Som Tam Marakor (Spicy Green Papaya Salad)

This dish is, hands down, the best souvenir we brought home from our honeymoon in Thailand. We learned to make it during a day-long cooking class at the Samui Institute of Thai Culinary Arts on the island of Koh Samui.

Beyond the instructions written below, you'll need to know how to shred the papaya. You can do so by peeling it, and then making a bunch of fast chops into the meat of the papaya lengthwise. Once you've done so, shave down the fruit hoirzontally to remove shreds or strands. 

Also, while using a wooden mortar and pestle is best, I chop mine in a food processor and let sit for a few hours before serving so the dressing and really come together.

This sald takes a while to prepare and is pretty labor intensive so I make it only on special occasions, but it's totally worth it.

Cactus for breakfast!

One of my favorite "guisados" (or stewed sides) from Mexico is a nopal cactus that has been de-spined and cut into squares. Known as "nopalitos" these little guys are excellent alone or on a taco or as a sort of relish. The key is to sautée these with onions over medium heat until the nopales release all their gooey secretions. You'll know when you start hearing the cactus sizzle against the bottom of the pan (they can take a while to soften up - count on about 20 min). Rick Bayless (one of my favorite American chefs who specializes in Mexican cuisine) has an interesting recipe for them here: http://www.rickbayless.com/recipe/nopal-cactus-with-caramelized-onion-guajillo-chile-and-fresh-cheese/. 

For breakfast the other day I made them with a splash of chicken stock, salsa Maggie and Asian chile paste.

Beach Bacon and Raspberry Bites

The Waller family is enjoying a week at the Outer Banks and I threw together this appetizer for happy hour (5:30 p.m. sharp!). The recipe was inspired by a similar crostini creation that my mom and I watched from Giada on the Food Network this morning.

Start with a fresh baguette. Slice thinly and toast in the oven with olive oil drizzled on top.

Meanwhile, work on the toppings. The first layer is a mix of goat and cream cheeses with crushed garlic and lemon (it actually works a little better if you prep this ahead of time and let sit for a couple hours for the garlic and lemon to settle with the cheeses). The second layer is a thin dallop of raspberry (or fig) jam with a little Tabasco. I mixed about 1/2 c. jam with 4 squirts of Tabasco and spread this across all of the crostinis. Then spoon a mixture of carmelized diced red onions with crispy bacon bits. Garnish with freshly julienned basil.

Enjoy with cocktail hour!

Pete's Spicy Hummus

Pedro makes hummus for us all the time. It's great to have a healthy snack around the house and to take to the office. The ratios listed below are rough estimates from Pedro's version, but every batch turns out a little different so play around and see what works for you!

Also note that you'll need a high horsepower blender to make the hummus smooth and creamy. Try a blendtec or vitamix from Costco. 

Add 2 cans (drained) of chickpeas to the blender. Throw in 2-3 large cloves of garlic (we like ours spicy with the garlic!), 1/4 c. tahini, juice from two limes, between 1/4 and 1/2 c. water, depending on how thick  you like your hummus, olive oil, salt and pepper to taste.

This makes an excellent base to play with. For Pete's spicy hummus we add one raw jalapeño with the seeds. Other examples of things to give your hummus an extra kick include sun dried tomatoes, pesto, or Asian peppers! The sky is the limit.

Serve with pita triangles and garnish with extra olive oil and paprika. Enjoy!

Cheese Cookie Logs

Another one of my favorites from mom!

Sausage pinwheels

This is one of my favorite appetizers that my mom makes. She prepared a little cooking lesson to teach me how they're made. The recipe follows but it's important to note that these should be rolled lengthwise and each full roll (1/4 of the dough ball) makes 12 pinwheels. Cut a full roll in half and freeze for convenient 6 cut appetizer available whenever!

Fanned potatoes

Fun as a tapas dish or as a fancy side, these potatoes are the perfect combination of potato chips, baked potatoes and scalloped potatoes.

Use wooden spoons to cut smallish potatoes into thin slices that are connected at the bottom like a fan. Separate each slice with a little chunk of garlic and coat the potatoes with rosemary-infused olive oil and butter. Bake at 400 degrees for about 35 minutes. Cover with foil toward toward the end to prevent the fan from burning.

When you remove the potatoes, wedge a couple bits of sharp cheddar between some of the fans and allow to melt. Top with chopped parsley, truffle oil and salt and pepper to taste.