54 replies to this topic

[cissyboo]

A Fine Fiesta!

It's a Mexican fiesta Sandy Style with three dishes sure to make any fiesta fabulous. Sandra Lee starts the fiesta with her take on a traditional Mexican dish, Black Bean Sopes. Then her Chili Lime Grilled Shrimp Tacos will tantalize the taste buds of even the most traditional taco lover. And for cocktail time, her Acai Margarita will really get your fiesta started! And of course, a festive tablescape that will have everyone talking.
Recipes in This Episode
* Acai Margarita
* Caramel Banana Taquitos
* Chile Lime Grilled Shrimp Tacos

Comcast has the recipes as Black Bean Sopes, Chili lime shrimp, and the cocktail-just like above! Except when do we get to make banana taquitos (from the recipe list)?? Unless Sandy’s take on Sopes is taquitos?

PURPLE!PURPLE!PURPLE!! What an ugly collar detail on that dress. Because when I think Mexican food, I think PURPLE!
Mexican food is like a party in your mouth.
Sandy is using polenta in a tube instead of masa (because masa is soooo hard to find). It looks like she is using polenta with herbs-strange combination for a sope. Fry the polenta rounds; rinse the black beans, add store bought salsa and hot sauce and mash (so it is a beautiful topping that doesn’t roll off!). You can see the flavor. Flip the polenta. Let’s make the sour cream…

But first we go to the shrimp, and pour the Lowery’s over top cover, and the acid cooks it!
Back to the sour cream: ½ c sour cream-so easy! Semi homemade is so easy! If you shop at the grocery store, you cook semi-homemade! < As opposed to growing and killing your food, to cook from scratch.> Add the lime juice and hot sauce to the sour cream and mix. Remove and drain the polenta-3 or 4 is a genius meal! Plop the bean goo on top, add some iceberg lettuce for freshness and crunch, put on the salsa (eat these and do the salsa<to the bathroom>!) add the sour cream-it doesn’t dollop when it’s been thinned out with lime juice and hot sauce ; She promises us shrimp, taquitos, and cocktail when we return.
Commercials suck this week, in my market at least.

We’re back for the shrimp tacos. Those shrimp look awfully messy. Sandra thawed the shrimp, used her own flavoring (LOWERY’S), and she’s cooking them on her OWN electric grill. WOW. Flip when they turn pink-except the sauce is red…get out the red cabbage, and store bought guac…amole <Sandra’s pause>. Cook the shrimp, then cut the tails off-rather than before cooking. Once more, we have sour cream! Doll it up with the chipotle peppers in adobo sauce. The seeds are flavor that will give the sourcream pop and flavor. If you know how to use your grocery store, semihomade is the best food you can make! Serve the toppings in a sectioned dish (Sour cream, guac, onion, cabbage). Build a Taco! Salsa is a substitute if you don’t have onions! Break time! When we return, the bananas, the cocktail, and a PurplePerfect tablescape! Whoot!

Desert! Yay! The taquitos have arrived. Canned dulce de leche is genius in a can. Bananas are in the top five products in the grocery store-everybody had them (I forgot to get them this week), so we can all make this desert (since we all have dulce de leche in a can in the pantry). Smear the caramel goo on the tortilla (which was heated in the microwave first), put in the banana chunk and coconut. Coconut always adds to bananas dishes. Roll , stab with a pick, into the skillet these goes (Sandyism) to fry. Chocolate and coffee into a bowl, flip the taquito, she makes some noises about coffee, sugar, and caffeine. Drizzle the sauce on the fried taquitos, and deep throat them! Break time!

We’re back! Cocktail time! Gather your booze. Acai juice (3c), margarita mix (2 c), tequila (1c). So a 5:1 juice to booze ratio. This and the banana thing is all she tasted. Scrape time. Tropical print tube dress, and lots of purple, because Sandra thinks fiesta when she sees purple. She stole Aarti’s hair flower! Argh!

Each week, we get more and more digressions touting the fabulousness of Semi-Homemade. Weird. It disrupts the flow of the show, and the recaps. Blame Sandra, not me.

Edited by cissyboo, May 1, 2011 @ 11:02 AM.

[ubi]

Nothing says "Mexican" like the color purple, but hey, it matched that "beautiful" fabric she found, so screw it.

Mexican food is a party in your mouth. Thanks so much for THAT lovely visual.

SLop uses a tube of polenta to make the sampo because masa flour is so hard to find, then tries to throw a zinger to us shrikes by claiming that cooking this by scratch involves growing the corn, yada yada yada, so you'd be doing this. So there! Way to tell us, SLop! </SNARK> She repeats this nonsense with the salsa and guac, claiming that anything less than growing the stuff froms eedlings is Semi-Homade.

For "Cocktail Time", SLop takes acai berries, the superfood de jour, and ruins them by making them into a cocktail.

SLop's rablerape is all purple. All of it. She said something about making it "pop" by adding different shades of purple, but it all looked alike to me.

[cissyboo]

SLop's rablerape is all purple. All of it. She said something about making it "pop" by adding different shades of purple, but it all looked alike to me.

Exactly! And the funniest thing is that from what I recall, all the food was plated onto white/ivory serving dishes. This tablescape proves, beyond a doubt, that it's all about the craftstore swag, and NEVER about the food, as there was not only no room for the supposed edibles on the table, but the serving dishes would detract from the perfectpurple scrape!

[ubi]

Not that there's anything wrong with no room for the "food"...

[chessiegal]

She actually tasted the shrimp tacos too. I'm beginning to think they are telling her to taste things because of all the comments that she doesn't taste things because her food is inedible.

Blech - pretty much everything looked disgusting to me.

This nonsense about buying jarred salsa because otherwise you'd have to grow your own tomatoes and onions is ridiculous. Has she never been to the perimeter aisles of a grocery store?

[jeanine0123]

Holy purple! I love purple but that's just way too much!

Another big honking flower arrangement on the counter.

Masa flour isn't that hard to find around here. And why is she yakking about making her own masa, go to the international section in your grocery store twit.

Wow, sizzle! They've actually run power to the stove.

Of course you're not going to grow your own tomatoes, your tastebuds are too dead to understand how much better homemade salsa tastes.

No, I can't see all the flavor in the sopa topping, you smooshed it all together and it looks yucky. And wouldn't you want your polenta browned if you're looking for a crust?

Can you get ceviche out of fake lime juice?

No, your dishes are not simple for me because I generally don't have that much packaged crap in my house. Nor do I have bottled lime juice, I have the real deal.

Hey, one polenta cake out of the 6 is perfect! That topping looks disgusting. And she even chose the least nutritious lettuce for the topping! So even the real food is nutritionally lacking.

That grill is going to be such a pain in the ass to clean after all that excess marinade burns to it.

Darn, we don't get to see her make the pea guac!

Oh come on, could you have found a more putsy way to take the tails off of those shrimp!

Oh for God's sake, touch the damn food already!

I do know how to use my grocery store and farmer's market, but no Semi-Homemade food will never be the best food I've ever had. My taste buds are still alive and kicking.

She's putting more than the 5 shrimp she said you needed on that taco.

Damn, it didn't plop out all over the place when she bit into it.

I'm surprised she didn't figure out a way to avoid touching the banana.

Now those taqutos don't look or sound half bad, I think my 5 year old would finally eat bananas if I made him those.

Is it just me or is she pronouncing acai wrong?

Only one cup of booze to 5 cups of liquid? She's losing her touch!

She needed a reminder to stop downing the drink it seems.

She's really not young enough, or perky enough, to pull off a strapless dress like that. And you still can't see the people across the table from you.

Give me Chef Anne's fish tacos over those shrimp things any day.

[cissyboo]

She bit into the shrimp taco, but I thought it cut away before she "chewed and swallowed", but I could be mistaken. I know she actually masticated the taquito. And, because it cannot be said enough Mexican Fiesta=PURPLE!

Edited by cissyboo, May 1, 2011 @ 12:33 PM.

[Baysu]

I only watched for a few minutes. I just couldn't stand looking at that ugly purple dress. I didn't see a purple cake on the counter behind her or did I miss it. She did eat one shrimp when she was cutting off the tails. And she loved that cocktail.

[cissyboo]

That's right-she did eat a shrimp all by itself. I was distracted by the use of tongs and a chef's knife to remove the tails from cooked shrimp. I generally remove the tails from shrimp before cooking, if they are going into a dish where the person would have to disassemble the food to remove tails. You loose a lot of meat by cutting the tails off.
So, other than the bean things, Sandra tasted everything on today's menu? That's a rare occurrence.

[orchidgal]

I watched this episode with my husband today. Big mistake!

Sandy said, "Mexican food is a party in your mouth."
My husband said, "I wonder if Andrew is like a party in Sandy's mouth."
Me, "Uh..."

Then, he was rubbing off on me because when Sandy said, "I added my own flavoring to the shrimp."
I said, "Eww, I did not need to know that! TMI!"

Finally, we both noticed that Sandy deep throated the banana taquito.

[lillybee]

Sandra, I shop at the grocery store but I do not cook the semi homemade way. I do know my grocery store and your semi homemade is not the best food I ever had.

I guess that Sandra couldn't find a purple Kitchenaid so the poor thing had to use or not use a white one.

I wonder if Sandra knows that one can buy salsa in the refrigerated section of their grocery store that is so much better than the jarred salsa.

At least I didn't see a single seasoning packet.

There are no words to describe that tablescape? Is it possible to eat at her table. But then who would want to eat Sandy's food.

Re serving the taquitos, Sandy said that you could leave the toothpicks in or take them out. I don't think leaving them in is a good idea, one of her phantom guests could break a tooth.

Edited by lillybee, May 1, 2011 @ 1:56 PM.

[jeanine0123]

Kitchen Aid does have a boysenberry color. In Sandy's world, that would be close enough to purple to work, wouldn't it?

[BelleCurve]

Who the hell "creams" black beans? I mean really lady, you are pushing our buttons on purpose. I know she is just looking for the dumbest recipes possible as well as mispronouncing dulce just cuz she can.

[raid]

The acai margarita didn't look too bad *ducks* I've had a "real" acai margarita before and it was very tasty. But it was made by someone who knew how to accurately mix drinks.

Maybe it's just me, but it seemed like she spent a lot of time preparing the sour cream gernishes.

[SnarklePuss]

I guess that Sandra couldn't find a purple Kitchenaid so the poor thing had to use or not use a white one.

Actually, I remember a gorgeous purple/orchid metallic KA she had on an earlier episode-- it might have been one with Thai food. When I saw the white one amidst the sea of purple today I wondered what happened to it.

I do think she pronounced both "açai" and "dulce" reasonably correctly. I hate it when people try to pronounce "dulce" as if it were Italian (i.e., "dool-chay".)

[nothinggoodon]

this is the second show recently that she's expressed a preference for guacamole with "whole avocados" in it. Which is pretty much proof that she has never actually seen a "whole avocado".

[Philly Phoodie]

Cook the shrimp, then cut the tails off-rather than before cooking.

This was my jaw-drop moment right here; for the love of Julia Child, why didn't she cut the tails first?

I know she said that the salsa and guac were homemade. I get it. But she said she didn't have time to make salsa, and that is why she bought it, but said you could make your own guac if you wanted. I call shenanigans and inconsistency. Neither one is really that difficult to make from scratch. Some labor involved, okay, but really.

[grisgris]

Kitchen Aid does have a boysenberry color. In Sandy's world, that would be close enough to purple to work, wouldn't it?

That would make sense as the there was "tone-on-tone" purple.

Color me shocked. I have a can of dulce de leche in my pantry. I completely forgot about it. Don't recall why I bought it.

Anyway, what were all of the snarky remarks about growing your own vegetables? The corn/masa story didn't make any sense. You can find that in the Mexican food aisle of any grocery store. Does she even know that there is a produce department in the grocery store?

Now, she's ripping off Ina with her speech about three twists to every recipe and being "flexible," with what you have on hand...

I was so distracted by the hideous purple dress, that I paid little attention to the food. The black beans on polenta rounds looked disgusting. There is no way that bottled marinade with a small amount of artificial lime juice would produce cerviche. Why didn't she cut the tails off the shrimp prior to grilling it?

Don't care for coconut, so the banana dessert didn't appeal to me.

The cocktail was surprisingly modest -- both in the amount of alcohol and rimming/gernishing the glasses.

Hideous, hideous tablescape. Why did she need so many plates? I'll bet the people in the fabric store loved it when she walked up to the cutting table with 20 types of trim and asked for 4" of each one.

Agreed, she is too old and too saggy to wear a strapless sundress.

[cissyboo]

Philly Phoodie

This was my jaw-drop moment right here; for the love of Julia Child, why didn't she cut the tails first?

Or, my preferred method, yank the damned things off (you keep much more meat that way).

SnarklePuss

Actually, I remember a gorgeous purple/orchid metallic KA she had on an earlier episode-- it might have been one with Thai food. When I saw the white one amidst the sea of purple today I wondered what happened to it.

But the white one matched the plates she used for the food (since none of it made it to the table anyhow). And the ugly collar decoration on the dress, in which the girls were, once again, at elbow level.

Did anyone see a purple cake (or a white cake, if we go with the kitchen accessory color) on the counter? My eyes were too confused by the purple froufrou everywhere to notice a cake.

[grisgris]

No. There was no cake. That is the subtle difference between Semi-ho and MSM. MSM gets the color-coordinated cake. SH gets the huge funeral arrangements.

[Philly Phoodie]

cissyboo

Or, my preferred method, yank the damned things off (you keep much more meat that way).

Oh yes, of course. I have done that too. The Asian market near my apartment not only sells them frozen, but with the tails removed.

[luvmymeena]

"I created Semi-Homemade for the way WE cook today." Uh, that would be no, Snads. I don't think there's *anyone* on this particular board that cooks the way YOU do. I will content myself with believing she uses the royal "we" in her opening lies (or lines, if you prefer).

As far as the color theme today, all I could picture was Sally Field as Sybil going berserk ("... and the people and the purple and the purple...!"). Couldn't really equate purple with "Messican" - well, it might have worked if she'd had Barney wearing a sombrero in the middle of her table, but nooooooo.

Does this beyotch adlib *everything*??? I have never heard such disjointed prattle in my life! What kind of conversations does she have with The Ladder??!? Methinks her mouth is usually too full to talk... but I digress...

One final digression: I have decided that her woodland fairy name is "Snadlee Dragontits". "WE" think it suits her to a tee (shirt).

[rosiehawthorne]

I watched this episode with my husband today. Big mistake!

Sandy said, "Mexican food is a party in your mouth."
My husband said, "I wonder if Andrew is like a party in Sandy's mouth."
Me, "Uh..."

Then, he was rubbing off on me because when Sandy said, "I added my own flavoring to the shrimp."
I said, "Eww, I did not need to know that! TMI!"

Finally, we both noticed that Sandy deep throated the banana taquito.

Orchidgal, I see your points and raise you ... the PURPLE.
I was Semi-watching this while blogging and the purple really bothered me.

And Sandy? The color purple does you no favors.

Edited by rosiehawthorne, May 1, 2011 @ 7:18 PM.

[lillybee]

And Sandy, the strapless dress does you no favors, either.

[Philly Phoodie]

And Sandy, the strapless dress does you no favors, either.

lillybee, I KNOW. Her bustline is so jacked. She needs to have those things reduced.

[lillybee]

And lifted.

[Philly Phoodie]

And lifted.

LOL. The first dress she had on wouldn't win any prizes either. Looks like something from The Rainbow Stores.

[chessiegal]

Anyway, what were all of the snarky remarks about growing your own vegetables? The corn/masa story didn't make any sense. You can find that in the Mexican food aisle of any grocery store. Does she even know that there is a produce department in the grocery store

I'm taking bets on when HRH actually took a step into a grocery store. Much too beneath her.

[ubi]

She actually tasted the shrimp tacos too. I'm beginning to think they are telling her to taste things because of all the comments that she doesn't taste things because her food is inedible.

I'm positive that same person/advisor told her to address the shrikes about using packaged processed food but as usual, the drunkard fucked it up.

[Juliekins]

I'm a little terrified of how militant she's getting about the sour cream. Are any of her semi-kids in danger of getting kicked out if they express anything other than overwhelming enthusiasm for sour cream?