Fun, Food, and Friends
Hello, friends,
July has come and gone in a whirlwind! Colten and I hosted a fiesta at our home with the greatest people. New friends and long-time buddies all together in one place equals a great time! Add in delicious Mexican food and yard games, and you have everything you need for a backyard party. As you beat the heat in the dog days of summer - here’s our menu list to inspire your own Fiesta Fun!
Mental note to self **Take more pictures of the food prepared to share on the blog! :) **
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Fiesta Menu:
Slow Cooked Pork Carnitas on the Grill
Mexican Street Corn
Authentic Mexican Rice
Crockpot Borracho Beans
Sopapilla Cheesecake
Slow Cooked Pork Carnitas
Source: Adapted from the Traeger Website
Serves: 12-15 people
Materials/Ingredients:
Traeger or pellet grill
1 (3 1/2-4 lb) boneless, well-marbled pork shoulder
1 (12 oz) can of Mexican beer (Pacifico or Modelo works great)
As Needed water
2 Teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 Teaspoon ground cumin
Optional Additions for extra flavor:
Sliced Onions
Butter or Bacon Lard
Jalapenos
Directions:
When ready to cook, set Traeger temperature to 300°F and preheat, lid closed for 15 minutes.
Slice the pork into 2-inch pieces and transfer to a large cast iron skillet, roasting pan, or two large foil pans. Pour the beer over the pork and top off with enough water (water may or may not be needed) to barely cover the meat. Stir in the salt and the cumin.
If you would like to incorporate extra flavors, slice an onion, add some bacon grease or butter, and top the meat with jalapenos.
Carefully transfer the pan of meat to your grill and place it on the grill grates. Close the grill lid and roast, stirring occasionally, until the meat is very tender, 2 1/2-3 hours, adding a bit more water as needed if the liquid is evaporating too quickly.
Taste test the pork to determine if extra seasonings or salt is needed. Serve warm on flour and corn tortillas. Enjoy!
Cooking tip! The longer and slower you cook the pork, the more tender it will be. Use a meat thermometer to check for doneness. Pork should be cooked to an internal temperature of 145 degrees.
Mexican Street Corn Dip
Source: Adapted from the Traeger Website
Serves: 15-20 people
Ingredients:
15 cups of fresh corn kernels or 4 cans of the 29 oz. size canned corn
½ cup mayonnaise
½ cup sour cream
2 cups crumbled cotija cheese (feta cheese can be subbed if necessary)
1 cup chopped cilantro (Tip - use kitchen scissors to easily chop your cilantro!)
2 ½ tsp salt
2 ½ tsp pepper
Juice of 1 lime
5 tablespoons canola or cooking oil of choice
Directions:
In a medium bowl, mix the mayonnaise, sour cream, Cotija, cilantro, lime juice, salt, and pepper. If you can't find Cotija cheese, you can substitute feta. Set this bowl aside while you cook the corn.
In a large non-stick skillet or cast-iron pan, heat your cooking oil until hot. Pour in your corn and cook for 7-8 minutes while stirring, until cooked throughout. Let cool for 5 minutes.
Lastly, pour the mayo, sour cream, and cheese mixture from Step 1 into the pan with the corn. Toss to coat and serve the Mexican street corn dip with your tacos.
Authentic Mexican Rice
Source: Stella ‘n Spice
Serves: Recipe serves about 5-6 people; easily double the recipe to equal 1 large foil pan of rice
Ingredients:
1 and 1/2 cups Mahatma Rice Extra Long Grain White Rice
3 tbsp canola, vegetable, or corn oil
1/4 onion diced
1 garlic clove crushed
1 tbsp Knorr chicken bouillon
1/2 tsp garlic powder
2 roma tomatoes (makes 8 oz tomato juice)
2 cups hot water
1/4 tsp salt or to taste
3 sprigs cilantro
1 jalapeno
Directions:
Over medium heat, add the oil to a non-stick pan, then fry the onions and garlic.
When the onions and garlic have lightly browned, Add rice to the pot and toast the rice in the oil, moving it constantly for about 5 minutes or until it becomes slightly puffy and golden brown.
Add the chicken bouillon and garlic powder, the mix and continue toasting for another minute.
Blend together the roma tomatoes. You should have about 8 oz (1 cup) of tomato sauce.
Add the tomato juice to the rice, stirring constantly for 30 seconds. The color should change to warm reddish orange color. At this point, watch the heat to make sure the bottom is not burning. Adjust the heat if you need to.
Add the HOT water to the rice. It has to be hot- if the liquid isn't bubbling on the sides of the pot, your water is not hot enough. Stir in salt to taste at this point if you're adding. I recommend about 1/4 tsp.
Add the cilantro and jalapeno on top, continue boiling over medium-low heat until some of the water has evaporated. Then turn the heat to the lowest setting and cover for 20 minutes. Do NOT lift the lid!
After 20 minutes, turn off the heat and fluff the rice with a fork. There will be a thin layer of tomato sauce at the top - that is what we want. Just gently fluff & mix it into the rice to distribute evenly.
Serve warm and enjoy!
Crockpot Borracho Beans
Source: Hola Jalapeno!
Serves: 8-10 People
Ingredients:
1 pound dry pinto beans
1 (12-ounce) Mexican Beer (Pacifico or Modelo works great)
6 cups water
8 ounces bacon (sub 1 bag of pre-cooked crumbled bacon, if desired, for a quicker cooking process)
1 onion, chopped
2 jalapeños, stemmed and chopped (seeded, for a less spicy version)
4 cloves garlic, chopped
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground chili powder
1 teaspoon dried oregano
2 bay leaves
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
2 scallions, thinly sliced
Directions:
Rinse the beans. Rinse pinto beans and pick through them removing any rocks.
Place beans in the crock pot. Place beans in the slow cooker. Add beer and water.
Crisp bacon. Meanwhile, cook bacon over medium heat in a large frying pan until browned and crisp. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate to cool. **If using pre-cooked and crumbled bacon, dump the bacon in the crockpot and cook your jalapenos and onions in your cooking oil of choice**
Sauté vegetables in bacon grease. In the frying pan with the bacon grease, add onions and cook over medium heat until they are soft, about 8 minutes. Add jalapeños and cook another 5 minutes.
Add garlic and spices to toast. Add garlic, cumin, chili powder, coriander, oregano, and bay leaves and cook, stirring for a minute more.
Combine and cook everything in slow cooker. Transfer onion mixture to slow cooker. Chop bacon and add to slow cooker. Cover and continue cooking until beans are tender, about 4 hours on high or 8 hours on low.
Season with salt and serve. Add about 1 tablespoon of salt, taste and add more to your liking. Sprinkle with cilantro and scallions and serve.
Sopapilla Cheesecake
Source: Pillsbury
Serves: 12
Ingredients:
2 cans (8 oz) refrigerated Pillsbury Original Crescent Rolls (8 Count)
2 packages (8 oz each) cream cheese, softened
1 1/2cups sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
½ cup butter, melted
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
Directions:
Heat oven to 350°F.
Unroll 1 can dough. Place in bottom of a greased 13x9-inch (3-quart) glass baking dish. Stretch to cover bottom of dish, firmly pressing perforations to seal.
In a medium bowl, beat cream cheese and 1 cup of the sugar with electric mixer on medium speed until smooth. Beat in vanilla. Spread over dough in baking dish.
Unroll second can of dough. Firmly press perforations to seal. Carefully place on top of cream cheese layer. Pinch seams together.
Pour melted butter evenly over top. Mix remaining 1/2 cup sugar with the cinnamon, and sprinkle evenly over butter.
Bake 30-35 minutes or until bars appear set when gently shaken. Cool slightly, about 30 minutes. Refrigerate for easy cutting. Cut into 4 rows by 3 rows. Cover and refrigerate any remaining bars.
Lady K’s One Thing:
Bison Ranch Water
Ingredients:
1 shot glass (1.5 oz) of El Jimador Blanco Tequila
16 ounces (2 cups) of Topo Chico
Lime Wedge
Ice
Directions:
Grab your favorite cocktail glass and fill it with ice.
Pour in 1 shot of El Jimador Blanco Tequila.
Squeeze a lime and drop it in your glass.
Sip and Enjoy! Cheers!
Fiesta like there’s no mañana,
Lady K
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