Chicken, Pasta, Lemon and Cream Sauce

This is pretty quick to prepare and very tasty. It also has half the fat and half the calories if you eat half as much. But it's good enough that half as much might just work.

Bring to a boil while moving ahead with the chicken and the sauce

• 6 quarts water with 
• 1 Tbsp salt
• one pound of fettucini dry pasta (or equivalent fresh), Find it but don't cook it yet but put it somewhere handy. Notice how long the package says to cook it. (Somewhere around 8 minutes, probably.) 

Turn down the heat and put a lid on the pot so its ready to use in a bit.

Then you need

• 4 chicken breasts - boneless, not over 1 inch thick. (If thicker, butterfly them. Well, and you you don't need four.) The idea is to have one skillet full of chicken breasts.)
• 2 Tbsp butter - not margarine or anything with the word "spread" in the name
• 2 Tbsp olive oil - or any vegetable oil
• 3 medium lemons - slice 3/8 inch thick, discard the end slices (Meticulous people like to remove the visible seeds. I just eat around them in the finished dish.)
• salt
• pepper

Melt the butter with the olive oil in a 12 inch skillet. Heat to medium and brown the lemon slices on one side only. Remove the lemon slices from the heat and set them aside on a dinner plate.

Salt and pepper the chicken. Then, on medium-high heat, brown the chicken breasts on two sides. I prefer this browned but not with hard crusts on the surface of the meat. Remove the chicken and set them on top of the lemons.

• 1/2 to 3/4 cup white wine - Use a drinking wine, not a cooking wine. Use cheap wine if you want. Expensive wine doesn't help the dish.
• 1 cup chicken broth - the less salt the better
• 1/3 beef bouillon cube (1/2 tsp granules) - I wish I knew where to get this without salt.

Pour the wine into the skillet while still hot. It's still on medium high. (If you don't like wine, replace it with more chicken broth plus a teaspoon of sugar or honey or 4 sliced grapes.) Stir and scrape the bottom of the pan to dislodge all the tasty particles of chicken before they burn.

[This is a good time to start the pasta cooking by turning up the heat on the water. While you are simmering the chicken, below, it will begin boiling and you can add the pasta. Set a timer for the pasta so you don't overcook it. You want it slightly undercooked if you choose to mix it with the sauce below. When the timer goes off, or when you test the pasta to be done enough, remove the pasta from the water to a large bowl or cookie sheet. Don't pour out all the water as you may need some.]

Add the chicken broth and bouillon cube to the pan. Bring to a boil. Add the chicken to the pan. Put the lemon slices on top of the chicken and reduce the heat to medium. Simmer covered for about 7 minutes on each side. Keep the lemons on top of the chicken after turning it over. Test the meat by feel. It might not take the full 15 until the chicken is no longer rubbery (and raw). Try not to overcook the chicken but don't leave any of the meat pink or red either. (Balance. Balance. Balance.)

When the chicken is done, remove it and the lemon from the pan and set aside with a covering plate or strip of foil to keep the heat in.

Increase the heat to high, don't use the lid and stir continuously to reduce the liquid by one-half. Reduce the heat to medium.

• 1 cup heavy cream - microwave this for 44 seconds to warm it up, pour into the pan and stir until the cream is thoroughly incorporated.
• 1 Tbsp capers - (optional)

You have two choices here:

1) Add the pasta to the sauce and simmer for 2 minutes. It may need thinning. If so, use some of the pasta water to do keep it from being too thick. Prepare individual plates with a serving of pasta with the sauce, a smattering of capers, a chicken breast with a little sauce drizzled over it and a few lemon slices on top. (Something green looks really good on the side of the plate. Peas? Parsley? Spinach? Sugar snap beans?)

2) Serve home style with the sauce topped with capers in a bowl, the chicken and lemon slices arrayed on their own plate and the pasta in its own bowl. Everyone takes some pasta, chicken, lemons and sauce.

Fresh Pasta

I just wanted to record the proportions when I make fresh pasta. Maybe someday I will add in the full instructions of what to do with this:

I start the salted water heating up when just before making the pasta. About 6 quarts of water and a Tbsp of salt work ok. It takes just about as long to bring the water to a boil as to mix and roll out the pasta. (Note that this means it takes less time to make fresh pasta than to make the dry kind from the grocer's. But normally you would sit around while the water came to a boil and, this way, you are getting the pasta ready during warm up.)

• 1 1/2 c flour (All-Purpose flour makes good pasta. Different kinds of flour change the texture and taste of the pasta. Never use 100% Semolina flour at home. It may work for store-bought pasta but, by my experiments, if you want to use some Semolina flour, stick to about 1/4 Semolina to 3/4 All-Purpose flour.)
• 1/2 tsp olive oil (extra virgin)
• pinch of salt
• 2 large eggs

Measure flour onto a table (or counter). Make a depression in the middle and add the other ingredients. Break the egg into a bowl if you need to check the quality before adding to the flour. (No need to antagonize it first.)

Stir wet into dry ingredients with your hands. (Which you, of course, washed and dried first.) Form a dough and knead a bit. You have to experiment to get the dough just wet enough but neither too wet or too dry. If it sticks to the rollers on the pasta machine, its too wet. If it crumbles, its too dry.

If the dough is too wet, add some more flour and knead in little by little until it's right. If the dough is too dry, add water a half teaspoon at a time and knead it in until, again, it's right.

Let the dough set for 5 minutes. This isn't rocket science but do wrap it in plastic wrap, foil or a damp cloth to keep the outside from drying too much.

Roll out the dough in the pasta machine. It seems to take about 7 times through the rollers to be ready to cook. Start with the rollers open fully. Do about 3 times at that setting. Then reduce the setting and roll it through once on each until you get it right. Resist the urge to roll it too thin. Fresh pasta needs to be thicker than dry. (They say you can do this with a rolling pin and the table. I've never tried it.)

Sauteed Spinach

We took a romantic weekend to the Renaissance Hotel in Dallas. Used up some Marriott points and ate too much. The restaurant on the ground floor served us something sort of like this. 

1 Tbsp Olive oil	Heat in small skillet that can go in oven
2 cloves garlic, peeled, whole	Sauté in skillet until spinach wilts
2 cups fresh leaf spinach (frozen will work)
2 Tbsp cream (the amount isn’t critical)	Remove skillet from heat and add.
1 Tbsp grated Asiago cheese (Parmesan or Romano will work but just aren’t as good)	Sprinkle on top and move pan to oven under hot broiler to soften cheese.

Serve in skillet.

Note that Asiago cheese sometimes doesn’t melt well. If you wait for it to melt, it will get tough. Just broil it until the cheese is hot. (You can do the same thing with a propane torch if you wish. Just move it around a little over the top of the pan.)

Artichokes in Cream Sauce

If you've been reading the other recipes I have posted, you know I change every one of them. But not this one. My recipe card for this says "Paden '89" because I got this from Mike's mom's cookbook way back when. It's so good, I can't think of one thing to change.

This recipe feeds enough to 3 or 4 people. Only a small portion is necessary for each person.

• 1/2 stick butter (4 Tbsp)
• 1/2 beef bouillon cube (1/2 tsp powdered beef bouillon)
• juice of 1/4 lemon (2 tsp)

In a small saucepan, heat the above ingredients on low heat until the butter melts and the rest mixes in thoroughly.

• 1 can artichoke hearts - rinse, halve and drain (or get small artichoke hearts, rinse and drain) [Note: Do not get the marinated artichoke hearts. The canned ones have zero spices and zero oil.)
• 1/2 c heavy cream
• 1 or 2 shakes of nutmeg

Add these three more ingredients and heat on very low until warm and the cream and butter mix with each other. (Trust me! Up to a point the melted butter floats on the cream. Then, bang, they mix.) Do not let this boil.

Layer Salad

Google "layer salad" and you will find a couple of million recipes. Here is one more.

Use a glass dish. I use a square baking pan 11 x 8 or so.

• 1/2 head of iceberg lettuce - slice 1/4 inch thick and then cut the long bits to be 2 or 3 inches max.
• red onion - cut 4 or 5 thin slices and quarter
• celery - thinly slice 1 stalk
• bacon - 1/3 pound cooked and crushed, OR 1 1/2 oz bacon bits (bacon bits are vegetarian)
• 8 oz grated Italian cheese - I buy a mixture of mozzarella, provolone, Parmesan and Romana.
• Salt and pepper.
• 12 oz frozen green peas - thaw on a towel so they don't collect water condensate
• 8 oz Miracle Whip salad dressing - You can use plain mayonaisse but its not as good. The Miracle Whip has some lemon or something tangy in it.
• sugar

Chop the lettuce and put it in the pan. Don't fill more than half-way to the top.

Sprinkle the onions, celery, bacon and grated cheese on top to form the layers. Sprinkle some salt and pepper on top of that. Press it down gently to level and compact it.

Next layer is the green peas. They don't need to be completely thawed but try to get them as dry as possible with no ice crystals either. (Keep back three peas to adorn the top later.)

Use the salad dressing to "ice" the salad like a cake. You have to get a knack for spreading the Miracle Whip without exposing the peas underneath. Cover the whole top. It doesn't need to be thick. Just enough to hide the green of the peas. Sprinkle a tiny bit of white sugar over the top of the salad dressing.

Position the three peas in the center as a decoration. Sprinkle a few more bacon bits around to break up the white expanse as in the photo.

Let it chill for 2 to 24 hours to let the flavors blend.

Spicy Pecan Caramel Pie

I'm not a pie guy. Well, I do eat pies. I just don't cook them much. So, last year, I wanted to make something different for Thanksgiving and we had a whole bunch of unshelled pecans off some friends' trees.

This is piled too high. Less pecans tastes better.

This pie will tickle your sweet tooth with the caramel filling, engage your mouth with the toasted pecans and then bite you gently a few seconds later when the spicy kicks in. All in all, a very pleasant experience and it's pretty, too.

I've never learned to make a good pie crust. What with flour and shortening and salt and getting the temperature just right and "don't stir or knead it too much", its too much work. Maybe when I get old. Oh yeah, I'm already old. Whatever ...

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

• 1 pie crust in a pie pan - Buy a pie crust or even a pie pan with a crust in it. If it is frozen, make sure it is thawed by the time you put stuff in it. Do not precook the crust.
• 1 lb Pecan halves, shelled, raw - about 4 cups. This is an approximate measure. I truly measure them out with the pie crust. You want it full and just level level. 4 cups is for my deep 9" pie pan with a store bought crust in it. The store bough crust in the tin pan is smaller.
• optional - 6 oz milk chocolate chips

Set those aside and toast the pecans in a large skillet. Toast 2 cups of pecans at a time. Each 2 cup toasting will use:

• 1 Tbsp butter - not margarine, real salted butter
• pinch salt
• 1 1/2 tsp white sugar
• 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes - this is the kind you get free with a pizza around here
• optional - zest of 1/2 orange

Melt the butter in the skillet on medium heat. Add the other ingredients and stir together spreading over the bottom of the pan. Add the raw pecans, 2 cups at a time, immediately. Keep the pecans moving and turning over so that all surfaces are coated. If the pecans start to brown, its time to take them out. Put them on a plate and set them aside. Repeat the toasting until you have done all the pecans.

Make the caramel pie "filling". We will pour this over the pecans in the pie shell. Note that the proportions have equal parts butter, white sugar, brown sugar and cream. You can adjust these amounts to fit the size of pie shell you have. Get close on the corn syrup, vanilla and salt and you will be good. (The corn syrup is there for chemical reasons and keeps the sugar from getting too grainy.)

This is how the Caramel looks
just before its fully boiling. The
bubbles will be all over soon.

Add the following to a sauce pan on low heat:

• 2/3 stick butter (6 Tbsp) - Melt this and then add the other ingredients.
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2/3 c white granulated sugar
• 2/3 c brown sugar
• 3 T corn syrup - after adding this stir together thoroughly
• 2/3 c cream

Stir together. Bring to a boil stirring constantly. Keep stirring and keep it boiling for 1 minute. Remove from heat. Add:

• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract - I use Adams Extract double-strength vanilla

Stir well. Set aside for just a moment while we get the pie assembled.

Toasted Pecans in Raw Pie Shell
(Ready for the Caramel)

Put half the pecans in the pie shell. Then sprinkle the chocolate chips over them. Then add the other half of the pecans. The pecans might have gotten a little smaller while toasting so the pan might be a little less full than when you measured.

Pour enough of the caramel filling over the pecans to fill the pie three-fourths full of the thick liquid. If you fill it too full, it will overflow and make a royal mess of the oven when cooking.

Cook 10 minutes at 400 degrees F and then reduce the oven to 375 degrees F and cook 10 more minutes. The crust will be just done and the filling will have started to bubble here and there and the pecans will be a little darker but not burned.

Remove from the oven and let it cool before serving small slices. (It's really sweet so a small slice goes a long way.)

Variation 

Fry until crisp: 

• 4 strips strips of bacon

Crumble the bacon into the crust before adding the pecans

Also double the salt in the caramel and sprinkle a bit of coarse salt over the top of the pie

Chili con Carne

Chile is a dish with a million recipes. A whole lot of them are good. This is pretty traditional and sized to fit my crock pot which is too old to remember the size. But it's about 3 quarts.

First the meat. Prepare the following as described:

• 1 lb beef - I like short ribs or some non-descript and cheap cut of beef with a fair amount of fat. Some bones are good too. I like to get some marrow bones and add them in. A simple choice is just "stew meat". You need to slice it into 1/4 inch bits across the grain.
• 1 lb pork - Pork butt or pork stew meat is good or you can use the cheap pork chops with the funny shaped bones. Again slice into 1/4 inch bits across the grain.
• 1 large chicken breast - Cut into 3/4 inch cubes.
• 1 large onion - chopped
• 3 Tbsp oil
• One can (2 cups or so) chicken broth (or vegetable broth)
• water

Heat the oil in a skillet on medium heat. Add the meat in small batches so the bottom of the pan is covered but the meat is all in one layer. brown on two sides leaving the other edges raw. Add to the crock pot. Repeat until all the batches are browned.

Add a bit more oil and saute the onion until it turns soft and translucent. Add that to the crock pot.

Add the broth to the pan, and stir until the bits of flavor stuck to the bottom of the pan come loose. Pour the liquid into the crock pot.

Add enough water to cover the meat just barely and cook covered on high for 8 hours. You can, if you want, just cook it until the meat is no longer raw but the extra hours make it so much more flavorful and tender.

Be sure to check now and then to make sure the water isn't cooking down too far. If the water level exposes the meat, add some more HOT water to the crock pot.

When the time is up, turn the crock pot down to low and let it cook for another 20-30 minutes. The time doesn't need to be exact. Do not stir or move the pot during this time. This will let the oil from the fat rise to the top so you can spoon it off. Spoon off the fat very gently with a large spoon or ladle. How much oil depends on how much fat was in the meat. No fat and the meat will be tough. The only price to pay for too much fat is that you have more oil to dip off. (If you disturb it too much you can stir it up and let it set for another 20-30 minutes and dip off some more oil.) Note that you can also dip off oil after adding the other ingredients and cooking some more.

Add the spices:

• 4 Tbsp New Mexico style red chile powder - your choice of hot or mild. (Do not confuse this with regular "chili powder". Look at the ingredients. If there is anything except ground bits of chile pods, don't use it. "chili powder" typically contains garlic and oregano, which we don't want here.) I like the New Mexico chile powder for two reasons. 1) I grew up in New Mexico and it seems the right thing to do. 2) I like to choose the proportions of garlic and other spices instead of letting the spice vendor do that.
• 2 Tbsp sugar (or honey)
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder (not garlic salt)
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1 tsp oregano (dried flakes)
• 1 tsp ground paprika
• 2 tsp finely ground cumin (or comino in spanish)
• 1 Tbsp salt

Stir  together and then add:

• 2 - 14 ounce cans of diced tomatoes - make sure to avoid the kind with spices already added. (Some people might like a third can of tomatoes if they prefer their chili more tomato-y.
• 1 can pinto beans, drained (about 2 cups) - The beans are optional. Some people don't like beans in their chili. Alternatively you can cook some dry or fresh pinto beans in water and add the beans without the liquid to the crock pot.
• 3/4 cup yellow lentils, dry - Optionally you can precook these in water until soft and either mash or blend them to a thick soupy consistency. The purpose of these is to thicken the broth and add some rich yet unidentifiable flavor.
• 1/3 cup Jim Beam (or other cheap bourbon) - Note that the alcohol will mostly cook out over the next two hours and I have a theory, as yet unproven, that the alcohol helps extract bits of flavor from the tomatoes much the way adding wine to spaghetti sauce works.

Cook for another hour and test for spiciness. If it is too spicy, add up to 1/4 cup of bitter-sweet chocolate chips or chopped dark chocolate bar. Add a spoonful. Stir and let it cook until the chocolate melts in and reduces the effect of the spicy factor in the chile. If it is not spicy enough, add some cayenne pepper 1/8 tsp at a time. Chopped jalapenos work to kick up the heat too but I don't think they taste as good.

This can cook for 3 or 4 hours if you need to fit it to your schedule but be sure to cook on low for at least a second hour on low to let the spices merge properly.

Serve in bowls. Optionally top with grated cheddar cheese, Frito corn chips, oyster crackers, corn bread or hot flour tortillas.

Corn Cornbread

In a pan or on the griddle, this recipe works. Its a little sweet, so if you don't like sweet with your cornbread, get another recipe. If you can find the fine yellow corn meal, it's almost the consistency of cake.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Grease a large, flat, rectangular glass pan. Mine is 28 x 18 x 4 cm, strangely enough. That's 10 x 7 inches in Texas measurements. A larger pan will work fine and the the cornbread will be a little thinner. (Grease it with shortening smeared around with your fingers or use a stick of cold butter to cover the inner surface of the baking pan. Make sure to get the corners and the sides of the dish.)

Mix the following in a large bowl:

• 2 c fine yellow cornmeal
• 2 c all purpose flour
• 3 Tbsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 2 tsp salt
• 1/4 c sugar

Stir well and mix thoroughly with

• 4 Tbsp bacon fat (or 4 Tbsp butter but you will need to cut the butter into the dry ingredients)
• 4 eggs - beaten

Cut off the kernels from the corn and stir it into the bowl

• 4 ears of fresh, uncooked, unfrozen sweet corn on the cob

Then begin adding the following. First one cup and stir. Then a half cup and stir. Then a fourth of a cup at a time until a thick batter forms (roughly the consistency of good brick mortar).

• 3 c buttermilk

Pour this into the greased glass baking dish. Fill to the 2/3 point on the dish. This gives it room to rise without overflowing onto the bottom of the oven.

Cook for about 25 minutes. Slice into squares and serve with butter.

[Alternatively you can cook this batter like pancakes. You might need to thin it with a little water. Grease a skillet and pour the batter out onto the pan. Turn once when the bottom turns brown and the top begins to firm up a little. Serve with butter. Honey is good on these.]

Options: This cornbread works with other vegetables besides fresh corn. Here are some alternatives or use the corn with something (or things) else. In all cases here, push this stuff down into the batter after you fill the pan.

• Frozen whole okra
• Nickel diameter hunks of cauliflower
• Chunks of whole green chiles
• Halves of grilled jalapenos.
• Generous slices of yellow squash or zucchini
• Small, sweet whole pickles
• Globs of creamed corn. But stir some sugar into the cream corn before adding it.

Posole Variation

I've been making Posole for years. It's a red chile based stew with pork and hominy. We have it every year around New Years Day. A few weeks ago I had dinner with Mother at Garduno's in Albuquerque. They served a different version of the recipe than I have usually made. I liked it and it turned out pretty good made this way.

It does take close to a full day to make. So plan ahead.

I apologize in advance for the quantities. They are not particularly crucial.

• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 4 lbs pork - This is best if it has some bones in it. Something like neck bones is good for part of it but I mixed in some I got at Walmart labelled "Pork for Carnitas" which was sort of pork stew meat but with larger hunks. It's ok if there is fat in the pork. We will cook it off.
• 4-5 cups chicken or vegetable broth - I prefer the broth rather than the bullion with water. The bullion is over salty.
• 1 cup beef broth (or 1 tsp beef bullion or 1 cube beef bullion)
• 1 tsp pepper - black or white both work well
• 1 tsp salt

Slice the port into thin slices as best you can given the bones in it. Brown it in a skillet with a bit of olive oil. If there is some fat in the pork, you might not need the oil. Add the meat to a crock pot and turn it on high. Cover the meat with the broth. Add water if needed. Stir in the pepper. (Salt goes in later.)

Cook for about 6 hours on high.

Turn down the crock pot. Set it on low. Add the salt. Cook for 8-10 more hours. Spoon off any oil or grease that pools on top. You have to not stir the pot for a while and the oil will collect. Gently lower the spoon just below the surface to collect as much oil and as little soup as possible. Dip some of of the outer green leafy Iceberg lettuce leaves to collect more of the little bits of oil this leaves. Use them like little brushes as the oil will stick to the lettuce and the broth won't.

While the meat is cooking, make the chile sauce. Use a medium sauce pan.

• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 medium onion - dice finely
• 2 cloves garlic - minced
• 2 tsp flour
• 2/3 c New Mexico Red Chile powder - Do not confuse this with "chili powder" which contains garlic and onion and other spices. This is dried, ground up red chiles. (This is the hardest ingredient to find outside of New Mexico.) You can decide whether to use mild, med or hot.
• 1/4 tsp cumin - ground (also called comino)
• 2 cups chicken broth 
• 1 tsp honey
• 1 tsp oregano - preferably mexican oregano
• 1 tsp salt

Saute the onion and garlic in the oil on medium heat until translucent. Stir in the flour and cook out the raw flour flavor. Stir a lot to keep it from over-browning the flour. Add the chile powder and comino. Stir to combine well and break up any lumps. Add the broth and other ingredients.

Simmer gently for 20 minutes. Be careful with the heat. It must be low enough to avoid scorching the chile which is easy to burn. (Be careful with this mixture. Chile will stain the counter or your clothes or the wall or any plastic container.) At this point I usually set the sauce aside or put it in the refrigerator.

When the soup and meat is nearly done, put the following in a large pan:

• 1 gallon can Mexican Hominy - I bought some Juanita's Foods brand. You can also use the dried Posole/Hominy available mostly in New Mexico. But you have to soak it for a couple of hours before heating and you have to add a bunch of water and simmer it for a while to let it soak up the water and soften.

Bring the canned Hominy to a boil. No need to simmer but it doesn't hurt if you need to prepare something else.

In individual bowls, add a little

• thinly sliced red onion

then stir together with equal parts Hominy and meat. Include a little of the liquid from the Hominy and a lot of the broth from the meat. Add a spoonful (or two or three) of the chile sauce to just one spot on the top of the bowl. Sprinkle with fresh chopped Parsley or Cilantro. (Note that the photo above shows how it looks after you stir the chile sauce in. I don't stir it myself as I like different bites to have different levels of the chile flavor.)

Serve hot.

Sliced Tomatoes Plus

The simplest things in life are sometimes the best. This one is quick and easy.

Ingredients should be cold and crisp (well ... not the spices or vinegar):

• A handful of whole fresh spinach leaves
• 1 large ripe tomato - cut two or three slices just shy of 1/2 inch (1 cm) thick out of the middle.
• 1 cucumber - Cut 2 inch length(s) from the fruit, peel about 1/2 of it, cut into 1/4 " square strips lengthwise.
• 5 or 6 Kalamata (greek) olives (or whatever kind you have)
• Feta cheese - a block about 1" x 1" x 1.5" (2 cm x 2 cm x 3 cm)
• 1/2 tsp dried basil (or fresh equivalent)
• balsamic and red wine vinegar
• salt
• pepper

Put the spinach leaves on a dinner plate to form a bed for the tomatoes.
The tomato slices go on top of that (1 layer thick)
Sprinkle the tomatoes with the basil, a little salt and pepper.
Sprinkle cucumber strips over the tomatoes and sprinkle a little salt (or seasoning salt) on them.
Pile up the olives to the side of the plate.
Crumble the Feta over the top. You want enough so that every bite has some of that salty, sour goodness in it.
Pour balsamic vinegar around the edges of the tomatoes but not on top of the salad. Pour the red wine vinegar, but only about half as much, around the same way. DO NOT put vinegar on top of the vegetables but don't obsess if a little gets on them anyway.

Eat and enjoy immediately before the spinach gets soggy..

Salsa

Good tomatoes = Good salsa. That's the trick. Note that you can play mix and match with the peppers to make it milder or hotter. This makes about 4 cups.

• 3 lbs whole fresh tomatoes (Roma are best.)
• 1 med purple onion, halved
• 2 fresh green chiles (anaheim or hatch or even poblano)
• 2 fresh jalapeño peppers, halved
• 1 Serrano pepper
• 1 habañero pepper (also called Scotch Bonnet)
• 2 limes, halved

Put these on the grill when it's nice and hot. (or you can use the oven broiler or a propane torch) Cook turning as needed to blacken the peppers and tomato skins and make black marks on the onions and limes.

Remove the stems. Only the stems from the peppers and tomatoes.

Put in a blender together and purée:

• A third of the tomatoes
• All the peppers
• 2 tsp chopped garlic (2-3 cloves)
• Squeeze in the lime juice.
• 1/3 cup fresh cilantro chopped
• 2 Tbsp chopped parsley (or dried)
• 2 Tbsp lemon juice
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tbsp powdered cocoa
• 2 tsp sugar

Mix together in a bowl

• The rest of the tomatoes, chopped
• The onion, diced
• The contents of the blender

Stir together and adjust the salt and sugar. Maybe add some garlic powder or some more parsley. Add black pepper if you want.

Serve with chips.

Apple Butter

Wrote this one down and put it in my recipe box on a 3x5 card in 1974. I must have been three years old at the time. It was adapted, as I remember, from several recipes including one in a freezing and canning cookbook one of my coworkers gave me. It may have been the guy that told about how he got arrested for robbing a gas station. It's hard to get a good job when you're three.

Apple Butter is spread on toast like any jelly or jam. There was a time when my wife would make homemade bread. A slice of bread, fresh from the oven, spread with homemade Apple Butter ... it's got to be like that in heaven

A word of warning: It takes almost 24 hours to make Apple Butter and your house will smell wonderful. Exactly how long depends on how juicy the apples are. (Try to control that.) Figure out the times to fit your schedule. So it can cook it overnight and you finish up on your day off. Or cook all day while you are at work and count on staying up way late finishing. Or, start on Saturday afternoon and finish up after church on Sunday.

Start with a crock pot. You need one that has at least two settings--high and low. Also, since Apple Butter takes a long time to cook, the kind of crock pot doesn't work that has a timer where you set it for 4 hours or 8 hours and then it switches off.

Selecting apples is part of what makes it good. I formerly used Rome or Winesap or Macintosh apples. These apples are grown for cooking and aren't as juicy as eating types like Delicious or Granny Smith. Lately it has become hard to find the cooking apples but the Japanese hybrids like Fuji and Gala work okay. Slipping in a Granny Smith or two does add a tartness that's good but not too many. (Note that any apples will work but the juicier the apples, the longer it takes to cook down. Also tartness is good for the final taste. Delicious are always last on my preference list for use in Apple Butter.)

Peel and core apples. Cut them into quarters and fill the crock pot until the lid just goes on. I know! Its hard to buy just that amount of apples. You can't really take your crock pot to the grocery store and the apples take up less space when quartered and cored. To help, imagine a 5 lb bag of potatoes. Get the size of it in your head and get about enough apples to fill that volume of space. That works pretty good for the small crock pot I have. (Your mileage may vary.) I usually use 3 or 4 lbs of apples for my small crock pot.

Add 1 can frozen Apple juice concentrate to the crock pot. (Do this before it gets hot.) [Optionally you could use frozen Grape juice concentrate. Either white or purple works fine.]

Turn the crock pot on low. (All crock pots don't seem to think low is the same temperature. This will work out since the cooking time will vary.)

Cook at least overnight (8-10 hours) on low. While cooking you may notice the apples getting soft. I always mash them up some. I don't know if it helps but it gives me something to do. The less obsessive about mashing you are, the chunkier the apple butter.

They will turn brown and cook down to a soft pulp without major amounts of water. When there is too much water you can tell because it pools at the bottom and the pulp floats on it. When it is cooked down enough, there will be no reservoir of liquid at the bottom of the crock pot.

When they are right--soft and pulpy but not watery--you have to measure what you have. This is important because it is hard to buy the right amount of apples, all apples cook down differently and you have to add spices correctly according to the final amount of pulp.

Turn off the crock pot. Get out a big bowl that is large enough to hold all the pulp. Use a large spoon or ladle to dip out the pulp into a measuring cup. For example, I have a 4-cup glass measuring cup. I fill it to the 4 cup line with pulp. That's four cups. Pour them in the big bowl. Repeat and add up the total number of cups as you go. The last one isn't likely to come out even so add that odd amount to the total rounding to the nearest cup. Pour the pulp back into the crock pot. Write down the number of cups for later.

Now comes the arithmetic part. Calculate and add the amount of sugar, corn syrup, salt and plain white vinegar by multiplying out against the number of cups of pulp. (You can use Apple Cider vinegar if you prefer.) Don't forget the quantity of pulp as you will also need it in a few hours.

Ingredient	Amount to add per 1 cup pulp
Sugar	1/4 cup
Corn Syrup	1/6 cup
Vinegar	1 Tbsp (which is 1/16 cup)
Salt	1/32 tsp

So, for example, if you get 17 cups of pulp: a bit over 4 cups sugar, just less than 6 cups corn syrup, 17 Tbsp which is a bit over 1 cup vinegar, and 1/2 tsp salt. Rounding is your friend.

I think the vinegar is important to allow the canned apple butter to keep well over time. I suggest you don't leave it out. The apple butter does not have a strong vinegary taste.

Turn the crock pot back on, stir the ingredients together thoroughly and cook on high with the lid off for up to a few hours. When you add the sugary stuff, it will seem to get more watery. With the lid off and the crock pot on high, it will begin to thicken as it cooks down. The test of when it's ready is when its thick enough to spread on toast. Too runny and the toast will get soggy. Too thick and it's hard to spread. You make the choice.

When cooked down, we have to add some spices. So get out the calculator or warm up the arithmetic part of your brain again. Use the quantity of pulp you calculated earlier. (No need to re-measure.) Add the following to the crock pot:

Spice	Amount per 1 cup pulp
Cinnamon, Ground	1/16 tsp
Ginger, Ground	1/32 tsp
Allspice, Ground	1/32 tsp
Lemon Juice	1/2 tsp (which is 1/6 Tbsp)

So, to continue our example of 17 cups pulp measured above, we add 1 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 tsp ginger, 1/2 tsp allspice and 8 1/2 tsps (or 3 Tbsp) lemon juice.

Stir the spices into the sugary pulp. Mix well. Cook on high without the lid for 20 more minutes. This allows the spices to cook their flavors into the apple butter. Stir occasionally.

Move the finished Apple butter to jars. I put the apple butter in canning jars with new lids (just the round part of the lid is new, not the screw part). Clean the lip of the jar before sealing. Then the canning jars go in a large pot with water up to the metal of the lid. Bring to a boil and boil for 15 to 20 minutes. (This is a standard step in canning that is called "processing.")

If you don't do the boiling thing, keep in the refrigerator. (If someone tries freezing apple butter, let me know how it turns out. I haven't tried it.) In the canning jars, apple butter seems to keep for 2-3 years. Anything longer loses its taste but I can testify that it doesn't kill you.

Safety disclaimer: Honestly, I am no expert on the biology of keeping food safe when canning, freezing or refrigerating. I can only tell you what I have done for almost 40 years now (since I was three) and the canning jars, due caution and processing 15-20 minutes works for over a year. (I'm sure Google will help you find all sorts of information on how to safely can and store foods in traditional Mason jars.) If you get out a jar and there is goo or mold around the lid, throw it away. If you open it and it smells funny, throw it away.

One last tip: I have found True Value Hardware to be a good place to buy canning jars. They are a little cheaper than the grocery stores around here and always seem to have a good supply. Canning jars last forever and can be cleaned and reused. Just don't reuse the round part of the lid.

Almost Cooked Salmon

The other day some guys at work took me sushi eating for lunch. One suggested I try the salmon meat by itself without the rice and other stuff.

Salmon has never been my favorite fish but I feel guilty about that because it's so healthy.

The raw salmon from the sushi was delicious.

This recipe leaves the salmon cooked very little but still tastes good and doesn't look raw. (Just in case you care.)

I started with one salmon filet for one person. It had no bones and was almost one-half inch thick. I bought a pack of these at Aldi labelled "wild caught pacific salmon" and frozen solid


Each was individually vacuum sealed in plastic and frozen hard as a rock.

I put the fish in a bowl and filled the bowl with cold tap water. Now this is Texas and it's the first week of October with temperatures still in the 100's last week. The tap water isn't really cold nor is it hot. You want to thaw the fish in cold water to keep from cooking it any at all.

Salt and pepper the fish on both sides

Heat a skillet pretty hot. Not sure how else to describe it.

Put a little olive oil on the pan and coat a place big enough for the fish.

Put the fish in the pan. It should have a big sizzle. Cook 30 seconds on each side. Turn gently as it will stick. Try not to break it up.

In that 60 seconds cover the bottom of a plate with soy sauce. Add a dollop of wasabi sauce or paste to one side. Repeat for each person dining.

Put the fish on the plate artfully and let it set about one minute before eating bites of almost cooked fish, rubbed in soy sauce and just enough wasabi.

Spicy Green Dip

2 jalapeño peppers - grill, broil or bake about 10 minutes until slightly soft. Remove stem.

Add to blender with

16 oz Sour cream
1 tsp minced garlic
2 tbsp chopped cilantro
3tbsp chopped parsley

Thin as needed until blender will completely mix with milk. Usually a couple of tablespoons will do. If the sour cream is thin, you may need none at all.

Serve with chips, soft corn tortillas or tacos.

Yogurt Dessert

When I was in high school, one day they had free yogurt in the lunch room. None of us had ever heard of the stuff. But with fruit at the bottom and some sugar mixed in it was a hit.

Now we are used to it but this recipe is simple and so tasty.

1/2 cup plain yogurt (see note)
1Tbsp sweetened condensed milk (we used to call it Eagle Brand Milk)

Stir thoroughly and eat.

The yogurt I use makes this work. The brand name is Arz. The ingredient list tells the story: whole milk, skim milk and cream. These are the first three listed.

I suspect other brands would work. But none of this "low fat" stuff. If you want half the fat, eat half as much.

Any can of sweetened condensed mild will probably be fine.

Beans

We call these "beans" because they are mostly just beans. Having all different types makes for a wonderful texture of soft, firm and totally dissolved bean bits when they are done.

Ahead of time, mix a bunch of dried beans together, thoroughly stir together and store in jars, sealed. I buy the plastic bags of dried beans that seem to be either 12 oz or 1 lb. Use one part of each of these types, available at ordinary grocery stores or any of the various ethnic groceries around town. (You can use 2 parts pinto beans if you want.) Note that following these directions exactly with 16 oz packages will give you 10 pounds of dried beans which is enough for 2 years at our house. Seal well and they keep for many years or keep in the freezer if you are paranoid.

• Small Navy beans (white)
• Great Northern beans
• Garbanzo beans
• Black beans (small)
• Pinto beans
• Kidney beans (brown)
• Black-eyed peas
• Green split peas
• Brown Lentils

I have also, on occasion included "pink beans", "anasazi beans" and "lima beans" but don't much care for the Lima's in this mixture.

If you want to cook them you have to start out the night before. Measure out 2-3 cups of dried bean mixture. (2 cups serves 3 people a full meal.) This comes out just right for my small oval Rival Crock Pot. 4-5 cups works better for the large oval Crock Pot. Note that a Crock Pot seems to be a brand name for a slow cooker. Mine is old and has off, low and high settings and no timer.

You can accomplish the same thing without a slow cooker with a large pan and an oven. Set the oven on 260 degrees F when it's time to cook. This also heats up the house (good in winter--bad in summer.) and it uses more electricity.

Put the beans in the crock pot. Be sure to check for small rocks or dirt clods before adding the water in the next step. Depending on the brands of beans you may have none. You still need to check.

Soak the beans all night. Add enough water to cover the beans and still cover them when they double in size. So, for example, if you notice there is 3/4 inch of beans in the bottom of the pot, add 3 times 3/4 inch (9/4 inch) which is a bit over 2 inches of water. This isn't rocket science so just be sure the beans don't swell up and poke out of the water by morning.

In the morning, pour off the water. Rinse the beans repeatedly until the water runs clear. At first the water will be cloudy or brownish.

Then you will need to add some meat for flavor. Toss this in the crock pot. I don't know if it matters but I always push the meat down under the beans.

3 spare ribs, browned in a skillet with a Tbsp of oil

Alternatives that don't need browning are 2 ham hocks, a pound and a half of smoked pork neck bones or a piece of ham the size of your fist (chop the ham in 1 inch squares). A pound of bacon works too but isn't near as good while costing more. These alternatives all have a lot of salt in them (which is why I prefer the spare ribs). Meat with bones tastes better in this disk than meat without bones.

Cover with water, chicken stock or a combination. The water needs to cover the beans and meat completely. Account for loss while cooking unless you are going to be around the whole time to add more water if it cooks down. (In the vegetarian version of this, leave out the meat but add vegetable broth and no water.) Not much smells worse than coming home after a day a work to burned beans.

Turn on the crock pot. Set on high. Leave alone for 10 hours. I'm at about 1000 ft above sea level. You will need to cook longer at high altitudes.(Say, above 4000 feet.) It might cook faster at sea level but I've never tried it.

Notice that I don't put any salt or spices or acidic things like tomatoes, citrus or vinegar in the beans. I have found that leaving these out while cooking give the beans a better texture. You can add such things to your beans before cooking but you may need to cook them longer or at a higher temperature. (In another recipe, someday, I may explain how to add sauteed onions and green chile halfway through and white pepper, chopped fresh cilantro and whole stewed tomatoes the last hour. Or maybe not.)

When it is done, the pinto beans will be soft, as will the kidney, navy and black beans. The garbanzos will be firm (al dente, so to speak). The lentils and split beans will have totally disappeared but they make the soupy part taste good and thicken it. I like to sort of antagonize the meat at this point as it will fall to bits and mix tantalizingly with the beans.

Spoon some out into a bowl. Some people like more liquid. Some like less. This is especially good with corn bread, rice or homemade bread. Each person can sprinkle to taste with salt, black pepper and cayenne pepper.

Lee's Fried Chicken

Lee's Fried Chicken

I love fried chicken. My dad used to make it at home so I started learning when I was little. Over the years I have modified and re-modified the recipe. Here is how it works now.

First make some seasoning:

2 Tbsp salt	Stir together any multiple of this amount which is good for one whole chicken cut into pieces or a package of 12 wings, legs or thighs. (Substitute more black pepper for the white pepper if you like.)
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp white pepper
1 tsp cayenne pepper (optional)
1 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp garlic powder

I mix it in a cup or small glass (or an old spice bottle with a shaker top). Set this aside to use in a bit.

Warning:
It can be dangerous if you get raw poultry juice all over things. Harmful bacteria love to multiply in it and can make you sick. Be sure to keep the juices as localized as you can. Clean after each step with antibacterial dish soap or disinfectant wipes or bleach. Keep your hands washed and don't let them be the transfer point of the raw poultry juice.
End of Warning

Then remove the skin (except on the wings because it's too hard) and soak the chicken pieces in cold salt water. (3 cups of cold tap water and 2 Tbsp salt but no need to be accurate.) Try to use enough salt water to cover all the chicken but don't obsess about it if some sticks up. Soak for 10-20 minutes. Or you can soak all night if you put it in the refrigerator.

While the chicken is soaking in the salt water, prepare the flour mixture listed below. These are the amounts for one to two chickens. The amount is right for a package of 12 wings, legs or thighs, too. I mix it in a a large Ziploc bag. Daddy did it in a large grocery store brown paper bag. You can only fit one chicken at a time in a large Ziploc.

3 cups flour	Put all this in the bag together and shake it up to distribute the spices (Substitute black pepper for white pepper if you wish.)
2 tsp black pepper
1 Tbsp white pepper
1 Tbsp cayenne pepper
2 tsp paprika
1/4 tsp garlic powder

After the spices are all shaken in, set the bag aside to use in a bit.

Pour off the salt water the chicken is soaking in.I spread 2 paper towels on the cabinet, remove each chicken piece from the water, squeeze it to get extra water off it and put it on the paper towel. Repeat for each piece. When finished, all the chicken pieces are spread out on the paper towels. (The paper towels make it easier to keep the juice from running all over the cabinet and easier to clean up.)

Find the fried chicken seasoning you made way back at the first and sprinkle over the chicken.Put a bit more on than you think you should. Since it's mostly salt, imagine how much salt you need for meat and remember that chicken pieces are thicker than most meat you cook. First do one side and then the other. (If you use an old spice bottle it's easy to shake it over the chicken. If you have it in a cup, pinch a bit of the spice mixture between two fingers and your thumb and rub your fingers back and forth to sprinkle it while your hand is 6-8 inches above the chicken.

Now put the chicken in the bag with the flour mixture. It works best to put 2 or three pieces in and then shake the flour around the chicken and then add some more. When all the chicken is in the bag, seal the Ziploc or roll the top of the brown paper bag to seal it up. Shake well.

I use peanut oil to fry chicken. You can use a skillet with about 3/8 inch of oil or a taller pan with a bit more oil. Heat the oil somewhere between med-high and high to 325 degrees F. If you don't have a frying thermometer, you can wait until you think it's hot enough and drip one drop of water off your finger. If it goes wild, it's hot enough. If it sizzles gently, it's not hot enough. If the oil smokes, remove it immediately and let it cool some.

Put chicken in the hot oil. It should sizzle grandly and you won't want your hand anywhere near it. My skillet is about 12 inches in diameter and will cook half of one chicken at one time. A deeper 12 inch pot with an inch and a half of oil in it will take a whole chicken without the pelvis which you can throw away anyway.

Turn the heat down to a bit over medium so it will cook slower. Slower cooking means the chicken will be more tender.

Each side cooks 8-10 minutes but don't use a timer. Watch it. It will get a nice shade of brown when it is ready to turn. You can feel the rubbery, rawness in the pieces of chicken that aren't yet done. If you don't trust yourself, cut into a thigh or thick piece of chicken and verify that it is not red near the bone. It can be slightly pink when you remove it as it will cook a bit more on the plate.Cook on both sides and, if you think it needs more time, cook a short time on the 1st side again. Try not to be turning it over and over as that sometimes leaves the middle uncooked.

If the chicken gets dark brown or black, the burner is too hot. Turn it down and turn the chicken over.

Wings (not wing pieces) may need to cook on three sides so there isn't a pasty white part.

When pieces are done, put them on a plate with doubled paper towel underneath to drain and cool a bit. Eat as soon as they aren't too hot to bite. Or, let them cool and refrigerate to eat cold for lunch or picnics.

Creamed Garlic Asparagus

This one is based somewhat on a recipe we got from the waiter at the restaurant in the Renaissance Hotel by market center in Dallas.

Saute in an iron skillet until the garlic is hot (about 1 minute):

• 1 Tbsp Olive Oil
• 1 clove garlic - minced

add to the skillet and saute another 2 minutes (or maybe only 1 if you like your vegetables a bit crunchier)

• 1 lb fresh asparagus - clean and cut the soft part into 1 inch lengths.(You can partially peel the tougher part and cut that into lengths too.
• 15 whole greek olives (pitted work best)

Remove from heat wait about 20 seconds (or so) while you get the following and add it to the pan.

• 1 pat of butter
• cream - enough to fill the bottom of the pan without covering the asparagus

Sprinkle on top

• Parmesan cheese (or romano or asiago) - freshly grated

Broil in the oven for just long enough to brown the cheese. This should take no more than 1 or 2 minutes.

Feeds 4 a little.

New Mexico Enchiladas with Red Chile Sauce

Just like Mama used to make.

Sauce:

8-10 dried red peppers (New Mexico, Ancho, Cascabel, etc. dried red peppers)
- break off the stems, remove loose seed, toast in frying pan over med heat 2-3 minutes, put in glass bowl
2 cups hot water
- soak chiles in hot water in glass bowl for 10 min
- move chiles to blender, add half the water and blend out all the large chunks (set aside for a bit)
1 Tbsp oil (olive, vegetable)
- heat in saucepan over med heat
1/2 small onion - chopped finely
- reduce to low heat and add onion to pan
1 Tbsp flour
- add to pan and stir until onions are soft and flour is beginning to color
- remove pan from heat, strain chile mixture into pan to remove seeds, stems, and fibers
- bring to a boil and simmer on low for 4 minutes stirring constantly. Chile will scorch easily.
1/2 tsp oregano (Mexican oregano is best)
1/2 tsp salt
- add and simmer 2 more minutes, remove from heat

Build enchiladas in a casserole pan.

18 corn tortillas
vegetable oil
1 very large red onion or 2 small red onions - chopped
4 green chiles/peppers (ancho, poblano, anaheim or green bell peppers work)
- You can use 8 oz of canned green chile but it is very mild like the bell peppers
16 oz sour cream
16 oz monterey jack cheese (mozzarella will work)
8 oz cheddar

- Toast the green chiles or peppers over a flame, a grill or under a broiler. This works best when they are charred all around.
- Toss into cold water.
- remove loose skin
- cut open and remove stem, vein and seeds (You can leave a few seeds if you want.)
- chop into 1/2 inch pieces.

- heat vegetable oil in flat pan
- dip each of 6 tortillas in hot oil, turn over once, remove quickly and arrange in casserole dish. 6 should cover bottom of pan.
- spread 1/2 of the chopped onion over the tortillas in the pan
- spread 1/2 of the green chile over the onions.
- spoon 1/2 of the sour cream around over the onions
- spread the cheddar cheese over the sour cream

Create a 2nd layer using those same ingredients: 6 tortillas, onion, sour cream but with 1/2 of the monterey jack cheese

- pour a thin layer of chile sauce over the cheese

- add another layer of tortillas (just as with the other, dipped in hot oil)
- pour on another thin layer of chile sauce
- spread the rest of the cheese over the top.
- sprinkle a bit more oregano and/or parsley over the top to make it look pretty

bake at 350F for 1 hour.

Serve with shredded lettuce, diced tomatos and additional sauce.

Some people like a fried egg added on top of their serving (on the plate not in the pan).

BBQ Brisket Rub

I've been playing with this for years and I like this one pretty well. It is the right amount for one brisket.

4 tsp salt
4 tsp black pepper
2 tsp cayenne pepper
2 tsp paprika
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp New Mexico chile powder

Stir or shake well, crush any lumps. Spread the whole mixture over the surface of one whole brisket before cooking. Top and bottom and all sides.

Cook with the fat up. I like to cook it at 233 degrees F for around 10-12 hours.

Some options that work and you might like the taste. Try them one at a time or on combination. These are the right proportions by my taste.

1 tsp dry mustard
4 tsp ground turmeric
1/2 tsp thyme

Don't ever add sugar, pineapple, other fruit, tomato, honey or molasses before cooking. It can be spread on for the last hour if you like it sweeter. I prefer to put the sweetness in the sauce.

Happy Mouth Ice Tea

You may have noticed there is no "d" in "ice tea." That's the way we roll in Texas.

I've been making the raspberry tea for my wife for years but adding the lemon and mint take it to a whole 'nother level.

A Good Raspberry Tea

Steep the tea in 4 cups of boiling water for 3 to 5 minutes. It gets pretty dark when it's ready.

• 3 regular tea bags (decaf or caffeinated)
• 1 raspberry tea bag ( I use Bigelow Raspberry Royale and there might be a decaf variety.)

Remove the tea bags and add

• 1/2 cup raspberry syrup (I get it at the middle east grocery)
• 1/4 cup sugar

Stir and move to a pitcher with

• 4 more cups of water (unless you are going add the ice while it is still warm)

Chill--maybe overnight. If you don't chill, you should have put less water in with the brewed tea and you will need more ice when serving.

Add to a tall glass in this order

• Ice
• 4 fresh mint leaves, bruised
• 1/2 tsp (or so) lemon juice (juice of 1/4 lemon)
• chilled tea from above

Stir well and enjoy. Makes 8 glasses. Serves 4 people

Classic Margarita

I'm not much of a drinker. But now and then I'm in the mood for a Margarita--always on the rocks. This recipe reflects my reluctance to buy some Triple Sec or Margarita mix since it would take years to use it up at my rate of imbibing.

I have to explain my Margarita motivations. Once I went to Garduno's Mexican food restaurant. I asked for a Margarita. The waitress wondered what kind I wanted--premium, super-premium or whatever. I asked about the difference between the choices. She said the expensive ones were "smooth." I replied, "If I wanted smooth, why would I be drinking Tequila?"

A Margarita is supposed to be sort of rough, by my way of thinking. This recipe has just enough of that.

Serves one drink each for two people.

Put these in a small bowl:

• 1 Tbsp frozen orange juice concentrate
• zest from 1/2 orange (optional: substitute some lime zest but don't replace all the orange zest). About 1 tsp.
• 2 Tbsp tequila (or vodka)

Microwave for 30 secs and set aside to steep for as much as 30 min. (Or sooner if you are in a hurry.) These add the bite to the drink with the bitterness in the zest.

In a measuring cup add together:

• 1 cup tequila (I used Milago Silver brand.)
• 1/4 cup lime juice (the juice of two limes if they are big enough)
• 1/3 cup corn syrup (or 1/2 cup white sugar)

When the steeping is over, strain the orange stuff into the measuring cup with the above ingredients. (I used a tea strainer.)

Note that if the ingredients are not room temperature or if you skip the ice, there will not be enough melted ice in the drink. In that case you will need to add a small amount of water to keep the flavors under control.

Prepare the two glasses by getting the rim wet with lemon or lime juice and then coat with coarse salt. (Regular salt works, too.)

Fill the glasses with ice cubes. Stir the liquid well and pour carefully into the glasses making sure not to mess up the salt stuck to the rim.

Drink and enjoy.

One or two Bisquits

Perfect at breakfast for two.

I tried for many years to find a good biscuit recipe and failed. This is based on a recipe from Huntley Dent's "The Feast of Santa Fe." I'm not sure why a cookbook of New Mexican cooking has a biscuit recipe. We did fiddle with the recipe for several years before it got to here.

Part of the trick to good biscuits is to treat the dough as it it's breakable. Touch it gently. Coddle it a bit. Pat. Don't knead. (Also expect your biscuits to get better as you practice.)



Set oven to 425 degrees F and stir the following together in a mixing bowl. (Total elapsed time, start to eating, about 15 minutes.)

• 1/2 c flour (Note: later you will put another 1/2 cup on the countertop)
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/8 tsp salt (= 1 pinch)
• 1/8 tsp baking soda
• 2 tsp sugar

Add

• 1 Tbsp butter - Pinch into flour mixture to incorporate it fully. 

Pour in slowly, stirring gently but continuously.

• 1/4 c buttermilk (or so)

Try not to mash it down but use a folding motion to keep it light.


If you haven't already, pile another 1/2 c of flour on the countertop. Pour out the dough on top. Pat down gently. Maybe fold over semi kneading without mashing to incorporate a bit of flour if it's too wet. Then lit it sit for 2 minutes.


Pat flat to about 1" to 1 1/2" thick and either pat into one round biscuit or cut into two biscuits with a table knife. If they are sort of round, the corners don't overcook. Put on thin greased cookie sheet or just a piece of foil greased.


Cook for about 8-11  minutes until slightly brown at 425 degrees.


This recipe works in multiples up to four.Just double, triple or 4X the quantities and follow the same procedure.

• You can use milk with a little lemon juice if you have no buttermilk.
• You can use plain milk if you leave out the baking soda but it's not as tasty.
• Don't use cream in place of buttermilk. They are too crumbly.

Option -- The following ingredient list makes 28 biscuits. This is just enough to fill my large cookie sheet completely. It's a lot of work to pinch in the butter so I use a food processor. You have to do it in two halves as most food processors won't hold 6 cups. Put half of the ingredients in at a time. Mix the dry ingredients. Pulse the food processor to mix. Add the butter. Pulse the food processor a few times to mix it all in. Transfer to a big, old bowl. Repeat and add the buttermilk.

• 6 c flour
• 2 Tbsp Baking Powder
• 1/2 c sugar
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 3/4 c butter (or shortening) - 1 1/2 sticks butter
• 2 c buttermilk (+ 1 1/2 cup as needed to get consistency right)

You need about 2 cups of flour on the cabinet top for this number of biscuits. Pour out the dough and fold one or two times but DO NOT KNEAD. Pat gently to 1 1/2 thickness and use a table knife to cut into squares between 1 and 2 inches on a side. Gently round the corners as you transfer them to a cookie sheet. for cooking. Usually you will need the edges to touch to fit them on one sheet. That works pretty well.

Cook 12 to 15 minutes for this quantity.

Retreat Breakfast Casserole with Spicy Gravy

This is sort of like the Fritatta that LaToya showed me how to make a few years ago, though bigger. Serves a big slice to 12 people.

You will need a total of 2 dozen eggs before you get through. Since the ingredients go in by layers, I have marked each different ingredient in bold once below, in case you have to hit the grocer's.

• 25 oz frozen uncooked hash brown potatoes (grated style) [Alternative: This might be good with 1/4 - 1/2 inch round slices, cut from baked potatoes. Bake the night before and slice after they are cool. Skins or no-skins? You decide. I haven't tried this. Let me know if you try it.]
• 1-2 Tbsp parsley flakes

Press these into the bottom of a large greased casserole dish sort of like a crust. Sprinkle with the parsley.

I used a dish I got at Walmart marked 10 inch by 13 inch, 4 quart. This is the picture to the left. If your dish is smaller, you will need to reduce the quantities of eggs, at the least.

Bake "crust" at 400 degrees F for about 15 minutes while you prepare all the other stuff. They can turn brown but don't let them burn. When you remove the potatoes, turn the heat down to 350 degrees F.

• Med onion, about 2" diameter, chopped.
• 2 Tbsp butter, olive oil, or bacon grease
• 3/4 cup diced ham

Saute in a large skillet until onion is translucent and water is out of the ham on medium heat. Remove from pan and set aside.

• 2 bunches fresh spinach, washed and coarsely chopped
• 4 Tbsp butter (1/2 stick)
• 1 tsp salt

Melt butter over medium heat in same pan. Add spinach and sprinkle with salt. It will seem like too much spinach and you may need to add it to the pan by parts. When the spinach is wilted but not totally soft remove the pan from the heat.

• 8 eggs
• 1/4 cup cold water (No need to be precise on this)
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1/2 tsp salt

You should remove the pan from the oven if you haven't already. (And turn the heat down to 350 degrees F.) Beat the eggs, water, salt and pepper together with a whip or a fork thoroughly. Pour evenly over the potatoes in the dish. Try to get some egg on every part of the potato "crust."

Spread the spinach over the top of the eggs. It is hard to get it even but try to get some in what will become each serving sliced out of the casserole dish when you are finished.

• 12 eggs
• 1/3 cup cold water (preciseness not required)
• 1 tsp salt

Beat the eggs, water and salt together as before. Add the sauteed onion and ham that you previously set aside. Stir well. Pour into the pan gently and spread around trying not to disturb the spinach too much.

• 4 eggs
• 2 Tbsp water
• 1/2 cup grated gruyere cheese (substitute mozzarella or cheddar if you wish)
• 1/2 cup grated havarti cheese (substitute as above)
• 2 Tbsp parsley flakes
• 1/4 Tsp black pepper
• 1/2 Tsp salt

Beat the eggs with the water. Stir in the salt, cheese, parsley and pepper. Mix well. Pour over the top evenly in the casserole dish. (Note: If the dish is over 2/3 filled from the top, it will overflow when you cook it. There is no solution other than to have a bigger pan or reduce the amount of eggs. Sorry.)

Cook somewhere between 40 and 60 minutes. The trick is to remove and serve hot just as the eggs in the middle get cooked. Cover for a more tender top crust. Don't cover for a more crispy top. (For the retreat, I cooked it at home uncovered for about 20 minutes on 350 in the convection oven. I then drove 20 minutes in my car to get to the retreat. Then it was cooked, this time covered, for about 40 more minutes in a regular oven set on 375 but that oven is notoriously inaccurate.)

Fresh Roasted Green Chile

While the eggs are cooking, make the spicy gravy.

• 4 Tbsp butter
• 4 Tbsp flour
• 1 quart buttermilk (or 3 cups milk and 1 cup sour cream)
• 1 cup New Mexico green chile, chopped coarsely (this is about 4 of the small cans)
• (optional but not recommended) 1-2 finely chopped fresh Jalapeno pepper to make it more spicy hot. Seeds, if included, will make it hotter.

Melt the butter in a saucepan on med-low. Meanwhile microwave the buttermilk a minute or two to get it warm.

When the butter is melted, add the flour and stir together. Cook the rawness out of the flour. Don't let it turn brown. This takes about 3 minutes from the time you have the flour and butter thoroughly mixed. But if it starts to burn, move to the next step.

Add the warm buttermilk all at once. Move the heat to medium and stir constantly until the mixture comes to a boil. It should thicken at this point but depending on unknown factors you may need to simmer a bit to thicken.

Add the chile (and optionally, the Jalapenos), stir well and bring back to a simmer, still stirring constantly.

The egg mixture will puff up, higher than the sides of the pan but shouldn't overflow. When it is done, as described above, remove from heat and let it set for 3-5 minutes before cutting.

Serve a 2" by 2" square with a ladle of gravy over the top. A tiny bit of finely chopped red bell or fresno pepper looks great on top.

Ice Cream Sandwich

This is so simple, I'm not sure we should call it a recipe. I'm pretty sure you'll need more than one of these.

• 1 Oreo

Open it up, leaving the filling on one side or the other (or both).

• 1 Tbsp Vanilla ice cream

Put the ice cream in between the Oreo halves. Scrape off any ice cream that sticks too far out. Serve.

Beef and Pasta with Cream Sauce

Serves 3 or 4 depending on how much they eat.

Start a large pot of water to boil when you put the meat in. This water is to prepare the Fettuccine and you can find details on the pasta box. When the water boils add 1/2 pound dry Fettuccine while taking care of the sauce. Cook to just before al-dente as it will cook a bit more in the sauce.

Meanwhile ...

• 3 pieces of 3/8" thick Beef Tenderloin sliced
• Salt - sprinkle over both sides of the meat
• Fresh ground black pepper - sprinkle on more than you think you should but don't coat it
• 1 Tbsp butter
• 1 Tbsp olive oil

Brown 90 secs on each side on med heat in 12" skillet. It should sizzle when you add it to the pan. Take the meat out and set aside.

• 1 shallot sliced into very thin rings
• 3 med white or crimini mushrooms sliced very thin
• 1 garlic clove chopped or well crushed
• 1 Tbsp butter

Sauté until soft and shallot is translucent. Remove from pan and set aside.

• 1/3 cup small broccoli florets (or use more if you like) (optional: replace with broccoli rape or brocolini)
• 1 Tbsp butter

Sauté until it turns very green. It won't take long. Remove from pan and set aside.

• 3/4 cup red wine
• 1 Tbsp honey
• 1 beef bullion cube (1 tsp granules) (You can use a cup of beef broth if you like but reduction will take longer. Also, since it is less salty, be sure to check the salt just before adding the pasta at the end. Add salt then if required.)
• 1 tsp Dijon mustard
• Pinch of dried thyme
• 1/4 tsp fresh ground black pepper
• 1/2 tsp capers
• 1 bay leaf

Add and reduce on high heat by 1/2. You have to keep stirring it or it will burn. Bring heat down to med when reduction is done. If you taste it, it should be tangy and a too salty. We will add some more things to thin down the salt taste. (Somewhere during this time the water should boil if your stove and pan are similar to mine. If not, you may have to start the water to heating earlier or later. When it boils. Toss in the pasta. Stir some to keep the pasta from sticking to the pan.)

• 1 cup heavy cream (Milk doesn't work. Low-fat sour cream tastes totally different. If you are keeping your fat intake down, don't eat as much sauce.)

Add cream to reduced broth and wine in skillet. Add vegetables set aside earlier. Do NOT add the meat. Simmer a bit.(Say, about 2 minutes.) Stir enough to avoid burning but not constantly.

Remove the bay leaf. Add the meat you set aside earlier. Stir to cover meat. Add pasta and simmer a minute or two to soak flavors into that pasta.

Serve immediately. Everyone should get some pasta, meat, broccoli and sauce.

Veronica and Marty's Salad Dressing

I came up with this for the dinner we did after their wedding rehearsal.It seems to work pretty well. They're still married.

• 1 Tbsp dry Basil flakes
• 1 Tbsp sugar
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 c V8 vegetable juice
• 1 c red wine vinegar
• 2 c pure pomegranate juice

Stir the above together well

• 4 c cheap Italian salad dressing
• 1 c extra virgin olive oil

Stir well while adding these last two ingredients.

Serve over a lettuce-based salad or over mixed greens.

Tomato Rosemary Lemon Soup

The other day, my wife suggested Tomato Soup might be good. It was a cold day and soup sounded good to me too. So, I did some recipe searching and found a recipe from Giada DeLaurentis from the Food Network. Of course, I had to change a few things. Mostly I didn't have all the ingredients for her recipe. In particular, her recipe has you sauteing a couple of chopped carrots. Also you add a can of cannelloni beans which are, I think, small white beans. If those were in this soup, and got blended with the other parts, it would change the taste and texture quite a bit.

• 1/2 large onion chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed and finely chopped
• 2 Tbsp butter

Saute until translucent in a non-small cook pan. (Not a skillet.)

• 2 14-ounce cans diced tomatoes (stewed or simply canned tomatoes would work or you could use a large can of crushed tomatoes)
• 1 whole bay leaf
• 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper (it might taste ok with less of this)
• 3 cups chicken broth (this shouldn't have too much salt)
• 1 tsp fresh Rosemary (You are going to need another 1/2 tsp down the page a bit so prepare it all at this point. Just keep the leaves. Discard the stems. Chop finely. I also put some olive oil on the rosemary when it was still on the stem and set fire to part of it. It smells wonderful and adds a bit of smokey flavor)
• 1/2 tsp sugar

Add the above and bring to a boil over med-high head. Reduce heat and simmer, covered 20 min. Remove from heat. Run through blender a ladle/cup at a time.You will need another pan or heatproof mixing bowl.

• Salt
• Pepper

Season to taste. Warm back up in the same pan after you wash it out.

• 1/2 cup whipped cream cheese
• 1/4 cup heavy cream
• Zest of one lemon
• 1/2 tsp fresh Rosemary (prepared as described above)

Stir together vigorously. Try to get rid of lumps.

Serve hot soup with a generous dollop of the cream mixture. Diners should stir it up before eating

Jan 2011