Cooking Classy

If I had to choose one type of food to live on for the rest of my life it would probably be Mexican food. I could hardly live without it. Lately I've been looking for a good Queso Blanco Dip recipe, just like what you get at a Mexican restaurant. Most of the recipes I found contained White American cheese in them. I'm not a big fan of processed cheese so I decided to go with one of my favorite cheeses that is commonly found in Mexican cuisine - Monterrey Jack cheese. It melts smoothly, it has a wonderful flavor and of course, it's not processed .  I created my own recipe and decided to start the recipe out with a roux, not only to thicken the cheese sauce but to add a starch to the mixture to prevent it from separating and curdling. You can easily adjust this recipe to suite your taste. For example if you like a little heat you could saute some diced fresh jalapenos along with the onion or add pickled jalapenos at the end of cooking. If you don't like jalap...

One pin down 1,000 to go. I love when I finally get around to trying that pin I've been wanting to make. I found this over at The Pea Kitchen  a few months ago and have thought about making it many times since. I figured Thanksgiving season would be the perfect time. It's pie season! This dip is quick and easy and it tastes just like a delicious apple pie filling. So you get all the flavors of apple pie without the wait and without all that tedious prep work. I think this recipe has also inspired me to sprinkle my apple pie crust with cinnamon and sugar this year, yum! There are many different ways you could serve this and I've listed in the recipe a few ideas. I left them out of the picture just so you could get a good glimpse of the actual apple pie dip, but If you were to serve it with the ice cream or whipped cream it would be even more like the real thing, and the caramel sauce would just take it over the top. Also, the cinnamon sugar chips are such a simple and delici...

If you ask me, made from scratch Mexican food is just about as good as it gets. I've mentioned before that Mexican and Italian food are my two favorite kinds of food. One thing I love about each of them (other than the number one reason - the incredibly delicious flavors) is their use of so many fresh ingredients and how a lot of it is made from scratch. I've been to Mexico just a few times and one of my favorite things there was always the fresh tortillas. I loved stopping by the market to get a bag filled with a large stack of fresh flour tortillas from the bakery (I loved the fresh churros they have too, mmmm). I could probably eat that whole stack in one sitting. These may seem like one of those things that's not worth the time and effort but I'm telling you, it is! I just don't like the flour tortillas from the store that are pre-made and loaded with preservatives, they just taste weird to me. Once you've had fresh tortillas, you know what I mean when I say...

If you've been following I'm sure you know by now that I love a good slow cooker meal. Who doesn't? Meals prepared in a slow cooker yield flavorful and tender results with such minimal effort. This soup is definitely proof of that. If you don't have a slow cooker you could also make this on the stove top. I've also prepared it on the stove top before and added grilled chicken to it. If you choose to prepare it on the stove top add cooked chicken and allow the soup an hour to simmer over low heat so all the flavors have some time to develop and meld together.  I love Mexican food. I could eat it everyday. It has such unique and exciting flavors. Addictive flavors if you ask me. I hope you enjoy another Slow Cooker Meal from Cooking Classy =). Slow Cooker Chicken Tortilla Soup Yields about 5 servings Ingredients: 20 oz boneless skinless, chicken breasts halves 3 (14.5 oz) cans low-sodium chicken broth 1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes with green chilies 3/4 cup diced yel...

This is one of my all time favorite soup recipes! I got the recipe from my sister a few years ago. Thanks for the recipe sista =)! I changed it up quite a bit to add more flavor. Before it didn't have any spices or green onions, the chicken wasn't grilled and it wasn't served with avocados. Sometimes if I don't have fresh tomatoes I will also use canned but if you use canned I would say omit the sugar (I added sugar to tone down the acidity of the fresh tomatoes). This soup is hearty, healthy, loaded with fresh goodness and full of exciting flavors (and heat if you prefer). This soup isn't your traditional Posole. It's very similar to chicken tortilla soup but with added cabbage and hominy. If you like Mexican food you will love this soup! Chicken Posole Yields about 4 servings Ingredients: 2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts, grilled and shredded* 1.25 lb Roma tomatoes (about 5) 1/2 large yellow onion 2 green onions 3 cloves garlic 1-5 jalapenos, to taste*...

I will admit it, I'm a Cafe Rio/Costa Vida addict.  It's rare that I go more than a week without eating at one of the two. All their entrees are so full of exciting flavors that they keep me coming back for more. Since I eat there so frequently I thought maybe it's time to create another copycat recipe. One of my favorite things to get there is the shredded chicken salad or shredded chicken tacos, so here is my version of that chicken.  This chicken is SO easy to make! If you haven't noticed, I love my slow cooker. You simply toss in a few ingredients along with some spices, and then allow it to cook low and slow all day while the flavors meld together and wallah! It almost seems to good to be true doesn't it? It does all the hard work.  This Shredded Chicken recipe is not only to be used as a taco filling but also for burritos, enchiladas, salads, quesadillas, taquitos, etc. So, if you don't use it all the first night you make it you can use the left over chick...

In my opinion there are two Mexican sides that are a must with nearly every Mexican entree, beans and Mexican rice. This recipe is my go to Mexican Rice recipe that I've been making for years. I make it at least once a week, some weeks as many as three times a week. It only takes a few minutes to prepare and it tastes just as good as any authentic Mexican restaurants Mexican rice. I have tried several different recipes for Mexican rice and this one is definitely my favorite. I've tried using tomato sauce and fresh tomatoes but I think the key to great authentic Mexican rice is the Caldo de Tomate. You can find it in the Latin section of the grocery store. My sister gave me the recipe and I added my own additions to it, you will see them where I listed optional ingredients. This rice can be made with or without those but I love the extra boost of flavor they give the rice. Also, I used to always use vegetable oil but I've tried to be a bit healthier =) so I've switched o...

If you haven't noticed yet Mexican food is my favorite.  Good Mexican food just bursts with exciting flavors that all blend so perfectly well together.  Nothing is bland, and it always keeps you craving it and coming back for more.   My latest food craze is blackened salmon.  I've been getting it at one of my favorite local Restaurants almost weekly.  When I have a new food favorite I love to come up with my own version of it at home.  These tacos are bursting with enticing flavors that will likely have you making this dish many times around.  Soft tortillas are generously filled with tender, perfectly spiced salmon, then covered with a flavorful corn salsa, then it gets a delightful crunch from Romaine lettuce and another layer of flavor from a sprinkling of cheese and last but not least one of the best parts: it's drizzled with zesty cilantro lime ranch for one intensely incredible Blackened Salmon Taco!  Yum yum YUM!  . Blackened Salmon Ta...