Wednesday, February 15, 2017

Month-of-Few Ingredients: Mojito Fajita + Cinnamon Crisps



We’re sort of on a roll with Mexican-style foods, eh? Well, we eat a lot of them.

This is such the great meal for those nights when you have no time to cook. If you prepare the meat and veggies the night before (or before you leave for work), you can have dinner on the table in ten to fifteen minutes. And that time is mostly for searing the meat and veggies while warming up the beans and corn!

You might also consider serving this faux Mexican dessert for a light finish to the meal. This is not the cheese crisp of the earlier post, rather, this one is simpler with two ingredients. It simulates the taste of the churro without the work (or shape!).

Cinnamon Crisps
1 pie crust
cinnamon-sugar blend

Sprinkle a cutting board with a cinnamon-sugar mixture.

Lay a homemade (or pre-made) pie crust on top of the cinnamon sugar and press down on the dough to make the cinnamon mixture stick.

Sprinkle the top side of the pie crust with more cinnamon sugar. Cut the pie crust in quarters. Cut each quarter into strips about ½ inch wide.

Separate strips and place on a parchment sheet on a baking pan. Dump the cinnamon sugar from the cutting board on top.

Bake at 375 degrees for about 15 minutes or until golden brown. Put in a bowl to serve warm or cold.

Hey! No dessert until you eat your veggies! But eating them is a cinch and a delight when they are wrapped in a warm tortilla.

Mojito Fajita (makes 6-8 fajitas)

1 pound flank steak, cut into strips
4 tablespoons Mojito Lime seasoning blend (I use McCormick’s), divided
1 large onion, cut into pieces and separated
2 bell peppers-any colors you wish, cut into strips (ribs, seeds discarded)
2 tablespoons olive oil

Put cut up strips of steak in a zipper bag and toss with 2 tablespoons Mojito Lime seasoning blend. Refrigerate for at least two hours, longer is better. Remove from refrigerator one half hour before cooking.

Precut the onions and peppers and toss with the remaining two tablespoons of Mojito Lime seasoning blend. Put in zipper bag. Set aside to infuse flavors at room temperature.

Preheat cast iron skillet or grill pan (indoors or out) on medium-high heat. When hot, immediately add meat and sear (about three minutes). Remove meat to a medium heat part of the grill to continue cooking.

Put veggies on the hottest part of the grill and fry for about 3 minutes. You want them to be al dente. Ladle into warm tortillas with the meat and serve immediately.

We like this with Mexicorn and black beans. A small side salad of lettuce and tomatoes adds a fresh element, if you’ve got room for more veggies.

NOTE:
You can use your own favorite fajita seasoning instead of the Lime Mojito blend.
Lots of people like to add extras to their fajitas. To the basic recipe above, add strips of one poblano pepper to the veggies, if you’d like. On the side, serve your favorite accompaniments like cheese, salsa, plain yogurt/sour cream, tomatoes, and such.

DH’s Rating: Five Tongues Up!  Give the man anything in southwest cuisine, and you can do with him what you want. (BTW, that’s an observation, not an invitation!) He loved that it was spiced but not too hot to enjoy all the different flavors. He also liked that the small amount of lean meat to the proportion of veggies makes this a more healthful dinner entrée. However, he wasn’t satisfied with the dessert. He wanted a bowl of ice cream with a side of cinnamon crisps. Alone, they weren’t enough for him.

If you liked this recipe, I’d really appreciate you spreading the word on your social media outlets. Here are some pre-made Twitter and Facebook posts you can use or modify.


Tweet: Craving pseudo-Mexican tonight? #recipe for easy Mojito Fajita with by @good2tweat at http://bit.ly/2kzhLVW

Tweet: Mexican-inspired cinnamon crisp #recipe from @Good2Tweat at http://bit.ly/2kzhLVW  Not a churro, but a good stand-in with less work.

Facebook: On Sharon Arthur Moore’s blog, Parsley, Sage, and Rosemary Time, see her simple Mojito Fajitas and Cinnamon Crisps at http://bit.ly/2kzhLVW


A reminder:
House rules for what counts as an ingredient:
Salt and pepper are not ingredients.
Oil is not an ingredient when it’s for the cooking pan, not the recipe.

Water is not an ingredient.


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