Drink...
*recipe from: Cooking Stoned
These drinks seem to be quite the fad lately as I have seen them all over the place. I have never actually tried one from a bar, so I can't compare the taste. However, I thought it was quite delicious! It was a bit sweet, so if you don't like your margaritas sweet, I would just add less simple syrup.
Ingredients:
(serves 6)
- 5 Cups Ice
- 1 Cup Tequila
- ½ Cup Grand Marnier (I didn't have this so I used Triple Sec)
- 5 Limes, more for garnish
- 1 Orange
- 1 Cup simple syrup
- 6 Beers, Corona (or I used Trader Jose's)
- ⅓ Cup coarse Salt
- Juice the limes and the orange in a large measuring cup, then add in the tequila, grand marnier (or Triple Sec), and simple syrup. Mix together.
- Pour the salt into a shallow bowl. Using one of the juiced limes, swipe the outer rim of one of your glasses. Swivel the glass upside down in the salt until the rim is covered. Repeat for each glass.
- Add a heaping cup of ice to the blender and just enough of the margarita mixture that the ice is not covered. Blend, adding more ice or margarita mix until the desired thickness is achieved.
- Pour the frozen margarita into a salt-rimmed glass, pop open a Corona, and place it upside down in the glass, submerging it into the margarita. Repeat for each glass. **Make sure your margarita is very slushy. Mine wasn't thick enough the first time I made it and when I put the beer in it, it all came out of the bottle and overflowed in the glass. **
*recipe from: The Complete America's Test Kitchen TV Show Cookbook
These might not have been as spicy as I would have liked, but they were amazingly delicious!! Plus, they're super easy because basically all you do is put the ingredients in and let them stew. Make it - you won't be sorry!
Ingredients:
(serves 4-6)
for the shredded pork:
- 2 lbs boneless pork butt roast, trimmed and cut into 1 inch pieces (I couldn't find this cut, so I used a boneless pork tenderloin and it turned out great)
- 2 medium onions, 1 quartered and 1 chopped fine
- 5 medium garlic cloves, 3 peeled and smashed and 2 minced
- 4 sprigs fresh thyme
- salt
- 2 tbs olive oil
- 1/2 tsp dried oregano
- 1 (14.5 oz) can tomato sauce
- 1 tbs ground chipotle powder or 2 chipotles in adobo suace
- 2 bay leaves
- 3/4 cup vegetable oil
- 12 corn tortillas
- salt
- queso fresco or feta cheese
- fresh cilantro
- sour cream
- diced avacado
- lime wedges
for the shredded pork:
- Bring the pork, quartered onion, smashed garlic cloves, thyme, 1 tsp salt, and 6 cups water to a simmer in a large saucepan over medium-high heat, skimming off any foam that rises to the surface.
- Reduce the heat to medium-low, partially cover, and cook until the pork is tender, 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 hours.
- Drain the pork, reserving 1 cup cooking liquid. Discar the onion, garlic, and thyme.
- Return the pork to the saucepan and, using a potato masher, mash until shredded into rough 1/2 inch pieces. Set aside.
- Heat the olive oil in a large non stick skillet. Add the shredded pork, chopped onion, oregano and cook stirring often, until the pork is well browned and crisp, 7-10 minutes.
- Add the minced garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
- Stir in the tomato sauce, chipotle powder (or chopped canned chipotles), reserved pork cooking liquid, and bay leaves. Simmer until almost all the liquid has evaporated, 5-7 minutes. Remove the bay leaves and season with salt to taste.
- Heat the vegetable oik in a skillet.
- Using a fork, pierce the center of each tortilla 3 or 4 times to prevent puffing and allow for even cooking.
- Fry one at a time, holding the metal potato masher in the upright position on top of the tortilla in order to keep it submerged, until crisp and lightly browned, 45-60 seconds (no flipping necessary).
- Drain on a paper towel lined plate and season with salt.
- Spoon a small amount of shredded pork onto each tostada and top with the garnishes.
*recipe from: She Knows Food and Recipes
These cookies have a lot of steps in the directions, but they aren't really too hard. Don't get intimidated by the number of steps, because they have a great wow factor and are so fun! I couldn't find a donkey cookie cutter, so mine are star pinatas! The website I got the recipe from has a great step-by-step tutorial with pictures, so be sure to check it out.
Ingredients:
- bright colored food coloring
- sugar cookie dough
- mini m&m's or other mini candies
- frosting (I used a mixture of powdered sugar with a tiny bit of milk)
- Separate the sugar cookie dough into 4-6 equal parts.
- Color each part of the sugar cookie dough a different color.
- Line a small plastic container with plastic wrap.
- Split up the colored dough and begin layering it in the container, alternating colors.
- Cover and freeze the dough for 4 hours or more.
- Remove the dough from the freezer and unwrap.
- Slice the dough into pieces about a 1/4 inch wide
- Place the slices on a baking sheet and bake according to directions on the cookie dough package.
- Immediately after taking the cookies out of the oven, use the cookie cutter to cut out the shape of the pinata (work quickly because the dough needs to still be warm so it doesn't crack).
- When cutting out the middle cookies, hollow out the center by using a small cookie cutter. This is where the m&m's will go.
- Let the cookies cool.
- Lay one solid cookie down and line it with frosting.
- Place a hollow cookie on top of it.
- Fill the hollow cookie with mini m&m's.
- Line the hollow cookie with frosting.
- Top with another solid cookie so you have three cookies stuck together and the m&m's in the center.
- Eat and enjoy as the pinata breaks open!
