I couldn’t just start the blog off with a boring post that the majority of people won’t even read, so I thought I would post a recipe that I typed up for someone the other day.

Mexican lasagna is just a mexican casserole, and is done by a lot of people.  I think my recipe is one of the better casseroles I have ever tasted.  Some people use ground beef for this, but I prefer to use ground chicken.  I like the taste better, and oh yeah.. It’s healthier too.  I don’t really measure my seasonings too much, so I will try to describe how much I use the best that I can.  I would probably sound more professional if I said “season to your liking”… Oh well.  Here goes.

First step, pre-heat your often to 360 degrees.  That’s always important when you’re cooking something.  Heat.

Mix Together in a Bowl:

• 4 lbs of ground chicken
• 4 cloves minced garlic
• Half an onion.. Minced
• 1 can of original Rotel tomatoes.. You can use the mild kind if spicy scares you.  You can also use fresh tomatoes if you prefer, but Rotel is good stuff.  If you were going to use fresh, I would reccomend one to two, depending on how much you like them.  You could also use your favorite salsa.
• Two minced jalapenos.. You have a few options here.  If you don’t like the heat, you can either remove the membranes and seeds from the jalapenos, or substitute them with green chiles
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilanto.
• 1/3 cup of tequila

Mix all that together and add salt, pepper, cayenne pepper,  cumin, and chili powder.  Like I said, I have no idea how much of each I put in, so season to your liking.  Damn, that was professional.  The longer this mixture sits, the better it will taste.  I usually let it sit for an hour or two.  By the way, this mixture looks a little nasty before it’s cooked.  Don’t worry about it.  It will taste amazing.

I like to make my own red sauce, but any enchilada sauce will do.

Once you’re ready, cook up the chicken mixture on high heat.  Right before the chicken is done, add corn and black beans beans .  I usually use a 14.5oz can of each.  Turn the heat down after the chicken is cooked and let the beans and corn cook in the juices.  Make sure the beans aren’t hard before you take off the burner.

You will need about 5 medium to large sized tortillas.  Cut them in halves and quarters.

Line the bottom of the pan with a little bit of the enchilada sauce.. Just so its covered.  After that, line it with the tortillas followed by the meat mixture and cheese on top.  For the cheese, I use either a mild cheddar or monterey jack.  Keep repeating that order until your pan is filled, but make sure you have the cheese on top.

When you’re all done there, throw it in the oven for about 10 minutes.  I like the cheese on top to be a little browned, and for the edges of the tortillas to be a little crunchy.  Let it sit for about 5 minutes, and then dig in.  This should feed 5-6 people.  Enjoy!

Welcome, I am John and this is my food blog.  I thought I should write an introduction so you know what to expect when you visit here in the future.

I am 24 years old, work two jobs, and go to school full time.  I have no formal culinary training outside of reading books and watching the Food Network.  I think I have done pretty well educating myself, but it has also held me back.  I don’t like to measure my ingredients, and I often just throw things together.  I rarely ever use recipes, and if I do, I use them as a rough blueprint.  Cooking, to me, is an adventure…

Mexican food makes up about 60% of my cooking.  Because of that, 60% of more of what you will find on here will most likely involve Mexican food.

My favorite things, without getting into too many details.  Gotta have content for later!

Foods/Cooking I Enjoy:

• Hot Sauce – I will post pictures of my hot sauce collection sometime in the future.   It has reached the point where I have an entire cabinet dedicated to it.  If you have any time of food that needs heat, chances are I have the perfect sauce to go with it.
• Stir Fry/Wok Cooking – I have recently been on an Asian cuisine kick.  This begun with a wok that I received for Christmas.
• Bacon – Ahhh, Bacon.  If you had to press me for my favorite food in the world, 340 days out of the year I would say Bacon.  I guarantee you will find at least one recipe per weak involving bacon on here.
• Finger Foods/Dips/Appetizers – Gotta love the meal before the meal.
• Shun Knives – I received a Shun chef’s knife for Christmas.  If you are serious at all about cooking, you owe it to yourself to purchase a quality knife.  I would highly recommend Shun.  If I could afford it, half of the things I own would be cut in half.

Chefs/Personalities:

• Anthony Bourdain – Don’t watch No Reservations on the Travel Channel?  That’s too bad, I’ll summarize every episode for you on here!
• Alton Brown – I basically learned to cook by watching Good Eats.
• Andrew Zimmern – Bizarre Foods is by far one of the best shows on television.
• Mario  Batali

Things I Dislike:

• Rachel Ray/Paula Dean/Sandra Lee/Giada De Laurentiis/Ace of Cakes – The Food Network is almost unwatchable now.

Well that’s all I have for now.  Look for updates everyday, and visit often!