Double-Sauce Enchiladas

This one is a two-parter:

filling:

1 1/2 cups minced onion
6 medium cloves garlic
1 large bell pepper, minced
5 small zucchini, diced
1 1/2 tbs ground cumin
1tbs dried basil
1 1/2 tbs dried oregano
cayenne and black pepper to taste
1 1/3 cups grated jack cheese (i use the spicy kind)

saute the onions, garlic and salt, then add everything but the cheese. cook
for about 8 minutes.

sauce #1:

5 medium sized tomatoes diced
1 large red bell pepper
1 tsp salt
5 large cloves garlic
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

put everything in a saucepot and boil, lower heat and simmer for
fifteen minutes. puree in a food processor.


.....

cover the bottom of a glass pan with some of the sauce #1. spoon the filling and some of the cheese into softened corn tortillas (easiest way i've found is to briefly microwave frozen tortillas a few at a time), roll up, drizzle with the remaining sauce (make sure they are covered well)
cover with foil and bake for ~30 minutes at 325.

remove the foil and sprinkle the remaining cheese over the top. bake uncovered until the cheese melts (about 5 minutes)

----

while the enchiladas are baking, make sauce #2:

combine the following:

2/3 jar of tom thumb's tacqueria style green taco sauce
a dash (or four) of tom thumb's roasted sweet pepper and garlic vinaigrette
1/3 small package of lowfat sour cream
cayene, chili powder, garlic powder, black pepper to taste

Place the second sauce in a small serving dish; top the enchiladas with it (and a little grated cheese and cracked black pepper if you wish) before serving.

recipes to add

hothouse spaghetti
surreptitious vegetarian chili
keeler veggie chickpea surprise
artichoke a la caughey
tomozzarella pallanch
salad de sarah jane
indian yogurt semrad (see email)
jarrell macaroni and cheese
poke salad (a variation of seven-layer dip)
cinderella cucumber dip
refritos a la richard (a tex-mex treat)
tiny pita pizzas with hummus
homemade pizza
magic cookie bars
eggplant parmesan

Baked Broccoli and Rice with Cheddar and Mushrooms

(great for breakfast, on your granny's table at thanksgiving... any time. otherwise known as a variation of mom's broccoli casserole sans cheez whiz.)

Ingredients

1 cup cooked brown rice -- i recently found a fantastic "boil in bag" variety
1/2 cup cheddar cheese
1 pkg frozen broccoli
1/2 small onion, chopped
handful of chopped mushrooms (optional)
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 tbsp white gravy mix
2 tbsp chopped jalapeno
1/8 cup milk (skim or soy)
1 tsp ranch dressing (optional)
breadcrumbs
salt to taste
pepper to taste
pinch cayenne pepper
paprika


Instructions

cook rice and set aside. cook the broccoli and mix with the rice, then add the additional ingredients (with the exception of breadcrumbs). stir, adding milk if necessary. put mixture in lightly buttered baking dish, sprinkle top with breadcrumbs. cover with foil and bake for 40 minutes at 350.

Spinach with Mustard and Red Wine Vinagrette

Ingredients

3-4 cups washed fresh spinach
1/2 cup chopped mixed bell pepper
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup chopped zucchini or squash
1/4 cup chopped sweet purple onion
4 tbsp dijon mustard
1/3 cup red wine vinagrette (i use quizno's)
cayenne
black pepper
sea salt

Instructions

• saute the garlic in an olive oil/water mix, add the peppers, zucchini/squash, onion, 2 tbsp of mustard and 3 tbsp of the vinagrette
  
• transfer to a large pot and add the spinach in handfuls, adding water if necessary. cook for a few minutes
  
• remove before the spinach becomes slimy, strain out the excess liquid* and toss with the remaining ingredients
  
• serve

*save the liquid for next time you need to boil potatoes or add to oil when you are sauteing them

Stuffed Peppers

Ingredients

brown rice, cooked acc'd to directions (a little tony sacherie in the boiling water never hurts)
bell peppers, different colors
fresh tomatoes, chopped
handful of fresh spinach
olive oil
garlic cloves, minced
liquid smoke
tony sacherie's spices


Instructions

• cook the rice, set aside
  
• cut off the top third of each pepper, scrape seeds and insides and discard
  
• chop the pepper tops and saute in the oil with the garlic
  
• add the tomatoes and cook for about a minute
  
• blanch the spinach (boil for about a minute -- don't let it get slimy!)
  
• add the above ingredients to the rice with a little water, liquid smoke and spices to taste
  
• toss the pepper bottoms in boiling water and blanch (cook for about five minutes)
  
• fill the peppers with the rice, set in a shallow pan, drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with fresh ground pepper, cover with foil and cook at 350 for 10-15 minutes
  

* for a little variation purchase large ripe hothouse tomatoes, scrape the insides out for the rice mix. cook a separate spinach mix with the sacherie's, a little tomato, a dash of cayenne pepper, black pepper (fresh ground is best) and sea salt. fill the fresh tomatoes with spinach and bake with the stuffed peppers.

Potatoes Sweet and Spicy

Ingredients

2 baking potatoes
2 sweet potatoes
cherry tomatoes
garlic cloves
butter
olive oil
cayenne pepper
cumin powder
tony sacherie's spices
garlic powder


Instructions

• wash, peel and boil the potatoes in water lightly sprinkled with tony sacherie's spices and four whole cloves garlic until potatoes are soft
  
• cut the potatoes into cubes and set aside in two mixing bowls: one sweet, one regular
  
• lightly toss each bowl of potatoes with a tablespoon of butter, a dash of olive oil, the boiled garlic cloves, minced garlic, tony's sacheries, a pinch of cumin, a pinch of cayenne (or more as you desire) and a sprinkle of garlic powder
  
• tear off two sizeable sheets of aluminum foil, lightly butter and place the potatoes on each. sprinkle lightly with fresh ground pepper and sea salt. add a handful of cherry tomatoes to each batch
  
• cover with foil and bake at 350 for about fifteen minutes