Grilled Sweet Potatoes with Lime & Cilantro

I guess I'm still a grill noob, excited by the prospect of trying to grill anything.

We've had tons of fun grilling all sorts of stuff our year in the new home. We've grilled vegetables, like asparagus, zucchini, and eggplant. We've even tried fruit, such as pineapples (Bryan's favorite) and peaches (served with ice cream on top, yum!).  We've done entire salmon filets many times (one of our favorites!) and various steaks on a semi-regular basis.

For some odd reason, one day I thought it might be fun to try grilling potatoes.

Can you even grill a potato? I'd never heard of anyone grilling potatoes. I don't think I'd ever had it at a restaurant.

Perhaps the closest thing I'd had was tin-foil wrapped potatoes (not unlike Bryan's family's famous tin-foil chicken) thrown into a fire during a camping trip.

Thankfully, the internet is full of answers. I found a great, simple Bobby Flay recipe for grilled sweet potatoes, kicked up with lime, cayenne pepper, and cilantro.

Bryan loves cilantro and basically is a huge fan of anything Bobby Flay makes, so I was pretty confident this would be a winner.

Sweet potatoes are a bit tricky to grill. You need to pre-cook the potatoes. Bobby Flay suggests boiling the potatoes until they become soft. To save time, I microwaved mine instead for about 5-6 minutes.  Note - don't forget to poke holes in the sweet potato with a fork before microwaving. Otherwise, the steam created inside will cause the potato to explode! I learned this the hard way in my toaster oven in college!

You don't want to overcook the potatoes. If they become too mushy, they become far too floppy and delicate for the grill.

While microwaving (or boiling), prepare your topping by mixing together fresh lime zest, cayenne pepper, and salt. Chop up some cilantro on the side.
 
Once the potatoes are cooked. Slice them into evenly thick pieces (mine were about half an inch) or cut wedges. Brush with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.

Grill for about 1 1/2 minutes on each side, or until golden brown. 

Season with the salt mixture and top with chopped cilantro.

Enjoy!


Grilled Sweet Potatoes with Lime & Cilantro
recipe from Bobby Flay, with tweaks in the method by me

Ingredients
3 sweet potatoes, unpeeled
Kosher salt
2 teaspoons finely grated lime zest
Pinch of cayenne pepper
1/4 cup canola oil
Freshly ground pepper
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro

Parcook or microwave sweet potatoes (remember to pierce potato skins with a fork if you plan on microwaving!) for about 5-6 minutes, or until mostly cooked but not yet mushy (it's harder to grill when it becomes too floppy!)

Meanwhile, mix 1 tablespoon of salt, lime zest, and cayenne in a small bowl to make the salt mixture.

Cut the potatoes into nice, thick slices or wedges. Brush all sides with oil and season with salt and pepper. Grill for about 1 1/2 minutes on each side, or until golden brown. Season with the salt mixture and top with chopped cilantro.

Serve!

Grilled Skirt Steak (Tacos)

Unlike most American cooks, I am woefully inexperienced when it comes to cooking meat.

I guess we seldom (if ever) grilled meat at home growing up. My mom never made large roasts in the oven, or baked a whole chicken. Instead, our meals were predominantly Chinese stir fry dishes, which typically consists of tiny, cut up pieces of meat quickly cooked with tons of vegetables.

I'm not exactly complaining. I'm a vegetable lover at heart, and it if weren't for my love of sushi, I could seriously consider becoming a vegetarian.

Nevertheless, writing this blog has made me expand my horizons and explore areas I never dabbled in before.

Even though it's the middle of "winter" (umm, where's the snow?), we rolled out the grill last week in order to make skirt steak tacos.

I am continuously surprised at how easy it is to cook meat.

This skirt steak recipe is really simple; doesn't require too much advance planning; and tastes delicious. Just marinate the steak in a lovely concoction of lime juice, blood orange juice, garlic, and cilantro for about 30 minutes. It grills up beautifully and tastes fantastic.

We made used them to make tacos, but you could easily make fajitas, sandwiches, or any other dish that requires small pieces of sliced up steak.

What is Skirt Steak?
For those of you who have never cooked skirt steak, it's a cut of beef that comes from the diaphragm of the cow. It's a long, thin piece and is a bit harder to find in normal super markets. In fact, when I asked for it at Whole Foods, they had to go to the back to get me a piece.

Skirt steak is known for its nice flavor (look at that marbling!) but is also a tougher cut of meat. Therefore, it's best to marinate it, grill it quickly, and cut across the grain.

I adapted a simple marinade that I found for carne asadas (literally "roasted meat" in Spanish, often used for Mexican dishes like fajitas, tacos, etc.) by adding blood orange and a fancier vinegar for a brighter kick.

Combine lime juice, white wine vinegar, blood orange juice, cilantro, and garlic in a food processor and pulse until nicely pulverized and blended.

Marinate for at least 30 minutes and up to 8 hours.

Take out your snazzy grill tools (thanks Mr. Bar-B-Q for this awesome grill set!)

Put on your warmest down coat, and start grilling! (Thanks Bryan!!)
Skirt steak is a tougher cut, so you don't want to overcook it. I would suggest about 2-3 minutes a side, giving you a nice medium to medium rare steak.

Let rest for about 10 minutes, and then cut against the grain as shown above.

Serve!

Make tacos, fajitas, or whatever you fancy. Enjoy!

If making tacos, here are some great accompaniments:
Chipotle Mayo
Pico de gallo
Guacamole


Grilled Skirt Steak
1 lb skirt steak

Marinade
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
2 garlic cloves
1 T white wine vinegar
juice of 1/2 blood orange
juice of 1 lime

Combine all marinade ingredients in a food processor and pulse until all the elements are finely chopped (just a few times should be enough!). Salt and pepper both sides of the skirt steak and marinate in the marinade for a minimum of 30 minutes or up to 8 hours.

Remove the steak from the marinade, pat dry, and grill at high heat for about 2-3 minutes on each side. Let the steak rest for about 10 minutes. Slice against the grain and serve!

Enjoy!

Disclaimer I received the grill tools free of charge from Mr. Bar-B-Q

"The Best Guacamole Ever"

Unsettled.

That's probably an understatement of how I have felt the last few weeks. We have been waiting for furniture to arrive, which means more waiting before we can unpack everything else. We're still living out of boxes, finding stuff only when we really need it.

For example, my elusive cappuccino frother still refuses to surface, which means I've been drinking straight espresso for the last two weeks.

It has also been really hard to cook without a kitchen that's completely set up. It's even harder to blog about cooking, which may very well explain the dearth of cooking posts lately.

Yet I feel like I'm running out of time.

The growing season here in Massachusetts is pretty short and August is one of the best months in which to get fresh produce. Typically, I love perusing farmers markets this time of year.

What? It's almost September??! Where did the summer go?

*sigh*

So even though I'm not fully unpacked; even though I'm not sure where all my jars, cans, and other random foodstuff will eventually go; I resolutely decided that I would use the kitchen tonight and try a new recipe that involved lots of vegetables.

My good friend Livia, a avid blogger herself (though not about food), is a New Mexican native. A self-proclaimed "guacamole snob/evangelist," Livia saw my post about an amazingly chunky and simple guacamole I had tried at a restaurant.

This guacamole was a far cry from the creamy, smooth guacamole that you typically see. Instead, it was almost like an avocado salad, filled with generous chunks of avocados tossed lightly with a splash of lime juice, a few tomatoes, and some aromatics. It was refreshingly delicious.
Livia was quick to point out to me that she approved of this type of guacamole.  In fact, she doesn't really care for the smooth creamy (almost sour) kind that she often sees outside of New Mexico. Chunky style all the way.

I was thrilled when Livia offered to share with me her recipe for guacamole, which, in her humble opinion, is "the best guacamole ever :)".

Though that email from her is now nearly three years old (I know, time flies, but three years is a bit ridiculous), I am so glad I finally decided to make this. It really is super simple and tastes delicious.

You'll never go back to the "processed" creamy stuff again. :)

Thanks Livia!


The Best Guacamole Ever 
Livia Blackburne
Serves 2-4

2 avocados (Hass preferred)
1 medium sized tomato, chopped
1/8 red onion, finely minced
1 garlic clove, finely minced
juice from 1/2 a lime
cilantro to taste, finely chopped
onion or garlic salt, to taste

With a spoon, scoop out the avocado flesh (medium sized scoops) into a bowl. Add the remaining ingredients and gently mix the ingredients with a spoon. There is no need to mash the avocados. Instead, as you mix with the spoon, the avocados will become creamy with chunks of avocados mixed throughout.

Enjoy!

Angela's Cafe

Who doesn't love a best kept secret?

Angela's Cafe seems like that at first glance. A small, family-owned restaurant in the middle of a residential neighborhood in East Boston, it's easy to miss while driving by. At the same time, how could you miss that bright and cheerful little building?

Looks can be deceiving, and this place is far from secret. Step inside and you'll immediate see the numerous awards and articles splashed all over the walls. It seems like every food writer out there has tried this place except for me. Do a quick search on Chowhound and over and over, people recommend "Angela's Cafe" as one of their favorite Mexican restaurants in Boston.

So finally . . finally . . a group of food-loving women and I decided to make the trek out to East Boston* (which, in retrospect, wasn't that far of a trek) to try this elusive place.

I loved it from the moment I stepped in. This family run restaurant is cozy, warm, and super inviting. The place is small, and really can't hold more than 20 people max. The waitress was super friendly and took the time to really explain all the dishes to us.

The complimentary homemade tortilla chips are served with two sauces, both of which are quite spicy. The green one is surprisingly the more spicy one, although both pack quite a kick! At one point one member of our party actually asked for a mild salsa because she was having trouble handling the heat!

Favoritos de Angela
Chicken Mole Gordita, Tinga Tostada, Taco Arabe, Ceviche Tostada, Taco Pastor, Rajas Poblanas, Verde Chorizo Gordita, and Nopales Tostada

We started out with a sampler of appetizers, which were all wonderful. I love small bites in general, but I was thrilled to see gorditas, which I love. The only other place in Boston I've ever had them is at Cantina La Mexicana (which I also love). Everything was made with really fresh ingredients and had wonderfully complex flavors.

Here they are, one by one.

Shrimp Ceviche Tostada
Crispy corn tortilla layered with srimp, re-fried pinto beans, shredded lettuce, sour cream, Mexican cheese, and a slice of avocado

Taco Al Pastor
Roasted pork with adobo sauce and diced fresh pineapple, served with onion and cilantro

Tinga Tostada

Shredded beef sauteéd with onions in a mild spicy chipotle sauce

Verde Chorizo Gordita
This was probably my favorite appetizer. I loved the spicy deep flavors of the chorizo, which worked so well with the cornmeal based gordita.

Guacamole
Ripe avocado dip served with tortilla chips.

I have to say that this guacamole was AMAZING . . . probably one of the best guacamoles I've ever had in my life. I loved how there were still clear chunks of avocados inside. This thicker, lumpier texture is achieved by using a coase mortar and pestle to make the guacamole. The ingredients are simple, yet this dish totally works. None of us could stop eating this one.

Here's a another picture- this was sooooo good.

Sopa Azteca
Crispy corn tortilla strips in a chicken tomato broth, slice of avocado and Mexican cheese.

I also loved this soup. The broth was very flavorful yet not heavy at all. The Mexican cheese reminded me of mozarella and worked perfectly with the other ingredients (avocados and tortilla strips) in the soup. I would definitely order this again if I came back.

Special: Chiles Rellenos and Pork with Mole Poblano de Angela
We ordered one of their specials, which allowed us to try their signature dish alongside another dish. The Mole Poblano de Angela is their signature dish, whose prize ingredient is mole poblano (pronounced mo-lay), a dark, earthy sauce made from a variety of dried chiles, nuts, and seeds with sweet chocolate cooked over a period of several days (I think the waitress told us FIVE days!). You top this deep, rich sauce over the meat of your choice (we chose pork). Chilies Rellenos are stuffed Poblano peppers with cheese, battered in egg lightly fried.

I thought the mole had an interesting deep complex flavor. I could definitely taste the chocolate, which was interesting. We all loved the Chiles Rellenos, which were filled with that same Mexican cheese that was in the soup. Unfortunately, the pork was a bit dry compared to the rich flavors of the sauce.

Pepian Verde
Sesame and/or pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds, green tomatillo, and jalapeños, served with chicken breast or pork loin
This unique sauce was also flavorful with a slight kick, although again, the meat was a bit dry.

We started to notice a trend. The sauces that they make are really flavorful, wonderfully complex, and delicious, but for some reason the meat always seems to be quite well done and sort of dry. Maybe as a result of all the sous vide cooking I've been doing lately, I'm kind of spoiled when it comes to meat texture now!

Dishes come with a side of rice, which everyone agreed was really good. It was moist, fragrant, and reminded me a bit of rice that you would find in a Spanish paella.

The bread/tortillas are homemade, which are excellent.

We shared a flan for dessert, and even though we were all beyond stuffed, we really enjoyed it.


Overall Thoughts
This is a great little family restaurant with a lot of really good Mexican food. The dishes are made by Angela herself, who learned the traditional cuisine of the Puebla region from her mother. Angela had already been working as a professional chef for 50 years before she opened Angela's Cafe. That's a wealth of experience right there! The place is so warm and friendly - you really get that small-family-owned-restaurant feel. There was a birthday celebration at the next table and Angela herself came out (middle one in the photo above), armed with a cake and ready to sing.

We absolutely loved all of the "favoritos" (the appetizers in our sampler plate), and seriously, that guacamole is to die for.  My personal favorites were the guacamole, the gorditas, and the soup. Although the moles and the other sauces were delicious and had complex flavors, we were all a little disappointed by the texture of the meat, which in general we thought was a little overdone. If only I could buy the sauce and top it on my own sous vide meat at home, heh heh . . .

Nevertheless, don't let that stop you from coming here! Overall, the food is fantastic and there are so many worthy dishes to try. We're lucky we even have access to such good Puebla cuisine here in Boston. I would highly recommend making the trek out to East Boston to try this little gem!

*Note: I took the T on the blue line to Maverick station and got picked up by a friend who drove me the rest of the way. The restaurant is not more than a 5-minute drive from the T station. I think it's possible to walk from Maverick Station, but it's probably at least a 15-20 minute walk, if not more. If you drive, there is plenty of unrestricted parking in the surrounding neighborhood. 

Angela's Cafe
131 Lexington St
Boston, MA 02128

El Potro

I love cheap ethnic hole-in-the-walls that are hidden finds. When I started reading about El Potro online, I became excited at the prospect that this just might be another one of those gems. Though El Potro calls itself a Mexican Grill (most likely in order to attract enough business), it's actually arguably a Salvadoran/Colombian restaurant at its roots. Maybe all around "Latin" or "South American" cuisine would be a more accurate description of this place.

Bryan always likes to ask the server for recommendations whenever we visit a place for the first time.

"What's your favorite dish? What do you like on the menu?"

In this case, I think the server was the teenage son of the family. He was quite cordial and very kind. Of course, he said he liked "everything" on the menu, but in the end he recommended Plato Montañero ($11.95), which is a traditional Colombian dish complete with plantains, fried pork belly, a skirt steak, and a fried egg on top. It sounded interesting, and definitely different from the typical Mexican food we'd tried, so we went for that. We also ordered up a storm, since we had purchased one of those restaurant.com coupons where we had to spend $35 in order to receive our $25 discount. Not an easy task when most menu items hover around $10!


We started with this salad that was included as part of the Plato Montañero (see below). It was not particularly memorable. Honestly, I don't really remember much about the salad, although the fact that it has avocados elevates it at least one level above your typical garden salad.

The Plato Montañero is one of their unique dishes, and it was definitely interesting.

What's in it? Grilled steak, deep fried pork rind, avocado, rice and beans plus a plantain all topped with a fried egg. I definitely have never had anything quite like this before. I think it's hard for us to be completely objective in this case because we are not familiar with Colombian food. We both thought that the pork rind was impossibly chewy and very very difficult to eat.

This would normally be a criticism, but I just don't know whether an authentic version of the dish is supposed to taste like that or not. Is this normal? Impossibly-chewy-pull-your-teeth-out tough pork rinds? Anyone know? The rest of the dish was fine. The meat was a bit tough, but given the price of the dish, you can't exactly expect them to use the highest quality beef. It was also a bit more over-cooked than Bryan would have liked. The plantain, however, was sweet and nicely grilled, and the avocados and fried egg on top were a plus.

I thought this shrimp dish was pretty flavorful and well executed. At $9.95, it's a bargain overflowing with shrimp that's cooked to a perfect, bouncy texture. This dish felt reasonably healthy, which made me happy. I ate about half and took the rest home for another meal the next day.

Grilled Fish Tacos
This was probably the only completely Mexican thing that we ordered.  Bryan thought the grilled fish tacos were pretty good, but still conceded that he like the traditional Baja-style fresh fish tacos better.

Concluding Thoughts?
So was this the amazing ethnic hidden gem I was anticipating? Not exactly, but it's still a nice additional to the neighborhood.

It's definitely cool to have a Salvadoran restaurant nearby. I like how El Potro actually sells several authentic Latin dishes that you may not find elsewhere. Of course, they have your run-of-the-mill Mexican entrees, which they execute well enough. But what makes this place more interesting are the other Latin dishes such as fried yucca root, pupusas (Salvadoran), and the Plato Montañero (see above).

I am guessing the Latin food is relatively authentic. While we were there, several Hispanic customers came by and ordered interesting looking food that I wanted to try too. At one point, we were the only non-Hispanic people in the dining area (although to be fair there were only like 6-8 people in the dining area).

The prices are pretty cheap (most things cost under $10) and the portion sizes are generous. It's by no means the best Mexican restaurant around (we think we'll stick with its neighbor Cantina La Mexicana from now on for that), but it's worth checking out, if nothing else, to get a little taste of Salvadoran / Colombian cuisine in a small, quaint and cozy family-run restaurant. They often have coupons on Restaurant.com, so if you want to try it without spending a lot of money, that's not a bad way to go.

If you want to keep your teeth, you might want to avoid the fried pork rinds. Other than that, definitely try some of the other Latin dishes! I'm still wishing I had ordered some pupusas or fried yucca.

El Potro
61 Union Sq
Somerville, MA 02143