Avocado Dip Rico Style

I have been making this for years and everyone seems to love it so i am sharing my secret. NO more powder packets for me. I use all natural ingredients that turns into a wonderful dip to die for. Depending on the ripeness of the avocados you purchase, you can create the dip a little chunky or just creamy and smooth; your choice.

Ingredients

• 2 - large avocados
• 1/4 cup - chopped red onion
• 1/4 cup - chopped cilantro
• 1/4 cup - chopped tomato
• 1/2 - fresh lime
• pinch of salt
• pinch of pepper
• pinch seasoned salt

1. Take the avocado and cut in half and remove the seed
2. Spoon out the inside and place in a large bowl
3. Mash with a fork to the consistency you prefer
4. Add in the chopped cilantro, red onion, and tomato and stir a minute or two mixing well
5. Add in the pinch of salt, pepper, seasoned salt
6. Squeeze the fresh lime juice over the bowl and mix in well and you are done

A GREAT OPTION:

1. Take some boiled eggs and cut in half and remove the yoke.
2. Rinse each half and dry
3. Fill each egg half with the avocado dip
4. Sprinkle with seasoned salt for color and flavor
5. Top with a small amount of shredded cheddar cheese if you like

Healthy Quick Pancakes

I reluctantly used the word "healthy" in the recipe name since not much, if anything, I have posted so far is anything close to healthy. But, this one certainly is! This is my wife Becky's recipe and she makes it all the time. One thing she likes is that is is quick and easy to make and IS very good for you. If you are short on time in the mornings on the way to a busy day, try this one and see what you think. Serves 3 small pancakes

Ingredients

• 1 banana
• 1 egg (per banana)
• blueberries

1. Mash banana really good in a bowl
2. Add the egg and stir really good (kids love to help with this)
3. Heat your griddle to 350 degrees F or use a spayed skillet and pour the mixture
4. Sprinkle a few blueberries on top and cook as you would regular pancakes
NOTE:Increase the number of banana for more yield

Be creative...you can add nuts, finely chopped apples, flax seed, cooked bacon bits.
These are so good and sweet enough you don't even need to add syrup.

The Chef Rico "Texas" Burger

When someone says Texas Burger this is what I think of! Have some fun with your grilling and give your guest a treat by using a Texas burger mold from HEB. The plastic burger mold is easy to use and adds the star in the middle too.
Serves 4-6

Ingredients

• 2 lbs- lean 90/10 ground beef
• 6 - saltine crakers
• 1 tbs - seasoned salt 
• 1- tbs pepper
• 2 tbs - Worcestershire Sauce
• 1 - egg
• 1/3 cup - chopped white onion
• Weber Gourmet Burger seasoning

1. In a large mixing bowl add the ground beef and all the ingredients.
2. Crumble up the crackers using a rolling pin then adding to the mixture
3. Knead the mixture into a large ball with your hand
4. Separate out smaller balls the size of a small orange
5. Place the ball of meat in the Texas burger mold
6. Flip the mold up side down and the Texas patty will fall out
7. Grill to perfection on gas or charcoal. If using charcoal, add a few small wood chunks like mesquite to add flavor.
8. Cover the burgers while on the grill with the Weber Gourmet Burger seasoning just on one side
9. Take the buns and lightly butter the inside top and bottom part.
10. Lay face down on the open fire way maybe a couple minutes just enough to toast the buns and brown the inside.
11. Serve hot and ready to assymble

Two Texas Cowboys

Great employees are hard to find sometimes but these two fit the bill with excellence. Actually I really don't have employees, just great friends like these two guys. They catered my daughters wedding many years ago grilling up some real Texas backyard barbeque that was to die for.

Meet Jim Morgan and Barry Canter of North Texas. These two guys are dear and close friends and when I mentioned I needed a caterer, so I could spend time with my guests, they jumped at the opportunity to help me out. They bought all the food, arrived early to start smoking and grilling and cooking, prepared all the fixins, and even served the food then stayed for cleanup. WOW!

Friends just don't get any better than these two Texas cowboys! 

Texas Fish Tacos

There are a million ways to fix Fish Tacos. Just try googling it and you would see. Doesn't really matter though, this is the right way to fix them in Texas. I use talapia and broil it in the oven or grill it. Grilling fish is a little tricky so I normally end up baking it.
Serves 8

Ingredients

• 4 - fish filet's 
• butter
• seasoned salt
• 1- lemon
• 1/4 cup - chopped cilantro
• 1/2 - red cabbage
• 1/2 - green cabbage
• 1/2 cup- chopped white onion
• 1/2 cup - shredded cheddar cheese
• 8- medium flour tortillas
• 1- 4oz plain yogurt
• 4oz - miracle whip
• 1- lime

First make the special sauce so you can refrigerate it before serving

1. In a mixing bowl add the yogurt, Miracle whip, and squeeze 1/2 of a lime. Stir well and whisk until smooth and creamy. Refrigerate

Second prepare the fish

1. Prepare the fish in a baking pan lined with foil
2. Spoon butter over the top of each filet
3. Sprinkle with seasoned salt
4. Sprinkle with course chopped cilantro
5. Slice the lemon and place one slice on each filet or more if you have extra slices
6. Broil in the oven for about 12 minutes
7. While the fish is baking prepare the other ingredients

Third prepare the toppings

1. Chop up the white onion place in small bowl
2. Shred the cheese course and place in small bowl
3. Shred the red and green cabbage and mix together in a bowl. Shred and slice this in strips
4. Chop up the cilantro and place in a small bowl

Putting it all together

1. When the fish is done. Check for flakiness with a fork. Flaky means done.
2. Slice the fish into short strips
3. Set the special sauce out
3. Heat the tortillas hot and add fish and toppings and sauce and get ready for delicious.

Grilled Pork Chops

Now that is a pork chop!
Grilled pork chops are fairly easy to grill up and don't take a long time to cook. I use my gas grill for this most the time for ease and because it has a searing burner. A searing burner is usually a long burner with flames on both side that throws out a lot of heat at once. I turn the burners on with the searing burner and when I am ready to grill, I sear the chops on both sides for about 3 minutes. That will close the pours of the meat and hold in the flavor and juices more. This method works very well on steaks as well.

Ingredients

• 4 - center cut extra thick pork chops
• seasoned salt
• pepper
• Italian dressing
• Weber Chicago Steak Seasoning
• 2- large zip lock bags

The key to this meat is preparation. If frozen, let thaw first. Fresh chops are the best of you have a local meat market close by.

1. Place 2 chops per zip lock bag
2. Pour or squirt Italian Dressing in each bag to cover the chops with some excess.
3. Close up the bag and move the chops around by turning the bag up and down to get the dressing all over the pork.
4. Chill over night in the fridge.
5. On grill day, place the chops in a pan and season with seasoned salt lightly
6. Add a little pepper as well to each chop
7. With the Chicago Steak seasoning, completely cover one side of each pork chop.
8. Place on the grill, searing burner first for 3 minutes each side.
9. Remove from searing burner to the regular grill grate area
10. Cook on low heat with the lid down for 15 minutes each side
11. Using a food thermometer cook until the center reaches 160 degrees F

NOTE: I highly recommend a gauge or digital food thermometer for grilling
12. Remove from grill and serve

Chef Rico's 12 Seasoning Spaghetti Sauce

I have been making this recipe for years and every time I serve it, I get asked for the recipe. I can only remember one time I gave this out to a friend and he loved it. I guess it is time to share and reveal my secret sauce recipe.
Serves 4

NOTE: I used this recipe on my wife for dinner when I proposed to her in 1976 and we have been married 38 years so I would say it worked. Not that she married me for my spaghetti sauce or anything! The 12 seasonings do not make any sense, they just somehow work together to make this unique and delicious. Bon a petite!

Ingredients

• 1 lb - lean 90/10 ground beef
• 1- 14.5 oz can stewed tomato's
• 2 - 8 oz cans tomato sauce
• 1 - 6 oz can tomato paste
• 1/4 cup - ketchup
• whole parsley stem
• chopped parsley
• 1 ts of each of the following:
• salt
• pepper
• ground nutmeg
• ground cloves
• rubbed sage
• garlic salt
• ground oregeno
• basil leaves
• seasoned salt
• italian seasoning
• minced onion
• paprika

1. In a large skillet, brown the lean meat until no red or pink is showing
2. Add in the stewed tomato
3. Add in the tomato sauce
4. Add in the tomato paste
5. Add in 14.5 oz of water (the empty stewed tomato can)
6. Stir around mixing it well
7. Add in each of the 12 seasonings one by one
8. Stir that around really well
9. Bring to a boil, then cover and simmer on low for 1 hour
10. Check the sauce a few times to stir

Presentation is everything...

Do not mix the sauce and pasta in the skillet together. Place the pasta on the plate, scoop the sauce over the pasta leaving some pasta showing around the edges. Place a 3 in stem of parsley under the outside edge of the pasta. Make sure you do not spill sauce on the edge of the plate anywhere. Last sprinkle your chopped parsley over the center lightly for added color.

Enjoy!