Mesa Verde National Park

A few weeks ago, we visited beautiful Mesa Verde National Park in Colorado.  We LOVED this National Park.  Pictures do not do it justice- everyone visit here at least once in their lifetime.  The park is home to many, many ancient Anasazi ruins.  They are no longer called Anasazi though, just an FYI- now they are called Ancestral Pueblo People, and it is believed that some tribes that still exist today (Ute Tribe and some others) are descendants of these ancient people.  (I like the term Anasazi though!  I still use it; it's easier and more fun to say than Ancestral Pueblo People.)  

The two photos above are of the cliff dwelling called Cliff Palace.  We had to kind of hike down into this, and then use 3 or 4 8-foot ladders to get out.  If you have an infant or young toddler, you must wear them in a baby backpack, or they can't come down to these awesome places.  Luckily we don't go anywhere without our two carriers; Boba and Onya brands.  Here we are on one of the 8-foot ladders using the trusty Boba.  He loved the ride!

Babywearing in Mesa Verde National Park!

Although we were already pretty tired by early afternoon, we decided to hike down into another cliff dwelling, the Spruce Tree house (pic above).  This one is a free self-guided thing where the others are guided and you have to pay, also.  We loved this one, as well.  The kids and my husband climbed down into an ancient underground chamber, or Kiva (the round rooms shown in the first pics are kivas, missing their roofs. They were used for religious ceremonies and also living when it got cold outside.)

In the nearby town of Cortez, CO, we attended a free Native American Traditional dance.  It was very beautiful and interesting to watch.  The family that was dancing was from the Ute Native American Tribe.  

After the dance, there was a special talk by one of the last living Navajo Code Talkers.  Taken from the official website of the NCT, here is some info.  "Known as Navajo Code Talkers, they were young Navajo men who transmitted secret communications on the battlefields of WWII. At a time when America's best cryptographers were falling short, these modest sheepherders and farmers were able to fashion the most ingenious and successful code in military history."  My daughter and I enjoyed his talk and then got some photos with him.  (That's my sleeve in the pic-scandal!)

On our way home from Mesa Verde, we drove to a place called Newspaper Rock.  It's a large rock face with a huge number of ancient Native American Petroglyphs.  It was so awesome to see.  (Click on any pic to enlarge.)

 **This post and photos are property of http://dishingwithdish.blogspot.com/ **

Simple Tomato Sandwiches

I love the fresh fruits and veggies you can get in summer (if you're not on a tiny island, that is!  Ok, we can get some things... lol).  We passed a roadside farm stand in a tiny town yesterday and had to stop.  I bought these lovely tomatoes, peaches, melon, and fresh-made pico de gallo to enjoy with some tortilla chips later.  These tomatoes are the best I've had this year.... which isn't hard, since I've only had grocery-store ones yet.  But just look at how red and juicy those ones are..... they are amazing.  I love home-grown tomatoes.  (I actually had other pics all uploaded and ready to go from a few days ago, but those pics featured pale grocery-store 'maters.  I thought that sandwich tasted and looked great.... until I had this one!)

My husband grew up eating a version of these sandwiches, I remember my mom eating something similar sometimes, and we usually enjoy them at my Aunt's house when we go to visit her, with fresh tomatoes from her garden.  This isn't really a recipe, and many people probably already make these, but I wanted to put these on here as an idea for a quick summer meal.  

Simple Tomato Sandwiches

by What a Dish!, from many different sources

For each sandwich:

1 slice favorite bread (sourdough is really good; but pictured above is Dakota bread from Great Harvest)

mayo or butter

1 slices favorite cheese, optional (pictured above is sharp cheddar)

fresh basil leaves, optional (or other herb)

fresh tomato slices

salt and pepper to taste

1.  Toast the bread.  Spread either mayo or butter over it, and add the cheese, if using.  Top with optional basil leaves, and layer on the fresh tomato slices.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper, and enjoy immediately.  (We eat these as an open-faced sandwich.)

                                                    **This post and photos are property of http://dishingwithdish.blogspot.com/ **

Monument Valley

Exactly two weeks ago, we were in Monument Valley , enjoying the vast beauty this land has to offer.  In the same trip, we saw Goosenecks, Mesa Verde and other Anasazi sights, Arches National Park and Goblin Valley.  I used to live in Monument Valley as a child and enjoyed revisiting some of these sights.  We took a ton of pics; it was hard picking out ones to share here because there were so many.  Enjoy!  (PS:  Blogger doesn't let me enlarge these any more than this without them overlapping the sidebar and looking bad.  Click on the pics to enlarge, if desired.)

The infamous view, approaching from Mexican Hat.

Rock towers on the Monuments drive.

Dream catchers for sale with monuments in the background.

Water pitcher at Goulding's restaurant.

"Small" Navajo Taco from Goulding's restaurant.

The Mittens with Merrick Butte in the morning shadows.

**This post and photos are property of http://dishingwithdish.blogspot.com/ **

Mexican Corn Salad (Esquites)

I spotted this recipe on Closet Cooking some time ago, but had to wait to make it.  On the remote island we live on, it's hard to get corn on the cob.  You can get a version of it, but it's not the same as the super-sweet North American version.  So, I waited until we came to the States on vacation to make this. 

The best pan for this would probably be cast-iron, to really get the char on the corn.  All our rental condo had was non-stick cookware though, so I made due with that and it was fine.  But I wasn't really able to get a char at all.  This was still delicious, though.  

Mexican Corn Salad (Esquites)

adapted from Closet Cooking

• 2 tablespoons butter
• 3 cups corn (about 3-4 ears), cut from the cob
• 1 small jalapeno, seeded and finely diced
• 3 tablespoons mayonnaise
• 1 glove garlic, grated
• 2 green onions, sliced
• 1 handful cilantro, chopped
• 1 lime, juiced
• 2 tablespoons cotija or feta cheese, crumbled
• chili powder to taste
• 1.  Melt the butter in a heavy skillet over medium-high heat.  Add the corn, toss, and let it si,t cooking until charred.  Mix it up and let it char again, about 6-10 minutes.  Add the jalapeno, saute for a minute and remove from heat.  Mix everything and serve warm or at room temperature.  (I sauteed the garlic too, but some fresh garlic flavor would also have been nice.)

**This post and photos are property of http://dishingwithdish.blogspot.com/ **

Goosenecks State Park & Mexican Hat, Utah

We took a trip over to Monument Valley last week, but first, we stopped at Mexican Hat, Utah, where our hotel was, and took a little evening trip to Goosenecks State Park and then to Natural Bridges National Monument.    I'll post about Monument Valley later.  Above is Goosenecks.  It's a very short drive from Mexican Hat and it doesn't take long to see it at all; it's just a little drive and a lookout.

The photo above is of a road called Moki Dugway; tight switchbacks that go right up a cliffside near Mexican Hat and Valley of the Gods.  We drove up here to get to Natural Bridges.  I used to live in Monument Valley as a child; attended school in Mexican Hat, and I remember driving up Moki Dugway with my fam a few times.  We used to get Christmas trees up there.  On top of the cliff is actually a forest!  

The next two photos, below, were taken in Natural Bridges.  We did get pics of all three bridges, but I liked these pics of the park better; first, a dead tree, and the second one is a flower called Indian Paintbrush, or just Paintbrush, depending on which park you are in.

Pictured below is the famous rock formation that gives Mexican Hat its name.  The pic below that is of the San Juan river, which is right next to Mexican Hat.

**This post and photos are property of http://dishingwithdish.blogspot.com/ **

Summer 2013 So Far

We've been enjoying our vacation in the Southwestern US, but it is HOT here!!  We got here during an extreme heat wave and it's only now just "cooling off" to a high of 104-106 degrees F.  Even watching fireworks on the Fourth of July, it was 100 degrees at 10pm at night!!  Luckily, we can drive to a few awesome places to escape the heat.  We went to Bryce Canyon National Park last week, where the temps ranged from the high 70's to 56 degrees F!  I loved it.  I'll share pics of that below.  Above is our haul from the local farmer's market yesterday; peaches, basil, cherry tomatoes, sweet onions, artisan french bread, homemade blackberry/pomegranate jam, and Rainier cherries.

We celebrated the fourth of July by laying low in our AC'd rental condo.  We grilled burgers, had corn on the cob and watermelon, and then had brownies with star-shaped marshmallows, strawberries and blueberries.  We have to enjoy fresh corn and blueberries Stateside, as they are very hard to get in the middle of the ocean.  

Below are some pics of Bryce Canyon.  It was absolutely stunning with the formations in red rock, some against the green forest.  We went on a little hike to a cave and waterfall.  It started raining but we persevered, even though some of the kids complained.  

**This post and photos are property of http://dishingwithdish.blogspot.com/ **

Jalapeno Popper Pizza

I LOVED this pizza.  I made it about two or three weeks ago.  I made my regular thin crust pizza, and the kids just had pepperoni or cheese as toppings, while my husband and I enjoyed this one. It was a little bit spicy, but I enjoyed it.  It has a ton of flavor from the dressing you use as the sauce.  I'm excited to make this one again!  I had a hard time deciding which photos to use.  I have nothing more to say about this other than it was delicious, so enjoy the photos.  :)  If you like jalapenos, try this out!  PS:  I used pickled jalapenos.

Jalapeno Popper Pizza

adapted from Closet Cooking

3 tablespoons cream cheese, room temperature

5 tablespoon jalapeno ranch dressing, recipe follows

1 pizza dough

2 jalapeno peppers, sliced (OR similar amount pickled jalapeno slices)

4 slices bacon, cut into 1 inch pieces and cooked, optional

1 cup mozzarella, shredded

1 cup cheddar, shredded

1.  Preheat oven to 500 F, or close to it (mine will not go to 500, so I do 450 F.)  Mix the cream cheese into the jalapeno ranch dressing.

2.  Roll the dough* out into a circle roughly 12 inches across and spread the creamy jalapeno ranch dressing over it.  Sprinkle the jalapeno peppers, bacon, and cheeses onto the pizza.  Bake in a preheated 500F oven until golden brown on top, about 5-10 minutes.

*For a golden brown and crispy crust, I use a pizza stone.  Place the cold pizza stone into the oven before preheating.  Roll out dough onto parchment to facilitate easy placement of dough onto stone.  Roll out pizza on parchment, and then add toppings.  Carefully transfer the whole thing to the pizza stone, and then quickly place in the oven and shut the door.  Can place each pizza on its own sheet of parchment.

Jalapeno Ranch Dressing

adapted from Closet Cooking

1/4 cup buttermilk

1/4 cup mayonnaise

1 jalapeno, stemmed and seeded

1 clove garlic

1 green onion

1/2 lime, juice

1 handful cilantro

salt and pepper to taste

1.  Place everything into a food processor or blender and puree until smooth.  (Note: You will have extra dressing leftover; use the rest as a dip for the pizza or save it for salad or veggies!)

**This post and photos are property of http://dishingwithdish.blogspot.com/ **