I made this recipe for the first time about 6 years ago. I found myself in a strange house a top the hill in Mount Washington. My Aunt Brilla was here in Los Angeles visiting, and had rented this beautiful home, it being my first time in this kitchen made cooking a little difficult since I had no idea where anything was. I searched the drawers and cabinets and could only find a baking dish, a sharp knife and a frying pan.  We had a house full of visitors who had come by to see my Aunt since she’s not in town that often and many of them were vegetarians. I thought fast on my feet and started frying up some cubed potatoes to make a vegetable stuffing for the pile of bell peppers a friend had brought over. Simple. Delicious. Easy to make. I stuffed the peppers popped them in the oven for 45 to an hour and by the time they were done so was the rest of the meal.

Ingredients for Baked Stuffed Bell Peppers:

• 3 – Idaho Potatoes (peeled, diced into cubes and fried til crisp and cooked through)
• 1/2 – cup cheddar cheese (cubed)
• 1/2 – cup pepper jack cheese (cubed)
• 1/2 – cup parmesan cheese (grated)
• 3/4 – cup tomato (chopped into small cubes)
• 1 – onion (sliced)
• 8 – mushrooms (chopped into quarters)
• 2 – tablespoons butter
• 10 – fresh basil leaves (torn into pieces)
• 4 – slices of rosemary bread (toasted and cut into cubes)
• 1 – tablespoon garlic (minced)
• 1/2 – vegetable broth
• 10 – bell peppers

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to   degrees Fahrenheit
2. Fry potatoes and once cooked remove from flame and set to the side.
3. Cut cheeses, and tomatoes and set to the side.
4. In a frying pan add butter and saute onion and mushrooms together for about 10 minutes or until onions are limp. Remove from heat and set to the side.
5. Toast Rosemary bread and cut into cubes. Set to the side.
6. In a large bowl add potatoes, cheeses, tomatoes, onions and mushrooms, basil leaf pieces, toast, and garlic. Mix well. Then pour broth over top and mix again. Set stuffing mixture to the side.
7. Wash and dry bell peppers. Then cut off tops of bell peppers (reserve tops to the side) and remove seeds and veins from the inside. Set to the side.
8. Place empty bell peppers in a baking dish, then once they are snug take a huge spoonful of stuffing mixture and fill to the top. Then top each pepper with the top. 
9. Bake for 45 to 60 minutes.
10. Enjoy!

Sometimes you just need comfort. I found joy and comfort in Idaho. I had never been and went with the Idaho Potato Commission on a breathtaking trip to the carbs capital for a 75th anniversary celebration. I made fantastic new friends while discovering the world of potato farming. We met the growers and the humble people that supply us with mountains of potatoes. I witnessed first hand all the work that goes into bringing spuds to our table.  I will forever remember these lovely people and wonder from this point forward if my potatoes came from one of the farms I visited. I made this lovely recipe with Idaho potatoes as an ode to my incredible trip. I couldn’t resist showing you a few pics from the trip and a short sneak peek video of our spuds from ground to the factory. I left there loving Idaho with hopes of returning one day.

Ingredients for potato green chile cheese casserole:

4 – cups corn flakes

1 – stick butter (melted)

1 – can 14 0z whole anaheim green chiles (only use (8)drained, patted dry)

12 – oz pepper jack cheese

6 – green onions (sliced thin)

1/3 – cup chopped onion

15 to 20 – Melissa’s Produce Dutch Yellow Idaho Potatoes

1 –  Russet Idaho Potato

1/2 – cup sour cream

12 – oz cheddar cheese (grated)

1/2 – cup 1/2 & 1/2

Preheat oven to 350 fahrenheit

Crush cornflakes in a bag then add to a bowl with melted butter. Mix well to combine.  Place half of the cornflake mixture into a 8×5 baking dish. Press down on cornflake mixture to line bottom half of baking dish.

Take chiles and stuff with big pieces of pepper jack cheese. Place stuffed chiles on top of corn flakes. Then sprinkle with green onions and onion. Shred remaining pepper jack cheese and set to the side.

Peel all potatoes and cut into 2 inch pieces. Then in a pot bring water to a boil and boil potatoes for 2o minutes. Remove from flame and drain. Then pour potatoes over chiles and onion.

In a pot add sour cream, remaining pepper jack and cheddar cheese, and 1/2 & 1/2 and mix over a low flame until sauce is smooth and cheese is melted. Then pour over potatoes.

Then with the other half of cornflake mixture add to the top of the casserole.

Cover dish with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Then remove foil and bake for an additional 25 minutes or until top is golden crisp brown. Enjoy with a leafy green salad for the perfect meal.

Here are some photos from my trip.

Eleven bloggers in Idaho- L to R: Marla Meridith, Julie Deily, Dorothy Reinhold, Patti Londre, Meagan Micozzi, Rachael Hutchings, Me, Greg Henry, Sara O’Donnell, Jessica Reddick, and Jessica Segarra.

A BIG BIG FUZZY WARM THANK YOU TO THE IDAHO POTATO COMMISSION FOR THIS WONDERFUL TRIP!

I learned to listen to my heart long ago…. it’s just as powerful as the mind, and equally as wise.  Even if I refused to listen, it makes itself heard.  The heart wants what it wants….  it could be a MAD love affair or a kiss in the rain or simply a cup of mac and cheese.  I have a mad love and I may want to kiss in the rain if it’s not going to frizz my hair, but one thing is certain, I always want mac and cheese.  I recently had a little gathering and since valentine’s day is around the corner, I made heart shaped cups of my favorite mac and cheese.  Or maybe I made them for my demanding heart.  Which ever the case – AMOR conquers all!

Ingredients for Mac and Cheese Cups:

1 – pint cherry tomatoes (cut in half) (I saute them first in a tablespoon of olive oil)

1 – tablespoon Lawry’s seasoning salt

1 – tablespoon black pepper

1/2 – pound macaroni (cooked according to package)

6 – sliced mushrooms

1 1/2 – cups chopped ham

1/4 – cup chopped green onion (white part only)

1/4 – cup torn pieces of fresh basil

2 – cups shredded cheddar cheese

2 – cups shredded jack cheese

1 – teaspoon chili flakes

24 – heart shaped baking cups

1 – stick butter

1 – tablespoon minced garlic

1 – can 12 ounces evaporated milk ( I use Nestle)

2 – cups half and half

1 – tablespoon spicy brown mustard

3/4 – cup panko bread crumbs

Preheat oven to 400 fahrenheit

In a big bowl combine cherry tomatoes, Lawry’s, black pepper, macaroni, mushrooms, ham, green onion, basil, cheddar cheese, jack cheese, and chili flakes. Mix well. Then fill each heart shaped baking cup with a few tablespoons of mixture.

Line two cookie sheets with aluminum foil then place your heart shaped baking cups side by side.

In a big pan, over a medium flame, add butter and melt down.

Then add garlic to melted butter, along with evaporated milk, half and half, and spicy brown mustard. Mix well and make sure to really  mix the mustard in.

Bring butter/cream mixture to a slight boil. Then pull off flame and fill each cup with 1/8 of cup of cream mixture.

Then top each cup with a big pinch on panko crumbs.

Bake in the oven for 25 minutes. Serve hot! 🙂

 Happy V-Day!

All photos taken by: Mando Lopez

When I elect to go for the gusto….there is no holding me back.  Yes I love bacon, but more than that I heart a slab of beans and cheese smeared in a flour tortilla.  Who doesn’t?  This is a sneak peek of what goes down in my kitchen on those nights when I live to eat with no restraints….. that falls under the category of soothing my soul.

All photos taken by: Mando Lopez and Nicole Presley

Ingredients for bacon bean and cheese burrito:

a package of bacon

1 – chile de arbol

3 – cups beans de la olla (if you don’t have time to make a batch “Sun Vista” pinto beans works well)

1 – teaspoon salt

1 – cup grated jack cheese

1 – cup grated cheddar cheese

flour tortillas

In a large pan over a medium flame, fry up your bacon till it is crisp and perfectly cooked. Then remove bacon from grease and dispose of half the grease.

Reserve the other half and while it’s still hot add the chile de arbol and beans.  Allow for beans to heat stirring occasionally.  Then add salt and with a potato masher start to smash beans to get a creamy consistency.

Next add jack cheese and cheddar cheese…. Mix well. Then crumble in bacon.  Reserve a few slices on the side.  Remove from flame.

Heat flour tortilla on each side over an open flame for 30 seconds on both sides.  Then add 2 tablespoons of bean and cheese to the middle of the tortilla and add a slice of bacon to the center of the beans.

Fold in outer ends, then roll to close.  Once you have your burrito/burritos rolled up heat a non stick pan over a medium flame and allow pan to get hot.

Place burrito in pan and grill on each side till tortilla is crisp.

Remove from flame and dig into HEAVEN!  I eat mine all by itself or with sour cream, avocado, salsa or tapatio.  Mmmmmmmm.  Enjoy!

Milk and dairy products help make up a healthy balanced diet filled with calcium.  I supply my fridge with all things dairy from Milk to Cheese to BUTTER to Yogurt, just to ensure there are yummy alternatives for my family to choose from.  Being the number ONE dairy state in the nation… it is never hard for me to find the “Real California Milk/Cheese” seal at the market.  By buying this seal I know I’m supporting 1,620 dairy families and NOW California schools too!  You ask how are we supporting California schools?

Let me tell you how!  From Oct. 1st, 2011 to Dec. 31st, 20011 there is a new program EVERYONE should know about.  Especially if you have young school aged children who live in California.  The wonderful California Dairy Families have put together this exciting program for Southern California* elementary classrooms.  They are awarding Southern California elementary classrooms, schools, and students with up to $2 million in cash, books, and other prizes!  There are thousands of chances to win, just for collecting Real California Milk seals from the milk and dairy products you buy.  So get “moo-ving” and get your children’s teachers involved, neighbors, friends, and family to start collecting Real California Milk seals today.  Good luck!

HERE’S HOW IT WORKS: PRIZES INCLUDE:

1. COLLECT:  Collect Real California Milk seals.  Look for this seal on milk and other dairy products.

2. ENTER:  Give the Real California Milk seals you’ve collected to your child’s teacher. Each seal counts as an entry.

3. WIN!  Teacher sends seals in to win.  Up to $2 million in cash and prizes will be awarded!

Up to $20,000 in cash prizes for schools.  Scholastic books for nearly every class that enters.  Interactive fitness games for students in winning classrooms!

To find out more about how you can join the “Real Seal Appeal” and help our teachers help our kids, visit scholastic.com/sealappeal

*Participating elementary schools in Imperial, Kern, Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Diego, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara and Ventura counties.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            I participated in this campaign as a member of One2One Network and am eligible for a prize drawing.  All opinions stated in the post are my own.