Chili Lime and Greek!

I had a spurt of creative energy that came through about a week ago. I was busy making a new marinade, trying out different sauce and spread. All homemade of course. The pictures made it to Instagram first. Sometimes that will happen from time to time so definitely follow me on Instagram if you have the app.

This past week was a blur! Sunday we went to her Kindergarten class’ end of the school year pool party thrown by the teachers, and then Julie had her last day of school the following Wednesday. It’s bittersweet because you are so proud, like she did it and we made it! On the other hand you realize that it’s like the ending of a chapter, she is really is growing up and not a baby anymore.

To new beginnings! *Cheers. Speaking of which, I would like to try my hand at catering and event planning. I have been doing alot of research and reading for quite some time. Back home in Maryland, we used to host events for our family and friends all the time, and everyone looked forward to Julie and Gio’s annual combined birthday barbecue. Though, it will be a gradual transition, I am slowly treading out of R&D mode. I would like for my interests and ventures to compliment each other even if it means scaling back on others. No sooner than I considered that and spoke it out into the universe, the contract with FF came to a screeching halt as of Friday. It may resume months later/down the road, it may not. Sometimes, I get the feeling that I’m being aggressively redirected in career life.

I have two new videos coming up. As for the recipes in this post, the Greek Chicken Salad is the one that I recorded, though I wished I had recorded the chili lime marinade instead. However, both recipes came out quite tasty, I have to say out of both of the recipes, the Chili Lime marinade was my favorite outcome! The marinade had an amazing aroma, very robust flavor, with just the right amount of spice. I used the chili lime marinade on a package of chicken leg quarters. We grilled brisket and corn on the cob too. I will definitely use this marinade again and again because it was that good! I think it would go great on shrimp and fish as well.

 

Recipes

Chili Lime Marinade
2 Red Chili peppers
Juice of 2 Limes
4 Garlic Cloves
1 Tblspn of Garlic powder
1 Tspn of Coriander
1 Tblspn of Onion powder
1 1/2 Tspn of Smoked paprika
1 Tspn of Kosher Salt
Combine all ingredients and mix (liquefy) in the blender.



Tzatziki Sauce
3-4 Bunches of Fresh Dill
Juice of 1 Lemon
Approx. 16 Oz of Greek Yogurt (I used 3 5.3 oz containers of Chobani Greek Yogurt---use your favorite!)
3-4 Cloves of garlic
1 peeled, seeded, diced, and drained of water
Kosher Salt (Sprinkle the diced cucumber with kosher salt to help dry it out)
Ground Black pepper
Combine all ingredients in the blender and pulse until smooth.
Other uses for Tzatziki Sauce: You can use your Tzatziki sauce for gyros, as a dip for crackers or veggies, as salad dressing, as a dressing for chicken salad, for dipping sauce for wings, you can also use it as a marinade. Yes, a marinade. I marinated chicken breast and they came out so tender! I would definitely use it again as a marinade. (If you would like for me to share that recipe then just post below in the comments).

Olive Tapenade
1 Small can of anchovies (I only used 1 filet)
2 Tablespoons
Juice of 1 lemon
5 Garlic Cloves
1/4 Cup of Feta Cheese
1 to 1 1/2 Cups of Calamata Olives (I used chopped and already pitted variety)
1-2 Bunches of fresh Basil
1-2 Bunches of fresh Oregano
First combine your herbs, garlic, olive oil, and lemon juice in the blender. Then add your olives and last the feta cheese. Store excess in a nice air tight container. It should store up to at least a week.

I used the Tzatziki sauce as a dressing for my chicken salad (Greek Chicken Salad). I topped it over a bed of fresh spinach on a croissant. On the other side I spread a good amount of the olive tapenade. I would probably spread the tapenade beneath the spinach next time and use a little less. The sandwich has a very unique flavor and is quite tasty. It is a healthy option since the dressing for the chicken salad is not mayonnaise based but Greek yogurt based.



What creative spin will you put on your food with homemade chili lime marinade, tzatziki sauce and/or a homemade olive tapenade?

Let’s Talk Over Mojo and Youtube…

I just want to speak briefly about our new Youtube channel and the intentions and thoughts we have about it. Of course, I just posted a new cooking video, in addition to two others previously posted. I am new to this Youtube thing in a sense of posting videos on a more regular basis (I tried to do hair and hair product reviews to get my feet wet years back but only 1 made it). Though I had done a little research after reading about this one blogger's rut, I lurched in forums to read about the things people want to see versus what they don't want to see, it's a mixed bag between content and culture. In so far as that, I don’t know much beyond “you better have some tough skin”, it’s fun, I like it, and it’s meant to be yet another creative outlet. It is also a good way to keep in touch /share things with family back home that miss seeing us more regularly. I have some vloggers that I enjoy watching too; even ones that we watch together.

However, after watching a popular vlogger vent about how he felt stuck in a rut with their vlogging it solidified a mutual decision that Papa Smurf and I had reached long before. And yes I did discuss developing a channel on Youtube with the husband first to further gauge his interest and comfort level since I wanted him to be a part of it. We agreed that we just want to post when we travel, go to cool places, events, something exciting or are doing some real cooking. Don’t get me wrong I love some of the daily vloggers I really do. I can't keep up with all the dailies though I try and even one to two of my faves have scaled back now. Anyways, hearing him share that he got depressed and bored watching his own dailies spoke volumes. And the last thing I want to do is get stuck in a rut too when I already escaped from one. Such is life once you live and you learn. We are a comfy and cozy family so we know all too well the art of vegging out around the house, neighborhood and juggling errands. Though posting videos is fun and addicting I'm not yet on the same page with the banality of posting our day to day life just yet, my mind may change so I use my words carefully. What would you like to see on our Youtube channel?

Moving on...this is a food blog though right? Here we go, the Mojo Criollo marinade is popular for my sister and I to use during summer barbecues. It was especially popular when we would host the combined birthday parties for our kids. Usually we will shortcut it and get the Goya brand. However, this past weekend I was feeling adventurous and inspired so I decided that I would make the marinade from scratch. There are key components it seems across the board. You want to have your citrus coupled with strong robust and aromatic flavors. I am pretty sure I butchered the pronunciation which is shameful because I do speak a little Spanish. (Pron: Mo-ho Cree-O-Yo)

Mojo Criollo Marinade

Orange Juice (We used one and fresh squeezed)

Grapefruit Juice (We used one and fresh squeezed)

Lime Juice (We used one and some fresh squeezed SN: With each citrus I allowed little traces of the pulp to get into the blender as I juiced.

Fresh Garlic (5 Cloves)

Half of one yellow onion small to medium sized cut in quarters.

2-3 bunches of fresh cilantro

2-3 bunches of fresh oregano (leaves no stem)

1 Tablespoon of Kosher salt (more can be used to the taste)

Blend all of your ingredients together in the blender until smooth.

Mojo criollo is a great marinade for chicken, beef, and pork. Think of it like Frank’s you can put that sh--- on everything! For best results marinate your meet overnight. If you don’t have that type of time, then give it at least 30 minutes. It’s very flavorful so have fun, be creative, and enjoy it!

How will you use your Mojo Criollo marinade?


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