Frajita Macaroni and Cheese GF

Taco Macaroni and Cheese

Who doesn’t like macaroni and cheese, well here is a variation that has the southwest and/or mexican touch to it. We are making this from scratch, so throw away those tasteless prepackaged approaches to mac and cheese. Let’s get to work.

Just one more thing, I am updating this recipe to be gluten free and using more healthy chicken breast rather than red meat.

• 3 TBS (45 ml) butter
• 3 TBS (45 ml) all-purpose gluten free flour or regular all-purpose flour
• 2 1/2 cups (600 ml) milk, I use whole  milk
• 1/4 cup (60 ml) onion, diced
• 8 to 12 oz (227 -to 340 gms) shredded cheese, cheddar, monterey jack, pepperjack, etc.
• 1/2teaspoon (3 ml) sea salt
• 1/8 tsp (1 ml) pepper
• 1 chicken breast boneless, skin removed, chopped or vegetable alternative
• 1 TBS (15 ml) Fajita seasoning mix, recipe in spice section or McCormick is fine
• 10 oz can of petite diced tomatoes with green chilies, drained, Rotel is fine
• 8 oz (227 gms) elbow or shell gluten free pasta, cooked and drained

Use a heavy 3 quart pot, one which can go in the oven. Melt the butter over low heat, add the GF flour, mix well and cook for a few minutes, then add the milk, a little bit at a time, stirring to prevent sticking or burning. Continue stirring thickening the sauce. When the sauce is thickened, add the cheese, salt, pepper and onion, continue cooking until the cheese is thoroughly melted. Take the pot off the heat.

Meanwhile, cook the pasta in salted boiling water for about 8 minutes or until the doneness you desire. I use brown rice pasta, which needs to cook for 18 minutes. Drain pasta put back in original pan if not ready to mix with the sauce. If the pasta will have to sit for any length of time, add a tablespoon of butter to the pasta and stir to thoroughly coat the pasta, this will prevent the pasta from sticking together. If the sauce is ready, add the pasta to the sauce and the drained tomatoes with green chilies.

In a heavy pan fry the diced chicken in a bit of olive oil until done. Add the chicken and fajita spice to the sauce pan and mix well, place in a preheated 350° F (180 C)  oven for 30 minutes.

This recipe has three steps to it, they can be done simultaneously, so the prep time should only be 30 to 45 minutes. Step 1, the sauce, step 2 the macaroni and step 3 the meat mixture. I use the large macaroni, but you can use the regular size macaroni or any macaroni you desire.

 

Pico de Gallo

Pico de Gallo

I was buying Pico at the grocery store and wondering why it was costing me so much, $2.99 for a small container and $3.99 for the large container, onion, pepper and tomato should cost so much. So, I started checking the net for a solution and I came up with my own recipe. Far cheaper and a lot fresher, too. The stuff at the market did not have any lime juice in it, considered kind of an essential ingredient.

Since we are eating a lot of breakfast burritos, we go through the pico quite quickly and we can have fresh pico most all the time. Pico uses fresh veggies, so you have to be careful that the pico is always in a fresh condition. So how do I make it. Fresh ingredients!

• 1/4 cup diced onion
• 1/4 cup diced tomato
• 1/4 cup diced pepper, jalapeno, pablano or green pepper
• 2 tablespoons minced cliantro
• 1/2 small lime, juiced

Mix them up, best to store in glass container, I no longer use plastic containers for stuff in the refrigerator. Of course, store covered in your refrigerator. Enjoy.
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Flour Mixes

I have been making bread from the King Arthur website and have learned that not all flours are the same. The two flour mils that I trust are King Arthur and Bob’s Red Mill. There are some other noteworthy flour mills mostly on the west coast of the US. The big thing to remember is to avoid any flour that might be contaminated with flour ground from genetically modified organism (GMO) grains. Organic flours are the best choice, but availability and cost may limit their use. First I want to list the important types of flour available in the US.

Name	Ingredient	Uses
All-Purpose Flour	Hard Red Winter Wheat	Bread to Pastry
Bread Flour	Hard Red Spring Wheat	12.7% Protein & High Gluten
White Whole Wheat Flour	Hard White Spring Wheat	Milder Flavor & Lighter Color
Whole Wheat Flour	Hard Red Spring Wheat	14% Protein & Higher Rising
Durum Flour	Durum Wheat	Creamy Color & Chewy Texture
Semolina	Coarsely Ground Durum Wheat	Golden Color & Added Texture

Measuring Flour

Most recipes use volume measurements for measuring flour. This is not a good way to measure flour, the best method is to measure by weight. I prefer to measure flour by grams rather than by ounces, the difference may be small, but a gram is a smaller unit of measurement, so it is preferred by myself. I also believe that the day is coming when the metric system of measurements will be universal, even in America. See my post under Info called https://nitepagancooks.wordpress.com/2012/07/26/us-standard-to-metric/ 

Pasta flour
Commercially made Pasta uses Semolina. For homemade pasta, most cooks recommend a mixture of different flours. The best recipe for Pasta, I have seen is as follows:

• 4 parts All-Purpose Flour (2 cups) (16 oz) (480 gm)
• 2 Parts Durum Flour (1 cup) (8 oz) (240 gm)
• 2 Parts Semolina (1 cup) (8 oz) (240 gm)

Total for this Formula: 4 cups or 32 ounces or 960 grams

Semolina is available in some grocery stores and natural foods stores, Bob’s Red Mill and mail order from King Arthur.

Durum Flour is only available through mail order from King Arthur.

Amazon does carry both of these flours, but they are usually only available in large quantities. Sometimes you can get these flours from a bakery. I do prefer going through King Arthur and/or Bob’s Red Mill. Both Semolina and Durum Flour can be ordered from King Arthur. Bob’s Red Mill only seems to have Semolina in quantities for the home cook and can be found in local stores.

Pizza Flour
The Formula for Pizza Flour is similar to Pasta Flour and is as follows:

• 7 Parts All-Purpose Flour (1 3/4 cup) (14 oz) (210 gm)
• 5 Parts Semolina (1 1/4 cup) (10 oz) (150 gm)

Total for this Formula: 3 cups or 24 ounces or 360 grams

What is a Part
A part is a uniform unit of measure, can be a cup, ounce or a ml. I would use a 1/4 cup or 2 ounces or 60 grams for the minimum to represent 1 Part.

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Pizza Crust

This actually starts from a King Arthur recipe and has been adapted as an alternative to the expensive Perfect Pizza Blend sold by King Arthur. Be sure to use King Arthur flours. King Arthur uses a dough enhancer which they sell, everyone else adds a bit of sugar to help the yeast.

• 1 3/4 cup All-Purpose Flour (210 gm)
• 1 1/4 cup Semolina (150 gm)
• 1 teaspoon Salt (5 gm)
• 1 teaspoon Sugar (5 gm)
• 2 teaspoons Instant Yeast (10 gm)
• 2 tablespoons Olive Oil (30 ml)
• 1 cups water (240 gm)

Mix together, add additional flour or water as needed, then knead for 7 minutes with an electric mixer, kneading by hand, let the dough rest for 30 minutes before kneading. Rest the dough for an additional 45 after kneading. For best results, let dough rest for 4 hours or more, or set in refrigerator overnight. Bake your pizza at 425 F for 8 minutes or more.
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Minestrone

Minestrone

Minestrone is  a lowfat, usually vegetarian soup. My version starts on the box of Prince Small Shells and goes from there.

• 2 tablespoons olive oil (30 ml)
• 1 small onion chopped, about 1/2 cup (120 ml)
• 2 or 3 cloves garlic minced
• 2 stalks celery chopped
• 2 carrots chopped
• 1 cup cabbage, chinese cabbage or spinach chopped
• 1 medium potato diced
• 1 tablespoon italian seasoning
• 2 cups diced tomatoes (480 ml)
• 5 cups water (1200 ml)
• 1 tablespoon vegetable bullion (15 ml)
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley or 1 tablespoon dried parsley
• 4 oz small shells pasta cooked in separate pan (224 gm)
• 2 cups cannelloni, kidney or other cooked beans, canned or cooked separately (480 ml)
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Get out a 6 quart (5.7 l) stock pot, add olive oil, sauté onions and garlic until onion is translucent, then add celery, carrots, cabbage, potato, parsley and italian seaoning. Sauté for a few minutes coating the veggies with the herbs. Add tomatoes, water, parsley and bullion. Simmer for 20 minutes until vegetables are cooked. Add cooked pasta, beans and pepper. Cook for an additional 5 minutes. Adjust seasonings.
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