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!

Halloween holds such joyous memories for me.  I equate October with creativity, imagination, family closeness, traditional sweet confections, and the kick off to the official holiday season. However you decide to mask your face, as a ghost, mummy, witch, sexy nurse or last years vampire…. make sure you leave enough room to stuff your face with my Halloween Caramel Apples.  Why? Because they are FREAK-ing delicious and simple to make!

Ingredients for Halloween Caramel Apples:

7 – Melissa’s Produce Granny Smith Apples or Pears

7 – popsicle sticks

2 – tablespoons milk

1 – package of caramels (about 50 unwrapped pieces)

melted chocolate of your choice

royal icing or frosting

 Directions:

1. Wash and dry apples and/or pears

2. Insert stick into apple or pear

3. Over a medium low flame in a sauce pan add milk and caramels. Stir until completely melted.

4. Line a platter or cookie sheet with a piece of buttered wax paper.

5. Dip apples into caramel until completely covered, and place on lined platter.

6. Place apples/pears in refrigerator for 1 hour to set.

7. Melt chocolate of your choice, White works well for decorating purposes.

8. Dip caramel apples/pears into chocolate and place back into the fridge for an additional 45 minutes.

9. Once the apples/pears are set remove from fridge and decorate with royal icing or frosting to make a spook-tacular frightfully delicious apple!

10. Enjoy and HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

I would like to thank Melissa’s Produce for suppling me with all the apples and pears.

Video and photos by: Mando Lopez

I never walk places alone…. But Saturday night had me feeling brave. I was at the Dodger game with my family and naturally instagraming and tweeting my where abouts, when I got a text from a friend saying she was at the stadium as well and wanted to say “Hi.”  I couldn’t pull any of my family members from their glued seats to accompany me to walk over and meet my friend.  I thought “I’ll just go by myself, it’ll be a little adventure.”  I popped a piece of Trident Layers Wild Strawberry + Tangy Citrus chewing gum in my mouth and dashed up the stairs to the top of the field area, found the nearest stairwell and the next thing you know I was doing the seventh inning stretch with my oldest girlfriend.  It felt good to recite “take me out to the ball game” at the top of my lungs, and even better to do it in fond company.  It’s in those minutes that you feel connected and full of life.  We kissed goodbye and promised to see eachother soon.  As I walked back to my seat to meet my family, I was so high on the winning energy of the stadium and on having a moment to be silly alone…. I burst into song singing out loud not caring who could hear or who was witnessing my strut.  I pretended to be John Travolta in  “Saturday Night Fever”  singing  “You can tell by the way I use my walk I’m a woman’s man, no time to talk.”  I guess you could say I was feeling sassy.  I guess you could say it was the gum chewing and living in the moment.

I dare you to do the same, take a path you wouldn’t normally take and see what unfolds. These people here on the subway are living it up “All Night Long.”

Disclosure: This is part of a sponsored campaign by Latina Mom Bloggers and Trident.  However all opinions expressed are solely my own. 

It’s National Guacamole Day, and my house is stocked with bowls of tortilla strips and guacamole.  The man in my house usually watches football on Sundays and with that habit comes snacking.  I say stocked because each room in the house has a T.V. blaring the latest touchdown, and right next to the remote control is a bowl of guacamole and chips.  Easy to grab and even more delicious to savor.  Of course I made my own guacamole and tortilla strips… click here for the recipe, after all it is National Guacamole Day and we should all be celebrating.  While I was smashing my Avocados from Mexico, making a big creamy batch of guacamole, I remembered all the folks I had interviewed while I was in NYC for BlogHer12.  Each one of them talked about guacamole as if it were a patron saint.  I saw fireworks in their eyes at the mere mention of guacamole.  People of all walks of life LOVE the green stuff known as guacamole.  People just love green stuff in general I guess, but guacamole is up there.

Here, take a look for yourself,  I had the pleasure of working on this sweet video with my fellow Abuelita Avocado Ambassadors.

Disclosure:  This is a sponsored post on behalf of Avocados from Mexico and Latina Bloggers Connect.  The recipe and opinions are my own!  Yes, and without a doubt #ILoveAvocados #AmoLosAguacates

Spicy is one of the preferred flavors in my library of taste, I reach for it and crave it more often than not. This is not a trait I was born with, but a preference I developed. Spice comes to me in an assortment of ways, and pickling happens to be a tradition both sides of my family have enjoyed for years. My Great Grandma Presley use to make her own pickles, and my Grandfather Sandoval always ate a pickled guero chile with his sandwich. My pickling recipe is a mish mash of many flavors pulled from my upbringing and travels rolled into one.  I used onions and veggies for this pickling and added a Red Savina Habanero Pepper from Melissa’s Produce to bring on the heat. Now my sandwiches, and veggie burgers…. will be complete.

Ingredients for Spicy Pickled Onions and Veggies:

1 – Red Savina Habanero Pepper (even a half of one will bring heat)

2 – cloves of garlic (smashed)

3 – 1 inch cubes of watermelon

2 – radish (sliced)

1 – carrot (sliced)

1 – red onion (sliced)

1/2 – teaspoon coriander seeds

1/4 – teaspoon cumin seeds

1/4 – teaspoon oregano

1/4 – teaspoon black pepper

1/2 – teaspoon salt

1 – 8.5 oz bottle of Red Wine Vinegar

a large jar.

See video for instruction.

Store in fridge for 2 days minimum before eating.

Video shot with my iPhone by: Mando Lopez

Those gorgeous New Mexico Hatch Chiles are once again in season from NOW to mid September.  My friends over at Melissa’s Produce sent me a bunch of hot and mild chiles to roast and use for savory spicy dishes. I couldn’t be satisfied with hatch chiles as a seasonal treat so I decided to preserve them for an all year round indulgence. Check out my cool video below to see how.

Drool worthy Hatch Chile Corn Bread Strata….. Click here.

Want to learn to roast Hatch chiles… Click over to Shockingly Delicious.

Photo and video shot with my iPhone taken by: Mando Lopez

It’s official…. Presley’s Pantry is 1 year old.  It’s growing up so fast. 🙂  Thank you to all the people who have supported me along the way!  I sincerely appreciate it and promise to continue making yummy things to eat. 🙂

Much Love,

Nicole