Our friend Jess -and Matt’s cousin- came over for dinner recently.  She lives down the street and is always busy (I wish I could bottle some of her energy) but we love when she can come over for some good food and good wine and great company. Luckily for us she runs the best cheese shop in little Italy and always brings us lots of delicious goodies! Check out the link to M. Fierro Cheese….

A while ago I ripped a recipe for chicken tostadas out of a magazine and came upon it again the other day so I decided to make them.  I have a habit of saving Mexican recipes but don’t always get around to making anything more than tacos or fajitas. When I lived in Los Angeles, I ate more than my share of delicious Mexican food. My favorite was actually from the tiny stand at the bottom of the hill a few blocks over or after the Spanish mass at church once a month. After remembering all that good food, I decided it was time for some Mexican food for sure. The tostadas were actually pretty simple to make and ended up being really good.  (this recipe is adapted from Cooking Light, serves 3-4)

What you’ll need:

Low fat sour cream -2 to 3 Tbs

Low sodium chicken broth- 2 to 3 Tbs

Juice from 1/2 lemon

Vegetable oil- 2 tsp

Red pepper flakes or cayenne pepper – pinch or 2

Salt and pepper

1 ripe avocado (I used the packaged avocado from Trader Joe’s)

Flour tortillas- regular or whole wheat

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 jalapeno (or some jalapeno rings from the jar), minced

Shredded lettuce

1-2 tomatoes

Shredded cheese (Mexican blend or any kind you like)

2 or so cups of Rotisserie chicken * I had a package of boneless, skinless chicken thighs so I used them instead but you can use any kind of chicken you have around. Just cook it and shred it up.

What to do:

1…in a blender or food processor, combine the first 7 ingredients and puree until smooth. Add s&p and cayenne to make it as spicy/salty as you like. I like it with a little extra kick. Set aside. Chill if you like.

2…heat a large pan. Add a small bit of oil or cooking spray and brown tortillas. Set aside.

3…in the same pan add a little more oil plus garlic and jalapeno. Sauté 1-2 minutes. Add in chicken and cook a few minutes until heated all the way through (if you have raw chicken, cook it all the way through!).

4…make your tostadas! (the fun part) Make them however you like them. Pile on the chicken, tomatoes, lettuce, cheese, and pour on some sauce or lots of sauce (it’s good!)

If you like beans or rice with yours, add those too. I like extra sour cream on mine.….. below is a recipe for Mexican rice that I put on ours. In my opinion, you really can never pile enough on….. Enjoy!

Mexican Rice

¾ cup uncooked long grain white or brown rice

1 ½ cups low sodium chicken broth

½-1 green bell pepper, diced

1 medium tomato, diced

½ tsp ground cumin

Salt and pepper

Put everything in a large pan. Bring to a boil then reduce to low heat. Cover and simmer for 20 minutes.