On Friday night, all of OCLA got together for a BBQ at the shop. Big hunks of salmon, veggie skewers, and all types of burgers and 'dogs were thrown down on the grill for an evening of feasting and friendship. Of the many dishes, the most notable were probably OCNY transplant Robin's homemade mac 'n' cheese doused in hot Sriracha sauce, and Judy (and hubby Frank)'s fresh chips and guac, made on the spot. Peep the pics of us hangin' and cop Robin, Judy, and Frank's (formerly secret) recipes below!
Judy's Easy Homemade Tortilla Chips
Guerrero tortillas
Olive oil
Lawry's Garlic Salt
1. Preheat oven to 375F. Cut Guerrero tortillas in fours. Heat up the olive oil in a pan on medium to high heat and put four tortilla pieces on at a time. Let 'em fry until they start to bubble on top, then turn them over and fry the other side for only half the time.
2. Remove the hot chips from pan and place them on a napkin-covered plate. Dash with a small amount of Lawry's Garlic Salt. Repeat the steps above for more chips!
3. Put all chips on a large baking sheet and place in oven for 10-15 minutes. Keep checking the chips and turn them over gradually until you see them get tortilla-chip-brown. My trick to knowing that they're done (and really crunchy) is to make sure there are no visible traces of oil on them. Take them out and let sit until cool enough to eat!
Frank's Guacamole Recipe
4-5 avocados
1-2 limes
2 diced tomatoes
1 tbsp Lowry's Garlic Salt
1/2 tbsp crushed red pepper
black pepper (to taste)
1/2 tbsp oregano
A couple of diced onion rings (red onion is really good)
1. Mix everything in a bowl and serve with homemade tortilla chips!
Robin's Loosey Gooey Mac 'n' Cheese Recipe
1/3 stick unsalted butter
Flour
Pasta
Milk
Cheese (sharp cheddar, Jack, and gruyère)
Sriracha
1. I start out with the roux, which helps thicken the cheesy sauce. Melt about 1/3 stick of unsalted butter in a saucepan on low heat, then add some flour. I usually eyeball this, but you want the roux to have the texture and consistency of really bad mashed potato––doughy and sticky, but not grainy. Constantly stirring while pouring in a little bit of flour at a time will help make a really good roux. The roux should be good to go after about 5 minutes of stirring.
2. At this point, you can start boiling your water for the pasta. The pasta is probably the biggest deal-breaker for me in terms of mac 'n' cheese. For some reason, I can't really enjoy macaroni pasta in mac 'n' cheese, it completely ruins it for me. My personal favorite is the big shells––but not the jumbo ones.
3. Next up, add the milk. I'm guessing it's around two cups. Your saucepan should still be on low heat. Add the milk to the saucepan slowly and stir into the roux. After stirring for about 10 minutes, you'll get something with the consistency and color of a bad custard––watery and light in color.
4. This next step isn't really necessary but I think it makes for a cheesier sauce. Temper an egg into the sauce. Since eggs cook really fast, just popping one into the saucepan will result in bits of cooked eggs in your sauce. Tempering helps bring the egg up to heat with the sauce without you getting scrambled eggs. To do this, just break open an egg in a bowl and scramble it. Grab a spoon, and drop the sauce into your egg bowl one spoonful at a time, stirring constantly. Once your egg mixture is up to the same temperature as your sauce, you can slowly pour it into the sauce and stir.
Judy's Easy Homemade Tortilla Chips
Guerrero tortillas
Olive oil
Lawry's Garlic Salt
1. Preheat oven to 375F. Cut Guerrero tortillas in fours. Heat up the olive oil in a pan on medium to high heat and put four tortilla pieces on at a time. Let 'em fry until they start to bubble on top, then turn them over and fry the other side for only half the time.
2. Remove the hot chips from pan and place them on a napkin-covered plate. Dash with a small amount of Lawry's Garlic Salt. Repeat the steps above for more chips!
3. Put all chips on a large baking sheet and place in oven for 10-15 minutes. Keep checking the chips and turn them over gradually until you see them get tortilla-chip-brown. My trick to knowing that they're done (and really crunchy) is to make sure there are no visible traces of oil on them. Take them out and let sit until cool enough to eat!
Frank's Guacamole Recipe
4-5 avocados
1-2 limes
2 diced tomatoes
1 tbsp Lowry's Garlic Salt
1/2 tbsp crushed red pepper
black pepper (to taste)
1/2 tbsp oregano
A couple of diced onion rings (red onion is really good)
1. Mix everything in a bowl and serve with homemade tortilla chips!
Robin's Loosey Gooey Mac 'n' Cheese Recipe
1/3 stick unsalted butter
Flour
Pasta
Milk
Cheese (sharp cheddar, Jack, and gruyère)
Sriracha
1. I start out with the roux, which helps thicken the cheesy sauce. Melt about 1/3 stick of unsalted butter in a saucepan on low heat, then add some flour. I usually eyeball this, but you want the roux to have the texture and consistency of really bad mashed potato––doughy and sticky, but not grainy. Constantly stirring while pouring in a little bit of flour at a time will help make a really good roux. The roux should be good to go after about 5 minutes of stirring.
2. At this point, you can start boiling your water for the pasta. The pasta is probably the biggest deal-breaker for me in terms of mac 'n' cheese. For some reason, I can't really enjoy macaroni pasta in mac 'n' cheese, it completely ruins it for me. My personal favorite is the big shells––but not the jumbo ones.
3. Next up, add the milk. I'm guessing it's around two cups. Your saucepan should still be on low heat. Add the milk to the saucepan slowly and stir into the roux. After stirring for about 10 minutes, you'll get something with the consistency and color of a bad custard––watery and light in color.
4. This next step isn't really necessary but I think it makes for a cheesier sauce. Temper an egg into the sauce. Since eggs cook really fast, just popping one into the saucepan will result in bits of cooked eggs in your sauce. Tempering helps bring the egg up to heat with the sauce without you getting scrambled eggs. To do this, just break open an egg in a bowl and scramble it. Grab a spoon, and drop the sauce into your egg bowl one spoonful at a time, stirring constantly. Once your egg mixture is up to the same temperature as your sauce, you can slowly pour it into the sauce and stir.