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Ben Blake's Falafel Tostada Slider with Carne Asada, crispy artichoke hearts and goat's cheese queso and an arugula salad with a lime honey garlic vinaigrette

Editor's note: Recipes appear as submitted and written by contestants

For the Mojo Marinade for Carne Asada

1 beef tenderloin tail

Juice and zest of 2 limes

Juice and zest of 1 orange

1 cup au jus

2 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil

1 yellow onion quartered

8 cloves smashed garlic

1-2 jalapeños sliced depending on level of spice

¼ cup cilantro

1 tbsp. salt

Tostada

2 cups falafel dough

Crispy Lime Artichoke Hearts

2 tbsp. olive oil

1 can artichoke hearts drained and sliced in half

1 tsp. garlic salt

1 tbsp. lime juice

1 tsp. pepper

"Refried" black beans

1 tbsp. butter

½ minced red onion

2 twelve ounce cans of black beans drained

1 cup au jus

1.5 tbsp. cumin

Adobe Goats Cheese Queso

2 tbsp. butter

1 clove minced garlic

1 - 2 adobe peppers minced depending on spice level

2 tbsp. flour

2/3 cup of whole milk

8 ounces of crumbled goat cheese

Arugula Lime Honey Garlic Vinaigrette

2 cups of arugula

Crispy Artichoke hearts

¼ cup lime juice

3 tbsp. olive oil

¼ cup white vinegar

1.5 tbsp. honey

1 pressed garlic clove

Pinch of salt

Garnish:

½ red tomato diced

Mojo Marinade:

Combine the lime juice and zest, orange juice and zest, au jus, olive oil, garlic, onion, jalapeños and cilantro in a blender or food processor. Blend/process until marinade has a choppy consistency. Add the beef tenderloin tail to a gallon bag and pour in marinade. Place in fridge for 4 or more hours; preferably 24 hours.

Falafel Tostada and crispy lime artichokes:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. Take one or two cookie sheets and line with parchment paper.

Place the dough on the cookie sheet and spread it out so it is about 1/4 inch thick.

Combine the olive oil, artichoke hearts, garlic salt, lime juice and pepper in a bag and then shake to coat all the hearts. Lay the artichoke hearts on parchment paper on a cookie sheet.

Put the artichoke and falafel dough into the oven and bake for about 25-30 min. Flip the falafel dough half way through the cooking process. When done remove from oven, use a biscuit cutter to cut circles out of the falafel dough and cover the artichokes to keep warm.

"Refried" black beans:

While the artichoke hearts and tostada are in the oven, add butter, red onion to a pot or sauce pan on medium heat. Cook until onions are translucent. Add the black beans, au jus and cumin to the pot and bring to a boil. Once boiling reduce heat to low and use an emulsion blender to blend beans into a refried bean type consistency. Turn off heat and cover to keep warm.

Carne Asada:

Remove the tenderloin tail from the fridge about an hour before you want to grill. Pre heat grill on medium high heat. Cook the meat to preferred temperature. For medium-rare it will be about 10 minutes per side. When fully cooked, cover in aluminum foil and let it rest for about 10 min. After resting cut the tenderloin tail against the grain in small slices and cover to keep warm.

Goats cheese queso:

While the artichoke hearts and tostada are in the oven, add butter, garlic and adobe peppers to a sauce pan on medium heat and cook for about 3 minutes. Next, slowly add the flour while whisking to create a butter roux and cook until golden brown 2-4 minutes. Once golden brown, turn heat on low and slowly add milk while whisking for about 2 minutes. Finally, add the crumble goat's cheese and whisk until the cheese has fully melted. Turn off heat and cover to keep warm.

Arugula Salad with Lime honey garlic vinaigrette:

Combine the arugula and half of the artichoke hearts from the oven together in a bowl. Whisk together the lime juice, olive oil, honey, white vinegar, garlic, and salt in a bowl. Put the salad on the plate and finish with the vinaigrette.

Plating:

Use the falafel tostada as the base and put a layer of refried beans onto the top of them. Then add the carne asada and artichoke heart. Drizzle the goat's cheese queso on top of the tostada. Sprinkle on diced tomatoes and finish the salad with the vinaigrette.

Serves 4

Ben Blake

Mark Black/mblack@dailyherald.comBen Blake's dish for the Round 3 of the COWC 2017.
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