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Cuban-style Paella: Paella Cubana

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·         Level: Intermediate

·         Total: 1 hr 50 min

·         Prep: 40 min

·         Cook: 1 hr 10 min

·         Yield: 6 servings

·          

Ingredients

1/2 cup olive oil, plus 2 tablespoons for sauteing seafood

1 cup diced ham

1 cup chorizo sausage or pepperoni, sliced into 1/2-inch pieces (recommended: Spanish sausage)

1 large onion, diced

1 red bell pepper, diced

5 garlic cloves, minced

One 3-pound chicken, cut into 6 to 8 pieces

3 cups Valencia rice

4 cups chicken broth

1/2 cup red wine

1 can mussels

2 teaspoons salt

Bijol powder, a dash

1 pound medium raw shrimp, peeled and de-veined

1/2 pound scallops

Meat from 5 lobster tails, reserve shells for garnish

1 cup frozen green peas

1/4 cup minced parsley leaves

1 red bell pepper, sliced for garnish

1 cup steamed mussels in their shells, for garnish

Directions

1.      Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

2.      Heat olive oil in a large pan. Saute the ham and chorizo sausage. Remove from pan and reserve.*

3.      Add onions, red pepper, and garlic to pan and saute until wilted but not overcooked.

4.      Add chicken pieces and saute for about 15 minutes until brown, but not fully cooked. Remove and reserve.

5.      In a large pot combine the rice, broth, wine, and mussels. Add salt for flavor and Bijol for color. Stir. Turn up heat, bring to boil and cover. Add chicken, ham and chorizo. Cover and simmer on the stove for 20 to 30 minutes, until the rice is cooked and fluffy. (You may have to add a little more chicken broth if the mixture gets too dry).

6.      Saute shrimp, clams, and lobster tails separately in the oil. Remove and keep covered and warm.**

7.      At the last minute, fold the seafood into the rice mixture. Transfer to a flat paella pan suitable for serving. Top with peas and red peppers. Place in oven for about 5 minutes to heat through. Take care not to overcook! Serve garnished with mussels, parsley and lobster shells.

Cook’s Note

*This will draw the oil from the chorizo and flavor the pan. **This will keep it from drying out.

Cuban Drunk Pound Cake -- Cake Emborrachado

By Three Guys From Miami

Prep time: 20 minutes
Cook time: 55 minutes
Total time: 1 hour 15 minutes
Yield: 8-12 servings

This cake gets drunk on rum, so you don't have to.

INGREDIENTS:

Cake:

12 egg yolks
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
5 egg whites
1 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 cups flour, sifted
2 tablespoons butter, softened for greasing the pan.

Syrup:

4 cups sugar
2 cups water
1/4 cup sweet wine, Spanish Jerez, or a good rum
1 stick cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon lemon juice

http://thelatinkitchen.com/r/recipe/alex-garcias-cubano

INGREDIENTS

4

eight inch pieces of Cuban bread or French baguette

8

ounces

roasted pork from shoulder or leg (thinly sliced)

8

ounces

thinly sliced ham

4

ounces

thinly sliced Swiss cheese

2

pickles thinly sliced lengthwise

4

tablespoons

mustard

6

ounces

butter

DIRECTIONS

Slice all the bread lengthwise. Divide meat and cheese equally.

Assemble sandwich by placing roasted pork, ham and cheese on top of one half of the bread. Place pickle slices on top.

Spread one tablespoon mustard, per sandwich, on the inside of the other half of the bread. Place the top of the bread over the sandwich, to close. Spread butter on the outside of the top and bottom of the sandwich.

Cook in a very hot cast-iron griddle, or electric flat top, until heated through and golden brown on the outside.

PASTELITOS DE GUAYABA RECIPE

 

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Author: Marta Darby

INGREDIENTS

• 1 pkg. Pepperidge Farm Puff Pastry Sheets
• 1 bar guava paste
• 1 pkg. Cream cheese (optional)

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Thaw the puff pastry according to package directions.
3. Use baking parchment to line your cookie sheet so the guava won’t stick.
4. Unfold one of the pastry sheets and place on pan.
5. Cut guava into ¼ inch slices and place on the pastry sheet.
6. Spread cream cheese over guava paste slices (optional).
7. Unfold second pastry sheet and place on top of guava paste.
8. Cut to desired size before baking.
9. Bake at 400 for 25 to 35 minutes or until golden brown.

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https://www.thespruce.com/klaras-traditional-croatian-stuffed-cabbage-recipe-1135896

Klara's Traditional Croatian Stuffed Cabbage Recipe - Sarma

Charles Groux / Getty Images

·         3 hrs 30 mins

·         Prep: 60 mins,

·         Cook: 2 hrs 30 mins

·         Yield: 40-50 Croatian Stuffed Cabbage

(8)

BY BARBARA ROLEK

Updated 11/18/16

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This recipe for Croatian stuffed cabbage or sarma is from Klara Cvitanovich. She is the owner with her husband and son, Drago and Tommy Cvitanovich, of Drago's Seafood Restaurant in New Orleans and Metairie, La. While Eastern European foods are not on the menu at the family restaurant (see the recipe for Drago's charbroiled oysters), Klara still cooks the foods of her beloved Dubrovnik, Croatia, at home, especially for Christmas.

This recipe makes enough for a crowd and since they taste even better the next day and the day after, you'll have tasty leftovers!

Here are more recipes from Klara Cvitanovich:

·         Traditional Croatian Apple Strudel Recipe - Strudel od Jakuba

·         Traditional Croatian Angel Wings Recipe - Krostule

·         Traditional Croatian Fritters Recipe - Fritule

What You'll Need

• 5 small heads of cored cabbage
•  
• 1 cup white vinegar
•  
• 2 large onions, quartered
•  
• 1 pound roughly chopped bacon
•  
• 8 peeled garlic cloves
•  
• 1 bunch celery, trimmed and roughly chopped
•  
• 1 bunch parsley, stemmed
•  
• 2 1/2 pounds ground chuck
•  
• 2 1/2 pounds ground pork
•  
• 2 1/2 pounds ground veal
•  
• 2 cups uncooked rice
•  
• 1/3 teaspoon cinnamon
•  
• 1/3 teaspoon ground nutmeg
•  
• 2 teaspoons paprika
•  
• 1 tablespoon salt or to taste
•  
• 4 large eggs
•  
• 3 (32-ounce) jars or bags sauerkraut, drained
•  
• 56 ounces tomato puree
•  
• 46 ounces tomato juice
•  
• 3 tablespoons sugar
•  
• 8 whole cloves
•  
• Salt and pepper to taste
•  

How to Make It

1.     Add vinegar to a very large pot of water and bring to a boil. Klara says the vinegar prevents the cabbage from falling apart. Boil the cabbages for about 5 minutes until the leaves begin to release from the heads. Peel the leaves off and place in a colander to drain and cool. Reserve the cabbage hearts.

2.     Place onions, bacon, and garlic in a food processorand finely chop. In a very large Dutch oven or roaster, saute onion-bacon-garlic mixture. Meanwhile, finely chop the celery and parsley in the food processor and add to the onion-bacon-garlic mixture along with the beef, pork, and veal. Cook until meat is evenly browned. Remove from heat and, if desired, drain off excess fat. Allow to cool.

1.     Heat oven to 500 degrees. If the inner leaves of the cabbage heads aren't pliable, return them to the boiling water for a few minutes. Trim the thick center vein of each leaf without piercing it. Add rice to meat mixture, and season with cinnamon, nutmeg, paprika, and salt. Mix in eggs thoroughly. Place a handful of meat filling on each leaf. Flip up the bottom, then fold the sides in, and roll up. Any leftover filling can be frozen for later use.

2.     Chop the reserved cabbage hearts and, in a large bowl, mix with sauerkraut and tomato puree. Season with salt and pepper. Place some of this mixture on the bottom of a deep, large roasting pan. Cover with a layer of cabbage rolls, tightly packed. Press down and spoon on more sauerkraut mixture. Add another layer of cabbage rolls, running at a right angle to the first layer. Continue in this manner until all the cabbage rolls are in the pan. Top with remaining sauerkraut mixture and pour some of the tomato juice over it. Gently shake the pan to distribute the juice and add the rest of the tomato juice.

3.     Sprinkle with sugar and cloves. Cover and place in a 500-degree oven. When the mixture comes to a boil, reduce the heat to 350 degrees and bake 2 1/2 hours. Remove cloves before serving. Present two or three cabbage rolls per person with boiled potatoes and some of the sauerkraut mixture. Sprinkle with chopped parsley and paprika. Cooked stuffed cabbage will keep a long time in the freezer if they are well sealed.

 http://www.kitchennostalgia.com/croatian-recipes/croatian-kifle-recipe.html

Croatian Kifle - Jam Crescent Cookies

Servings: 24 cookies

Author: Kitchen Nostalgia

Ingredients

• PASTRY:
• 3 2/3 cups (500 g) pastry flour
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 2 sticks + 5 tsp (250 g) butter or margarine
• 2/3 cup + 3 Tbsp (200 ml) sour cream
• 1 Tbsp powdered sugar
• 1/2 tsp lemon zest
• a pinch of salt
• FILLING:
• about 1 1/2 cup jam (apricot, plum, rose hip or any other type)
• powdered sugar for dusting

Instructions

1. Mix (either with hands or using mixer or food processor) flour with baking powder, butter, margarine, sour cream, powdered sugar, lemon zest and salt. Do not overwork. Wrap the dough in plastic and chill it in the fridge overnight or for about 1 hour in the freezer.
2. On a lightly floured surface, roll one-fourth of the dough into a thin circle. Cut the circle into 6 triangles and put about 1/2 teaspoon jam on each one. Jam should be firm rather then runny so that it does not spill out from cookies. Roll triangles into crescents, starting at the wide end (see video below for instructions).
3. Arrange cookies on a baking sheet (they won’t expand a lot). Bake them in preheated 350 F (175 C) oven for about 15 minutes in regular oven or about 12 minutes in fan oven. They should still remain pale in color.
4. Transfer the crescents to a wire rack and dust them with powdered sugar.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F0yHHFq0DUA

Published on Apr 23, 2015

Punjeni Artichoke (Stuffed Artichokes) (Croatian) recipe
How to make Punjeni Artichoke (Stuffed Artichokes) (Croatian)

Ingredients
5 - large, tender globe artichokes 
1 cup - fresh breadcrumbs 
3 - garlic cloves, finely chopped 
½ tbsp - chopped flat-leaf parsley 
pepper
500 g - baby new potatoes 
100 g - freshly shelled peas 
100 g - freshly shelled broad beans 
salt
250 ml - olive oil


Preparation
Remove any old and loose leaves from the artichokes. With a sharp knife, cut off the stalks, reserving them for later. Slice about 2 cm off the top of each artichoke. Remove the choke by scooping it out with a teaspoon.

Make the stuffing by mixing the breadcrumbs, garlic, parsley and pepper. Gently open the leaves of each artichoke with your thumbs and add stuffing between the leaves.

Place the artichokes upright in the centre of a large saucepan. Add the potatoes around the artichokes. Scatter the peas, broad beans and artichoke stalks on top and sprinkle with any remaining stuffing. Season with salt and pepper. Drizzle with the olive oil and add enough water to cover the artichokes. Bring to the boil then reduce the heat to low and cook uncovered for about 1 hour. Don’t stir; just shake the pan occasionally.

Serve the artichokes warm with crusty bread.

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http://costa-rica-guide.com/travel/food/ceviche-recipe/

Ceviche Recipe

1 lb (450 gr) firm white fish
1 small onion
1 clove garlic
4 or 5 sprigs of cilantro (coriander leaf)
1 small (¾”, 2 cm) hot chili
about 8 limes (enough for at least ¾ cup of juice)
¼ teaspoon salt, and pepper to taste

Cut fish into ½” (1 cm) cubes. Mince the onion, garlic, and chili coarsely. Chop the cilantro very finely. Juice the limes and strain to remove the pulp and seeds.

Shrimp (or for the very daring – clams) can be substituted for the fish.

Mix all of the ingredients and refrigerate tightly covered for at least 3 hours. Serve with corn tortillas, tortilla chips, or crackers.

https://recipes.sparkpeople.com/recipe-detail.asp?recipe=1540996

Ensalada de Repollo (Costa Rican Cole Slaw)

Introduction

My family loves this simple, fresh, clean tasting salad as an accompaniment to everything from grilled chicken or fish to sandwiches and soup. It's easy, no unusual ingredients and tastes great.

Minutes to Prepare: 20

Number of Servings: 4

Ingredients

1 C. finely chopped green cabbage
1 C. finely chopped red cabbage
1 large ripe tomato, chopped
3 T. cilantro, chopped
1/2 C. red bell pepper, chopped
2. T. rice wine vinegar
juice of 1/2 large lime
1 T. extra virgin olive oil
pinch of sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. freshily ground pepper

Directions

Whisk together vinegar, lime juice, olive oil, sugar and salt.
Put all chopped ingredients into large bowl and pour on the dressing. Top with several grinds of fresh pepper. Toss well and enjoy. This will keep for several days refrigerated, but it never lasts that long in my house!

Number of Servings: 4