Bbq Chicken Tostados with Avocado Salad and Cilantro Sour Cream

This is another popular recipe courtesy of John Hitchcock, just in time for your Cinco de Mayo celebration. It's just one of the many wonderful recipes that can be found in our Beyond Pots and Pans cookbook, Extraordinary Cuisine.

BBQ Chicken Tostados with Avocado Salad and Cilantro Sour Cream
recipe courtesy of: John Hitchcock

1 whole chicken roasted, cooled and shredded
1 package corn tortillas

Avocado Salad
3 ripe avocados
1 jalapeno, minced
1 red bell pepper, minced
1/2 bunch cilantro
1 bunch scallions
juice of 3 limes
1/2 red onion, minced

Place all ingredients in bowl and mix.

Cilantro Sour Cream
2 bunches of cilantro
1 cup sour cream
juice of 1 lime
water as needed

Place lime juice in blender with cilantro. Turn on blender and slowly add water. The goal is to achieve a thick paste.

BBQ Sauce
1 cup white onion, small dice
1 pasilla, small dice
1 jalapeno, minced
2 Tablespoons minced garlic
1/4 cup molasses
1/8 cup soy sauce
3 ounces brown sugar
4 Tablespoons dijon mustard
1 teaspoon tabasco
salt
2 Tablespoons worcestershire sauce
1/2 can chipotle
3 Tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 cup water
2 bottles Heinz Chili Sauce

Sweat onions, garlic and peppers in oil until soft. Add everything but chili sauce and bring to a boil. Reduce for 5 minutes. Add chili sauce and return to a boil. Turn off. Strain through a sieve
or cheese cloth. Chill and refrigerate. Toss chicken with BBQ sauce. Place a mound of chicken on top of a corn tortilla that has been fried (or use prepared tostada shell). Top with avocado salad and cilantro sour cream. Garnish with cilantro and lime.

First Monday Eggs

Eggs... they aren't just for breakfast. With people finding themselves short on time in the mornings, many family's are making breakfast for dinner.
This Month's First Monday event featured eggs. There is hardly a food more versatile, ubiquitous, and affordable than the egg.

Chef John Hitchcock demonstrates how to poach eggs.

John loves our RSVP egg poacher available in single, four and six cup units.

Chef John Hitchcock taking questions.

Chef John Hitchcock removing the poached egg from the cup.

The finished product

Eggs Benedict

Hollandaise Sauce
Makes 2 cups

1/2 tsp. cracked peppercorns
1/4 cup white wine or cider vinegar
1/4 cup water, or as needed
4 large eggs, fresh or pasteurized
1 1/2 cups melted or clarified butter
2 tsp. lemon juice, or as needed
2 tsp. salt, or as needed
Tabasco as needed

Combine the peppercorns and vinegar in a small pan and reduce over medium heat until nearly dry, about 5 minutes. Add the water to the vinegar reduction. Strain this liquid into a stainless steel bowl.
Add the egg yolks to the vinegar reduction and set the bowl over a pot of simmering water. Whisking constantly, cook the egg yolk/vinegar mixture until the yolks triple in volume and fall in ribbons from the whisk. Remove the bowl from the simmering water and place it on a clean kitchen towel to keep the bowl from slipping.
Gradually ladle the warm butter into the egg mixture, whisking constantly. If the sauce becomes too thick and the butter is not blending in easily, add a little water to thin the egg mixture enough to whisk in the remaining butter. Season the hollandaise with lemon juice, salt, pepper, and cayenne if desired. Serve immediately or keep the sauce warm over a bowl in simmering water.
This recipe is from the Culinary Institute of America's Breakfast and Brunches cookbook, which is available for purchase at bookstores nationwide.

Chef John Hitchcock flipping an omelette. John suggested practicing with a piece of toasted bread. Pretty soon you will flip like a pro!

Blanched asparagus and sauteed mushrooms, with plenty of jack cheese.
You can be creative with your own combination of fillings and cheeses.