Recipes
Butterfly Horchata
Aguas frescas vendors line parks in Mexico with their rainbow of brightly colored beverages. Of them all, horchata is my favorite. A creamy rice and almond blended brew with wisps of mild and exotic flavor from true cinnamon. Refreshing and sweet, horchata cuts the heat from popular Mexican street food and makes a perfect pitcher for any backyard BBQ. This season, we've given it a festive color boost with ice cubes made with butterfly pea flowers. Start a day ahead to make the ice and soak the ingredients for the horchata. The next day blend it up and you're good to go! As the ice cubes, melt they'll turn your horchata a sweet lavender color. True cinnamon might be thought of as more powerful or better than cassia cinnamon, which isn't the case. Of the two, cassia actually has stronger and spicier flavors whereas true cinnamon is more mild and less heat-forward. True cinnamon's soft bark makes it quick and easy to grind at home but also makes it more evanescent. Having fresh sticks and only grinding when need makes all the difference!
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Ras El Hanout Cherry Pie
It pays to think outside the π because some unexpected combinations just work! Our house blended Ras El Hanout is a beautifully eccentric medley and it plays delightfully in fruit desserts. This rustic recipe doesn't require a pre-cook of the filling. Just toss the filling ingredients together ahead of time to allow the juice from the cherries to infuse with the Ras El Hanout, allowing the flavors to truly blossom. Vodka in the pie dough? Believe it or not, adding vodka helps the pie become more pliable and workable without becoming tougher. Unlike water, vodka doesn't encourage the formation of gluten so the crust stays flakey and light. As lovers of spice we've used a heavy hand on the flavor here, so enjoy!
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Limón-Chile Spiced Fruit
Our Limón-Chile seasoning deserved to be celebrated in its simplest form. With fruit! This seasoning goes great with summer flavors so taking advantage of fruit at its peak was a no brainer. This platter is full of color, flavors and texture. If you look closely at our Limón-Chile you’ll see the gradients of different shades of red peppers. It’s tart and salty making it a perfect compliment for sweet and juicy produce. We’re a long way from the streets of Mexico where you see venders pushing around fruit carts and showering the fruit with chiles and lime, but this platter is sure to add some spice to your fiesta.
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Pasilla Oaxaca Black Bean Dip
We know it's wrong to have a favorite child, but Pasilla Oaxaca reigns as our favorite chile. Don't tell the others. They are great in their own ways, but Pasilla Oaxaca has it all. Piquant and smoky, without being too much of either, these chiles can be used in soups and stews, sauces and more. If you've never used them, this dip is a fantastic introduction. Pasilla Oaxaca chiles are dried smoked chilaca peppers. They have more heat than their ancho pepper siblings, but less than chipotle, they are smoky and have a great depth of flavor. Just pop one of these in while the beans are cooking, then blend it all up for this creamy dip. Tasty hot or cold, this dip is delicious.
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Tailgater's Mac & Cheese
Whether you're tailgating at Arrowhead or watching from home, you'll enjoy this deluxe mac & cheese. As a native of KC transplanted in Seattle, I know which local flavors score and it just felt lucky to combine them to ensure a win in the Big Game. Enter Tailgater's Mac & Cheese! Burger's Ham studs the crunchy potato chip topping and Beecher's Cheeses are loaded in the sauce and on top. This dish is a flavor powerhouse seasoned with our own KC Tailgater's BBQ Rub. How can we lose? Go Chiefs!
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Bulgogi Caramel Corn
Celebrate in style! This treat is a great way to add festive flavor to the Lunar New Year party or your next movie night. Heat meets sweet in our Bulgogi Spice, and paired with the salty crunch of caramel corn, the result is sensational. Making caramel corn at home is a fun kitchen activity for young and old and once you see how easy it is you can make it any time and season it with all your favorite flavors. Make a little extra and bag some up for a friend.
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Tandoori Roasted Chicken
It may not be grilled over an open flame or cooked in a traditional clay oven, but this Tandoori Roasted Chicken is guaranteed to brighten your January. We've brought sunshine into the kitchen in the depth of winter with bright colors and flavors on the table. Our Tandoori chicken is bright in color and in spice. We skipped the red food coloring and went straight for the Beet Powder, combined with Tandoori Curry that contains turmeric, to give this dish a stunning presentation. Once cooked the beet powder mellows and adds crispiness to the chicken skin.
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Puerco Pibil
Puerco Pibil is an unforgettable dish, and the time and effort to make it is worth every minute. The meat is marinated in a combination of citrus juice and achiote paste, then roasted in banana leaves. The resulting tender, flavorful morsels of meat can be used in many ways. Traditionally served in a warm tortilla with pickled red onions, the dish originates from the Mayan region of Mexico, primarily the Yucatan peninsula."Once Upon a Time in Mexico""El, you really must try this because it's puerco pibil. It's a slow-roasted pork, nothing fancy. It just happens to be my favorite, and I order it with a tequila and lime in every dive I go to in this country. And honestly, that is the best it's ever been anywhere. In fact, it's too good." - Agent Sands
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Kala Masala Almond Cookies
Pain d'amande is a classic French almond cookie. Thin and crispy, and not overly sweet, they make an excellent accompaniment to tea or coffee. A stack of these cookies wrapped up with string makes a quaint gift, and happens to be exactly how we first came to try them.Since our first encounter with these cookies, we've played with different flavors and shapes. Of all our experiments, the most successful added Kala Masala to the cookie dough. Masala blends are usually quite versatile and deserve to be played with in more than savory dishes. Our Kala Masala blend has warm spices like coconut, clove, cinnamon and star anise. The almonds in the Pain d'amande are a perfect vehicle for all of these spices, giving them a gently sweet base flavor upon which they can shine.
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