…Triple B Farms Jalapeno Peppers and Salsa

I.  Love.  October.

It is my absolute, no lie, no joke, FAVORITE month of the year.  You would think that I would love July, the one month of the year where there is absolutely NO school, or maybe even May, since the school year is ending.  No.  October.

Remember – I also work at Kennywood.  I don’t get summers “off”. 

October is awesome for so many reasons – Halloween, leaves turning pretty colors, cooler weather, and of course, eating anything pumpkin-flavored is completely acceptable. 

This also means that it’s time to pick a pumpkin at Triple B Farms!

Every year, my mom, brother, and cousin go to Triple B to pick our pumpkins and do the usual Pumpkin Festival activities – corn maze (my least favorite), Boo Barn (my most favorite), Pumpkinland, and shopping for yumminess in their Country Farm Market.

Unfortunately, the weather on October 2^nd was absolute crap – rainy and cold – but we were determined to make this our day to get our pumpkins.  We went early – and there were 2 other cars in the parking lot.  Perfect.  No crowd!  

My brother and cousin, carefully choosing apples to pick.

After picking apples for the first time (which was more fun than you ‘d think!) and picking out our pumpkins from the pre-picked area (we always end up getting them there, anyway), it was time to shop in the Country Farm Market. 

Triple B makes their own brands of several items – pasta sauces, marinades, and what I always go for – salsa.

I decided upon the Mad Mango and Blackberry Salsas this year – you know, because I love mangoes – a lot – and I have been on a crazy blackberry kick this year as well.  I had never tried them, but they seemed interesting.

The produce section is always great because local farms tend to have more reasonable prices for produce than Giant Eagle (as was evident in my trip to Stan’s Market in The Strip - $0.89/lb. for jicama as opposed to $3.99/lb. at Giant Eagle?! Unreal!).  I started filling up my basket with my fall recipe staples – butternut squash and spaghetti squash – then threw in a head of cabbage, and then….

Jalapeno peppers.  5 for $1.00.  Awww, yeah!

Now – what to do with them?

Today, I decided to get creative with my jalapenos.  I had seen many recipes lately for stuffed hot peppers, and I love jalapeno poppers, so I wanted to try something along those lines.

I cut my peppers in half – using Ziploc bags as gloves to do so.  I have learned the hard way – especially since I wear contact lenses that must be removed every night - that you must, must, MUST protect your hands and surfaces from the burn of the jalapeno seeds and membranes, as that is where most of the heat in the pepper is concentrated.  

Since I wanted to keep this semi-healthy, I decided upon two different cheeses to add to my peppers – two Laughing Cow Light Creamy Swiss wedges, and a serving (1/8^th of a wheel) of Red Apple Smoked Gouda, my favorite type of cheese.  I divided them up amongst the 10 pepper halves, along with a little Pampered Chef Southwest Seasoning for flavor.

Something was missing  - these looked boring.  I remembered reading a recipe for stuffed jalapenos that were wrapped in bacon…mmmm, bacon….but all I keep in my house is turkey bacon.

That’ll do, pig.  That’ll do.

I wrapped each pepper in half of a piece of turkey bacon (so 5 pieces total), and placed them in my ancient 1950’s oven, which I had preheated at 400 degrees, and set the timer for 15 minutes.

In the meantime, I thought there still might be something missing from this recipe…maybe something vegetable-like to add to the pepper taste.

Oh yeah!  I bought those salsas at Triple B, too!

I decided to try each type of salsa on my peppers, leaving two without so that I knew what they tasted like sans-salsa.

The peppers were pretty good without the salsa – I definitely liked the bacon-jalapeno combo, with the smokiness of the gouda and the mildness of the Laughing Cow cheese.  They were pretty delicious with the Mad Mango Salsa as well, since it added some sweetness to those flavors.  However, my favorite was by far the combination with the Blackberry Salsa, which had a much more subtle flavor than the mango, so I could still taste the smokiness of the cheese with the bacon.

My trip to Triple B this year may have been wet, cold, and muddy, but I definitely got more out of this trip than any other.  Usually, I come away with a pumpkin and memories of frustration from the corn maze, but this year was a whole new experience.  I came away with my pumpkin, as usual, but also apples, jalapenos, awesome salsas, a delicious cabbage (which I made into soup), and a new way to combine flavors from a local farm.  I may have to try these types of experiments more often….

Their labels are cute.  I had to include them.

Triple B Farms

823 Berry Lane

Monongahela, PA 15063

Website: http://www.triplebfarms.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Triple-B-Farms-Harvesting-Homegrown-Produce-Family-Fun/159023361809

…Chili’s?! (I think not!)

Before you ask, NO, you cannot get extra credit by going to Chili’s!

And here’s why…

I was invited to meet some of my middle school teacher friends at Chili’s before they chaperoned the Middle School Teacher Dance on September 16^th.  I never get to see my middle school teacher-friends, now that I am teaching at the high school, but I wanted to see and hang out with them, even if it was for a little bit.  I also had a gift card to use that a certain other Spanish teacher – who shall remain nameless, but I’m sure not anonymous - bought me for my birthday 2 years ago (which shows you how often I go to Chili’s). 

If you didn’t know, middle school teachers are probably some of the most fun people you’ll ever meet.  You’ll never understand that unless you become a middle school teacher yourself, but it’s a fact.  No lie.  No doubt.  You, as a student, may think that middle school teachers are lame, but I will tell you, it’s quite the contrary.

Anyway, I met 7 other teachers at the Chili’s in West Mifflin…first it was 5, then 4, then 6…yeah, we’re not good at figuring out exact numbers (even though 3 math teachers were part of the group).

The waitress came to take our drink order, and I was going to get an iced tea to drink, but then I was reminded that they had mango iced tea.

I love mangoes.  A lot (remember?)

Of course, I ordered a mango iced tea, and no trip to Chili’s would be complete without ordering the bottomless chips and salsa.

My iced tea arrived, and I took a sip - you know how some beverages have that…perfume-y taste to them?  Yeah….this definitely tasted like cheap perfume instead of mango.  What a letdown.

I was trying to order something relatively healthy, considering how much I have eaten out lately (and will be again this week).  Chili’s is probably one of the worst offenders for making foods seem “healthy”, when they’re still horrible for you, calorie-wise.  I used to order the Quesadilla Explosion Salad often when I went there in the past; that is, until I found out that this salad – which sounds super-duper healthy, right?  Salad? – has 1400 CALORIES!  For someone who is only supposed to eat 1800 calories per day, and likes to eat often, this is no longer an option for me.  They have “guiltless grill” options, so I chose the Margarita Chicken, which was supposed to be margarita-flavored (so basically, lime-flavored).

I wasn’t expecting a culinary masterpiece, and the presentation is nice (although black beans always tend to look like a protein-spill-in-a-bowl...), but…umm…it tasted like grilled chicken.  No exciting, pucker-y lime flavor.  No exciting, flavorful seasoning.  How lame.

Looks can be deceiving.

Oooh, but check out those grill marks - a true sign of grilling perfection (total facetious tone as I say that, however...)

I was hungry, so my meal was gone way before anyone else was done – a few people had ordered the crispy chicken tacos, which were enormous compared to what a “real” taco (like from Smoke) should look like, along with sides.  I had a student complain to me already that the tacos at Smoke are too small, and I told her that that’s because we’re used to the “bigger is better” theory, our portion sizes have increased dramatically, and those “too small” tacos area actually more filling than you think.  Our perceptions are skewed here in America. 

My meal, as you can see, simply came with rice and black beans, not atypical for a Mexican-style meal.  And let’s compare calories – Margarita Chicken – 550 calories.  Crispy Chicken Tacos – 1630.   I think I chose wisely…

However - so much for my “healthy” meal - I continued to indulge in the chips and salsa.  The chips were “homemade”, and were probably the best part of the meal, but the salsa was way too tomato-y and did not have enough flavor.  REAL Mexican food has flavor – cilantro, onions, peppers, garlic, and hints of seasonings such as chili powder, cumin, and cayenne pepper - add to the unique flavors of Latino cooking.

The chips and salsa experience is supposed to be about the salsa – not the chips.  Way to blow it, Chili’s.

The company made up for the difference.  My teacher-friends and I spent about 1 ½ hours catching up on each other’s lives before most of the teachers had to split for the dance, so it was well-worth the poor food experience, in that respect.

Sometimes we cannot help the choices that we make because we are at the mercy of others, but food, no matter where or when or how, brings people together.  Despite the choice of venue, I was able to choose a (relatively) healthier (although not at all tasty) meal, while still enjoying the company of my friends. 

No, you will not get extra credit for eating at Chili’s.  Go somewhere new.  Go somewhere authentic.  Go somewhere where both the company and the food come together for a more memorable and enjoyable experience.   My friends and I have already decided to do so…

Chili’s – West Mifflin

2207 Mountain View Dr.

West Mifflin, PA 15122

Website: http://www.chilis.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Chilis-Grill-Bar/160394050705972?ref=ts&sk=wall#!/Chilis?sk=wall

Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/Chilis

…Giant Eagle’s Latin Food Fiesta with BONUS The Pampered Chef Mango Wedger

This title sounds like a really bad infomercial, I know – but it needs to be said this way.

I was so excited when I read the tweet from @Giant_Eagle on Thursday that they were having a Latin Food Fiesta to celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month (September 15-October 15)!  I tweeted the link to the website with the info, which @Giant_Eagle then re-tweeted…ooh, I’m famous! 

Not really. 

I became skeptical, though, when I saw that there was a link to see WHERE this was being celebrated.  Uh oh.  I knew that the Kennywood Giant Eagle wouldn’t be on the list, but I held out hope for The Waterfront location.

They ARE!  AND they are the only Pennsylvania location holding it all 4 days – September 16, 17, 23, and 24!  AMAZING!  AND I do my grocery shopping on Fridays there anyway, so I could check it out!

It’s sad what gets me excited these days, I guess.

Later, I opened my Giant Eagle ad at home, which had arrived the day before – I probably should have looked at it sooner, but I was busy going to Mallorca for dinner the day before (more about that later).  They were advertising many Latin American brands that were on sale for the fiesta – Goya, La Preferida, etc. – brands that are widely sold at Giant Eagle, but can also be found at Reyna Foods in the Strip District.  I was excited to see what was going to be offered.

When I arrived at Giant Eagle on Friday afternoon, I went about my normal produce-buying routine – apples, bananas, kale…- and then came across these babies:

Ahhhh, mangoes.  I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again – I love mangoes.  4 for $5?  SOLD.

Not far from the mangoes was a display for produce related to the Latin Food Fiesta celebration:

Ok, yeah, hot peppers, tomatillos, avocados, cilantro, limes, sweet onions, bell peppers…I get all of that.  Nothing too out of the ordinary or exciting, though.

I remembered seeing in the ad about rambutans, which I had never seen at Giant Eagle before – I had no idea what they were, but I did remember that they were $6.99/lb. in the ad.  That’s insane!  $6.99/lb.?  No way was I buying them.

I was tempted to buy them just because they looked interesting, but I didn’t, and not just because of the price.  I didn’t know what they were.  I don’t know what they taste like.  I still don’t.  Wait, let me Google it…

Well, you can read about it at http://www.rambutan.com.  It’s totally not related to anything Latin or Hispanic – but here’s a pic:

Here’s a tip, Giant Eagle – if you want me to buy something, educate me on it…and offer a sample.

Anyway, I continued through the produce section to buy ingredients for Pumpkin Chili (I’m super excited that it’s almost fall and appropriate to eat anything with pumpkin once again), and I came upon another section of exotic produce.

GUAVA!  I have been looking for guava for months!

Yucca root!  I LOVE the yucca fries from Chicken Latino!  Maybe I can try to make my own!

Ugh, really?  Hispanic Heritage Month, and jicama is STILL $3.99/lb.?!  At least now I know that I can buy it at Stan’s Market in the Strip District for $.89/lb.

I continued about my normal shopping routine, and the usual ladies were across from the meat section, offering samples, as usual – but today I noticed that everything that they were offering samples of was a Latin brand-product – some sort of Spanish rice, some Goya product…

Oh boy.  There was prepared mole.  I had to try it. 

The woman offering the sample said that it was a chicken enchilada with mole.  I told her that I love mole, and ate my sample.

Ick.  It was cold.  And it pretty much tasted like a commercial-brand flour tortilla, covered in mole, rolled up, and cut into small pieces.  Chicken enchilada?  Barely.

No sale.

I finished my grocery shopping, and went to the checkout.  The girl ringing up my purchases rudely asked me what my Yucca root was, as I guess that’s not a common purchase, so I left, packed up my car, and went home, disappointed that Giant Eagle’s Latin Food Fiesta did not set off the explosion in my heart quite the way that the word “fiesta” does on its own.

I’m glad that Giant Eagle is taking a step to make people aware of their Latin American products, but the execution could be better.  I know that the Shaler location is having a book signing by Aarón Sánchez from Food Network’s “Chefs vs. City” on the 17^th, but that is not enough to make people aware of what Latin cooking is all about.  People need to be educated on the common flavors and ingredients, and how they come together to make Latin food taste as sabrosa y rica as it does.

After dinner at Chili’s (don’t judge me – I’ll explain more later), I came home to taste some of the unusual things that I had purchased earlier.

Well, first I had to get my pumpkin chili prepared and in the crockpot.  That was a priority.

I then took out my yucca root to take a pic for you all to see – and noticed something strange – one of the roots had split into two pieces, and a small piece had come off.  That’s weird.

Oh, that would be why – it was molding.  Fabulous.  $1.99/lb., and it’s moldy.  I had put two roots back while picking them out because they were moldy – I should have taken that as a sign that I shouldn’t buy it.

I then decided to taste the guava – I had bought those guava-flavored wafer cookies by Goya as part of the number challenge reward – they were amazing, by the way - and I had one student who came back for seconds…and thirds…and fourths…so I was curious to see what guava tasted like on its own (and not in wafer cookie form).

I took a spoon to the middle, figuring that was where the most flavor was – and I was right.  Unfortunately, there wasn’t much flavor at all.  I’m thinking that it wasn’t quite ripe enough, so I’ll let the other one sit for a day or two before I try it.

After those two depressing experiences, I needed a sure thing – ahhh, mango.  

I have to say, without a doubt, that The Pampered Chef Mango Wedger has made my mango-eating experiences much more enjoyable.  You may know (or maybe you don’t) that the skin of a mango is not edible (or tasty, for that matter), so only the yellow-orange fruity part should be consumed; however, the pit of a mango is oblong and hard, so getting the fruit by itself is not easy to do – unless you have this magical mango wedger.

With the help of my mango wedger, I have mastered the art of mango consumption.  I wedge the mango, and then cut each of the four sections in half.  This gives me eight sections of mango, plus any fruit left on the pit.  

I put it all in a bowl, and to eat the mango, I treat the skin as I would a cantaloupe or watermelon rind – I eat the fruit all the way down to it.  Mangoes are even better for this, too, because you can use your teeth to peel the fruit away from the skin, and then discard the skin.  I use a fork to scrape any fruity parts off of the pit, and eat that, being sure not to waste any good mango-y goodness.

So that was my Friday night – pumpkin chili in the slow cooker, moldy yucca root, tasteless guava…but ending with sweet, delicious mango.  Oh, and black tea.  Not important, but it was part of my night, and it was comforting.

I guess I should write about my dinner at Mallorca…and explain why I was at Chili’s, of all places, on Mexico’s Independence Day….

Giant Eagle – Waterfront Location

420 East Waterfront Drive

Homestead, PA 15120

Website: http://www.gianteagle.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/gianteagleinc?ref=ts

Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/Giant_Eagle

If you are interested in The Pampered Chef Mango Wedger, please contact:

The Pampered Chef

Marie McDonald – Consultant

Website: http://www.pamperedchef.biz/mariemcdonald

...Chicken Latino

I don’t like crowds.

That’s kind of funny considering that A.) I’m a teacher, who works in a school, which has crowded hallways between classes, and B.) I also work at an amusement park, where crowds are the norm.

Probably the part that I don’t like the most is constantly feeling like I’m in the way.  In a large crowd, if someone needs to get through, you move as far out of the way as possible so that he/she can pass, right?  Well, not everyone does that, and then I feel bad, so I move – so I’m constantly moving!  Does anyone else in the world have that feeling?  Ever?  Or am I just strange?

The other part that bothers me a great deal is waiting because of a crowd.  Waiting in traffic, waiting to get out of a building, or waiting for a table at a restaurant drives me crazy.  If I see a crowd at a restaurant, I immediately think, “No way am I eating here,” or “I should’ve come earlier,” or “I should’ve made a reservation [if possible].”

Check out this picture that I took this morning.  This is the line to get into the famous Pamela’s Diner on 21^st Street in the Strip District this past Sunday morning:

I had no intention of eating at Pamela’s, anyway, so I wasn’t upset by it, but…why would anyone want to wait around?  I guess its breakfast is really delicious and popular, and it was Sunday, and they have “regulars”, but…it was almost noon by this point.  There are so many other places to eat in The Strip, why would anyone want to flock to the SAME place all of the time for the SAME food – and wait around so long for it? 

Luckily, I had other plans – right across the street from Pamela’s:

When I first had the idea for this extra credit project, Chicken Latino was one of the first places that I contacted – and one of the first that contacted me.  In fact, the owner, Shelbin, called me as soon as she got my letter!  I was shocked at her quick response, and she was incredibly nice and supportive.  I knew I had to try Chicken Latino as soon as possible.

I asked my brother if he wanted to come with me to the Strip District, since he’s usually looking for something to do on a Sunday afternoon, and he agreed – although I didn’t tell him about Chicken Latino until we were on our way (oops).  I mean, if he likes Las Velas, he should like Chicken Latino, too, right?

Well, to clarify, Chicken Latino is Peruvian.  Las Velas is Mexican.  There are similarities, though.

When we arrived, we went to the counter and were asked if we wanted our food to go or if we were going to eat in.  Since we were eating in, we were told that we could have a seat, and the waitress would bring us menus (Hey, no waiting!  Hooray!).  

Our waitress, Christy, was very detailed in her explanation of the menu – the weekday menu was on the table, but we were handed the weekend menu, which also had – oh boy – ceviche!  Real ceviche!  The kind that is raw fish cured in lime juice to be “cooked”!  I knew what I was ordering.  My brother ordered a chicken quesadilla.

They also had slushies in mango and wild berry – made with real fruit!  I ordered a mango slushie.  My brother?  Coke.

Appetizers - Yucca fries, a root vegetable, similar to jicama or rutabagas, sounded intriguing…mmmm…but my brother, of course, wanted chips and salsa.  We ordered both. 

Christy brought out our Yucca fries and chips and salsa, and also 5 packets of mayonnaise and a bottle of “green stuff”, as she referred to it.  She said that in Peru, they mix together the green stuff and mayonnaise, and dip their Yucca fries into it like ketchup.  She later explained that the “green stuff” was cilantro, peppers, and bread crumbs, they make it fresh there every day, and they also sell it by the bottle.  Tempting, but it would probably go bad before I would use it all – and I also don’t need to be eating mayonnaise every day.

The chips and salsa weren’t anything spectacular, but I loved, loved…wait for it…LOVED the Yucca fries with the dipping sauce!  So did my brother.

My ceviche was amazing.  After eating all of those fries, having something light and delicious for my main course was refreshing.

And my slushie?  It was great.  It tasted just like a mango…which is also what I had for breakfast that morning.

I like mangoes.  A lot. 

My brother’s quesadilla – it was HUGE!  It also had tons of black beans in it, which he was not expecting, but he ate every last bite of it.  I tried a piece of it, and guess what?  No surprise, it was fantastic!  

I had read on Twitter earlier that morning that it was someone’s birthday there, and that Shelbin had made her a pumpkin sweet bread with melted marshmallows on top (she posted a picture…*drool*).  I noticed that Christy was wearing a “Happy Birthday” ribbon, so I asked her if she was the one they made the bread for that I had seen on Twitter.  She said yes, and without hesitation, offered us a piece. 

I like pumpkin, too.  A lot.

Christy was so nice to share her birthday bread (¡que rico!) with us, to be so friendly in explaining the menu, and to chat with me about the extra credit project – yet another reason to love Chicken Latino!

There are so many other things on their menu that I want to try: the Peruvian-style chicken (which is what I was going to get originally, but then they had ceviche, and all bets were off), plantains, flan, “Inka Kola” (Peruvian pop, essentially), and “chicha morada”, a purple Peruvian corn juice. 

The other great part of Chicken Latino is that their prices are very reasonable.  For as much as we ate, the bill for the two of us was only about $32 – and we could have ordered less and still had a satisfying lunch (although I’m glad we had what we did!)

The people that work in Chicken Latino wear shirts that say “I <3 Chicken Latino” (ok, so the heart isn’t sideways, but you know what I mean).  I understand why completely - fresh, authentic food, great atmosphere, great staff, affordable prices – oh yeah, and no waiting!  I can’t say enough good things about my experience, so I will end with this…

Me encanta Chicken Latino.  Nos vemos otra vez muy, muy pronto.  Gracias por todo.

Chicken Latino

155 21^st Street

Pittsburgh, PA 15222

Web: http://www.chickenlatino.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/pages/Chicken-Latino/145153807143

Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/chickenlatino