Glide Zen

If I had to choose one type of food to live on for the rest of my life it would probably be Mexican food. I could hardly live without it. Lately I've been looking for a good Queso Blanco Dip recipe, just like what you get at a Mexican restaurant. Most of the recipes I found contained White American cheese in them. I'm not a big fan of processed cheese so I decided to go with one of my favorite cheeses that is commonly found in Mexican cuisine - Monterrey Jack cheese. It melts smoothly, it has a wonderful flavor and of course, it's not processed .  I created my own recipe and decided to start the recipe out with a roux, not only to thicken the cheese sauce but to add a starch to the mixture to prevent it from separating and curdling. You can easily adjust this recipe to suite your taste. For example if you like a little heat you could saute some diced fresh jalapenos along with the onion or add pickled jalapenos at the end of cooking. If you don't like ...

Anything that contains the word "Caprese" in the recipe title, I'm in. I love Caprese entrees and appetizers and I love a hot off the griddle grilled cheese. When the two are combined together you get an intensely delicious sandwich that you won't easily forget. Obviously you don't have to use fresh bread as I listed in the recipe, but I figure if you are going to fill a sandwich with fresh mozzarella, fresh tomatoes and fresh basil then you may as well keep a good thing going. Looking for a delightfully simple and quick lunch or dinner idea? Look no further because it doesn't get much easier than grilled cheese and this is grilled cheese done right. Enjoy!   Caprese Grilled Cheese Yields 1 serving Ingredients: 2 slices fresh bread (I recommend sourdough or rustic white bread) 3 oz fresh mozzarella, sliced into rounds or grated* 4 - 6 Roma tomato slices 1 Tbsp chopped, fresh basil ribbons freshly ground black pepper, to taste 2 tsp extra virgi...

All the deliciousness of a cannoli without the frying mess!? Yes indeed. These cupcakes are complete and utter bliss! I have a total weakness for cannolis so I was so excited to see they come in cupcake form. I love all things pastry and all things cupcake and these are the best of both worlds combined into one decadent, out of this world dessert. These are deliciously indulgent and perfectly dainty. They are fancy enough that I felt it was an occasion worth getting out my Grandmother's fine china set, sipping milk out of a tea cup and gently using a fork as if I were a Queen. That is until after one bite, I quickly forgot that fancy mannered moment and rather wanted to drop my fork and shove the entire cupcake in mouth and devour all of it in it's entirety without leaving a smidgen of a crumb behind. And then steal everyone else's. Yes just that good. These are one of the best cupcakes I've ever had and they will definitely be going on my list of favorite cupca...

Aww, just look at all the gooey, soon to be stretched and strung (upon my no longer empty fork) cheese and dream of what could be yours =)! Italian comfort food at its finest. The saying third times a charm, it's true. Yes this is my third attempt at creating what I'd envisioned, and at last a beautifully delicious success.  The first time I tried Chicken Caprese lasagna roll ups - strange texture and not my favorite flavor, the second time around I omitted the chicken and made them using fresh Mozzarella - far to soupy and (I was expecting some liquid but I'm telling you half the baking dish was filled with the liquid from the fresh Mozza). The texture of the fresh Mozzarella seemed a little gummy when it melted too. So, the third time I went with a more traditional cheese feeling with the average low-moisture part skim Mozzarella cheese and lots of it, a bit of Parmesan for flavor and a little Ricotta for texture and glueage (I know t...

So I woke up bright and early today to create what I thought was a genius idea, a light broccoli cheese soup. Well, lets just say it failed epicly because broccoli cheese soup is just not meant to be light. It's not the same without some butter, lots of cheese and a little cream. It lacked far too much, so I tossed it down the sink and began again - the right way. With all the goodness it's intended to have. Sometimes it's worth the calories! I went with a larger portion milk to a lesser portion of cream, so it's better for you than a mostly cream or half and half version at least =). I threw in one of my favorite herbs, a bit of thyme (I tossed a bit into my gravy yesterday too it compliments a lot of foods). Then, I couldn't stick with just one type of cheese so I had to add in some Parmesan. I may call it the secret of the soup. You could even up it to 2 oz of Parmesan if you want a slightly more pronounced flavor. It really gives the soup a perfect little ki...

If I had to choose one type of food to live on for the rest of my life it would probably be Mexican food. I could hardly live without it. Lately I've been looking for a good Queso Blanco Dip recipe, just like what you get at a Mexican restaurant. Most of the recipes I found contained White American cheese in them. I'm not a big fan of processed cheese so I decided to go with one of my favorite cheeses that is commonly found in Mexican cuisine - Monterrey Jack cheese. It melts smoothly, it has a wonderful flavor and of course, it's not processed .  I created my own recipe and decided to start the recipe out with a roux, not only to thicken the cheese sauce but to add a starch to the mixture to prevent it from separating and curdling. You can easily adjust this recipe to suite your taste. For example if you like a little heat you could saute some diced fresh jalapenos along with the onion or add pickled jalapenos at the end of cooking. If you don't like ...

Anything that contains the word "Caprese" in the recipe title, I'm in. I love Caprese entrees and appetizers and I love a hot off the griddle grilled cheese. When the two are combined together you get an intensely delicious sandwich that you won't easily forget. Obviously you don't have to use fresh bread as I listed in the recipe, but I figure if you are going to fill a sandwich with fresh mozzarella, fresh tomatoes and fresh basil then you may as well keep a good thing going. Looking for a delightfully simple and quick lunch or dinner idea? Look no further because it doesn't get much easier than grilled cheese and this is grilled cheese done right. Enjoy!   Caprese Grilled Cheese Yields 1 serving Ingredients: 2 slices fresh bread (I recommend sourdough or rustic white bread) 3 oz fresh mozzarella, sliced into rounds or grated* 4 - 6 Roma tomato slices 1 Tbsp chopped, fresh basil ribbons freshly ground black pepper, to taste 2 tsp extra virgi...