Tag Archives: chipotle

Maple-Chipotle Peanuts

I’ve had so many people say to me lately, “Can you believe it’s almost Thanksgiving?” I don’t know what’s surprising about it to people but it’s no shock to me.  Maybe it’s that I think about food all the time and have been thinking about what I want to make for Thanksgiving since the calendar changed to November.  Either way, yes, Thanksgiving is this Thursday so I hope everyone is ready.  It’ll be low key for me, just me and my cousin, so I have no stress in making a ton of food.  But if you have a bunch of people coming by and wonder how you’ll get everything done, consider making these Maple-Chipotle Peanuts if you need a quick and easy, no stress, no fuss appetizer that can be made ahead of time.

Maple syrup and chipotle chile pepper are simmered together until slightly thickened and then mixed with dry-roasted peanuts.  Once cooled, the result is sweet, salty, and spicy peanuts that are seriously addictive.  Once the peanuts cool, the peanuts become ooey and gooey and it’s hard to not want to shove your face into these.  Once they’ve cooled overnight, the syrup hardens, the gooeyness is gone and the peanuts become candied.  Whichever way you prefer, these are amazing.  The smell of these peanuts reminded me of being at a carnival or my county fair as a kid for some reason.  I realized that if I continued to eat these peanuts at the rapid rate I was, there was a good chance I would have devoured an entire container of peanuts in two days.  So consider yourself warned.  If you have a lot of guests coming, you might want to make two batches.  And if you have any leftover, throw a handful on top of some pumpkin ice cream.  Yum!

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The ingredients:

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Simmer 1/3 cup maple syrup with 1/2 teaspoon chipotle chile powder in a saucepan until reduced by half, about 5 minutes.

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Stir in 2 cups salted dry-roasted peanuts.

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Pour onto a lightly oiled pan and let cool.

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Omissions:  None

Substitutions:  None

Overall Rating:  Love It

Source:  Food Network magazine

Roasted Chipotle-Lime Sweet Potatoes

It’s surprising to me how sometimes I get cravings for food that I didn’t eat as a kid and still don’t eat often.  The other day I was sitting at work when the overwhelming craving for sweet potatoes came over me.  And not just sweet potatoes – roasted sweet potatoes.  It was such a specific and odd craving, far more deep than my normal cravings for chocolate or Chinese food.  Maybe it was my body’s way of telling me I need Vitamin C?  I came home that night and searched through my recipes but could only find recipes for mashed sweet potatoes, nothing roasted.  So, I decided to wing it.  The result were these perfectly sweet and spicy Roasted Chipotle-Lime Sweet Potatoes.

Fresh sweet potatoes are tossed with a little olive oil and chipotle chile pepper before being roasted in the oven until browned and soft.  A light sprinkle of salt and squeeze of fresh lime juice finish off these potatoes which could be eaten as a side to any dish or simply as a light meal in itself.  The combination of natural sweetness in the potatoes with the spicy chipotle makes for a perfect marriage of flavors and the addition of citrus at the end really brightens up the whole dish.  If you take a quick scan online for roasted sweet potatoes recipes, most include brown sugar or honey but I didn’t want any added sugar and preferred to keep this savory.  If you don’t like the spicy kick of chipotle chile pepper and prefer a more subtle flavor, cinnamon or smoked paprika would be good substitutions.

Roasted Chipotle-Lime Sweet Potatoes (makes 4 servings)

  • 2 sweet potatoes, scrubbed
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1/2 teaspoon chipotle chile pepper
  • 1/2 a lime
  • salt to taste

Preheat oven to 400°F.  Chop sweet potatoes into bite size pieces and place in a large bowl.  Add olive oil; toss to coat.  Sprinkle chipotle chile pepper over the potatoes; toss to coat.  Place potatoes on a baking sheet, spreading into a single layer.  Bake for 30-35 minutes, tossing once halfway through, until potatoes are soft and browned.  Squeeze lime juice over warm potatoes.  Sprinkle with salt, to taste.

The ingredients:

Chop sweet potatoes into bite size pieces and place in a large bowl.  Add olive oil; toss to coat.

Sprinkle chipotle chili pepper over the potatoes; toss to coat.  Place potatoes on a baking sheet, spreading into a single layer.  Bake for 30-35 minutes, tossing once halfway through, until potatoes are soft and browned.

Squeeze lime juice over warm potatoes.

Sprinkle with salt, to taste.

Tequila-Glazed Grilled Chicken

I’ve experimented with different kinds of rubs to put on chicken over the years and have managed to accumulate a pretty big pile of rub recipes.  I’ve decided that any kind of spice-rubbed chicken is probably my favorite way of eating chicken any given time – more so than chicken parmesan or fried chicken.  I have a healthy collection of spices in my cabinet so I’m always prepared for anything.  So, what’s better than spice-rubbed chicken?  Glazed spice-rubbed chicken! 

This Tequila-Glazed Grilled Chicken not only has a rub of cumin, chili powder, and chipotle chili powder (one of my favorites!) but it’s also glazed with a sauce reduction of tequila, pineapple juice, honey, lime, and red pepper flake.  The rub provides a ton of flavor and a little bit of heat which pairs wonderfully with the slight sweetness of the glaze.  I used regular chicken breasts instead of chicken thighs but use whatever you like and cook accordingly.  And don’t worry if you don’t like tequila – it provides a subtle background flavor without making this taste like a drunken chicken dish.  I’m going out on a limb here and calling this one of my favorite chicken dishes so far so please, give it a try!

The ingredients:

Combine the cumin, chili powder, salt, and chipotle chili powder and rub evenly over the chicken.

In a small pan, bring the pineapple juice, tequila, and honey to a boil and cook until reduced (about 10 minutes).  Combine cornstarch and water in a small bowl and add to the juice mixture, stirring constantly with a whisk.  Boil for 1 minute, stirring constantly.  Remove from heat, and stir in lime rind, lime juice, and crushed red pepper.

Place chicken on a grill rack coated with cooking spray and grill, basting each side occasionally with juice mixture, until chicken is cooked thoroughly (approximately 8-10 minutes on each side or until a meat thermometer reads 165ºF internally.)

Additions:  None

Omissions:  None

Substitutions:

  • Chicken breasts

Overall Rating:  Love It

Source:  Cooking Light Magazine

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