Food tells a story. The dishes that you cook can give clues about your heritage, geographical location, and even your personality. Here at Loco we’re huge foodies, so we thought that we would share the recipes and stories behind some of our favorite dishes. Hopefully they will give you the inspiration to make some culinary magic in your own kitchen!
Zucchini Bread: The only thing my mother can bake without burning.
Zucchini bread is one of my favorites that my mother has always baked for my brother and me. Ever since meeting her new husband a couple of years ago (who happens to be an awesome professional chef/baker) my mom’s cooking/baking abilities have basically gone out the window. One of the few things she can still manage to perfect is her always delicious zucchini bread. This zucchini bread is a perfect way to include veggies into your diet! But don’t let the zucchini trick you too much, this bread is sweet, moist and if you ask me, doesn’t taste anything like zucchini. This recipe also yields two loaves of breads, so you can keep one for yourself and give the other as a gift. I will warn you though; once you have a taste you may want to keep both…
Ingredients
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
3 eggs
1 cup vegetable oil
2 ¼ cups white sugar
3 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups grated zucchini
1 cup chopped walnuts (optional)
Directions
After preheating your oven to 325 degrees, go ahead and grease and flour two 8 x 4 inch pans. Then sift flour, salt, baking powder and soda, and cinnamon together in a bowl. Next beat together the eggs, oil, vanilla and sugar together in a separate, large bowl. Add the sifted ingredients to the creamed mixture and beat them all together well. Stir in the zucchini and chopped walnuts if you wish, until everything is well combined. Pour batter into the pans and pop into the oven. Bake for 40 to 60 min or until toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let the bread cool in pan on the rack for about 20 minutes. Remove bread from the pan and enjoy!
Southern Breakfast
When asked to share a recipe that is a part of my history and heritage I immediately thought of a Southern breakfast. Every Sunday morning growing up my family and I ate breakfast together and although we had no formal routine, the dishes that we ate on Sunday mornings became a part of a ritual that I still practice although I don’t live with my family anymore and hopefully a tradition that I can pass down.
In the South breakfast is serious business! This meal was a way to relax before my family and I went to church in the afternoons. It includes multiple elements and it is the perfect way to bond because this meal can be completed far more quickly when you have multiple sets of helping hands!
Grits
1 cup Grits
3 cups Water
2 tbsp. Butter
Salt/Pepper to taste
*Ok guys so the grits should be the first thing that you start to prepare because they will take the longest. First let your water come to a boil. After your water is boiling add the grits and continue to stir them for about 40 mins on medium heat. It’s important that you keep a close eye on them because they burn very easily, you may also have to add water as you go so that your grits don’t dry up! After 40 mins add your butter plus salt and pepper to taste.
Banana Pecan Pancakes
Any brand of pancake mix
Tbsp. of cinnamon
Tbsp. of pure vanilla
One whole banana
Handful of pecans
*After mixing up your pancake mix. Take one banana, smash it, and fold it into the mixture. Then add the rest of the ingredients. After you have mixed everything up add butter to the pan and cook your pancakes to you liking!
Bacon
Smoked Turkey/Pork Bacon
*I tend to stick with turkey since it’s a bit more healthy, but either will do fine. Pop it in the pan and let it do its bacon thang! Just don’t burn it.
Eggs
*I personally prefer scrambled eggs but feel free to make this part of the meal your own and go with the way that you like your eggs. If you are scrambling them a little trick that I use to make them fluffier is to add a little bit of milk in.
Iced Sweet Tea
4 cups boiling water
4 cups water
4 Black tea bags
1 ½ cup Sugar
Ice to taste
*Ok so let your water come to a boil. Next add in the tea bags and after the tea has steeped pour the water into a pitcher. Add in four cups of room temperature water, then add in your sugar. After letting your tea cool add ice and enjoy!
Poppyseed Chicken
The dish is as simple as the name sounds but boy is it a crowd pleaser. My mom snagged this recipe from an attendee of a Pampered Chef party at a time when she forced me to go to them with her at least twice a month. It only has about 6 ingredients but it is just one of those dishes that is perfect for every occasion. Poppyseed Chicken can be made for the masses or in a single serving. It is equally delicious just out of the oven and reheated 5 days later. The best part about it is that it is always impressive. My friends from other countries ask if its a popular dish in the US. My friends from the US ask if its a secret family recipe. In reality, its just, a quick and tasty dish my mom got from a lady a at Pampered Chef party. Get ready to be amazed:
4 Breasts of Chicken
8 oz Sour Cream
1 can Cream of Chicken Soup
3 tsp of Poppyseed
1 Pack of Ritz Crackers
3 tbsp butter (melted)
Cook your chicken or use a rotisserie and tear or cube into bite-sized pieces. (Slow cooking makes it nice and tender. Combine sour cream, cream of chicken soup, and a couple poppyseed. Spread into an ungreased baking dish. Crush ritz crackers (1 pack) spread over top. Melt 2-3 tbs of butter dribble over top. Bake at 350 for 20 to 30 minutes.
Pumpkin Pancakes with Apple Cider Syrup:
When the fall season rolls around, like most, I go absolutely apeshit for anything pumpkin flavored. Lucky for me, every Thanksgiving morning my mom makes these pumpkin pancakes with apple cider syrup and they are so heavenly, the angels cry. The only way I can best describe my excitement for these pancakes is to put it into perspective, one year I ate them so fast while they were still so hot, I burned my throat and couldn’t taste anything else the rest of the day. I regret nothing.
