Tag small plates

Take “Street Food” Home with Parties That Cook’s Mini Arepas and Jalapeño Marmalade

It’s time to get excited for this Saturday’s Street Food Festival in San Francisco! To help you get amped, especially for those who will not be in San Francisco to taste the delicious Columbian bites from The Arepa Lady of New York, we’re giving you OUR VERY OWN recipe for Mini Arepas with Oaxaca Cheese and Jalapeno Marmalade! These fried little morsels of flavor are a favorite from our Cooking Classes — and you can catch them in action at upcoming classes in all PTC cities!

Mini Arepas with Oaxaca Cheese and Jalapeno Marmalade
This recipe can be found in our Ethnic Food and Appetizer Recipe Libraries

Ingredients
Arepas:
3 Tablespoons unsalted butter
1 1/4 cup milk
1 1/4 cup masa harina
1 Tablespoon granulated sugar
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 1/2 cups Oaxaca cheese, grated, divided–half for dough and half for garnish
1/2 cup canola oil

Jalapeno Marmalade:
6 large jalapenos, stems and seeds removed
2/3 cup white vinegar
1 Tablespoon kosher salt
1 1/2 cups sugar

Cilantro for garnish

Methods/Steps
Make Arepa Dough: Preheat oven to 300°F. In a small sauce pan; melt the butter and the milk over moderately high heat. In a large bowl, mix the masa, sugar, salt, and half of the cheese together. Add the milk mixture and mix until a smooth dough forms. Cover and let the dough rest for 5 minutes.

Form Arepas: Roll the dough into little balls about the size of a large marble. Lightly flatten the balls between your palms to about a 1/4-inch thick. The flattened dough should be about the size of a silver dollar. Transfer the rounds to a sheet pan.

Fry Arepas: In a large sauté pan, heat canola oil until hot. Working in batches, add arepas to the pan (Do not overcrowd pan) and cook over moderate heat until golden on the outside but moist within, about 2 minutes per side. Transfer the cooked arepas onto a cooling rack placed over a sheet pan. Place in the oven to keep warm until ready to serve. Repeat with the remaining dough.

Make Marmalade: In a food processor, puree jalapenos, vinegar, and salt until smooth. In a small saucepan, heat jalapeno mixture on high heat and add sugar. Bring to a boil and let boil for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Allow mixture to cool briefly and then transfer to a small bowl.

Assemble: Remove the arepas from the oven. Spoon a dollop of marmalade into each arepa. Top with a little grated cheese and a tiny sprig of cilantro.

Serves/Makes
Makes about 24 Arepas

Recipe created by Parties That Cook | www.PartiesThatCook.com

Parties That Cook’s Last-Minute Summer Recipe: Grilled Avocado Tacos with Tomato Salad

It’s coming. You can’t avoid it. You can just prepare.
The end of summer is fast approaching, and while some of us (cough, San Francisco) have a late “Indian Summer” to look forward to, most of the nation will have to pack up those grills and enter the fall season. Give your grill a proper goodbye, for now… These fun little Grilled Avocado Tacos have a deliciously fresh combination of flavors that might just inspire a summer fiesta! For a seafood twist, try our Little Fish Tacos with Tomato Salad and Chipotle-Lime Crema! You can find these featured at our upcoming Date Night Couples Cooking Class in San Francisco!

Little Grilled Avocado Tacos with Tomato Salad and Chipotle-Lime Crema
This recipe and others like it can be found in our Appetizer Recipes Library!

Ingredients
Avocado:
1/2 cup cilantro leaves
1 teaspoons paprika
1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds, toasted and ground
1 small red chili, seeded
2 limes, zested and juiced
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon kosher salt
5 Haas avocados, halved, pitted and peeled
Toothpicks for serving

Tomato Salad:
20 cherry tomatoes, quartered
1/2 English cucumber, peeled, sliced in half, seeded and diced into 1/4-inch cubes
2 green onions, sliced
2 Tablespoons cilantro chopped, plus some whole leaves for garnish
1/2 teaspoon lime juice
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon sugar

Chipotle-Lime Crema:
1 cup sour cream
1/2 chipotle in adobo, minced plus 1/2 teaspoon adobo sauce
1 large clove garlic, minced
2 Tablespoons lime juice
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon kosher salt
2 Tablespoons cilantro, finely chopped
2 limes, cut into wedges

Tortillas:
24 small 4-inch corn tortillas

Methods/Steps
Marinade: Put cilantro, paprika, cumin, chili, lime zest, lime juice, olive oil and salt in a blender and process to a paste. Halve, pit and peel the avocados. Place avocado halves in a bowl and gently coat avocados with the marinade (do not mash the avocado in any way).

Grill Avocados: Heat a ridged grill pan over high heat. Place each half on the grill for cook for about 30 to 45 seconds. Don’t be afraid to take the cooking outdoors, instead, and grill the avocados for a bit longer.

Cut Avocados: Transfer grilled avocado to a cutting board and cut each avocado half into thin wedges, about 4 wedges per half.

Tomato Salad: Cut up and mix all the ingredients together in a bowl and set aside.

Tortillas: Using tongs, grill each tortilla over a gas burner for 15 seconds a side. Transfer to a plate; cover with foil to keep warm. Alternatively, wrap all tortillas in foil and warm in a 350ºF oven for 10 minutes.

Make Crema: Place all ingredients into a small bowl and mix well.

Assemble Tacos: Place a piece of avocado on each tortilla. Put a dollop of the crema on the avocado then top with a spoonful of tomato salad. Garnish with some cilantro, roll into a cone and secure with a toothpick. Serve on a platter with lime wedges.

Makes 24 little tacos