How is 2020 treating everyone? Hope all of you are still going strong with your New Decade visions and putting all of your dreams into actions. One of mine was to post more recipes here for all of you to enjoy. I know many of you have been writing in asking for more. And believe me, I’ve missed all of you too! After the book tour, I decided to take a few weeks for myself and disconnected. But I’m back and with a vengeance. I have so many great recipes already scheduled for you all to enjoy. This recipe has been highly requested by my sisters and my sister-in-law. They are all going to be super happy when I tell them I finally wrote it out :)

I made this recipe last year when my sisters came over with the kids to swim. It became so popular with my family, that it was a highly requested thanksgiving side dish. I was really hesitant to serve this at thanksgiving at first. I kept thinking to myself ‘who really wants to eat Brussels sprouts on a holiday dinner”. Well, it turns out that a lot of people do. It was so popular I had to run back to the kitchen to make a second batch after the first disappeared. Since then, it’s become a family favorite. I make this about once a week. My 4 year old loves them and they make for a great school or office lunch.

If you want to make ahead, you can reheat by popping them in a toaster oven at 375 for 10minutes. Make sure you drizzle a bit of olive oil before and after reheating!

The key to making this dish is to stay close to the pan at all times, turning the sprouts with kitchen tongs. This will prevent them from burning and get them perfectly crispy. Also, I opt for O citrus champagne vinegar that’s become a favorite in my pantry. I find it makes everything taste better and use it often when a recipe calls for white vinegar or even apple cider vinegar. Also, another two key ingredients in this recipe are the Aleppo peppers and garlic flakes. I can’t tell you enough about these two (also staple pantry items). The garlic flakes I use often when I roast bacon and the Aleppo peppers are great on just about anything (specially hard boiled eggs, avocado toasts and breakfast potatoes).

Enjoy this recipe and please tag your creations on the gram. Love seeing you cook these recipes!

Bricia

INGREDIENTS:

2 tbsp. Grapeseed oil

1lbs Brussel sprouts, trimmed and halved.

1tsp sea salt

Fresh ground pepper

2 tsp aleppo peppers

2 tsp citrus vinegar

1 tbsp honey

2 tsp garlic flakes

¼ cup panko bread crumbs

INSTRUCTIONS:

Step 1:

In a large pan, heat up grapeseed oil. Once hot, carefully drop in brussel sprouts. On medium heat, allow sprouts to cook. Add salt and pepper and cook until they begin to change color and fragrant, about 5 minutes.

Step 2:

Sprinkle in Aleppo Peppers and combine thoroughly. Cook for another 3 minutes, add vinegar, stir thoroughly and add honey. Stir until brussel sprouts are crispy and browned, about 5-7 minutes

Step 3:

Add garlic flakes and bread crumbs. Stir to combine and cook until the breadcrumbs have browned and garlic flakes released their aroma, about 5 minutes.

Finish with a drizzle of olive oil and finishing salt.

Posted on February 13, 2020 by Bricia Lopez.

I don’t know if I’ve ever shared with you my sons obsession with popsicles. He absolutely loves them and has become our thing to do every other weekend. He loves his usual jamaica with mint recipe (which reminds me, I need to share with you) but every so often we like to get creative. This paleta de arroz con leche was inspired by my collaboration with Toma Leche and their Moo Money Consumer Loyalty Program. Did you know you could earn some dollars by purchasing those gallons of milk? Genius right? You can learn more about this program on MooMoney.com

Ok, so back to the recipe. My mom makes the most incredible arroz con leche and it really is one of my fave desserts to have any time of the year. I love to eat it warm, cold and now thanks to this recipe, frozen. I opted to add the raisins to the tip of the popsicle molds, but feel free to mix them in with the recipe of at the bottom of the pops. I also suggest to stir in the rice thoroughly before pouring the mix into the molds, otherwise, you will be left with an uneven amount of rice per mold.

Hope you all enjoy and don’t forget to tag me with your recreations on the gram!

TIP: to remove the pops from the molds, soak them in luke warm water for a few of seconds (anything longer than a few seconds will make them melt from within)

PALETAS DE ARROZ CON LECHE

Makes 12 popsicles

INGREDEINTS

½ cups white jasmine rice, thoroughly rinsed

3 cups water

Sea salt

1 cinnamon stick

1 liter whole milk

1 cup sugar

1/2 lemon, its zest

Pinch fresh ground nutmeg

2 tbsp dried cranberries

Ground cinnamon

DIRECTIONS

In a medium saucepan over medium heat, add rice, water, cinnamon and salt. Bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes. Add milk and sugar. Simmer for 10 minutes. Add lemon zest and nutmeg. Simmer for another 15 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to cool.

Sprinkle cranberries and ground cinnamon evenly in each popsicle mold. Fill each mold evenly with cooked rice mixture. Freeze overnight.

Posted on March 5, 2019 by Bricia Lopez.

Nothing warms my heart like a throwback to a Mexican mom classic like this Rajas de Chile Poblano con calabacitas. My mom would make this often when I was a kid and when I eat it, it brings me back to those days in her kitchen listening in to the conversations she was having with my tias.

I would serve this today at a pot luck of some sort or as a side dish to complement any Sunday supper meat or fish dish. A lot of the flavor of this dish comes from the roasted poblano peppers. These chiles are also often called pasilla ancho fresco at some grocery stores. They may be spicy if you are not used to spice, so if you are sensitive, I would recommend to reduce the amount used. I ended up using calabaza bolita Mexicana, but please feel free to use any variety of squash you find and like. Just note that the cooking time may be reduced, based on its firmness. When in season, I also love adding squash blossoms to this dish, it not only adds a great flavor but it also makes for a beautiful elegant dish. If you opt to use them, add them at the same time as you would the epazote.

If you are ok with dairy and not a meat person, Have these over a bed of fluffy brown rice or toss them in with some quinoa for a great nutritious meal.

One last and eery important thing…this post was created in partnership with the California Milk Processor Board. They asked I spread the great news a bout their new Moo Money consumer loyalty program. Beginning January 28, 2019 and running through April 28, 2019, eligible California consumers who register online at www.moomoney.com can immediately begin earning valuable points for every $1 spent towards a qualifying purchase of real dairy milk. So whenever you buy real milk, all you have to do is snap a picture of your receipt and submit it to www.moomoney.com to receive points into your account. Once you reach enough points, you will be able to convert those points into Virtual Reward Cards, which will be delivered to you via a link to a Virtual Reward Card PDF. The Virtual Reward Cards can be used anywhere MasterCard is accepted at any time prior to June 1, 2019. YES! money for milk. So get to our local grocer and stock up for this and many more creations I will be sharing in the weeks to come! Oh, and please do not forget to tag me on your creations on the gram. Would love to see what your rajas look and taste like!!!

DIRECTIONS

In a medium frying pan over medium heat, add vegetable oil and butter until butter has melted and fully incorporated into the oil. Add onions and sautée until fragrant and translucent, about 7 minutes stirring constantly. Add squash, continue stirring until squash has begun to tenderize. Add Poblano peppers, and kernels. Stir for 3 minutes. Add milk. Stirring continuously, season with salt and pepper. Add epazote sprigs. Allow to cook until squash has cooked through, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat. Stir in creme fraiche. Toss in queso panela. Serve

RAJAS DE CHILE POBLANO CON CALABACITAS

Serves 4

INGREDIENTS

1 tbsp grapeseed oil

1 tbsp unsalted butter

½ cup yellow onion, julienned

2 cups Mexican squash, cut into 1 ½ in cubes

2 Poblano chiles, grilled, peeled, and cut into small ¼ in strips

1 ½ cups fresh corn kernels

1 3/4 cups milk

¾ cup creme fraiche

3 epazote sprigs

Salt and pepper

For garnish

1 cup Queso Panela, cubed

Posted on February 26, 2019 by Bricia Lopez.