Sauteed Vegetable and Chicken Enchilada Plate

Without sounding full of myself, I think I can honestly say that my cooking is getting really good, hahahaha. This plate was a spur of the moment thing that started off as simply chicken and rice that I wanted cook. However once I get going it is hard to stop. The rice is a simple Mexican rice, and there is also corn, black beans, olives and avocado. The enchiladas that I made contain two different things. I first started by boiling chicken in a pot with various spices till cooked, then shredded it and simmered it in a simple tomato based sauce that also included onion, garlic and several other spices. Separately I sauteed vegetables with a special vegetable spice that is a mixture containing about 5 different spices. Then combined the chicken in the sauce and the vegetables in the enchiladas. The picture shows a bit of the chicken with the sauce on the side as well as the sauteed vegetables. The vegetable mixture contained Green Bell Pepper, Red Onion, Mushrooms and Yellow Squash. All together the plate combination worked well and the only thing I think it was missing was sour cream.

Hand Made Cheese and Artichoke Ravioli Tossed in a Mushroom olive oil dressing

This is my second attempt at making ravioli by scratch, and I finally got it. The first time was clearly a disaster. This second time produced nice thick pieces filled with the right amount of mixture. The combination of the artichoke and cheese worked really well. Then I simply sauteed some mushrooms in butter and extra virgin olive oil with some garlic, onions and various spices. What I found was most important was that you have to cook the ravioli rather quickly, the last time they didn't hold very well. However after I cooked these and tossed them with the mushrooms I added some grated Parmesan and it turned out quite well. The funny thing is that I made such big pieces, really only about 3 or 4 is all you need.

Breakfast Burrito #1

These are a healthier version of Breakfast Burritos. The Bread is Whole Wheat Pita Bread. The contents can vary according to what you have, but this time I used Scrambled eggs with Muenster Cheese melted in with the eggs along with Button Mushrooms, Bell Pepper, Pepperoncini's, Grilled Onions, Avocado and Sun Dried Tomato. However hey really tend to vary every time I make them. They are even better when you can fry some potatoes and also add regular tomato. There also really good for breakfast, because they are quick and easy.

Tomato and Pea Crostini

This was my appetizer dish for a fourth of July party and became a total success. It is very simple to make and does not take long. The puree is simply frozen peas, garlic and Parmesan cheese. Of course there was olive oil added for the consistency as well as salt and pepper for taste. The Baguette that I bought, I decided to buy a day in advance to let sit for a day, in order for it to hold up better to the topping. I did make two batches, one using canned peas and the other using frozen peas. All I will say is the canned peas were not meant to be used for this dish, the canned peas turned out to be to salty and give off a very unpleasant color.

Americano breakfast in the Mediterranean

So this breakfast has been something that I have enjoyed for a long time. However I have finally been able to finish the dish and proudly say that each thing belongs on the plate with one another. The main theme of this breakfast obviously stems from a traditional American breakfast; eggs, potatoes and toast. Obviously the bacon is missing but oh well. The Eggs are influenced from the Bulgaria and Greece, Containing Bulgarian Feta cheese, Cilantro, Basil and of course salt and pepper to taste. Typically I use either Greek or Bulgarian Feta cheese, this time just so happened to be Bulgarian. The potatoes were fried with Extra Virgin olive oil added at both the beginning and end along with Smoked Paprika from Spain. Some say this may not be enough taste for the potatoes, however I wanted to not over spice them so that I could really pick up on the smokey taste of the paprika. Besides the Feta cheese brings enough salt to the dish. The toast is a simple multi grain wheat toast with a Honey-Butter that can be prepared before hand and used for multiple items. The Honey is 100% safflower mixed with Orange Blossom Water, which comes from Lebanon. I prefer to use this honey because it brings a nice orange taste to the naturally sweet honey.

So there you go this dish features several items from around the Mediterranean that combine to bring a very nice pleasant breakfast that is not to heavy and as surprisingly light as it is, it is still very filling.