I tend to underuse my Instant Pot. I use it mostly to make yogurt, to prep boiled eggs, to make broth, baked potatoes, and mashed potatoes, but I don't often just use it to make a meal.  IMHO, it takes all the flavor out of most vegetables, so I hesitate to make anything with vegetables in it, and it's not my first choice for preparing meats, either.  So when I ran across this super easy recipe for Instant Pot Tamale Pie, I was intrigued. And of course, I can't just follow a recipe, I have to make additions, delete things, and generally change it up.  It took a couple of "practice" runs, but I think this is the final version.  Enjoy!

Instant Pot Tamale Pie

2 cups Masa Harina

2 cups chicken broth

¼ cup oil

1-1/2 t. salt

1-1/2 t. Chili powder

1-1/2 t. Smoked paprika

1 t. cumin

1 t. baking soda

Filling

2 cups shredded chicken---pork or beef will also work

1 cup enchilada sauce

1 small sweet onion, chopped

Use a mixer to mix together the masa water, oil, spices, and baking soda. Whip this mixture for at least 3-4 minutes until it is light and fluffy

Grease a 7 inch springform pan. Spread half the masa batter on the bottom of the pan. Top with all of the meat and sauce, then add the remaining masa batter and smooth out the top. Cover the pie loosely with foil. You are doing this to keep water from dripping into the tamale pie.

Pour 1-1/2 cups water into the Instant Pot. Place a trivet in the pot. Place the pan on the trivet.

Secure the lid on the pot and set the Instant Pot at High pressure for 35 minutes. When cook time is complete, let pot release pressure naturally for 10 minutes, and then release all remaining pressure.

Allow the pie to rest for 10 minutes, and then unclasp the sides of the springform pan.

I served this with some black beans and some plain, chopped lettuce with a sour cream/chipotle dressing. 

I like Minestrone OK, but THIS was spectacular.  I served it with a loaf of homemade french bread and irish butter.  Oh, and a nice glass of Sangiovese.  

Meatless Monday Minestrone (For Instant Pot)

2 T. olive oil

1 sweet onion, chopped

1 t. minced garlic

2 cups diced carrots

1 stalk of celery, chopped

3 or 4 slices of lemon, deseeded

2 t. dried basil

1 t. dried oregano

1 t. dried thyme

1 quart (32 oz) can diced tomatoes

3 T. tomato paste

1 quart (32 oz) vegetable or chicken broth

1 c. dry small shell pasta

3 medium zucchini, halved lengthwise and sliced

2 cans kidney beans (sub 1 for cannellini if you wish)

2 cups spinach

2 t. balsamic vinegar

Shredded or grated Parmesan, for serving

Chop all your veggies first.  Turn Instant Pot to SAUTE and let it heat for a minute or two.  Add the olive oil, then add onion, and garlic. Saute for about 3 minutes, until fragrant.  Then add carrots, celery, lemon slices, basil, oregano, thyme, tomatoes, tomato paste, broth and pasta. 

Press CANCEL, close the lid and set to MANUAL (or PRESSURE COOK) for 2 minutes. Make sure valve is set to SEALING.

When it beeps, do a quick release and open the lid.  Add the zucchini and beans. Set to SAUTE again and cook until the zucchini is done to your liking.  Stir in the spinach and balsamic vinegar. Serve with grated Parmesan. 

A new toy for my kitchen!

Boy, it's been a really long time since I've been here, but I wanted to stop by and tell you about my new favorite kitchen toy that my eldest DD got me on Black Friday!  It's an Instant Pot, which is an electric pressure cooker that also has additional features that allow you to steam, keep warm and slow cook.  Some versions of this pot also make yogurt, and many, many people tout it's greatness for making cheesecake---but that is another post entirely, lol!I haven't gotten rid of my crock pot yet, but it's a distinct possibility!

In the past I've used a stove top pressure cooker for several things:  tough meats like stew meat, beans, making broth, etc.  I had found a recipe for Risotto in the pressure cooker and tried it, but burner control on my old stove was not up for the job, and it scorched horribly.  I thought I was doomed to spend the 45 minutes or so it takes to make risotto at the stove stirring, and stirring, and stirring.....well, you get the picture :)  But then this little bad boy came along and I am in risotto HEAVEN!!!   So I'm sharing with you today--try it out and tell me what you think!

You're welcome :D

Instant Pot Risotto

Serves 4

Ingredients:

1 cup Arborio rice

2 Tablespoons butter, divided

1/2 cup onion, chopped

2 cups chicken or vegetable broth

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/8 cup white wine

1 cup mushrooms, sliced and sauteed *

1/2 cup frozen or fresh peas*(I've also substituted fresh asparagus)

1/4 -1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

* I cooked the sliced mushrooms in a skillet with 1 Tablespoon of butter, until golden, then added the peas to heat through.  I deglazed the pan with 1/8 cup of white wine, allowed to cook down and set aside.  This can also be cooked in the Instant Pot using the saute feature. In this version, the butter and wine are in ADDITION to what is called for in the recipe. 

Directions:

Melt 1 Tablespoon butter in the Instant Pot using the saute function.  Add the onions and saute for 2 minutes.  Place the rice in the pot with the onions and continue stirring until the rice becomes translucent and the edges begin to toast.  

Deglaze the pan with white wine and add the salt and broth.  Stir to combine.  Lock the Instant Pot lid and push the RICE button, making sure the pressure valve is in the sealing position. When finished, do a quick release by setting the valve to vent.  Add the mushrooms and peas, remaining butter, Parmesan, and a splash of broth, stirring to finish.  

Wine & Food Pairing

Happy National Drink Wine Day!  This is such a great chart, I just had to share!  While MY preferences run to the right side (and the really big reds!), I have some trouble pairing with foods that need a lighter touch.   Off to figure out what might pair with tonight's tilapia!

Wine Pairing Chart infographic by madelinep.

Best Bacon Ever!

This morning I noticed that I had a package of kind of inexpensive bacon leftover from making those wonderful bacon-wrapped, cream cheese filled jalepenos I found on Pinterest.  Not being the wasteful sort, I recalled seeing on Pinterest a method of cooking bacon in the oven that I had been meaning to try.  Me being me, I couldn't resist tinkering a bit and making the recipe my own.  The result is so amazingly good, you will wonder why you ever made bacon any other way!  This will definitely be on the menu for large family gatherings, brunch, and Christmas morning!

Best Bacon Ever

1 package of bacon--inexpensive kind is OK
Brown sugar
Coarse black pepper

Line baking pans with aluminum foil to make clean up easier.  Place bacon on foil --be careful to not overlap.   Sprinkle with brown sugar and coarsely ground pepper.  Bake at 375 degrees for about 20 min.  Remove and drain on paper towels.  Enjoy!   :D

Hot Pickled Carrots

You know those hot crunchy pickled carrots that they serve in some of the more authentic Mexican restaurants?  Yep, you know what I'm talking about!  The husband brought home a bag of assorted hot peppers last week that a friend had given him.  Just a few I would have grilled, filled with cream cheese and wrapped with bacon (that's another post, my friends), or made into jalepeno jelly, but there were more than I could use, even if I made BOTH of those tasty concoctions.  So I did a little research and came up with the idea to make hot pickled carrots.  I've been toying with the idea for some time, and now I had one of the crucial ingredients. I couldn't come up with a recipe that called for fresh jalepenos, so I used a couple I had found as starting points and charged ahead.  I opened a jar after 4 days, they are wonderful, but hardly spicy at all.  My research told me to remove the seeds and membranes to keep the heat down, but I'm not sure I would do that again.  We like them HOT!!!  Also, I believe that the heat will increase as they age in the jar, but I JUST COULDN'T STAND IT, and had to crack open a jar this morning.  Time will tell.  Here's the recipe--enjoy!!!

Hot Pickled Carrots

5 lbs carrots, peeled and cut into uniform pieces, about 1/4' thick (make the skinny end pieces bigger so that they all cook evenly)
Jalepenos--lots and lots of jalepenos (I think I had about 50-60--including some that had matured to a red color and some that appeared to be habeneros)
2 large sweet onions
12 large cloves of garlic
4 t. dill seed (hard to find--Fred Meyers has it in the bulk spices)
8 cups cider vinegar
8 cups water
2/3 cup canning or Kosher salt

Prepare the vegetables, combining peppers and onions in one bowl.  Layer pepper/onion mix, carrots and another layer of the pepper/onion mix tightly into pint jars.  Add one garlic clove to each jar.
In a large pot, combine vinegar, water, salt and dill seed.  Bring just to a boil, then ladle hot liquid over vegetables, leaving 1/4" headspace.  Slide a table knife down the sides of jars to remove any air bubbles.  Wipe rims of jars and place sterilized lids on each.  Secure with jar rings.  Place in water bath and process for 20 minutes.  Yields 12 pints.

The recipe....finally!

Tamales are labor intensive. Save yourself some grief and make at least the pork ahead of time. It cooks easily in the crock pot, then you can shred it and freeze it in large zip-loc until you're ready to use it.

Pork Filling

4 pound pork loin-I buy a large one at Costco and slice the rest into chops & freeze
Small can of chopped green chiles
1 t. Ground coriander
1 t. Ground cumin
1 medium sweet onin, coarsley chopped

Cook on low in crockpot for 6-8 hours. Reserve liquid for chile sauce.

Chile Sauce

You can make this ahead of time, too. I don't know how it freezes, but it should keep in the refrigerator for at least a week.

3 oz. bag dried New Mexico chiles-at my store, these are called California chile pods-El Guapo brand (buy & add 4-5 Arbol chile pods if you want a little heat)
4 cloves garlic
1/2 t. Coriander
1/2 t. Cumin
1/2 t. Salt
1/2 cup reserved liquid from pork
With gloves on, remove stem ends from chiles and shake as many seeds out as possible. If a lot of seeds remain, break chiles in half and shake out the rest of the seeds. You can rinse under cold water to remove any remaining seeds, but I don't think it' necessary.

Toast the chiles in a large, dry skillet, about 45-60 seconds, just until aroma is released. DO NOT burn them! Place in a saucepan and cover with water. Bring to a boil, then simmer, covered for about 8 minutes. Take off heat and cool.

In the meantime, place the garlic, spices and reserved liquid in blender, drain the liquid, reserving 1/2 cup. Add the liquid and chiles to the blender. Process until smooth.

The day you are putting them together, soak full package of corn husks for at least an hour. Drain.

Masa Dough

2 lbs corn masa
3 T. Smoky paprika
3 T. Salt
3 T. Cumin seeds-buy these in the Mexican section in the little bags, it's much cheaper
3 T. Chile powder- we used 2 regular & 1 chipotle
2 cups vegetable oil
8 cups chicken broth (2 boxes)

Blend dry ingredients together in a LARGE bowl. Add oil and blend with a wooden spoon until oil has moistened all dry ingredients. Using mixer, blend in broth, about 2 cups at a time until dough is the consistency of thick peanut butter. Most likely you will use all the broth.

Preparation

Mix chile sauce with meat, adding reserved liquid or water if necessary. Sauce should just coat the meat, but not runny.

Set up your assembly. Corn husks, masa dough, meat mixture, steamer basket.

The corn husks are shaped like triangles. Place about 1/4 cup masa on one side of the wide part of the husk and spread evenly. Place 2-3 tablespoons of the meat mixture in the middle of the masa. Roll the husk up lengthwise, ending on the side that has no masa. Then fold the top down. You can tear off thin strips of the husk and tie the ends if you want. Place the tamales in the steamer, open side up. Fill the steamer a little loosely--the masa will expand. Steam for about 2 hours. The masa will be fairly firm to touch when done--take one out and let it sit for a bit before you check it. Be careful not to run the steamer out of water!

*note: one of the most difficult parts of the tamale making process was finding the right kind of steamer. You will need one that allows you to stand the tamales upright in the basket to steam.