Out to Eat! Casa de Ramos

Chris and I both have a love for Mexican food, and who wouldn't? Cheesy, flavorful goodness wrapped up in warm tortillas bathed in spicy love. Or some variation of that.

When we first moved to Los Angeles, we started to seek out local restaurants that would help fill the voids of the places we grew up with, and of course a great Mexican restaurant was one of our top priorities. We were looking for a very specific combination of things for the experience:

-excellent chips and salsa that flow freely from the time you sit down at the table
-stellar margaritas (in both flavor and potency!)
-near to our home, preferably somewhere that wouldn't have traffic between us and it and would have (free) parking available when we got there
-diverse but not pretentious menu
-delicious food (obviously!)
-comfortable atmosphere and friendly service
-a price point that won't break the bank if we visit on a regular basis. For us coming to LA from Alabama, "cheap" is not a realistic term.

After some online research and review-hunting along with a LOT of trial and error, we stumbled upon Casa de Ramos, a small establishment in Glendale just down the street from us.

The chips and salsa were not exactly what we thought we were looking for but are extremely tasty nonetheless and plentiful to boot. The chips are heartier than the typical restaurant chips and the salsa has a smoky flavor. If you ask them for mild you'll get another similar salsa with less smokiness and heat (personally I like to mix the two for a nice balance of both).

The margaritas are light and tangy with just the right amount of sweetness and a good kick from the tequila. The serving is generous without being a fishbowl. 

We've tried a few different things from the menu but quickly fell into the habit of ordering our favorites on most trips. Chris's combo includes a taco (he chooses beef and every time proclaims "I always forget how good this beef is!"), a cheese enchilada and a tamale, served with rice and beans. ($11 for this meal)

Can we please discuss how amazing this cheese looks??!

I usually opt for the less intimidating one-item combo, a cheese enchilada along with the rice and beans, NO green onion. ($8.50)

Note the dividing line before diving into the lusciousness. Encourages a modicum of self-restraint and the joy of leftovers.

We're happy to have found "our" local Mexican place. I only wish they were open seven days a week, but alas they are closed on Sundays.

Cheers!

Baked Tortilla Chips

I talked about salsa in the last post, so obviously I had to make a note on tortilla chips. Chris and I haven't bought a bag of tortilla chips in years, not since we figured out how to make our own that are 1) cheaper and 2) healthier!

The ingredients are simple:

-corn tortillas (I use Mission brand, Extra Thin)
-cooking spray
-salt

That's it. And the process is equally simple:

Preheat oven to 400. Cut your tortillas into triangles (I like to use a pizza cutter for this). Of course, how many times you divide them depends on how big you want your chips to be. I always cut into eight chips each because I like to spread things out more. Getting 8 chips per serving seems a lot more fun than getting 6.

Give them a quick once-over with cooking spray and then lightly salt. 

Spread your chips onto a baking sheet. Be sure to tessellate!! We're going for maximum chip yield per batch!

Bake. It usually takes mine 6-8 minutes or so, but DO NOT set a timer and walk away. Watch them like a hawk. When the edges on all your chips are slightly browned, they should be done. They will continue to crisp a little after you pull them from the oven. I can't stress enough to be careful because they will go from getting close to done to blackened charcoal very quickly.

Enjoy! These save well sealed in a plastic bag at room temperature.

With the type of tortilla I use, the value works out to be 1 P+  per tortilla, but be sure to check nutrition facts on your tortillas.

Cheers!!

Homemade Restaurant-Style Salsa

Let me admit now, upfront: I'm a picky eater. I know, being a food lover doesn't generally allow for those of us who are picky, but I've learned to adapt foods to suit my own tastes while (sometimes slowly) adapting my taste to enjoy a wider variety of foods. It's a work in progress!

If you ask me, this onion got what it deserved...

Some people naturally love vegetables. I am not one of them. For instance, like many others out there I have a strong aversion to raw tomatoes.  (Keep in mind, I could suck down ketchup by the gallon but raw is another story). However...

I love salsa!

I mean, who doesn't? Salsa is versatile, healthy and can be extremely budget friendly. If you do it right (in my opinion), the spice will kick you directly in the rear (or wherever). Also, it's EVERYWHERE. You can order salsa with pretty much anything. Simply put, salsa is HOT STUFF!! (Oh, puns. Forgive me)

I spent years eating salsa in Mexican restaurants by the bowlful without batting a veggie-intolerant eye but never found any kind of jarred or canned salsa that could come close to the same caliber of taste and texture.  I tried making my own "fresh" salsa from recipes but they weren't cutting it either. Just piles of chopped veggies which in my opinion was NOT an acceptable pairing to tortilla chips.

Finally, I found the solution. The salsa recipe that ACTUALLY tastes like the salsa I love in Mexican restaurants. After many google searches and a lot of trial and error I came across this recipe:

Winning Salsa

Who would have guessed that canned and jarred ingredients could triumph over the fresh stuff?? Apparently that makes all the difference.

Personally, I make it as follows:

- big handful of fresh cilantro (note: some people find cilantro to taste "soapy"; I have no solution for this, but I know enough to know that you can't just "get over it", so don't try to make them; let the soapy people eat guacamole or other salsa or whatever instead, just don't make them eat cilantro because that's kind of mean and not awesome)
- 28 oz can crushed tomatoes (mine are from Ralph's but I'm sure it makes no difference. Hooray Ralph's!)
- bunch of pickled jalapenos (I usually use at least a dozen), with a little of the juice thrown in for texture and flavor
- couple of pinches of garlic powder, maybe about half a teaspoon
-dash+ of salt, again maybe half a teaspoon

The first time you make it I'd recommend starting with less cilantro and jalapenos and then add to taste after the first blend.

Blend all ingredients, in a blender. Blend well. I find that the texture works best when you put the cilantro and peppers in the bottom of the blender and then let the tomatoes go in on top of that. Check for flavor and add more cilantro or peppers if you want to kick it up. The flavors will become more pronounced over time in the fridge.

Eat!

I store this in a wide mouth Tupperware. That way it keeps its freshness but is still easy to DIP from, which is extremely useful in this case. 

I use this salsa in tons of recipes. It's actually been a great way for me to more easily incorporate vegetables into my day. I'm no nutritionist, but I know that tomatoes do a lot of good things for the body.

This recipe also introduced me to fresh cilantro and it's now an ingredient I love. (See! Progress!)

Cheers!