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Elotes (Mexican Street Corn)

Elotes (Mexican Street Corn)Elotes / Mexican Street Corn recipe From Anna's Kitchen (www.fromannaskitchen.com)

Updated 11/23/20 to include a variation on this recipe for when corn is not in season—making it a perfect side-dish for any season! Click here to see recipe variation at the end of this post.

This is not a sponsored post or endorsement made in coordination with or paid by any of the brands mentioned here—only offering a few suggestions based on things my family and I have tried and enjoyed.

Elotes, otherwise known as Mexican street corn, is a hot food trend right now for good reason: it's really, really good.

The topping is a perfect, creamy addition to fresh, sweet, in-season corn that gets sprinkled generously with Mexican-style seasoning blend and and cotija cheese.

It's very easy to make your own spice blend but you can also use one that's pre-made, if you don't have the time, such as from McCormick or tajin, which is chili and lime flavored.

Cotija is a firm cheese that typically comes wrapped in a small wheel and can be easily crumbled, similar to feta but much milder in flavor. If you can't find this in a store near you, substituting a shredded Mexican-style cheese blend or cheddar cheese blend works. Definitely try the cotija, if you have that option!

The recipe makes enough topping for about 6-8 medium ears of corn. You can always cut the corn in half, too, to double the number of portions—this is a nice idea for a buffet when you have multiple side dishes that people can choose from.

Mexican-style Spice Blend

Mexican-style Spice BlendMexican-style Spice Blend recipe From Anna's Kitchen (www.fromannaskitchen.com)

This is not a sponsored post or endorsement made in coordination with or paid by any of the brands mentioned here—only offering a few suggestions based on things my family and I have tried and enjoyed.

This is an easy Mexican spice blend that uses just five spices from your pantry. You can use it as a topping for elotes as well as for tacos, fajitas, or grilled meats—I like it on chicken or steak.

Toast your spices for maximum flavor—it's an extra step that brings out their flavor. (Admittedly, I don't always bother doing this, but here it makes a huge difference.) You can buy spices pre-toasted and ground, such as McCormick's, or make your own.

One of my favorite places online to buy spices is My Spice Sage. They have a nice assortment of whole spices, spice blends, and other pantry ingredients available in different size containers—from 2 oz bags to small glass jars, larger 8 oz and 16 oz bags, and even larger wholesale sizes. I like their lemon pepper spice blend a lot.

To toast spices, you'll need a small skillet, whole spices, and a little bit of time and attention. Add the spices to a cold skillet and turn the heat to medium. You'll want to keep the pan moving so the spices don't stay in one place for too long and burn. It only takes a couple of minutes for them to toast and during the process, they may start to crackle and pop a little bit, but they shouldn't blacken or darken considerably—if that happens, they're burnt and will taste bitter, so it's best to start over.

Foodie Resolutions: A five-year recap

Foodie Resolutions: A five-year recapBrowse recipes, menu ideas and more From Anna's Kitchen (www.fromannaskitchen.com)

I came across an article on MSN Food & Drink in January 2015 that outlined new things that foodies should try in the new year.

The article (now accessible via PopSugar) really inspired me over the years to make and tackle some of my own "foodie resolutions" as well as see how many I could cross off from this list. Today, I'm revisiting some of them, five years later, as a recap of what I've accomplished.

Raw-curious: A whos-who of raw food

Raw-curious: A whos-who of raw foodRaw-curious: A whos-who of raw food, an overview From Anna's Kitchen (www.fromannaskitchen.com)

This installment of my raw food series discusses some of the people and brands that focus on raw living. In case you missed it, read some reasons why you might try a raw food diet and essential tools for raw cooking to make the process easier and more enjoyable. As a reminder, I'm not a dietician or medical professional, so please consult with your doctors before changing your eating habits or starting any new diets. Also, this is not a sponsored post or endorsement made in coordination with or paid by any of the brands or individuals mentioned here. 

Bobby Flay. Ina Garten. Emeril Lagasse. Rachael Ray. When it comes to a who's who of cooking, any fans of food could probably also rattle off these familiar names. Those four come to mind first for me, having watched the Food Network since what seems like "day 1"—and more precisely, back when the OJ Simpson trial was dominating the news.

Really. I remember this because my mom was, and still is, a fan of anything involving law and politics. We upgraded our cable package so we could have the channels that would cover the Simpson trial 24/7 instead of just the highlights that would come on the evening news.

The Food Network was only included in these higher-priced packages at the time—FoodTV, as it once was—so the perk for little ol' me was that this was now my chance to watch it at home, not just at my grandparent's house. The Essence of Emeril, hosted of course by Emeril Lagasse, was my favorite. And when we got our first family computer (a Packard Bell—did anyone else have one of those?!) and printer (a HP and still to this day I have an HP printer—albeit a more modern one ;), I remember printing some of his more complicated recipes that, one day, I hoped to be able to master.

Learning about raw food introduced me to a whole new set of chefs as well as brands, some of which I'd like to share with you. Have a favorite raw chef or brand that's not mentioned here? I'd love to know about them, so leave me a comment!

Devils on Horseback

Devils on HorsebackDevils on Horseback recipe From Anna's Kitchen (www.fromannaskitchen.com)

Also known as stuffed dates, these are a great addition to your tapas board or as a quick and simple appetizer with cocktails before a meal. They're salty, sweet, and incredibly addictive... impossible to eat just one! This recipe makes a dozen but it's foolproof: scale it to make as many as you'd like.

If blue cheese typically isn't your jam, a creamy gorgonzola is a good choice that is a little milder. If you love blue cheese as much as I do, St. Agur is fantastic, probably one of my favorite blue cheeses to both use in recipes as well as just eat by itself with some crackers, since it's so damn delicious. It's also made with vegetarian-based rennet.

Menu Idea: Tapas Tonight

Menu Idea: Tapas TonightGet creative ideas for a tapas menu for lunch or dinner From Anna's Kitchen (www.fromannaskitchen.com)

In my house, warm weather, when nobody feels like looking or standing over a stove, calls for something quick and easy to eat. If the last thing that you can imagine doing is turning on the stove and you're craving something easy to nosh on that doesn't take a lot of time to assemble, try tapas.

Tapas are Spanish-style appetizers or small bites that are really fun to eat. It's one of my favorite things to enjoy at a restaurant—and going to restaurants that serve tapas is probably one of the things I've missed the most lately about "normal" life—where typically 2-4 per person makes for a good main course meal. And it's more fun when you have a variety to share with your partner or a group: some seafood, cheese and fruit; some hot and some cold.

Try these ideas a spread of Mediterranean-style tapas that you can make at home for a quick lunch or dinner.