Black beans, Mexican rice, Fried Chicken and Potato Salad

Ok, soooo I know it may seem like an
assortment of foods, but I was really
craving each of these things. This dish really represents the influence of two different parts of my life. Clearly the Beans and Rice are coming from there respective influence which is growing up in California, specifically Santa Rosa and the Mexican population that it has. The other being the fried chicken and potato salad, coming from my mom's side of the family stemming from recipe's that have been passed down from generation to generation. To my surprise they actually go together pretty well. For the black beans this was my second attempt at making them from scratch, not a can. it turned out that second time was the charm. They turned out really good. The Mexican rice or Spanish rice or whatever it is that you call it turned out so good as well. Everyone has there own opinion and name for it. I got the recipe to make it from a Mexican family after having it at there house therefore I will call it Mexican rice. This is my first time making this kind of rice and to my surprise came out really good, even to my roommate who is also Mexican and several other people that I would consider bigger authorities on the subject then myself. The fried chicken and potato salad are also personal favorites of mine. Though simple recipes they do the trick very well and always turn out really good.

Chocolate Cinnamon Pancakes with both Glazed and Fresh Cut Strawberries garnished with Kiwi Stars

Like I said earlier strawberries are coming in season and I have been trying to experiment with them as best as possible. The only problem is, I have only had the interest to make breakfast with them. But I think I have found a great combination. The pancakes themselves have cinnamon and chocolate chips in them. While on the outside I glazed half the strawberries that I set aside and simply left the other half as an extra topping choice. The Garnish of course needed to have some representation of what was in the pancakes so that is the reasoning behind the chocolate chips on the outside of the pancake. After I was done with the pancakes and strawberries the plate just didn't quite seem right, then when I saw the kiwi in my kitchen I thought that it would make a great finishing touch. The Kiwi was a last minute addition to the plate, and turned out pretty well for the overall presentation of the meal.

French Bread Mozzarella & Basil Pizza

This dish is a spin off of something that my brother and I used to do when we were younger. Basically making our own pizza's on french bread and putting them in the oven. Since then I have been able to put a little more time into the quality of the food though. The sauce I made, which is a simple sauce following my basic recipe that the only additive is the left over juice from a jar of peppercini's. The pizza is simply mozzarella cheese with sauce and torn basil leaves. The french bread was toasted first and then rubbed with garlic, then I added the toppings, and was done.

Grilled and Seasoned Potato

Ok, I know the picture doesn't look the best, but seriously this a really good way to do potatoes over simply baking them or just putting them on the grill. I brushed the potatoes with a butter garlic mixture and then coated them with a mixture of italian herb and cajun spice seasoning. After wards I wrapped the potatoes in tin foil and put them on the grill. The seasoning mixture simply adds to the outer skin of the potato and is a good addition of flavor. The rest of the potato is still gonna be done the same way, by cutting it open and adding whatever you'd like.

Grilled Corn in the Husk with Cajun Spice

Grilled corn in my opinion is the best way to cook it. The taste that the BBQ creates adds a nice flavor to the crunchy kernels when being bitten off the cob. I have never BBQ corn though in the Husk, this was my first time and it turned out pretty well. Although I think that it is more for presentation than anything. I could not really get much of a difference from doing the corn this way. However I think that one of the best things about corn being grilled is that it has that nice grilled taste but keeps it's sweet corn juice when you bite into it.

Grilled Yellow Pepper filled with Sweet Chili Sauce

I have always enjoyed grilled peppers and this one was no exception. The yellow peppers particularly are good because of there sweet taste that they have over the red or green peppers. The Sweet chili sauce was also a really nice taste with the pepper as well, I did not put to much in it but just enough to coat the inside of the pepper.

Nachos

Nachos can be done so many different ways, and there really isn't one way I think that beats all the rest. So this is my style of nachos. First I like to layer them with at least 2 layers of everything, sometimes 3. The content of these nachos had regular tortilla chips, Cheddar Cheese, Tomatoes, Sun Dried Tomatoes, Avocado, Kidney Beans, Corn, Olives and Green Onions. Some other things I like to add are black beans and or a can of chili. Of course there is always the meat factor which can be filled with chicken or beef. But then again I didn't really have the rest of this stuff and just went with what I had.

Banana Walnut Pancakes with Strawberries and Cream

Breakfast, the one meal that I think is the easiest to prepare. There are so many options and the combination's just seem to be easier to find. Although I think Pancakes are just like eggs and personally I hate pancakes plain, I think it's so boring. Now when you put stuff in them when you are making them, that is where the real flavor comes from. Pancakes just taste better, with items like, fruit and nuts mixed in with the batter, especially chocolate, but that's another story.

Cream filled strawberries, The Devils Halo

So this little desert was inspired by some one I met years ago that was explaining to me about how Strawberries and Cream is a traditional Italian desert. I also just picked up a whole box of strawberries at a great price. I was thinking about what this guy had told me randomly and decided to make my own version of strawberries and cream. Simple, easy and they are only in season for so long so why not?!