Weather Getting You Down? Don't Get Mad, Get Stewed: Rib Eye Stew with Butternut Squash

Whenever the sun is on strike, as it so often seems to be in this part of the country, the best way to warm up is to take a hot yoga class or make a big pot of stew. Since we were both still recovering from our latest yoga adventure, we chose the easier and tastier option. Plus it seemed like the perfect companion for that night's "Game of Thrones" (Little did we know they were skipping a week for Memorial Day).

Johnny Cakes with a Twist: Heirloom Purple Corn

There's nothing better than a Sunday morning spent in bed with a good New York Times article. This last Sunday we came across a fascinating piece on how we are breeding the nutritional content out of our foods in favor of sweeter, less nutritious varieties (New York Times article). Blue corn, for example, has almost 65 times more phytonutrients than the super sweet white corn we're all familiar with. We began to brainstorm what we could do with blue or purple corn and immediately thought of Johnny Cakes. 

Soft-core Albacore with Bok Choy, Portabella and Red Bell Pepper

When you sear albacore or ahi tuna on the grill, it doesn't even resemble the stuff you get in the can. The fleshy, medium-rare middle is like candy with just the right touch of salt on the edge. It is the perfect execution of cooked fish, without any hint of fishiness. 

Poor Man's Paella with Chicken, Chorizo and Shrimp

Technically this dish is more "middle class" thanks to the saffron, one of the most expensive spices in the world by weight. The cheapest jar we found was just under $15 and though it was hard to see the value in these tiny red strands, a little goes far and the taste is totally unique.

Paella is a Spanish mash-up of rice, veggies and surf and turf ingredients. While most recipes we found were a seafood extravaganza of clams, mussels, squid, and lobster tails, we opted for jumbo shrimp. Hence, the "poor" in our title.

This Ain't Our First Fiesta - Slow Cooked Carnitas with Ancho Chile Sauce

There is no better way to honor Cinco de Mayo than to slow cook a pork roast in the crock pot for 12 hours. You simply rub the roast with spices, dump in some beer and forget about it. We started ours at 10 o'clock the night before so by the next morning the whole house smelled amazing and the pork was falling apart mid-air from pot to plate. By the time dinner rolled around, we had plenty of time to grill some peppers, make an ancho sauce and salsa from scratch and chill out from our day in the sun. ¡Salud!