Burgers MY Way

Meredith
I am iffy on burgers. I rarely crave them. When I do, It’s satisfied with just a regular homemade grilled burger. This day I made Chipotle Burgers with an Avocado Cream Sauce.

Burger
1 lb. ground sirloin
2 tbs minced chipotle with adobo
1/2 diced onion
1/2 tbs extra virgin olive oil

Mix all burger components together and form into patties. Grill to desired doneness. 

Avocado Cream Sauce
1 avocado
1/2 Mexican Crema
1 tsp lime zest
Juice of 1 lime
1 garlic clove, minced
salt & pepper to taste
Combine all ingredients into food processor and mix until smooth.

Toppings
Pico de gallo
Grilled Vidalia Onions
Grilled ciabatta with olive oil and salt & pepper
Grill both after burgers come off

I’m so glad I sought out the quality sirloin. I think that it made all the difference in these burgers. Or else it was the chipotle kick that I’m on these days. In any case, this was a super delicious burger. 100% juicy, full of flavor and messy like a good burger should be. I had mine with some grilled sweet potato fries FTW.

Laura
In an attempt to go low carb, I made bunless Portobello Burgers. When making veggie burgers, make sure you drain all the extra liquid out of the vegetables or you'll wind up with a soggy mess! That's my tip of the day. Also, TVP is just vegetarian crumbles.  I used Morningstar Meal Starters.

The burgers cooked up crispy and I thought they had a ton of flavor.  I really enjoyed eating them.  It almost made me sad to give two away to my sister. They're a little time consuming to make, but honestly, they tasted way better than any of those frozen vegetarian patties that I've tried.

Also, you're going to want to try this Bean Salad. It was the perfect match for the burger.

Carne Asada

Meredith
I went to 1,000,000 stores to find skirt steak this week. I have to say it may have been worth the searching. We made Carne Asada from Simply Recipes. Turns out it was pretty simple! It’s a very basic marinade that gives HUGE flavor to a wonderful cut of beef. I tossed my meat on a super hot grill for for about 7 minutes total time and then let it rest before cutting it across the grain about 5 minutes later. I used the grill to warm my corn tortillas – almost turning them into hard taco shells. After topping them with shredded cheese and a quick homemade pico de gallo, they were ready to eat!

Laura
Skirt steak is not cheap, so my first piece of advice would be to buy it when it's on sale THEN make the carne asada. I used my cast iron skillet for the steak. It worked really well, but I think at some point, I want to buy a grill pan.

My second piece of advice would be to let the steak marinate for as long as possible.The flavor was really great, but I didn't get to marinate for the entire four hours. I bet it would have made the flavors way more intense.

Over all, this was a really great meal. It was very tasty and filling. I'd make carne asada again, but I'd like to experiment with different recipes.

Guy Fieri’s Coyote Quesadillas

Meredith
This was a joint cooking attempt/venture since we were in the same place at the same time. I (Meredith) came to visit Laura in May at some point and we made THESE Coyote Quesadillas!

Holy crap they were good! After almost burning down Laura’s apartment, we turned out some pretty good food. I learned that #1 DON’T BLACKEN THINGS unless you're prepared for it. Man that’s a lot of smoke! and #2 Quit being so bossy. I’m kind of a terror in the kitchen – even if it’s not mine.

Since it’s been 2 months since we made these I can only *kind* of remember all the flavors. I know that I loved it and had seconds. I also know that it was a LOT of food. Have friends over. They will love you.

Laura
I think Meredith's always known she was bossy (in the kitchen). I also think that had she not had so much Sangria, she might not have smoked out my apartment. That's really not here or there . . .

These quesadillas were delicious! I was really happy to have extra black bean salsa. The chicken was flavored really well, too.  I'd definitely make these again.  Or, make them the first time, depending on your side of the story.

Mmmmm Nachos

Laura
Nachos are the perfect food. I love them. The nachos I made are hard to blog because I didn't have a recipe. I don't even know how much of anything I used.

I bought a rotisserie chicken. I shredded it and threw it in a pan along with corn, jalapeno peppers, chipotle peppers, black beans, red kidney beans, diced tomatoes and some spices. I tackled the nachos like they were a lasagna. The chips were a mixture of blue corn chips and red bean and rice chips. I layered them in a casserole dish, added the chicken mixture and topped it with habanero cheese. I had 3 layers that reminded me a little of our Mexican casserole dish. They sat under the broiler until the cheese melted.

These were really yummy. And hot! I plated them topped with hot salsa, sour cream and avocado slices.

Meredith
Lucky’s Nachos are the perfect food. I was merely trying to replicate them here for Cinco de Mayo. I decided at some point I was GRILLING the nachos. I took my cast iron skillet and started with a layer of blue and white tortilla chips, topped that with a mixture or pepper jack and sharp cheddar. Next: the chicken. (I, too, used a rotisserie chicken, shredded it and added stewed tomatoes, sliced jalapeños, onion, garlic and some cumin, chile powder, etc. I’m not even sure). A black bean and corn salsa I threw together went on next and then onto the grill. They went about ten minutes until the cheese was all melty. I topped the platter with sour cream and green onions. OLÉ!

Slow Cooker Split Pea Soup

Laura
It shouldn’t really come as a surprise that Split Pea Soup follows our ham blog.   It’s a great way to use up leftover ham and the ham bone.  The soup was good.  It was a little thick but still good.  I gave most of it away.  Honestly, it just kept reminding me of that awful ham.  Further proof is the fact that there's no picture on my camera for the soup.  Here’s hoping Meredith took one.

Meredith
Oh wow- you poor ham.... Laura really hated you, didn’t she? Aaaaanyway- split pea soup. It was good! Super quick and easy- I threw it in the crockpot and went to bed. I made drop biscuits when I got home from work and reheated the soup for a 10 minute dinner. I loved the homey-ness of something so simple and tasty. I did snap a pic before I chowed.
 

CRAP! I forgot to mention my super cute Pier 1 Easter/Spring dishes. I had the ham in them and then the soup!

Hamming It Up

Laura
First of all, here’s a helpful hint. When someone from the south tells you to buy an uncooked ham, ask them if they mean fresh or smoked. I thought Meredith meant fresh.  I was wrong.

I used Paula Deen's Fresh Ham recipe.  I hated it. I’ve had fresh ham before. I liked it. Paula’s an accomplished chef.  This leads me to believe that the problem lies with me. Maybe it’s because I’m not southern. Whatever the reason, I won’t make it again. It cooked for a little over two hours and it probably could have used more time. It was boring, bland and uneventful.

Meredith
This was my Easter ham! Typically, I go to my aunt’s house or to my mother’s for Easter and never manage to score any leftovers. I decided to switch it up a bit and try something different. This recipe for Glazed Smoked Ham from the Food Network kitchens is a keeper. I don’t usually like ham glazed with some sweet, sticky stuff, but the apricot preserves with the mustard and vinegar and then the clove and allspice... whatever the magic that happened in that oven was – wow. This was maybe the best ham I’ve ever had*. The gravy/sauce with the ham was a little different for me - tasted great but I’ve never actually put anything *on* my ham. I completed my Southern Easter dinner with my grandma’s potato salad  and Paula Deen’s collard greens!

*My deepest apologies to Laura on the purchase of her ham. Had her phone not died while she was in the grocery store, I’d have surely told her to buy a smoked ham! I have no idea how to cook a fresh ham. Why would you?! Smithfield puts the smoke in there for a reason!!

Sloppy Joe.. Slopp-a Sloppy Joe

Recipe courtesy Guy Fieri: Sloppy Joes with Maui Onion Straws

Meredith
So *this* is what sloppy joes should taste like! I get that Manwich is about convenience and this recipe has a million ingredients (really most of them are pantry staples anyway) but wow- these were really, really good. I didn’t do the “Maui Onion Straws” – it seemed too much effort for the end result – but I’d be curious so see what they add to the sandwich. Toasted bread is a must and I might try melting a piece of plain old American cheese on the leftovers next time. And there will definitely be a next time.

Laura
I love Sloppy Joes.  I never had them as a kid, but I learned to like them as an adult.  Guy’s recipe was so much better than the average recipe.  The recipe made so much mixture, that when I got tired of eating it on a sandwich, I used it as chili and ate it with some tortilla chips.

Make this!  It’s flavorful and comforting.  Make some potato salad on the side.   Oh, and my suggestion if you had to have cheese would be cheddar.

For fun:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_-KbstEG4E