Kitchen Chaos and a Weekly Menu

My Baja Kitchen is in a bit of shambles this week. I had the great idea to replace my dishwasher with one that actually works.

Silly me. It’s rural Mexico.

I bought a U.S. dishwasher and paid to have it shipped to Baja which was easier and less expensive than buying locally. By locally, I mean a 4-8 hour drive down the Baja. I try to buy locally when I can but sometimes a girl just wants what she wants.

So the buying and shipping were easy compared to the installation. The plumbing is all wrong and impossible to work with because it’s set in concrete, according to my handy husband who can build or repair anything. After many trips to the hardware stores, sometimes 4-6 stores in one day, looking for parts that don’t exist in Baja, ordering parts from the U.S., thank you Amazon and a cacophony of gringo swearing….. I may eventually get a new dishwasher installed. Anyway, I have kitchen chaos which promoted a weekly menu post to make me feel slightly organized.

La Gringa’s Weekly Menu, It’s What’s For Dinner

Zucchini quinoa patties, I’m using my Chard and Quinoa recipe but substituting zucchini.

Pesto chicken: Whirl 2 cups of fresh basil leaves, 1/4 cup of olive oil, 2 cloves of garlic, a dash of salt and 1/4 cup of any nut, my favorites are pine nuts and walnuts, in the food processor. You can freeze the pesto in ice cube trays at this point if you make a big batch or add 1/4-1/2 cup of parmesan cheese and serve with grilled chicken breast. I brush the chicken with pesto and use low heat to grill the chicken until done. Slice the chicken and toss with more pesto. Serve over pasta, salad greens or with grilled asparagus.

Wine braised beef short ribs over cauliflower mash. I tried these tonight. Delicious. 

Spanish rice, whole garlic, chorizo, chickpea bake, looks like paella without the fuss or the fancy pan.

Easy Pork Verde: Throw together in your slow cooker: 2 pounds of pork shoulder, cubed, 1 cup of prepared salsa verde, I like Herdez salsas, one onion diced, 4 cloves of garlic sliced, 1 cup of carrots diced, and 1 cup of broth of your choice. Cook on high 4 hours or low 8 hours. Serve over brown rice, corn tortillas or with a bowl of stir fried Swiss chard.

Have a healthy week!