Recent Posts

“Flourless”  Pistachio Cake

“Flourless” Pistachio Cake

Do you love pistachios? Do you love a decadent cake? If you’ve answered “yes” to both of these questions, this is the cake for you.  Plus, if you love food trivia, here is a bit of pistachio trivia to regale your friends when you serve…

It’s a Hit on my Table!  Cauliflower Bisque

It’s a Hit on my Table! Cauliflower Bisque

Put down what you are doing and make a pot of this soup! It’s absolutely delicious and, you know, it’s a superfood. Who doesn’t need to pack more superfoods into their diet? If you cook for yourself or for a small family, you might be…

Oldies But Goodies: Spicy Corn and Chile Salad

Oldies But Goodies: Spicy Corn and Chile Salad

Every month Blue Cayenne features recipes from our archive of more than four hundred recipes. These recipes are our “Oldies But Goodies.” Today’s Oldie But Goodie recipe is for Spicy Corn and Chile Salad. It’s just the thing to warm up those cold winter days. 

You don’t want to miss this great recipe…again.

Want to dive deeper into our recipe archive? Just click one of the categories at the top of this page or use the category search drop down menu on the right side of this page.

And…here is a link to Blue Cayenne’s main page: Blue Cayenne.. If you are in the mood to cook (or eat!), we hope you will take a moment to look at the many excellent recipes we have featured.

To Your Health: Butternut Squash and Red Lentil Soup With Coconut Milk

To Your Health: Butternut Squash and Red Lentil Soup With Coconut Milk

I pretty much adore lentils–especially the delicate earthy-flavored red/orange ones.  I can’t remember where I had my first taste of lentils. I’m sure it was after I was an adult. I’m thinking it was probably in India when our guide, Krishan, took us into his…

A Keeper: Buttermilk Banana Cake

A Keeper: Buttermilk Banana Cake

I had buttermilk I needed to use. I had over-ripe bananas. (I ALWAYS have over-ripe bananas.) And, after a stressful couple of weeks, I needed cake.  So, this Bon Appetit recipe for Buttermilk Banana Cake called my name and it is (was) excellent. The sweet…

Mexican Sauces: Part Two (Red)

Mexican Sauces: Part Two (Red)

In my last Blue Cayenne post, I introduced two Mexican sauces that I had enjoyed. My program only allows me to format one recipe at a time. So, here is part two of that post with the red sauce recipe.

This sauce recipe is from the cookbook Tamales 101 available at your local bookstore or on Amazon here.

Here is the recipe as I prepared it in my kitchen. 

Mexican Red Chile Sauce

January 26, 2024
Ingredients
  • 10 ancho chiles (dried poblanos)
  • 4 California chiles (dried)
  • 4 onions (quartered)
  • 8 garlic cloves
  • 2 T. olive oil
  • 3 t. ground cumin
  • 2 to 4 C. vegetable broth
  • 1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes or puree
  • 2 T. sugar
  • 1 T. salt (or to taste)
Directions
  • Step 1 Remove the seeds from the dried chiles and rinse the chiles. Set aside.
  • Step 2 Boil 4 C. water. Remove the water from the heat and put the dried chiles into the water, weighting the chiles down to submerge them so that they can fully soak. Cover the pot with the soaking chiles and set aside for 30 minutes.
  • Step 3 While the dried chiles are soaking, boil onions for 25 minutes.  You want the onions to soften.
  • Step 4 Remove the dried chiles from the soaking water. Reserve 2 cups of the soaking water for use later in the recipe. Put the soaked chiles in a food processor or blender and puree the chiles, boiled onions and garlic.
  • Step 5 Heat oil in a saucepan. Stir the ground cumin into the oil. Add the chile mixture to the pan and simmer for about 3 minutes. Add 1 C. stock, 1 C. reserved chile soaking liquid and tomatoes to the pan. Stir. Add additional stock  and/or chile soaking water to your sauce to bring it to a thin saucy consistency. Add sugar and salt. Cook for 10 minutes more, stirring the mixture occasionally. You want your sauce to be smooth but to have a bit of texture.
  • Step 6 Adjust salt and sugar seasoning o your taste. Cool and refrigerate.
  • Step 7 This sauce is wonderful on enchiladas and tamales.
A Winner!  Mexican Salsa Verde

A Winner! Mexican Salsa Verde

I’ve finally found it. I’ve been on a life-long quest to find restaurant-quality red and green chile sauces for tacos, enchiladas and all manner of Mexican food delights. Like so many things in life, this recipe discovery came unexpectedly while I was chasing another recipe…

Potato Pancake With Apple Salad

Potato Pancake With Apple Salad

A potato pancake under your salad? Who woulda thunk it? This recipe is adapted from one that appears in  Brooklyn-based Hetty McKinnon’s wonderful new book Tenderheart, A Cookbook about Vegetables and Unbreakable Family Bonds. (Tenderheart is available at your local bookstore or on Amazon here.…

Oldies  But Goodies: Blackeyed Peas With Coconut Milk and Ethiopian Spices

Oldies But Goodies: Blackeyed Peas With Coconut Milk and Ethiopian Spices

Every month Blue Cayenne features recipes from our archive of more than four hundred recipes. These recipes are our “Oldies But Goodies.” Today’s Oldie But Goodie recipe is for Blackeyed Peas With Coconut Milk and Ethiopian spices. It’s spicy and delicious!

You don’t want to miss this great recipe…again.

Want to dive deeper into our recipe archive? Just click one of the categories at the top of this page or use the category search drop down menu on the right side of this page.

And…here is a link to Blue Cayenne’s main page: Blue Cayenne.. If you are in the mood to cook (or eat!), we hope you will take a moment to look at the many excellent recipes we have featured.

A Troubled King. An Exceptional Cheese. A Wonderful Soup: Veloute de Roquefort

A Troubled King. An Exceptional Cheese. A Wonderful Soup: Veloute de Roquefort

  This would be a delightful soup to serve on New Year’s Eve.  It’s delicious.  It’s beautiful. The Roquefort cheese and butter mixture stirred into the soup at the list minute adds a subtle and unexpected flavor that should wow your guests on that special…