Making Appetizers!

Headed out to the Sandy River to see friends I decided to bring bruschetta and ceviche. I know it sounds amazing and it was! It was my first time making ceviche and it turned out great! I used an adapted ceviche recipe from Simply Recipes and the bruschetta recipe was my own!

Ceviche Ingredients
1 pound medium-small shrimp, peeled and deveined (mine were cooked but there's instructions on how to cook them in the link-I'm sure they didn't soak up as much flavor but, it was still pretty good)
1 pound bay scallops
2 Tbsp salt
3/4 cup lime juice (juice from 4-6 limes)
1 cup finely chopped red onion
1 serrano chile, ribs and seeds removed, minced (it could use more heat, you could barely taste it)
1 cup chopped cilantro
1 cucumber, peeled diced into 1/2-inch pieces
1 avocado, peeled, seed removed, cut into 1/2-inch chunks



I used Gramma's electric juicer. She used to make grapefruit juice with it. It works perfect!



Clean as whistles!



Chopped serrano, now it really wasn't spicy. I was expecting some more kick and would do something different next time.

1 Put cooked shrimp in dish and add the lime juice. Cover and refrigerate for a half hour.

2 Mix in the chopped red onion and serrano chile. Refrigerate over night or at least an hour.

3 Right before serving, add the cilantro, cucumber, and avocado.

4 Serves 4-6. It seems that one could add tequila to this mixture as well. Hmmm.

YUM!



Now the Bruschetta:
4 garden tomatoes
Some cherry tomatoes because they were available
1/2 Sweet onion (or less)
Red bell pepper
Fresh basil
Salt and Pepper







Finished product! I think the bell pepper adds a great taste and would be sad without it.

Great delicious surprise!

Matt and I are only getting better in the kitchen. This week Matt wanted tater tots with out ritual artichoke and champagne. Yum! YAM TATER TOTS rocked our socks and we are so excited to cook up some more varieties. I used the ingredients from Apron Strings and then just did what sounded OK.

Ingredients:
3 yams
1 tsp salt
1 TBS GF AP flour
1 TBS cornstarch
1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp smoked paprika (it's so fun to have this!)
1/2 tsp cinnamon

Boil the yams for 20 min.



Peel and grate/mush then add ingredients.



First you rooollllll it up.



And throw it in the pan. I let them get pretty brown and crunchy. They could be taken out earlier per taste. I also wonder about using breadcrumbs. They don't seem like they need them.



FANTASTIC. We experimented with the last few and put in some Daiya cheese, those 6 were ever MORE amazing. We can't wait to try some with cheese and jalapenos or bacon!



Our addiction: steamed artichoke and secret sauce (aka fry sauce)



Matt picked out pink flowers and pink champagne. :)



And this is what happens when you leave your camera and your boyfriend in the kitchen.

Welcome CAFE RIO CO!

I fell asleep on the bus one day and woke up suddenly, looked over and saw a Gluten Free Waffle Cafe right on Burnside! I new that's exactly what I needed in life and ended up there for breakfast on my way home from work. Cafe Rio Co!
Aaron and Chelsea started this place about 2 months ago, it had been there 7-year dream. They have a very cute cafe little cafe. A counter, an espresso machine, some hot plates, a few seats and food! They use all organic ingredients and have meat, vegetarian and vegan options. They also serve high quality coffee and tea. They have pastries brought in from New Cascadia Traditional Bakery, another of my frequent stops.
I've been there twice now and can't wait for more. I haven't been able to get beyond the waffle rancheros. Matt has had the Hunny Nut Banana and the Ham and Cheese. I'll work on branching out. :) I highly recommend this place. Even if you're not an allergy-free person (like Matt). It has a great vibe, very homey, very friendly. 22nd and Burnside, if you need a date you know who to call.

Here's Chelsea HAND SQUEEZING my order of OJ. It's the best I've ever had!



Ham and Cheese Waffle



Waffle Ranchero YUM!

Some good dishes of the month:

Safeco Field goes gluten free? Go Mariners! That's right GF fish and chips served at the Hit if Here Cafe behind right field. We went to watch the Red Socks sadly lose. But it was a great game with great food!


My man Matt got what would be my number one non-allergy-free choice: The bacon wrapped pulled pork hot dog with sweet apple chutney. Yum!



For my homecoming after 2 weeks away, what better than strawberries and bubbly.



Just another dish we made at mom's. Grilled corn, tomato salsa stuffed in tostitos and covered with Tapatio!

Wedding Potluck: Stuffed Bell Peppers

It's the day of the wedding for http://awoodennest.blogspot.com/. For the potluck I'm making stuffed bell peppers. Originally I had planned on making fajitas this week so I had everything I needed.

Quinoa/Sausage Stuffed Bell Peppers
4 bell peppers, any colors
Quiona, chicken broth, bay leaf
Italian sausage (I used sweet but spicy would be good)
1 small onion, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 cup fresh parsley
salt and pepper

-Gut and cut the peppers, either top off or length-wise so they will fit in an oven-safe dish. Boil them for about 5 minutes.
-Cook quinoa according to directions. I used chicken broth instead of water and added a bay leaf
-Oops, breakfast is in the picture too :-)



-Brown the Italian sausage with onion, garlic, add parsley and remove from heat



-Cook quinoa like rice, until water is absorbed, remove bay leaf



-Add quinoa to Italian sausage so it will soak up the juices. Mix them and stuff into peppers. I stuffed pepper and then put the rest of the mix in the bottom of the dish so not to waste



-Here's the cute oven dish I used-thanks Gramma!



-Bake for 30 minutes at 350. Serve warm. Add parsley to garnish. Yum!



This is where the reception is, beautiful. Off to work!