Cooking 115 ~ Tex-Mex Comes to Town

Well here I am, two months late in sharing some recipes from our Tex-Mex Cooking Class. The Sauce du Jour Chefs knocked out some mighty tasty fare that night.
This was the menu:

Gringo Salsa with Homemade Tortilla Chips with Ancho Dust

This salsa is a wonderful combo of sweet, tangy and creamy goodness (from the avocados).

Click here for the recipe or go to the "Appetizer Page."

BBQ Onion and Smoked Gouda Quesadillas 

Served on a Bed of Baby Greens with a Tabasco Dressing

Cowboy Rib-Eye with Pinto Bean-Wild Mushroom Ragout

Topped with Red Chile Onion Rings and Pico de Gallo

Chef Tom, putting his touch on the Rib-Eyes

Jalapeno, White Cheddar and Pepper-Jack Biscuits

with Red Chile Honey Butter

OOPS...No Picture

Margarita Ice Cream

Toffee Tortilla Chips, Chocolate Ganache and Candied Jalapenos

When planning this menu I was determined to use jalapenos in the dessert and I was originally thinking along the jalapeno ice cream lines. Then I got the brilliant idea of doing a Margarita Ice Cream and using candied jalapenos. (This, people is why I make the big bucks. *wink-wink*) 

     The beauty of the ice cream is that you don't need an ice cream maker to make it...it sets up in the freezer. (The recipe is a variation taken from Nigella and tweaked for this class.)

     I brainstormed with my friend, Karen, who is a great baker, and we came up with the idea of doing a homemade corn tortilla chip, topping it with a toffee and a drizzle of chocolate ganache and finally some chopped up candied jalapenos.

     I have to tell you that is was nothing short of AMAZING! Really. And I'm not a Margarita drinker or an ice cream eater, but this was THE BOMB! 

Click here or go to the "Desserts" page for the recipe.

Note: If you don't want to go to the trouble of making the chips, toffee and ganache, make the ice cream and use store bought bought corn tortilla chips, toffee and chocolate.  Store bought toffee and chocolate won't set up like ours did, but you'll still get the idea. 

Thanks again to Kitt for all the great pix!

 

Gringo Salsa

PRINT RECIPE:  Gringo Salsa and Homemade Tortilla Chips with Ancho Dust

PRINT RECIPE: Margarita Ice Cream, Toffee Tortilla Chips, Chocolate Ganache and Candied Jalapenos