JUST over 2 HOURS left ….for our FLASH SALE @loschileros
The Holidays are just around the corner so take advantage of our Flash Sale and take 25% off of our regular prices (shipping excluded) and stock up on your favorite Chiles,Powders,Rubs and Mixes..
Santa wants Posole this year instead of cookies!! ……
FLASH SALE 24HRS ONLY
The Holidays are just around the corner so take advantage of our Flash Sale and take 25% off of our regular prices (shipping excluded) and stock up on your favorite Chiles,Powders,Rubs and Mixes..
Remember Santa wants Posole this year instead of cookies!! ……
TODAY..ONLY…….So don’t delay!
Promo Code: SANTA
See our great Campfire Chile recipe here.
See our great Campfire Chile recipe here.
Is it just me or have bowl games become more competitive? I’m not talking about the players – I’m talking about the parties. It used to be that when someone invited you over to watch the Big Game you were pleased as punch if they slapped a tub of French onion dip and a bag of potato chips on the table.
Now people invite you over for a ‘spread’ or ‘buffet’. It feels more like a wedding than a football game. And the problem is that you’re expected to do the same when you return the favor. So guess what? You end up spending the whole time in the kitchen so you don’t watch the game, don’t scream your lungs out and don’t raise your blood pressure to stratospheric heights. And where’s the fun in that?
And be honest – does anyone really want a bunch of foofy food anyway? What they want is stick-to-your-ribs, coat-your-stomach food and a lot of it. So don’t bow down to Big Game Pressure (BGP). Serve up the food people want and make sure you don’t miss out on the half-time show. This year, I’ll be making a big ‘ole batch of Campfire Chili. And before you get all cutesy, no you don’t need a campfire to cook it.
It’s quick, easy and mighty tasty. I serve it up with lots of condiments on the side– extra chile, diced avocado, shredded cheese, chopped scallions – you get the idea.
Make it on the day or better yet the day before (it just gets better and better). Bring the pot to the table and let everyone fix up their own bowlful. And please – whatever you do – don’t forget the French onion dip and chips. Promise?
Campfire Chile
Campfire Chile Kit
2 ½ lbs lean ground beef or ground turkey
1 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes
3 cups waterOptional:
1 15 oz. can pinto beans, drained
1 15 oz. can kidney beans, drained
Brown the meat, add water and the Campfire Chili seasoning and simmer 30 minutes. Add tomatoes (and beans, if you’re using them). Simmer 10 minutes. If you want more heat, crumble the dired chiles and add a bit at a time to get to your preferred ‘burn’ level.
Continue cooking for 15 minutes. For a thicker chili, combine the contents of the masa evelope (yellow corn flour) with ½ cup warm water and stir to dissolve. Add this mixture to the chili a little at a time to reach your desired thickness. If adding masa, continue cooking for an additional 10 minutes. Salt to taste.
Is it just me or does it feel like Thanksgiving was just last week? Now here we are with Christmas looming over us and New Year’s lurking around the corner.
If you’ve dared venture into the supermarket you can sense the siege mentality as people stock up like they’re getting ready for another Hundred Years War. To-do lists spawn secondary to-do lists and scribbled notes get shoved in coat pockets as we try to remember if we were supposed to pick up single cream, heavy, double, whipped or some other milk-based product.
At moments like this it’s important to breathe and remember if all else fails you can probably find a gas station open on Christmas Day selling microwave bean burritos. Okay, it’s not much consolation but it’s something. So, for what’s it’s worth, here are some tips/suggestion/ideas to help you navigate the holidays.
So get going. It’s time to celebrate. See you in 2014.
We’re whipping out our wallets and passing around the photographs. We’re proud parents and we’re not ashamed to admit it. Our newest baby – Stöger Oils – has made us proud. Stöger Oils has been nominated not once but twice for a sofi™ Award – the awards given to the top specialty foods in the country. Stöger Cherry Oil is one of only three finalists for best oil while the entire range of Stöger Oils is up for outstanding product line.
Can you feel us beaming?
We heard about Stöger Oils awhile back and were intrigued. They’re made in Austria on a family farm. They basically take seeds – pumpkin, chile, cherry and tomato – and create pure oils from them. One taste and we were hooked and we knew that we had to bring them to the States. Plus we loved the idea of lots and lots of tiny elves dressed up in lederhosen making these oils.
Okay, there are no elves but the taste is pretty magical.
Oh, and did we mention that Food and Wine magazine loves them? Are we starting to sound a bit OTT now? Who cares? We’re happy and proud and who can blame us. We’ve even gotten world-renown chef Alyson Cook to whip up some recipes for us.
You can buy the oils and find more recipes at the Stöger Oil website.
And as we like to say back on the ranch – Enjoy!
Buttery Chocolate Chip Scones with Stöger Cherry Seed Oil Drizzle Glaze
2 Tbsp Baking Powder
6 Tbsp Sugar
1/2 tsp Salt
6oz Salted Butter
1 ½ Cups Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
2 Cups Half and Half
Egg wash made with 1 Egg (beaten with a teaspoon of water)
1 Cup Powdered Sugar (sifted)
1 Tbsp Stöger Cherry Seed Oil
To make the scones:
Pre-heat oven to 425F.
Sift all dry ingredients except chocolate chips into a large bowl. Add cold butter and cut into pea-sized chunks. Add chocolate chips to the bowl, and stir in with a spatula for even distribution. Add half and half all at once to the dry ingredients, and turn out onto floured surface. Pat out dough into approx 12” circle at about ¾ inch thick. Cut into 12 even “Pie” shapes, and place separated, about an inch apart on a greased sheet pan. Brush liberally with egg wash. Bake on middle rack until slightly golden brown on top and bottom. Cool on a wire rack. Drizzle with Stöger Cherry Seed Flat Icing when cool.
To make flat icing:
Mix Stöger Cherry Seed oil and powdered sugar with one or two drops of water to make a thick but pourable glaze. Drizzle over cooled scones.
© Alyson Cook 2013
It was a quiet start…a tiny operation called Meco & Elia that Maria Elia ran with her partner. Meco handled front of the house (mainly opening the door) while Maria created the menus, took the orders, cooked the food, and presented the bill (cash only).
Not bad when you consider that Maria was six, Meco was Mitzi her half Jack Russell/half Poodle dog and the customers were Maria’s parents. And not surprising that Maria knew she wanted to cook from an early age. She grew up in the restaurant business (her Greek father ran his own restaurant in London) and remembers being four years old and standing on a stool so she could toss potatoes into the rumbler (“It wasn’t exactly health and safety,” she says with a laugh.).
Today, Maria is one of the most exciting chefs and food writers on the scene. She lives in London but has cooked around the world and published two great books (a third is due out in the Fall). What makes her food so exciting is that she takes interesting ingredients and gives them a completely fresh and unexpected twist.
I loved her first book – The Modern Vegetarian – because unlike some veggie books you genuinely don’t miss the meat. The vegetable is the hero and the recipes are amazing. Take miso – a Japanese staple – which goes Greek in her Miso-marinated kataifi-wrapped eggplant. Or how she pairs sweet strawberries with bitter radicchio for her Griddled Radicchio and Strawberry Risotto. The combinations are unusual but they’re not way out – they work.
Maria likes to start with an ingredient – maybe one that evokes a strong memory for her – and then take it on a flavor journey to see where it can go. She often creates a mind map on paper to explore the different connections that a single food can make. In her second book, Full of Flavor: How to Create Like a Chef, she takes 18 different ingredients and spins out lots of different flavor combinations for each one. The results are dazzling.
Chile Roasted Feta and Watermelon Slab
The contrasts in this recipe are wonderful; I love the warmth of the feta and the heat from the chile against the cold sweet watermelon. The dressing is great with white beans, crumbled feta and some lettuce leaves. Or, if you prefer to keep it simple, just use a little lemon-infused olive oil to dress the watermelon. Perfect as an appetizer or light lunch.
Serves 4
4 evenly sized blocks of feta cheese (approximately 2 ½ oz each)
Extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp chile flakes
1 container cilantro sprouts (optional)
1 container shiso sprouts (optional)
1 ½ – 2 oz mizuna or baby salad leaves
3 Tbsp toasted pine nuts (optional)
Raisin and Oregano dressing
4 pieces watermelon, cut into slightly larger rectangles than the feta, each approximately ½” high and chilled
olive oil for drizzling
Preheat the oven to 375°. Cut a large piece of foil and put it on a baking tray. Place each piece of feta on top, drizzle each piece with olive oil and sprinkle with a few chile flakes. Put another piece of foil on top and fold the foil edges together to form a loose parcel. Place in the oven and cook for 8 minutes, by which time the feta will be soft and warm. (You can prepare the feta in advance but if you take it straight from the fridge you will need to double the cooking time.)
Remove from the oven and assemble immediately; snip the cilantro and shiso sprouts (if using) and mix with the baby leaves and pine nuts (if using). Dress with a little of the Raisin and Oregano Dressing and pile neatly on top of the chilled watermelon slabs.
Open the parcel and place the roasted feta on top of the salad leaves. Drizzle with the olive oil and serve immediately.
Raisin oregano dressing
2 oz raisins
1 garlic clove, crushed
2 small shallots, finely chopped
¼ cup Cabernet Sauvignon vinegar
1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
5 drops of green Tabasco sauce or 3 of red will do
Finely grated zest of approx ¼ of an orange plus 1 Tbsp of juice
¼ cup olive oil
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 ½ Tbsp finely chopped oregano
Soak the raisins in hot water till plump approximately 10 minutes. Drain and place in a bowl. Add remaining ingredients and pulse one-third with a hand blender/liquidize. Mix together stirring in the orange zest and juice and season with a pinch of sea salt
Store in the refrigerator until required.
You’ve tried everything.
1. You’ve brined it. You’ve deep-fried it. You’ve even tried (and failed) the infamous turkducken. So this year I want you to repeat after me, “It’s just a super-sized chicken. It’s just a super-sized chicken…”. Give it a chile spice rub, slather it in butter and wack it in the oven. Set the timer, watch the parade, and chill. Okay?
If you’re still not satisfied, try Turkey Mole on for size. We’ve adapted a recipe from Chef Douglas Rodriguez and our own John Vollerston from Las Cosas Cooking School here in Santa Fe. They have reduced the time and preparation by creating a mole-inspired dry rub you can massage into ole Tom before he hits the oven. Hint: Make a double batch of the rub-it’s addictive-then use it to season Chicken and Pork.
Mole Rub
(Makes about 11/3 cups)
¼ cup cocoa powder
¼ cup light brown sugar
¼ cup salt
2 tbsp sesame seeds toasted
2 tbsp corn Masa (available in the flour section of most grocery stores)
1 tbsp ground black pepper
1 tbsp ground mild New Mexican red chile powder
1 tbsp Ancho chile powder
1 tbsp Chipotle chile powder
1 tsp ground Ginger
1 tsp ground star anise
1 tsp toasted and ground cumin seeds
1 tsp ground cinnamon
¼ tsp ground cloves
¼ tsp ground allspice
1½ tsp toasted and ground coriander seeds
½ tsp Mexican Oregano
Mix together all the ingredients. Use at once or store in an airtight jar at room temperature for up to 3 months. For the Turkey1 (18-20-pound) turkey; neck, heart, and gizzard removed 5 ½ cups chicken stock 2 tbsp vegetable oil. Place thawed turkey on rack set in large roasting pan; tuck wings under. Sprinkle 1 tablespoon mole rub in main cavity of turkey and ½ cup spice mixture all over and under turkey skin; tie legs together to hold shape. Refrigerate uncovered overnight. Let turkey stand 1 hour at room temperature. Set rack at lowest position in oven and preheat to 450º. Brush turkey with vegetable oil and sprinkle with an additional ¼ cup of the mole rub. Pour 1½ cups chicken stock into pan with turkey. Reduce heat to 350º; place pan in oven and roast turkey 2 hours. Add 2 cups broth to pan; roast 1 hour. Pour 2 cups broth over turkey; cover turkey loosely with foil. Continue roasting until thermometer inserted into thickest part of thigh registers 175º, about 1 hour longer. Transfer turkey to platter, tent loosely with foil and kitchen towel, and let stand 30 minutes (internal temperature of turkey will rise 5 to 10 degrees). Skim fat from the pan reserving juices. Carve and serve with mole broth that is left in the pan after skimming. Enjoy!
2. While you’re giving that bad-boy-bird a spice rub with one hand, make a bloody mary with the other. Make it easy with Los C’s mix (hide the packet and say you made it yourself. We won’t tell). If you want to get all Martha Stewart, then wet the rim of your glass and dip it in a mixture of kosher salt and chile powder. Won’t you be popular!
3. Everything at Thanksgiving tastes better with chile. That includes mashed potatoes, Brussels sprouts, and candied yams. We’ve even tossed a pinch in the ‘ole pumpkin pie when grandma wasn’t watching. Cranberry sauce? Maybe not. But come to think of it…
Red Chile Scalloped Potatoes
Serves 6-8
3 medium potatoes, washed, peeled and sliced very thin
4 egg yolks, lightly beaten
1 cup heavy cream
2 cups milk
1 cup sour cream
1 cup shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
1 teaspoon hot New Mexico red chile powder
1/4 cup mild New Mexico red chile powder
1 teaspoon toasted and ground cumin
1 ½ teaspoon salt, freshly ground pepper
Spread potatoes on paper towels and dry well. In a medium bowl, whisk together yolks, cream, milk, sour cream, cheese, red chiles, cumin, and salt. Butter a 4 qt. casserole dish. Place potatoes in a large bowl and pour milk/cream mixture over them. Stir to completely coat potatoes. Place potatoes in casserole dish and crack fresh ground pepper over potatoes. Cover and bake at 400º for 30 minutes, uncover and continue baking until potatoes are tender and casserole is bubbling and nicely browned, about 20 minutes.
4. You made it through the Thanksgiving meal. You’ve ingested 3,500 calories. Now you’re hanging out watching a bowl game and you realize – OH NO! – I haven’t eaten in at least 20 minutes. Don’t panic! Have a batch (or 2) of these on hand when you get those post-turkey munchies.
Sweet & Spicy Pecans
Makes 2 cups
2 cups pecan halves
2 tbsp unsalted butter
¼ cup brown sugar
½ tsp chipotle powder
½ tsp salt
½ tsp rosemary, finely chopped
Toast the pecans in a dry skillet over medium heat. Toss them gently so they’re lightly browned but make sure they don’t burn. Remove the pecans from the pan. Add the butter and melt, then stir in the remaining ingredients. When the sugar has dissolved, add the pecans back to the pan. Stir for a few minutes until the pecans are well-coated. Remove from the pan and place them on a sheet of parchment paper. Separate the nuts with a fork (no fingers – they’re very hot!) and allow to cool until the sugar mixture has hardened onto the pecans.
5. Leftovers. You knew it was going to happen. Whip up some Turkey Enchiladas and feel the turkey glow.
6. If all else fails, forget the turkey. Order a pizza and top it with some green chile. Go on. You know you want to.
The Chile Trail 