Peach-Mango Crisp

We're heading out of town for the rest of the week (again), but I wanted to leave you with a delicious treat to make this weekend: Peach-Mango Crisp.  The two of us went through a box of mangoes from Costco that was large and in charge, all by ourselves, and I think we're much better (and our tummies more satisfied) for it.  We ate them raw, put them in salads, with yogurt, on cereal, and in oatmeal - you name it, we ate it with mangoes.  We didn't have ice cream to top this little ditty, but it was still fabulous.  I even had some of the leftovers for breakfast the next morning!  Don't judge me - you'll probably do it, too.

Peach-Mango Crisp

A Get in the Kitch Original

Ingredients

2 c. ripe mango, peeled & chopped

2 c. fresh or frozen peaches, chopped

1/2 c. quick oats

1/2 c. brown sugar

1/2 c. whole wheat flour

1/3 c. melted butter or margarine

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

Directions

1. Mix all dry ingredients together in a medium sized bowl. Add melted butter and mix until well incorporated.

2. Toss the mango and peaches together in a separate bowl to mix, then pour into a 9 x 9 inch greased baking dish.

3. Evenly spread the topping over the fruit in spoonfuls.

4. Bake at 375 degrees about 25 minutes, or until the fruit is bubbling and the topping is browning and getting crispy.

We're going to spend a long weekend on North Carolina Coast, and I can't wait to taste some real southern cooking!  Stay tuned for my report on the trip and food!

Mango CRISP!

I have a long-running love affair with Saturday Night Live, seasons new and old. I admit there were some disappointing years in there, but I'm also a Utah Jazz fan, so I've learned to deal with disappointment throughout the years, while keeping my fan status. This little nugget is from one of my favorite skits (that I couldn't find online!) where Mango takes over J Lo's music video shoot & Diva's Live concert. I wish we could watch him/her dance, but lets just remember the better days of Chris Kattan with fondness, shall we?

Here's another treat from my Bountiful Basket treasures. One week we got about a million mangoes, but you won't hear me complaining! We had mangoes on just about everything, and I'm happy to say that I now consider myself to be a mango-cutting pro, folks. I wanted to make something I'd never cooked or eaten before, and voila: mango crisp! I found a recipe online, but didn't follow it much at all - it just wasn't working out - so this is my own creation. If you're feeling fruity, you're sure to love it!

Mango Crisp

Ingredients

5-6 large mangoes, peeled & diced

1-1 1/2 c. quick oats

1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1 Tbsp. lemon juice

1/2-1 c. apple juice

1/4 c. softened butter or margarine

1/2 c. brown sugar

1/2 c. flour

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

1. In a medium bowl, toss mangoes, cinnamon, nutmeg, apple juice & lemon juice. Let sit about 10 min to infuse flavors.

2. Mix margarine, brown sugar, flour, & oats until crumbly.

3. Divide mangoes into 6 small ramekin dishes & top with brown sugar mixture.

4. Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until topping is crispy & golden brown, and the mango filling is bubbling.

~Your Cinco de Mayo Fiesta Menu~

Hola, amigos! And that's about the extent of my Spanish speaking abilities, despite the fact that Dick has tried to give me multiple lessons when I'm trapped in the car with him on the 4-hr drive to see his family in So. UT. He lived in Chile for 2 years when he went on a mission for our church, and he loves to speak Spanish any chance he gets. But just because I don't speak Spanish doesn't mean I won't eat it! I tried my hand at some Mexican recipes this week in the spirit of Cinco de Mayo, and they were a big, BIG hit!

The entree I chose to make is a copycat recipe from a very popular Mexican restaurant called Cafe Rio. By far the best thing on their menu is the sweet pork salad, so that is exactly what I made! My awesome sis-in-law, Megan, happened to find these recipes on this website, and let me in on her little secret. I thought it would take forever to make them because there are a few different parts to the salad if you want to get them just right, and I did! You start with a warm flour tortilla sprinkled with cheese, followed by cilantro-lime rice, black beans, sweet pork, lettuce, and topped off with the best cilantro ranch dressing in the WORLD! It didn't take long at all, just a little planning ahead for the pork to be in the crockpot, which gives you plenty of time to put everything else together. Trust me, if you like Mexican food, and you like salads, you're going to looooooove this one! And don't skimp on any part - its totally worth making the entire thing!

For dessert, I had to go with Tres Leches, of course! Its super sweet, and super soggy (in the best way you can possibly imagine), and completely and utterly satisfying. That is just a normal slice of this 3-milk cake, but when you add the mango & cinnamon this recipe calls for it will literally uproot you from where you are sitting and take you to a Mexican beach, leaving all of your worries behind. Mangoes are definitely my worst enemy when it comes to pitting a fruit, but they are so delicious, and absolutely take this cake over the top, so it is well-worth the sticky hands and juicy mess - trust me! Well, now you have to make it, don't you?! Enjoy!

Sweet Pork Salad From Cafe Rio

From www.favfamilyrecipes.com

Assembling your salad:

1. start with a warm flour tortilla, sprinkled with cheese.

2. Top with a heaping spoonful of cilantro-lime rice.

3. Top with a spoonful of black beans.

4. Top with 1/4-1/2 c. sweet pork.

5. Top with 1-2 c. of shredded Romaine lettuce.

6. Drizzle with cilantro ranch dressing.

7. Dig in!

Cilantro-lime rice

Ingredients

1 c. uncooked rice (I used brown w/ good results!)

1 tsp. butter or margarine

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp. freshly squeezed lime juice

1 can (15 oz) chicken broth

1 c. water

1 Tbsp. freshly squeezed lime juice

2 tsp. sugar

3 Tbsp freshly chopped cilantro

Directions

In a saucepan combine rice, butter, garlic, 1 tsp. lime juice, chicken broth & water. Bring to a boil. Cover and cook on low until rice is tender. Remove from heat. In a small bowl, combine lime juice, sugar & cilantro. Pour over hot cooked rice & mix in as you fluff the rice.

Black Beans

Ingredients

2 Tbsp olive oil

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp. ground cumin

1 can black beans, rinsed & drained

1 1/3 c. tomato juice

1 1/2 tsp. salt

2 Tbsp fresh chopped cilantro

Directions

In a nonstick skillet or saucepan, cook garlic and cumin in olive oil over med. heat until you can smell it. Add beans, tomato juice & salt. Continually stir until heated through. Just before serving, stir in the cilantro.

Sweet Pork

Ingredients

2-3 lbs pork (I used bone-in Boston butt)

3 cans coke (not diet!)

1/4 c. brown sugar

dash garlic salt

1/4 c. water

1 can sliced green chilies

3/4 can enchilada sauce, medium spiciness

1 c. brown sugar

Directions

Put the pork in a heavy duty Ziploc back to marinade. Add about a can and a half of coke and about 1/4 c. of brown sugar. Marinade for a few hours, or overnight.

Drain marinade & put pork, 1/2 can of coke, water, and garlic salt in a crock pot on high 3-4 hrs, or low for 8 hrs, until it shreds easily (don't let it dry out!). Remove pork from crock pot and drain any liquid left in the pot. Shred the pork.

In a food processor or blender, blend 1/2 can coke, chilies, enchilada sauce and remaining brown sugar (about a cup, you can add a little more or less to taste...). If it looks too thick, add more coke, little by little.

Put shredded pork & sauce in a crockpot and cook on low for 2 hours. That's it!

Cilantro Ranch Dressing

Ingredients

1 packet TRADITIONAL Hidden Valley Ranch mix (not buttermilk!)

1 c. mayonnaise

1 c. buttermilk

2 tomatillos, husks removed, diced

1/2 bunch of fresh cilantro

1 clove garlic

juice of 1 lime

1 jalapeno (I kept the ribs & seeds for a little kick!)

Directions

Mix all ingredients in a blender. That's it!!!

Tres Leches Cake

Adapted from Food Network Magazine, May 2010

Ingredients

Non-stick spray, to prepare your pan

4 large eggs

1 c. sugar

2/3 c. unsalted butter, melted

1 tsp. vanilla extract

2 1/4 c. milk (I used skim w/ excellent results!)

1 1/2 c. all-purpose flour

1 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp. salt

12-oz can evaporated milk

14-oz can sweetened condensed milk

2 ripe mangoes

2 Tbsp. sugar

Whipped cream

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and 8-inch square baking pan.

2. Make the cake: Beat the eggs & sugar in a large bowl w/ a mixer until pale & slightly thick, ~6 min. Slowly beat in the melted butter, then beat in the vanilla & 1/4 c. milk.

3. whisk the flour, baking powder & salt in a bowl. Sift the flour mixture over the egg mixture, then gently fold together w/ a rubber spatula to make a thick batter. Transfer the batter to the prepared pan & bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, ~30 minutes. Run a knife along the edges to release the cake from the pan.

4. Meanwhile, whisk the remaining 2 c. milk, the evaporated milk, & condensed milk in a bowl. Pierce the warm cake all over w/ a fork, then pour the milk mixture evenly on top. Cover & refrigerate at least one hour, or overnight.

5. Before serving, make the mango topping: Peel, pit, & dice the mangoes. Puree half the mangoes in a blender w/ 2 Tbsp. sugar. Transfer to a bowl & fold in the remaining diced mango.

6. Top each slice of cake with mango topping, a little whipped cream, and sprinkle with cinnamon.

corny mango salmon & zucchini and summer squash gratin

I was watching the Food Network the other day, as I often do, and Sunny Anderson made this salmon recipe on her show 'Cooking For Real' that made me drool! I immediately went to the computer to look it up, and tonight we had it for dinner. It was DIVINE! Definitely the best salmon recipe I've tried so far. There is a sweet and salty taste to it that just makes your head spin! And I really enjoyed the crusty part of it, too. She served it with a zucchini and summer squash hash, but I decided to make one of our new faves from Prudy (a.k.a. Prudence Pennywise), zucchini and summer squash gratin that she adapted from none other than the Food Network.

Corny Mango Salmon

Ingredients

1 c. mango nectar

1 mango, diced

1/2 c. flour

1/2 c. cornmeal

2 tsp. sugar

1 tsp. salt

4 6-oz. center cut salmon fillets

black pepper

1 Tbsp. olive oil

1 Tbsp. butter

Directions

In a small saucepan over high heat, bring mango & nectar to a boil. As mango breaks down, pres down on it with a fork to mash it. Continue until mango cooks down to a chunky puree, about 15 minutes. Remove 1/2 for serving - other half for dredging. On large plate, mix flour, cornmeal, sugar, & salt. Preheat large skillet. Season salmon with salt and pepper. Brush glaze over salmon, then dredge in cornmeal mixture. Add oil & butter to skillet. Over high heat, sear salmon with cornmeal coating until golden, ~6-8 minutes for medium-rare. Flip halfway through to cook other side.

Zucchini & Summer Squash Gratin

adapted from Prudence Pennywise

Ingredients

2 Tbsp. olive oil

2 cloves minced garlic

1 small onion, thinly sliced

1/4 tsp. salt1 med. zucchini, sliced 1/4 inch.

1 med. summer squash, sliced 1/4 inch.

2 Tbsp. chopped basil, or 2 tsp dried

1/4 c. shredded parmesan cheese

Directions

In microwave & oven-safe medium baking dish or loaf pan, combine olive oil & garlic. Add onion, salt zucchini & squash, toss to coat with oil. Pat down into pan. Preheat broiler (if you want a crunchy top). Cover baking dish with plastic wrap & microwave ~6 minutes, or until veggies are cooked through. Sprinkle with basil & cheese, pass under broiler briefly to melt cheese.