the Linky tool located at the bottom of each announcement post.  That way we have the announcement and all of the entries in one place and we no longer have two Food of the Month Club posts confusing everyone. 

This month's theme is Salads.  Again, we have a wide selection from which to choose: leafy green salads, creamy pasta salads, whole grain salads, sweet fruity salads, cold salads, warm salads... And let's not forget those good old-fashioned stand-by's like potato salad, egg salad, and tuna salad.

What's your favorite kind of salad?


How to Participate:  
1.)  Head to the kitchen and whip up your favorite Salad recipe. 
2.)  Post the Salad recipe(s) on your blog.  You can submit more than one recipe, but no more than 3.  All posts must be current and must link back to this announcement post!) 
3.)  Come back to this announcement post and add the link(s) to your Salad recipe to the Linky Tool widget located at the bottom of this post.  Then leave a comment so we don't miss out on your dish.   
4.) Show some love to the other entries by visiting and commenting on their posts and maybe make a new foodie friend in the process.  
5.)  Have fun!  And share about The Food of the Month Club with your friends.

*The Linky Tool will be open until 11:59PM (CST) on February 28th
. 


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February Food of the Month Club: Salad {w/ Linky}

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The Holiday Season is upon us, leaving many of us to ask that age old question...."What am I going to serve with the turkey, ham, or tamales this year?"  Freaketh not, my friends, because this month's Food of the Month Club theme is...Side Dishes!  


You can choose from: pasta, rice, beans, mashed potatoes, veggies, and even salads.

What are some of your favorite Side Dishes?



How to Participate:

1.)  Visit La Cocina de Leslie the 15th of each month to find out the Food of the Month.

2.)  Head to the kitchen and cook up a delicious Side Dish.

3.)  Post the recipe(s) on your blog.  You may submit more than one recipe, but no more than 3 can be included in the round-up.  All posts must be current.   

4.)  You must link to this page in your Side Dish recipe blog post(s).  You can also add the Food of the Month Club badge to your post and/or sidebar.  You can find the code for the badge here. 

5.)  Email your Side Dish entries to me at leslielimon@lacocinadeleslie.com no later than December 14th to be included in the round-up.  Be sure to  include:
~your name
~your blog name
~permalink to your post
~a photo of your recipe or permission to pull one from your post

6.)  Visit La Cocina de Leslie on December 15th for the Side Dish recipe round-up.  

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November: Food of the Month Club Announcement

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lacocinadeleslie.com

I can't remember if it was Girlichef's idea or mine to make empanadas for She Made/Ella Hace this month, I just know that I was more than happy to oblige.  I'm always looking for an excuse to make empanadas, mostly because there are only two kinds of empanadas sold in my small town: Empanadas de Piña (pineapple) and Empanadas de Leche (vanilla custard).  That's it!  Well, sometimes you can also find strawberrry jam filled empanadas, with a crumbly cookie-like crust, which I love.  But for She Made/Ella Hace, there was really only one kind of empanada I wanted to make...Pumpkin Empanadas!

Pumpkin Empanadas have been my absolute all-time favorite empanadas since I was a little girl.  They were the only kind I chose at the Mexican panadería (bakery).  But as much as I enjoyed the Pumpkin Empanadas from the panadería, they were nothing compared to the ones my grandpa used to make.  The dough was buttery and tender.  And the filling was only slightly sweet, but bursting with flavor.  You could taste each of the spices as soon as the filling touched your tongue.


I really think my grandpa missed his calling.  He was an expert baker.  About once a month, Pappy would make three or four different kinds of empanadas.  My favorites were calabaza (pumpkin), manzana (apple), and ciruela pasa (prunes).  But like most Mexican cooks, he never wrote anything down, and never bothered to measure ingredients.  I wish I would have paid more attention to how Pappy made his dough, because to this day, I haven't been able to recreate it.  Thankfully, my go-to cream cheese empanada dough works perfectly with this recipe.

The important thing is that I've got the filling down perfectly.  As I was cooking the pumpkin filling for the empanadas, the aroma of the spices floated through the air, making my house smell like Christmas.  So warm and inviting.  Even Hubby and a couple of his customers commented about the intoxicating aroma in the shop.  If I closed my eyes for just a second, it felt like I was standing in my grandparents' little kitchen for Christmas or Thanksgiving.

lacocinadeleslie.com

Empanaditas de Calabaza
(Mini-Pumpkin Empanada Bites)

Ingredients: 
For the Pumpkin Filling:
  • 2 cups homemade pumpkin puree (or canned)
  • 1/2 cup brown sugar
  • 1/4 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
  • 1/8 teaspoon ground ginger
  • 1 tablespoon butter
For the dough:
  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt
  • 6 oz. cream cheese, room temperature
  • 6 oz. butter, room temperature
Egg Wash:
  • 1 egg, slightly beaten
  • 1/4 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Directions: 
For the filling: In a medium saucepan, combine the pumpkin puree with the sugars and ground spices: cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and ginger.  Cook over low heat until the sugar has completely dissolved and the pumpkin puree is heated through.  Remove from heat and stir in the butter; set aside and let cool to room temperature.

Prepare the dough, combine the flour and salt.  With the help of a potato masher, add in the cream cheese and butter to the flour, until no trace of flour is visible.  Press the dough together to form a ball.  Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for about 30 minutes.

Divide the dough in half.  Return one half of the dough to the refrigerator, while you work with the other half.  Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface, or between two sheets of plastic wrap, to about 1/8-inch thickness.  Cut out circles with a 3-inch round cookie cutter or empanada mold.

To make the empanadas, spoon about a teaspoonful of pumpkin puree into the center of each circle of dough.  Using the tip of your finger, lightly moisten the outer edge of the dough with water.  Gently fold the dough circle in half, pressing the edges together with the tines of a fork to seal in the filling.  Pierce the center of each empanada with a fork.  (This allows for the steam to escape.)  Place on a lightly greased baking sheet.  Continue with the remaining dough.  Refrigerate the uncooked empanadas for about 30 minutes before baking.

Preheat oven to 350F.  In a small bowl, combine the 1/4 cup of granulated sugar with 1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon.  Brush the uncooked empanadas with the slightly beaten egg, then sprinkle a little of the cinnamon-sugar mixture on top.  Bake at 350F for about 15 minutes or until light golden brown.  Remove the empanadas from oven and let cool for about one minute before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.  Serve with coffee or Mexican Hot Chocolate.  Enjoy!!!

 Recipe yields about 24 to 30 Mini Pumpkin Empanadas.

lacocinadeleslie.com

Now head on over to Girlichef's blog!  She's made TWO different kinds of empanadas: Apple w/ Almond Paste AND Pumpkin with Piloncillo & Cinnamon.

What's your favorite kind of empanada?



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Mini Pumpkin Empanada Bites {She Made / Ella Hace}

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For month's I've known what ingredient I wanted to be October's Food of the Month, but I had to wait to make sure I'd actually have some to cook with when the time came.  I don't usually find them until a little later in the season.  But this year, I got lucky!

Last week, my favorite vendor came walking through the neighborhood with his wheelbarrow full of these little beauties...


Pumpkins!!!

Okay, these are Calabazas (Mexican pumpkins).  They're the closest thing I can find to the big, bright orange pumpkins that you see in the US.  But they are just as delicious.

I'm so excited to actually get to cook with pumpkin while it's still fall.  I've got a list of things that I want to make that is at least a mile long.  And the first things on that list are of course, pumpkin pie, pumpkin bread, and Pumpkin Pie Atole.

What pumpkin goodies are you looking forward to eating this fall?



How to participate:
1.)  Visit La Cocina de Leslie the 15th of each month to find out the Food of the Month.

2.)  Cook up something delicious using the Food of the Month as one of the main ingredients.

3.)  Post the recipe(s) on your blog.  You may submit more than one recipe, but no more than 3 can be included in the round-up.  All posts must be current.   

4.)  You must link to this page in your pumpkin recipe blog post(s).  You can also add the Food of the Month Club badge to your post and/or sidebar.  You can find the code for the badge here. 

5.)  Email your pumpkin entries to me at leslielimon@lacocinadeleslie.com no later than November 14th to be included in the round-up.  Be sure to  include:
~your name
~your blog name
~permalink to your post
~a photo of your recipe or permission to pull one from your post

6.)  Visit La Cocina de Leslie on November 15th for the pumpkin recipe round-up.   
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October: Food of the Month Club Announcement

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The other day, I found myself craving something warm and cinnamon-y.  It wasn't a craving for a specific dessert.  All I knew was that I wanted something that tasted like fall.  I'm not sure if everyone is aware of this little known fact, but fall tastes like cinnamon.  It also tastes like apples and pumpkins and brown sugar.  It was then that I realized that I hadn't even had a chance to cook with this month's ingredient for the Food of the Month Club...Apples.  (Sigh!)  Apples would fit in very nicely with what I was craving.  I just needed to decide what to make.

Just then, my youngest son Jack, ran inside to get a sweater.  You know it's chilly outside if a 7 year old little boy takes time out from riding his bike to get a sweater.  As Jack ran back outside, I knew exactly what to make...Apple-Cinnamon Arroz con Leche!  Arroz con Leche is Jack's favorite dessert.  It was just what the kiddies would need to help warm them up, once they were done playing outside.  And with the addition of apples and extra cinnamon, it was sure to satisfy my craving.

Let me tell you... The Apple-Cinnamon Arroz con Leche did not disappoint!  It was warm and creamy and cinnamon-y all at the same time.  And with the soft little pieces of tart Granny Smith apples...  (Sigh!)  It tasted just like fall!

What are you craving this fall?

Apple Cinnamon Arroz con Leche - lacocinadeleslie.com

Apple-Cinnamon Arroz con Leche
(Rice Pudding)

Ingredients:
  • 3 to 4 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, and finely chopped
  • 1 cup long or short-grain rice (I used long-grain) 
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 3-inch cinnamon stick 
  • 3-1/2 cups water
  • 2 cups milk
  • 1 (12 oz.) can evaporated milk
  • 1 (14 oz.) can sweetened condensed milk
  • 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
Directions: 
In medium 2 to 3-quart saucepan, bring rice, chopped apple, cinnamon stick, salt and water to a boil over medium-high heat. Cover saucepan and reduce heat to low. Let simmer until all of the liquid has been absorbed and the rice is fluffy, about 15 minutes.


Gently stir in the milk, evaporated milk, sweetened condensed milk, and ground cinnamon. Cover saucepan and let simmer over low heat, stirring occasionally to prevent the rice from sticking or flowing over,  for about 20 minutes or until the Arroz con Leche is nice and creamy. Let cool slightly.  Serve warm.  Enjoy!!! 

lacocinadeleslie.com

*You can also let the Arroz con Leche cool to room temperature, then refrigerate for a couple of hours or overnight, to serve the rice pudding cold.  I LOVE cold Arroz con Leche for breakfast!  

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Sharing this recipe with FOTMC (Food of the Month Club)

Apple-Cinnamon Arroz con Leche

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It's the last week of summer!  For some, that means that crisp, cool Autumn days have already made an appearance.  For others, it means we still have a few weeks of hot weather to tolerate.  Whether you're looking for a refreshing beverage to help you cool down, or are looking to hold on to summer for just a few more days, the Food of the Month Club round-up has a delightful collection of Summer Beverages that is the perfect way to say farewell to summer.

To get things started, my friend Maura from The Other Side of the Tortilla, introduces us to La Paloma, a "refreshing, classic Mexican cocktail", made with grapefruit juice and tequila.

Photo courtesy of The Other Side of the Tortilla


Next up we have a stunning Agua de Jamaica (Hibiscus Tea Water) from another foodie friend of mine, Bren Herrera from Flanboyant Eats.  This is a tart and delicious way to keep cool, "especially when it’s hot and humid out."  This beverage can also be enjoyed during the fall and winter thanks to the ginger, clove, and orange peel, whose flavors and aromas are perfect for the holidays. 



If you like Piña Coladas, then you'll love what Natalia from Comiendo en LA whipped up for us: Piña Coladas made with two kinds of rum, fresh pineapple, and whipped cream.



Natalia also shares her recipe for a rich and cool Banana-Coffee Frappe!



My BFF (best foodie friend) Girlichef served up this bright and sunny Pineapple-Vanilla Agua Fresca that looks and tastes like summer in a glass.



Girlichef also made Coconut Horchata, which combines everything you love about Horchata with the tropical flavor of coconut milk.



Eva from TechFoodLife offers us a delightful, summery twist to traditional lemonade with Watermelon Lemonade.



Ckay from Sweet and That's It gives us a delicious way to start our day with her Frulatto, a fruit and yogurt smoothie made with apples, banana, orange, and mango.



My friends from Peru Delights introduce us to Chicha Morada, a traditional Peruvian beverage made with purple corn, pineapple, apple, and quince, seasoned with cinnamon, cloves, and allspice.



Heather from Malice in Dunderland shares two creamy banana beverages:  Batido de Guineo (Banana Milk)


and Felicidad del Guineo, a banana slushie with with orange juice and coconut milk.



My other BFF, Vianney from Sweet Life, shares her Agua de Zanahoria y Piña (Carrot & Pineapple Cooler), that I'm sure will instantly become my hubby's new favorite Agua Fresca.



Vianney also treats us to two of her famous margaritas!  The first is a gorgeous cotton candy hued Plum Pineapple Margarita.


And the second is this sweet Prickly Pear Margarita that uses green tunas (prickly pears).



The girls from Muy Bueno Cookbook, whose first cookbook comes out next month, share their Agua de Piña recipe with us.



And finally my contribution to the Summer Beverages round-up: Agua de Frutas (Papaya, Guava & Apple Punch),



Shirley Temples,



and Banana Daiquiris.



As always, thank you so much to all who participated.  This is the biggest FOTMC turn-out we've ever had! If you would like to be included in the next Food of the Month Club Round-Up, we're cooking with apples this month.  See the announcement post for more details.


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*All photos used with written and/or verbal permission of the participating bloggers.
  


18 Summer Beverages to Enjoy Before Fall {FOTMC Round-Up}

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