A Lot About Nothing

I’m really lovin’ this Mexican food! I tried to make flan for the first time a couple Saturdays ago and it came out tasting delicious! There’s a bunch of different variations of flan recipes out there, but using my best judgment, I think the following ingredients make for a great-tasting, and low-fat-as possible flan dessert.

Ingredients:
2 whole eggs
4 egg whites
1 can (300mL) low-fat condensed milk
1 can (370mL) fat-free evaporated milk
1 cup sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla extract

Equipment:
1 8-inch round glass/silicone dish
1 roasting pan (large enough for the 8-inch dish to fit in)

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Pour sugar into a heavy saucepan over medium-high heat. Stir constantly to prevent burning until the sugar is liquefied and golden in colour. Quickly pour the caramelized sugar into the glass dish, swirling around the sides to coat the surface evenly. Set aside.
3. In a large bowl, beat egg whites and egg yolks. Beat in the condensed milk, evaporated milk, vanilla and cinnamon until smooth. Pour egg mixture into the caramel-lined glass baking dish.
4. Place the baking dish in the roasting pan. Fill the roasting pan with boiling water (enough to cover halfway up the sides of the glass dish). Bake for about 1 hour until the centre is just set. Cool for an hour on a wire rack, then chill in the fridge for several hours or overnight.
5. Run a knife around the edge of the glass dish and invert the flan onto a serving platter to unmold.

Wow. This has got to be one of the most delicious Mexican dishes I ever cooked up to date! I never made burritos this way before, but thought I’d give it a try last night and they came out tasting great. I tried to make this meal as healthy as I could by using extra-lean meat and fat-free refried beans.

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 45 minutes
Yield: 8 Burritos

Ingredients:

450g/1lb package of Extra Lean Ground Chicken
1 can of Refried Beans (approx. 400mL)
8 8″ Flour Tortillas
1 1/2 cups Shredded Cheese (cheddar, Monterey Jack, or mixture)
1 Onion (chopped)
1 Tomato (chopped)
1/2 teaspoon of Cajun Seasoning (or a blend of salt, pepper, paprika and cayenne pepper)
2 Cloves Garlic (minced)
1 teaspoon of hot sauce (optional)
1 tablespoon of lemon juice (optional)

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
2. In a large saucepan on medium heat, brown the ground chicken for about 10 minutes or until no longer pink. Drain off the excess liquid from the pan
3. Add the chopped onion and garlic to the ground chicken, then sprinkle in the Cajun seasoning and cook for another 5 minutes until the onions are soft.
4. To the chicken mixture gradually add the refried beans, chopped tomato, hot sauce and lemon juice, blending well with a large spoon. Cook on medium-low heat for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
5. While the chicken and bean mixture simmers, line a 9 x 13″ baking pan with parchment paper (or just lightly oil a casserole dish).
6. Line the center of each soft tortilla with a large spoonful of the chicken-bean mixture. Carefully fold up the sides into a roll and place in the baking pan. Continue until each tortilla is filled and lined up next to each other.
7. Sprinkle cheese on top of the rolled-up burritos, and bake uncovered in the oven for 15 minutes, or until the cheese is nicely melted.
8. Serve with chopped lettuce, salsa and sour cream.

One of my good friends gave me this recipe for guacamole and I altered it a bit. Now I think I’m going to be making it a lot more often because it ended up tasting so delicious!

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients:

3 ripe avocados (peeled, pitted and diced)
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 clove garlic (crushed)
1 small roma tomato OR 1/2 regular tomato (chopped)
1/4 (about 3 tablespoons) of a sweet onion (finely chopped)
salt and pepper to taste
a few drops hot sauce (optional)

Instructions:

1. Place the diced avocados into a medium mixing bowl. Add the lemon juice and garlic and mash the mixture with a fork or potato masher.
2. Add the chopped onion and tomato. If you want a smoother guacamole, you can choose to blend the tomato before adding it to the avocado mixture.
3. Continue mashing the mixture, adding some salt, pepper and hot sauce until the desired taste and consistency is reached.
4. If desired, cover with plastic wrap and chill for about 45 minutes before eating.

Serve with tortilla chips or toasted pita bread.