Mango Salsa

Posted on March 27, 2011 by Analicia Perez

Mango Salsa by Brian Buchmeyer
Videography and Production by Analicia Lucia Perez

Brian Buchmeyer, a junior industrial engineering major, combines two of his favorite things: listening to music and cooking with color. A seasoned chef, Buchmeyer demonstrates how to prepare one of his favorite appetizers, mango salsa—a dish that any college student can prepare in the comfort of their own dorm room, with no oven required!

Ingredients

  • 3 medium-sized mangos
  • 5 roma tomatoes
  • 1 yellow bellpepper
  • 1 lemon
  • 2 limes
  • 1/4 c. cilantro
  • 3/4 c. green onion
  • 3 medium-sized jalapenos
  • salt
  • pepper

Directions

Begin by washing all fruits and vegetables thoroughly. Then dice tomatoes into small chunks. Peel and dice mangos into medium chunks as well. Prior to chopping the bell pepper, use a small knife to remove the core, then chop in half and remove all seeds by hand, rinsing any excess seeds out with cold water, then chop into medium chunks.

Next, finely chop the cilantro and green onion. When it comes to the jalapenos, first cut them in half, then remove the core and seeds by hand and rinse out any excess seeds with cold water. After removing the seeds, chop into extra small chunks. Combine all ingredients in a large bowl, add salt and pepper to taste and enjoy with your favorite tortilla chip!


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Fideo

Posted on March 27, 2011 by mrstepheng

Fideo by Nettie Lucio
Videography and Production by Stephen Guzman

Nettie Lucio is the Circulation Supervisor in the Louis J. Blume Library at St. Mary’s University. As a Latina mother of three, it is important for Lucio to pass on tradition. In this short video, Lucio describes how fideo was cooked in her home as a child and how it has been adopted by her own family today. This dish, though initially cooked for its low price and accessibility, remains, in Lucio’s words, “a family favorite.”

Ingredients

  • 2 tsp salt
  • ½ tsp pepper
  • ¼ tsp ground comino
  • 2 ½ – 3 cups of water
  • 8 oz can of tomato sauce

Directions
First, place fideo noodles into skillet. Keep stirring until browned. After browning, add water and let boil for 1 minute. At this point, add salt, pepper, tomato sauce and ground comino into pan. Add more water if necessary. For 4 ½ minutes, let sit and stir until noodles are completely cooked. If preference is less soupy fideo, let sit for 1 minute longer. EAT!

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Chicken Piccata

Posted on March 27, 2011 by Austin W. Newton

Chicken Piccata by Katie O’Kelley
Videography and Production by Austin W. Newton

Freshmen Biology major Katie O’Kelley uses her culinary skills to prepare a lemon-zested chicken piccata dish.  O’Kelley has been cooking for less than three years, but her mother prepared her for making this delight viral for you to enjoy.

Ingredients

  • 4 boneless/skinless chicken breast halves.
  • 1/3 cup all purpose flour
  • ½ teaspoon lemon zest (optional)
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 teaspoon olive oil
  • ½ teaspoon paprika
  • ¼ cup lemon juice
  • ½ cup white wine
  • ½ cup chicken broth
  • 1 can artichoke hearts (quartered)
  • ¼ cup drained capers

Directions

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken and saute 2 minutes per side, until golden brown and cooked through. Add lemon juice, wine and chicken broth and bring to a simmer. Simmer 5 minutes, until chicken is cooked through and sauce thickens. Add artichoke hearts and capers in separate pan and simmer 1 minute to heat through.

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Spaghetti with Meat Sauce

Posted on March 23, 2011 by mimisoy

Spaghetti with Meat Sauce by Paulina Fernandez Adarve
Videography and Production by Mimi Soy

Junior International Relations major Paulina Fernandez Adarve from St. Mary’s University demonstrates how to make spaghetti with meat sauce. Adarve likes to cook for friends so they can enjoy eating her food. In this video, she makes spaghetti because it is easy to cook and healthy to eat.

Ingredients

Meat Sauce:

  • 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
  • 5 cloves garlic, 3 minced and 2 sliced
  • 3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
  • 16 ounces coarsely ground beef chuck
  • 2 (28 oz) cans diced tomatoes
  • 1 tablespoon dried oregano
  • 2 teaspoons dried basil
  • 2 tablespoons tomato paste
  • 1 tablespoon ketchup
  • 1/3 cup finely grated Parmesan

Pasta:

  • 1 gallon water
  • 2 tablespoons kosher salt
  • 1/2 pound dry spaghetti

Directions

For the meat sauce: Place an 8-quart Dutch oven over low heat. Add the beef, salt, and pepper and stir to combine. Cook, uncovered, over low heat, stirring occasionally.

Meanwhile, place a wide 4-quart pan, over high heat. Add 1 tablespoon of the olive oil and once it shimmers, stir frequently, until the meat is well browned, 4 to 5 minutes. Transfer the meat to a colander to drain.

Once the sauce has been cooking for 10 minutes, place the 4-quart pan over medium heat and add 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Once it simmers, add the 2 cloves of sliced garlic and cook for 30-45 seconds or until fragrant. Do not allow the garlic to brown. Add the tomatoes, oregano, basil, and marjoram and cook until most of the liquid has evaporated, approximately 30 minutes. Add the remaining tomato paste, ketchup and stir to combine. Decrease the heat to low and simmer for 10 minutes. Increase the heat to medium high; add the remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil and cook, stirring constantly, for two to three minutes.

Transfer the tomato mixture to the meat mixture and stir to combine. Simmer the sauce, uncovered, over low heat, stirring occasionally, while preparing the pasta.

For the pasta: Bring the water and salt to a boil over high heat. Carefully add the pasta, stirring quickly to separate. Cover and return to a boil, being careful that the water does not boil over. Once boiling again, uncover and continue to cook until slightly less than, 5 to 6 minutes. Drain in a colander.

Add the pasta to the meat sauce. Add the Parmesan cheese and toss to combine. Transfer pasta and sauce to a serving bowl or individual bowls and serve.

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1st Annual Magazine Launch Party

Posted on December 2, 2010 by tasteofstmu

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The sweet smell of success came not only from the food being served in Treadaway Hall but also from four students who won awards for their graphic design final projects at the first annual Taste of StMU magazine launch on Dec. 1, 2010.

Volunteer judges who work in the graphic design field selected Denice Hernandez and Sarah Mills (see magazine) as the winners of the “Professionals’ Choice” awards. Their respective “chefs” also received aprons imprinted with the Taste of StMU logo. From among the 20 alumni, faculty, staff and Marianists who attended this unique event, they voted Oscar Maguregui and Megan Foster as winners of the “People’s Choice” awards.

The magazine launch party gave graphic design students the opportunity to showcase what they have learned throughout the semester by editing and creating their own 20-page edition of Taste of StMU magazine, complete with ads, photographs and stories. The chefs featured in their magazines provided the food for the event.

On the menu were rice, tropical pineapple cupcakes with citrus cream frosting, shrimp scampi, chicken salad, crusted baked chicken, pizza, arroz con pollo, honey barbecue chicken sandwich, eggrolls, lasagna, brisket, Spanish rice, tortilla soup, charro beans, oatmeal cookies, apple pie, fruit smoothies, chili and sushi.

See photos of the magazine launch on the Flickr album.

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Crusted Baked Chicken

Posted on December 2, 2010 by tasteofstmu

Crusted Baked Chicken by Anna Plote
Story and Photo by Christopher Montemayor

One look at Anna Plote and the first word that comes to mind is: intelligent.

However, after taking the time to get to know Plote, one quickly learns that beyond her aura of intelligence lies a very humorous and passionate person who also happens to be a great cook.

Plote, a senior at St. Mary’s, currently majors in biology and hopes one day to become a successful doctor. She has been interested in the sciences since she was a child, but realized in high school that she wanted to save lives through medicine.

After graduating from St. Mary’s, she hopes to attend medical school and earn a doctoral degree.

At St. Mary’s, Plote is active in programs such as Tri beta, the Catholic Student Group, St. Mary’s College Republicans and SM friends. Plote also participates in Habitat for Humanity and serves as a tutor in the Learning Assistance Center.

What Plote appreciates most about St. Mary’s is community relationships that she experiences through the various groups. As a member of the Catholic Student Group, Plote recently attended a retreat at the HEB camp which she described as an “amazing experience” that she’ll never forget.

Of the foods that she enjoy, Plote prefers meals that are quick, simple, healthy and, most importantly, of good taste. Vegetables and fruits are at the top of her list of best foods, but they do not compare to her love of crusted baked chicken, which reminds her of being at home with her family where making such a meal was a tradition.

When preparing this dish, Plote recommends that the crust be made with cereal such Special K or a rice-based product; that way, the chicken can achieve the crusted-effect without altering the final taste too much.

Another tip for preparing this recipe is to check constantly the chicken before considering it officially cooked. This takes into consideration the kind of oven used, as well as the various chicken breast themselves, because some chicken breasts cook faster or longer than others.

Ingredients

  • 2 chicken breasts
  • 2 c of Milk
  • 3 c Special K cereal
  • 4 servings of green beans
  • 4 c of water

Directions

Open the chicken breast package and pt them on a plate. Once that is completed, take servings of Special K cereal and crush them into a bowl. Then, fill a pan with milk. Once the milk is placed, dip the chicken into the milk and let it soak for 30 seconds. Then, dress the chicken with the Special K cereal to make the crust. Once this is completed, place the chicken in the oven for 25 minutes.To cook the green beans, un-package them and place them in a pan of boiling water. Once they are cooked properly, they can be served next to the chicken. When serving the chicken, consider each breast as a serving. Therefore the final dish should have 1 serving of baked crusted-chicken with 1-2 servings of green beans.

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JB’s Chicken Salad

Posted on December 2, 2010 by tasteofstmu

JB’s Chicken Salad by JB Bolgren
Story and Photo by Oscar Maguregui

JB Bolgren, senior political science major, has prepared a low calorie dish that is easy to make and delicious to eat.

Bolgren has many aspirations. After graduating from St. Mary’s in 2011, he hopes to “attend graduate school and acquire my master’s degree in public administration, and, if there is time, go to culinary school,” he says.

At St. Mary’s, Bolgren is involved with many organizations including Lambda Chi Alpha and the music department.

“I really enjoy the small, close-knit community of St. Mary’s where everybody knows your name,” says Bolgren.

When it comes to cooking, Bolgren’s favorite foods are macaroni and cheese, cheese cake, salad, bread, popcorn, and any and all types of Italian food. He finds that cooking not only is a great way to relieve stress, but also to stay in shape, especially when running around the kitchen trying to find ingredients.

“My favorite chefs are Bobby Flay and Emeril Lagassi. Emeril is great at cooking Italian food and I do love Italian food. As for Bobby Flay, he has good recipes for all around good means,” he says.

One dish that Bolgren enjoys preparing is his salad and chicken because “it is very easy to make, it is delicious, and it is also a great dish to make for people who are on a diet.”

He gives some tips on preparing his dish, saying, “Make sure not to overcook the chicken and, if you are not too fond of onions, don’t overload the pan when you sauté the chicken.”

Ingredients

  • 4 large boneless skinless chicken breasts
  • 1 medium white onion
  • 4 cloves of fresh garlic
  • 2 T of extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 T of salt
  • 1 T of pepper
  • 1/2 T of garlic powder
  • 1/2 T of onion powder
  • 2 T of Mrs. Dash table blend
  • 1 c of cooking sherry
  • 1 head of romaine lettuce
  • 1 cucumber (sliced)
  • 1 carrot (shredded)
  • 1/4 c of red cabbage
  • 8 cherry tomatoes (halved)
  • 2 T of your favorite dressing

Prep time: 20 minutes. Cooking time: 25 minutes. Serves: 2.

Directions

Pour olive oil into the pan and place heat on high. Once pan is hot, place the chicken breasts on the pan and sear chicken for 2 minutes on high until lightly brown. Add onion, garlic and cook for 2 minutes. Add seasonings (salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, and Mrs. Dash blend) and cook for 8 minutes. Reduce to medium heat, add cooking and sherry cook for 8 minutes. Reduce heat to low and let simmer for remaining five minutes.

Plating:

Place lettuce around edge of plate and leave center open. Put chicken in center. Place tomatoes and cucumbers around edge of dish; sprinkle carrots and red cabbage over top, then drizzle salad dressing over the dish.

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Jessica’s Shrimp Scampi

Posted on December 2, 2010 by robinjeanjohnson

Jessica’s Shrimp Scampi by Jessica Johnson
Story and Photo by Robin Johnson

Chef Jessica Johnson, graduate industrial engineering student at St. Mary’s University, has made an educational and soon professional career out of a love for numbers, equations and anything and everything having to do with engineering. However, it doesn’t take a rocket scientist-or engineer-to solve a hunger problem with one of Johnson’s favorite, and easiest, dishes: Jessica’s Shrimp Scampi.

Besides calculators and crunching numbers, Johnson loves one food above all else: pasta.  “My favorite place to eat pasta is Olive Garden; I’ve been going there ever since I can remember,” says Johnson.

With a childhood of pasta memories and a noted Italian restaurant as her inspiration, Johnson names her shrimp scampi as her favorite dish.

“I really like shrimp and pasta, so I would say it’s the perfect combination of the two. It’s also really easy to make,” Johnson says.

Just as she has recreated her favorite dish out of past delightful experiences at Olive Garden, Johnson plans to recreate her successful education experience and pass her love of math and engineering on to others in the same place it started, St. Mary’s.

“I would like to teach at St. Mary’s because I like the student/teacher ratio because it creates a better learning environment and I can connect more with the students,” says Johnson.

Johnson also likes the personalized atmosphere of her education.

“[My favorite thing about St. Mary’s is] that it’s small, and everybody’s really nice.  It makes me feel like a person and not just a number in the student body” Johnson says.

Johnson has created a formula for her happiness that requires a personalized, pleasant, and sometimes delicious experience in many areas of her life. In her downtime of long division, fractions and differential equations, Johnson enjoys a different type of ‘A’ grade in the form of the sizzling, lemon zesty Jessica’s Shrimp Scampi.

In creating this refreshing dish with the splash of lemon, Johnson has some extra credit tips for its preparation.

In boiling the linguine, she suggests eating one of the noodles before draining and adding them to the dish to make sure they are completely cooked as well as pouring a cap full of vegetable oil to the water to help it boil faster before adding the linguine.

The mathematical guru notes the easiest way to zest a lemon is to use a cheese grater and to flip the shrimp over frequently while sautéing for even pinkness.

Whether it’s solving equations or appetites, Chef Jessica Johnson always cooks up the right solution.

Ingredients

  • Vegetable oil
  • 1 T kosher salt plus 1 1/2 tsp
  • 3/4 lb linguine
  • 3 T unsalted butter
  • 2 1/2 T good olive oil
  • 1 1/2 Tminced garlic (4 cloves)
  • 1 lb large shrimp (about 16 shrimp), peeled and deveined
  • 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
  • 1/3 c chopped fresh parsley leaves
  • 1/2 lemon, zest grated
  • 1/4 c freshly squeezed lemon juice (2 lemons)
  • 1/4 lemon, thinly sliced in half-rounds

Directions
Pour one cap full of vegetable oil and a pinch of salt to water for quicker boiling time, add linguine to boiling water and boil for 7 to 10 minutes, remove from heat and drain. While the pasta is boiling, melt the unsalted better and add olive oil over medium-low heat. Add the garlic and carefully sauté for 1 minute. Add the shrimp, 1 1/2 teaspoons of salt, and sauté shrimp for 5 minutes until they start to pink, stirring frequently. Remove shrimp from heat and add the parsley, lemon zest, and lemon juice and toss until well blended. Add linguine to zesty shrimp and toss until well blended. Serve and enjoy. Serves: 3  Prep Time: 15 min

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Tropical Pineapple Cupcakes with Citrus Cream Frosting

Posted on December 2, 2010 by Denice Hernandez

Tropical Pineapple Cupcakes with Citrus Cream Frosting
Story and Photo by Denice Hernandez

A genuine love for food, a sweet tooth and a curious desire to try new desserts is all it takes to turn an ordinary chef into a cupcake fanatic.

Ari Rivera graduated from St. Mary’s University with a bachelor’s degree in English-communication arts, and is currently pursuing her second degree in forensic science.

“I would like to get into serology, pathology, or even research. I would really like to get into that and open up a bakery later in life,” she says.

From an early age, Rivera began exploring the world of baking with her mother and sister, and her love for oven treats has been growing ever since.

“I remember my favorite being pecan pie. My mom had me make it every thanksgiving since I was 12 I think,” she says. “My mom showed me different recipes and my sister has always been supportive of my cupcake love.”

In fact, Rivera’s recently perfected dish, tropical pineapple cupcakes with citrus cream frosting, was created from a recipe she selected from a cupcake book given to her by her sister.
Rivera brought baking back into her life after being inspired by a feature film she saw some years ago.

“My passion for baking was left on the back burner for a really long time, until 2007 when I watched Stranger than Fiction. I loved Maggie Gyllenhaal’s character and I realized, I definitely want to own a bakery like her one day,” says the aspiring pastry chef.

Although cupcakes and science seem to be worlds apart, Rivera says baking is a scientific process.

“It is scientific—the way chemicals, ingredients and flavors come together,” she says. Getting proportions right is often the most challenging part of the baking process, she added.

According to Rivera, the best part of a cupcake is, simply, the cake.

“So many times a cupcake is merely used as a vehicle for frosting that is often too sweet,” she says. “I prefer to focus on the quality of the cake in moisture and flavor and having frosting that tastes like more than just sugar.”

Spicy Asian foods are also a favorite of the cupcake chef.

Rivera says she enjoys the nurturing and feminine aspects of baking, but she also loves the art of making a mess.

The cupcake enthusiast admits to a couple of kitchen blunders in the past.

“I have spilled more mixes than I would like to admit,” the pastry chef says with a grin.

“I have even dropped completed pies outside. It was not funny at the time, but now I can look back and laugh.”

Rivera encourages beginners to have a sense of humor when learning how to bake, and most importantly, dare to experiment.

“You have to try new things all the time if you are going broaden your horizons. Take a recipe and give it a twist, you might be surprised!”

Ingredients

Cupcakes:

  • 2 slices canned pineapple in juice
  • 6 tsp butter
  • 3/8 c superfine sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 5/8 c self-rising flour
  • 1 T pineapple juice

Frosting:

  • 2 T butter
  • 3/8 c cream cheese
  • 1 c confectioners’ sugar
  • 1 tsp lemon or lime juice

Makes 12 cupcakes.

Directions
First, preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and place twelve cupcake papers in a muffin pan. Then, finely chop pineapple slices and set aside. In a large bowl, mix butter and sugar and beat together until light and fluffy, then gradually beat in the egg. Add the flour to the mix and, using a large metal spoon, fold all the ingredients in the mix. Next, fold in the pineapple and pineapple juice. Finally, Spoon the batter into the paper cases. While cupcakes are baking, prepare the frosting. Mix the butter and cream cheese in a large bowl with an electric mixer until smooth. Then sift confectioners’ sugar into the mix and beat it all together; gradually beat in the juice from the lemon. Let the cupcakes cool before applying frosting. Once frosted, store cupcakes in refrigerator and serve cool.

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Spaghetti

Posted on December 1, 2010 by emilyscruggs

Spaghetti by Analicia Perez
Videography and Production by Emily Scruggs

St. Mary’s University student Analicia Perez prepares a spaghetti dinner and reflects on her love of cooking.

Ingredients

  • bay leaves
  • olive oil
  • salt
  • hamburger meat
  • tomato sauce
  • spaghetti noodles
  • mushrooms
  • onions
  • bell peppers
  • garlic

Directions

Chop onions, bell peppers, mushrooms and garlic finely. Boil water, sprinkling in a pinch of salt. Saute chopped vegetables in olive oil. Saute meat, breaking up all chunks. Put noodles in boiling water to soften. Add meat and sauteed vegetables to pot of tomato sauce and let mixture heat up. Add bay leaves to sauce mixture. When noodles are soft, drain in strainer and place in bowl or on plate. Pour sauce over noodles. Serve in the company of bread and salad.

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