I love International Markets!!!

For my birthday, my friends and I made our way to a little unknown place called Nolensville, TN. For those who don't know, its a short drive from Nashville. When you drive down Nolensville you will feel like you are in Mexico. There are a tons of stores with Spanish writing on them as well as a ton of Taco Stands. Yes, Taco Stands. Ladies and Gents, this is why my friends go down there: the tacos!

For those who saw that food truck race TV show on the Food Network Channel, then you know what i'm talking about. There were vans who were parked everything, gas stations as an example, who sell the most delicious and decadent tacos I have ever tried! If you want a mental example, think of Taco Bell's Cantina tacos. Taco Bell's are not nearly as good, but they are basically what I am talking about.

After I indulged in a pork, cow tongue, chicken, and beef taco (I could not finish the beef taco-they are very filling!), we made our way to an International Market. They had everything! It was amazing! They had real sugar cane, cactus, coconuts, asian frozen foods, mexican foods, and some American. Thats not the best part of it though. Everything they had was DIRT CHEAP! Yes, everything was in perfect condition too...

I picked up jicama, ginger, and a Sprite for the grand price of $2.36! What really got me excited was that if I were to go to Kroger, I would pay $3.99/lb for ginger. I don't remember how much the ginger costs at the market, but I ended up paying .50 for my huge piece!!

Rosemary-Garlic London Broil

Today while grocery shopping early in the morning, which is totally the time to shop for the record, I found a London Broil on sale! I've seen people making this, but I've actually never made it myself until now. I searched online for recipes that seemed popular for London Broil and I saw a few recipes with soy sauce in it. The soy sauce recipe did not seem as Yummy as compared to this rosemary recipe. This rosemary recipe has EVERYTHING I absolutely love, so it would be a no brainer to try this recipe.

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 4 cloves crushed garlic
• 1 tsp dried rosemary
• 2 lb boneless top round "London Broil" steak, about 2-inches thick
• 1 tbsp freshly ground black pepper
• salt as needed

In a small bowl whisk together the vinegar, oil, garlic, and rosemary, and Place the beef on a plate and poke both sides all over with a fork. Transfer to a plastic freezer bag and pour in the marinade. Seal and refrigerate overnight.

Turn broil on high. Remove the London broil from the marinade and pat dry. Salt generously, and rub in the freshly ground black pepper, on both sides. Place on a broiler pan, or other oven-safe pan. Broil about 8 inches under the flame for approximately 6-7 minutes per side for medium rare - internal temp of 130 degrees F.

Transfer to a plate and cover loosely with foil; let rest for 10 minutes. To serve, cut against the grain into very thin slices. Serve hot, topped with any juices from the plate on which it rested.

What we thought: I thought this meal was AMAZING, not to toot my own horn. I love how the meat soaked up the marinade over night, i absolutely love rosemary and garlic, and nothing better then my steak bleeding! I honestly would rate this a 15/10. I am not sure if I've had London Broil before, but this was the first time making it. If I find it on sale again or if theres a special occasion, I will make this for sure! Jimmy rated this either a 9/10 or a 10/10. It was absolutely easy to make too! I am getting way too happy even thinking about it. O, the simple things in life....

Tijuana Torta

I have never heard of a Tijuana Torta before until I saw it on the Eating Well website. I decided to go with it because A) It sounded yummy/healthy B) I used to live close to Tijuana C) supposably it was cheap. I also added steak and cilantro to the recipe. It was AMAZING!

INGREDIENTS

• 1 15-ounce can black beans, or pinto beans, rinsed (see Note)
• 3 tablespoons prepared salsa
• 1 tablespoon chopped pickled jalapeño
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 ripe avocado, pitted
• 2 tablespoons minced onion
• 1 tablespoon lime juice
• 1 16- to 20-inch-long baguette, preferably whole-grain
• 1 1/3 cups shredded green cabbage

PREPARATION

1. Mash beans, salsa, jalapeño and cumin in a small bowl. Mash avocado, onion and lime juice in another small bowl.
2. Cut baguette into 4 equal lengths. Split each piece in half horizontally. Pull out most of the soft bread from the center so you’re left with mostly crust. Divide the bean paste, avocado mixture and cabbage evenly among the sandwiches. Cut each in half and serve.

What We Thought: I thought the onion, avacado, lime juice, and cilantro was AMAZING together. The only thing I would have done was maybe use a real Jalapeno and toast the bun for sure! Jimmy rated this a "good 9" and I rate this 8.5/10

Red Velvet Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

For my friend's birthday, I made a, hence the title, Red Velvet Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting. I rarely make cakes, in fact I hate baking. You can easily screw something up when you are baking if you don't have the correct measurements. In savory cooking, its not typically that way. It was fun making the cake knowing it was for someone else on their birthday.

For the cake, I just bought a box brand and made the cake according to it's directions.

For the frosting, you will need:

1 pound cream cheese-softened

2 sticks of butter, softened

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

4 cups sifted confectioners' sugar

Chopped pecans and fresh berries for garnish (optional)

In a large mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese, butter, and vanilla together until smooth. Add the sugar and on low speed, beat until incorporated. Increase the speed to high andmix until very light and fluffy.

Farfalle Con Piselli

Buongiorno! Tonight I am going to be making Farfalle Con Piselli. This recipe is from the book I mentioned in the previous post, Skinny Italian. If you made the Tagliatelle, you should have almost everything you need to make this dish. You may need to get a few extra items from the grocery store.

1 pound farfalle pasta (the pasta that looks like butterflys)

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

1 medium onion, chopped

1 garlic clove, finely chopped

1 cup cooked fresh or thawed frozen peas

1/3 cup light cream

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley

Directions:

1. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the farfalle and cook according to the package directions until just tender. Time the pasta so its done at about the same time as the sauce.

2. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and cook stirring occasionally, until tender but not browned, about 5 minutes. Add the peas, cream, salt, and pepper and bring to a boil. Remove from the heat and cover to keep warm.

3. Drain the pasta well. Return the pasta to the pot. Add the sauce and toss well. Sprinkle w/ parsley and serve hot.

What we thought:

This was SO easy to make, which was a great thing. I am not sure what to think about this dish though. I was light, as in comparison to the heavy foods I've experienced in America. Maybe my tastebuds need to learn what real and "healthy" italian is? Anyways, Jimmy rated this a 7 and I rate this a 6. I had to add cheese on top to add more flavor.

Day ????: Tagliatelle and Steak Pizzaiola

So I have not updates in what seems like years! Needless to say, Thursday nights are the only night I can make dinner for Jimmy except for Friday, Saturday, and Sunday nights. With him working early in the morning and going to school late at night, all in Nashville, we hardly ever spend time together, and whats the point in cooking for one p

erson?! So tonight, I am going all out! :) I am making recipes from Teresa Giudice's cookbook, Skinny Italian (for those who watch New Jersey Housewives on BRAVO! Tv). All her recipes sound delish! Apparently making spaghetti the "main dish" is an American thing. Italians usually have a meat as the "main dish" and spaghetti as a side dish. In fact, they eat like its Thanksgiving on every meal. You have an appitizer which could be meatballs in sauce, or as the Italians call: Gravy. You go and watch tv with a glass of wine, and the women continue cooking. You would come back to the table, have a salad, maybe watch tv some more, and t

his process seemed to repeat. That works for me! Though, I don't know if I could get used to calling sauce, gravy. "Give me a angel hair pasta with gra

vy please". Nope, when I hear gravy, I think of biscuits and gravy. I will stick to pasta SAUCE. :)

Steak Pizzaiola

Two 12-ounce shell (strip) steaks, each about 3/4 inch thick

3/4 teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons EXTRA virgin olive oil (evoo)

2 medium onions, chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

4 ripe plum tomatoes, corred, seeded, and diced

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1/4 teaspoon crushed hot red pepper (optional)

1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley

1. Pat the steaks dry with a paper towel and season them with 1/2 teaspoon salt. Let stand at room temperature while making the tomato sauce.

2. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onions and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 3 minutes. Add the tomatoes, oregano, remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt, and the hot pepper, if using. Stir in 1/4 cup water and bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, stirring occasionally, about 20 minutes, until the sauce thickens. During the last 5 minutes, stir in the parsley. Transfer the sauce to a bowl, and clean the skillet!

3. Heat the remaining 1 tablespoon of oil in the skillet over medium-high heat. Add the steaks to the skillet and cook about 3 minutes on each side for medium-rare. Transfer to a carving board and let stand for 5 minutes.

4. Pour out the fat in the skillet. Return the tomato sauce to the skillet and bring to a simmer, scraping up the browned bits in the skillet. Remove from the heat.

5. Hold the knife at a slight diagonal and cut the steak across the grain into 1/2-inch-thick slices. Arrange the steak slices on a platter. Pour the tomato sauce over the steak and serve hot.

Tagliatelle

1 pound tagliatelle or linguine pasta, preferably 8 ounces each plain and spinach

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (go ahead and make the investment, its healthy for you!)

1 medium onion, chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced (I will be using Grandpa's HOMEGROWN garlic!)

2 tablespoons butter

5 ounces thick-sliced smoked ham, trimmed of excess fat, cut into 1/2-inch cubes

1 cup cooked fresh or thawed frozen peas ( i will go with frozen)

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook according to the package directions until al dente. Time the pasta so it is done at about the same time as the sauce.

2. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is translucent, about 3 minutes. Add the butter and melt. Add the ham and peas and cook, stirring occasionally, until heated through, about 3 minutes more. Reduce the heat to very low to keep warm.

3. Drain the pasta, reserving 1 cup of the pasta cooking water. Return the pasta to the pot. Add the sauce and the salt and pepper. Toss the pasta, adding enough of the pasta water to make a light sauce. Serve hot.

What we thought:

After not cooking an elaborate meal in a week, making these two together, at the same time, seemed a bit busy. After all said and done, I thought it was delicious! Both were very light and yummy! I could really taste the oregano in the pizzaiola. Jimmy rated the tagliatelle a 9/10 and the pizzaiola a 9.5/10. I had decent amounts of both and so far, im not overly full at all. I was very surprised!