Family recipe Monday: hot and sweet

View from the front door, June 24. That's rain + 50 mph wind + hail. 

Impressionistic view of the street completely awash. 

Yeah, about the weather up here.....it's still raining. And hailing. With dangerously high winds. And no one in the family enclaves of West Texas and New Mexico will speak to me about it, because they have triple-digit temperatures, fires everywhere and no signs of a let-up in the drought. No one is going to have any kinds of crops this year, I'm thinking. 


But the farmers' market has started up again, perilously close to the swollen Rapid Creek, and we are able again to get thick-shelled eggs with neon-orange yolks, gorgeous rhubarb stalks, and the world's most decadent triple-berry cinnamon rolls. It will be interesting to see how the selection of produce expands this summer. I have tomato and pepper plants that have not left the kitchen sill yet due to rain and hail outside. Look for recipes calling for three miniature tomatoes and two microscopic peppers later in the summer. 


Tartan Girl sent the following recipe, which turns out to be a winner. Caveat: if you are not a chile head, this may not be for you. Peaches and peppers are a magical combination, blending the heat and the sweet perfectly. Peach salsa is also another dynamite combination. I used mild Hatch green chiles (is there any other kind?) and fresh peaches. The cobbler was better the second day. Somehow it suited the aberrant chilly, wet summer day. 


From The New Mexican Connection: 

 Fiery fruit cobbler

2 cups flour

 3 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup shortening

1 cup milk

2 tbsp water 

1 lemon, juiced for zest

3 pints of fresh peaches

3 frozen NMC Chiles, chopped

1 cup sweetened condensed milk

Preheat oven to 450º. Mix dry ingredients well, then cut in the shortening until fine crumbs appear. Mix in the milk to form a ball that doesn't stick to the sides of the bowl. On a floured board, knead the dough to about 1/2" thick and cut into 2" rounds using a floured cutter.

Mix water, sugar and lemon juice and set aside until thickened. Sprinkle peaches and chile with syrup and stir. Place in the bottom of a 9x12 glass baking dish. Cover mixture with rounds. Brush dough with sweetened milk and dust with sugar. Bake for 30-45 minutes. Serve warm with ice cream or drizzled sweet milk. 

Make that high-quality vanilla ice cream and you're all set. Happy Monday. Hope everyone's weather improves. 

Family recipe Monday: cooking outdoors

Camp grill and stove made from old oven parts and petrified wood, Lemmon, South Dakota.

Definitely (one hopes) one of a kind. I want it.

With summer almost on us (never mind what the calendar says--in museum land, it's Memorial Day to Labor Day), it's time to start thinking about field work and field cooking. We have a lot of potential sites to cover and a number of people to feed.

Our dear friend Pat has made a second (third? fourth? and all concurrent) career as a gifted camp cook for paleontological projects. Her philosophy is that people work, sleep and get along better if they are fed well. That does not mean two weeks of reheated canned chili. She has a fat file of recipes for dishes that can be easily expanded to fit the number (and appetites) of people at hand, prepared easily, and adapted to local ingredients and conditions. Hers may be the only field expeditions on which people gain weight. Leftovers have never been a problem.

Here is a classic and one of Pat's standards, with her permission. This is for anyone who doesn't believe that camp cooking can be both easy and good.

Pat's green chile chicken/vegetable stew for a crowd

Saute in olive oil *(about 1/4 cup):
1 large onion, sliced
6 cloves garlic, halved

Cook until soft and add:
4 4-oz. cans diced green chile
2 28-oz. cans green enchilada sauce (salsa verde)

Cook briefly to combine and add:
2 T each: ground cumin, red chile powder, green chile powder*, ground coriander, chile-lime powder

Add and cook 15 minutes until soft:
6 medium potatoes (unpeeled, chopped)
2 zucchini, halved and chopped

Add:
1 24-oz packages grilled chicken strips
2 14-oz cans black beans, drained and rinsed
2 14-oz cans corn, drained
2 14-oz cans diced tomatoes (do NOT drain)
2 14-oz cans green beans (drained), ONLY if no zucchini available

Simmer on low for 30 minutes to 1 hour. Serve with tortillas, sour cream, and grated cheese.

*New Mexicans will point out that this is the Christmas combination: red and green chile combined. Reduce the green chile powder to make the stew milder.

Now get out there and find something.

Family recipe Monday: beans and peppers

Nine inches of snow

Is sixty-three in cat math--

Please send it away.

In the past two weeks, by the old Fahrenheit thermometer, we have gone from 24 below to 64 above and back to 4 below, this time with a snowfall just deep enough to make getting out a nuisance. This is ridiculous. The sane people stayed in all weekend, this being a three-day weekend, but we had tickets to see The Lion in Winter on the big-screen vintage theatre in town, and therefore did not qualify as sane people.

Negotiating the uncleared  streets and sidewalks would be complicated enough without having to factor wheelchair logistics into the equation. We went, however, and it was awesome as always. We even managed to forge through the snowdrifts there and back without staging a repeat of the Old Sparky scenario.

Now we are waiting to see if the sidewalks get cleared as arranged while worrying about Shirley's carpal tunnel surgery today (although this looks like it doesn't even qualify as outpatient surgery--more like drive-by).

I think everyone is tired of winter at this point, especially since it has never settled down and really acted like winter. It is definitely off its meds. The ice in particular needs to go away.

Hibernation thoughts, however, are going away. We want to get out and play, not curl up and go back to sleep. We're restless and eating lighter foods. Here are some favorites that we're likely to be making soon. These are all vegetarian, but not vegan.

Green chile torte

1 ½ cups skim milk
2 eggs
1 ¼ cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese
4-oz can chopped green chiles, seeded
Pinch cayenne pepper
¼ tsp vegetable salt

Preheat oven to 325* F. Heat milk in small saucepan until hot but not boiling. Beat eggs. Slowly beat milk into them. Add cheese, chiles and seasonings. Pour into 6 lightly greased shirred-egg dishes or one 9” pie pan. Bake for about 40 minutes or until set.

Portobello fajitas

4 portobello mushrooms, stems removed and discarded, caps wiped clean
½ cup extra virgin olive oil
3 T soy sauce
1 T chopped fresh cilantro
6 oz dark beer
1 T fresh-ground black pepper
1 T habañero pepper jelly
1 onion, sliced into ½“ thick rings

Combine olive oil, sliced onion rings, lime juice, garlic, soy sauce, cilantro, jelly, beer and pepper in a large Ziploc plastic bag. Add the mushrooms, seal the bag and GENTLY shake to coat the mushrooms with the marinade. Place in the refrigerator for 1 hour.

Cut 4 12”x12” pieces of foil. Remove mushrooms from marinade, place a foil square on a work surface and set a mushroom on top, underside up. Fold the foil edges over to enclose the mushroom and seal the edges shut. Grill indirectly over medium hot fire for 10-12 minutes with the lid closed. Remove and discard the foil. Return the unwrapped mushrooms to the grill, bottom side up, brush with the marinade and cook until grill marked, 30-60 seconds. Remove from the grill and slice into ¼“ slices. Serve with warm flour tortillas, grilled onion rings, guacamole and pico de gallo.
--Pat Monaco

These are a couple of recipes for gallo pinto, which Gene learned to make on his birding time in Costa Rica. Gene omits the bacon. You may or may not wish to do the same. It's a very flexible recipe with lots of possibilities for improvisation. The rice really should be cooked the day before in order to get the right texture.
 

Gallo pinto I

 

3 cups day-old cooked rice

2 cups cooked black beans
2 T fresh onion, finely chopped
1 T bell pepper, red or green, finely chopped
2 T fresh coriander, finely chopped
3 strips bacon, cooked, drained, crumbled
2 T oil
½ T Worcestershire sauce
½ T Tabasco sauce

Sauté onion and bell pepper in oil on medium heat. Add beans and cook 2 minutes longer. Add rice and mix, cook 3 minutes more. Add Worcestershire sauce, Tabasco sauce and coriander, mix well. Garnish with bacon crumbs. If desired, top with sour cream. 6 servings.
--Gene K. Hess

Gallo pinto II

Sauté in butter or oil: fresh onions, fresh sweet pepper (red or green), cilantro (½ stalk cut into very small pieces). Mix in ½ lb cooked red or black beans. Add 2 T Lozano sauce, 2 T soy sauce, a little black pepper, and salt to taste. Add cooked rice, as much as you like. Chop 1 small tomato into pieces and put on top. Cover and cook 10 minutes.
--Gene K. Hess
 
Happy Monday. Get outside and play if at all possible.

Family recipe Monday: yellow trees, blue corn, green chile

November cottonwoods in northern New Mexico. Photo by Shirley.

Every time fall starts, I feel that I should be in New Mexico. For me, this place is the essence of the season. I feel more drawn to the blazing yellow cottonwoods than to any other fall color. It has been marvelous and restorative to move to South Dakota and have cottonwoods around me again. As I type, the cottonwoods in the yard behind us are positively glittering as the wind moves through the leaves.

Fall in New Mexico is also forever associated in my memory with the aroma of woodsmoke, roasting green chiles and baking blue cornbread. Blue cornmeal and fresh green chiles are not easy to find up here, so Tartan Girl brought some when she, Ralph and Shirley came up here earlier in the month for the ribbon-cutting ceremony. I used some in pancakes this morning and will be making cornbread with more of it tonight. She brought enough for us all.

Because it's fall, you see, and it's time for blue and green to go with the yellow.

Chiles are a staple of Southwest cooking. If a specific variety is called for in a recipe, take note. All of these recipes are specifically for green chiles. The heat and flavor vary tremendously. Most of the heat in a chile comes from the internal seeds and ribs. Take these out if you need less heat or if you don’t like their texture.

Chiles are more easily peeled if they are roasted first over an open flame or in the oven. The skins should be completely black. After roasting, place the chiles in a paper bag for a few minutes to let them steam, then slide off the skins under running water. Be sure that you keep your hands away from your face, especially your eyes, until you have finished handling the chiles and have thoroughly washed your hands. You may prefer to wear plastic gloves when preparing chiles. Or you may prefer to roast them in the traditional way, as described here. They can be canned or frozen after roasting.

New Mexico spoonbread

This recipe was developed by the New Mexico State University Cooperative Extension Service in Circular 396, entitled Chile. I am still trying to find an online copy, which I have not done yet, but I have turned up a number of other NMSU Cooperative Extension Service circulars on the subject of chile.

1 #300 can cream-style corn
1/3 cup melted shortening
2 eggs, slightly beaten
3/4 cup milk
1½ cups cornmeal
½ tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar (very optional)
1 4-oz can chopped green chiles
1½ cups grated cheddar cheese

Mix all ingredients except chile and cheese. Pour half the batter in a greased 9”x9” pan, sprinkle with half the cheese and chiles. Add remaining batter and top with cheese and chile. Bake at 400* F for 45 minutes.

A little minced onion added to the batter is good, too.

From The Best from New Mexico Kitchens, by Sheila MacNiven Cameron .

{Tartan Girl points out that sugar has never been used in her years of baking this, the amount of green chile is a minimum (more is always better), and the onions can easily be omitted. Shirley, on the other hand, always puts a rounded teaspoon of sugar in because the sweetness emphasizes the taste of the chiles. You'll just have to experiment for yourself.}

Directions for seasoning cast iron

Cornbread of any variety generally cooks best in heavy, seasoned  cast-iron pans or skillets. This isn’t an historic family recipe, but it gives good advice for dealing with historic family cast iron ware. Iron skillets are the anchor for many of the older recipes and can be almost immortal if treated well.

Put pan in wood fire to burn off grease and rust. As it cools, use wire brush or plain steel wool to clean. Smear inside generously with cooking oil and let stand at room temperature for a couple of days. Wipe clean with paper towels. Fill pan with potato peelings and water. Heat to a boil and simmer about 1 hour. Wipe pan clean after rinsing in plain hot water. Rub inside of pan with oil. It should be cured and ready to use. After each use, scrape pan with a metal spatula. Clean with hot water only. Dry with paper towels. Smear oil on inside of pan with paper towels. NEVER USE SOAP.

Back to the recipes: Spoon bread is more like a casserole or pudding than like a standard bread. The name comes from the need to eat it with a spoon. This is a cornmeal preparation that goes back a very long way in America. This particular recipe is almost a cornmeal souffle. It has to be served immediately, hot, puffed and fresh.

Buttermilk spoon bread

2 cups stone-ground cornmeal
1 T sugar
1 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
2 ½ cups boiling water
¼ cup butter
2 eggs, separated
1 tsp baking soda
1 1/3 cups buttermilk
1/2 cup chopped green chiles

Combine cornmeal, sugar, salt and pepper. In a large heatproof bowl, combine boiling water and butter. As soon as butter is melted, whisk in cornmeal mixture and green chiles until no lumps remain. Cover and let cool to room temperature. Beat in egg yolks. Stir baking soda into buttermilk. When it begins to froth, stir into cornmeal mixture. Whip egg whites to soft peaks, then fold in lightly but thoroughly. Spoon batter into buttered 2 1/2 quart soufflé dish, then bake at 375* F for 45 to 50 minutes or until puffed and lightly browned. Rush to table and serve.

Corn stick pans go back to at least the 1920s. To give the sticks a nice crust, heat the greased pans first, then pour in the batter. Do not overfill the individual molds. These can be as plain or as fancy as you like; this recipe falls on the fancy side.

Regal cornsticks

1 cup flour
1 cup blue or yellow cornmeal
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cream of tartar
½ tsp salt
¼ cup milk
½ cup green chiles
1 cup sour cream
2 eggs, well beaten
¼ cup honey
¼ cup melted butter or margarine

Grease cornstick pan generously. Combine flour, cornmeal, baking soda, salt, cream of tartar, and dill weed. In a separate bowl, combine milk, sour cream, eggs, honey and butter. Add quickly to dry ingredients. Stir to just mix. Fill cornstick wells. Place in 350* F oven and bake 20-25 minutes. Makes 16 cornsticks.

Happy Monday, happy fall.

Family recipe Monday: cornbread and chili

Brrr.

It's been another cold week up here, and a busy one to boot. On Saturday we were out birding in the Rapid City-Rapid Valley area. Top sightings: 5 adult bald eagles, 1 immature; a big flock of sharp-tailed grouse feeding close to the ranch road we were on; numerous hawks everywhere; and a great horned owl on his/her nest. Why they nest in the bleak midwinter is unclear. The owls start duetting on the cold nights in December, a lovely, deep, eerie sound in the small hours of the morning. The owlets first learn about life in the cold months.

Everyone has different warm-up recipes for this time of year. Here is a favorite Texas combination that cures frostbite from the inside out. All of these are from the Shelton-Johnson family recipe collection.

Corn bread

1 cup buttermilk
Salt
1/3 tsp soda
egg
1/3 cup flour
Cornmeal to thicken
--Vada Brooks Johnson

Yes, that is another cryptic one, isn't it? Here's one with a few more directions:

Corn kernel cornbread

1 cup flour
1 cup cornmeal
4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
¼ cup sugar
2 eggs, well beaten
1 cup milk
3 T melted margarine
1 cup yellow cream-style corn

Preheat oven to 450 F. Brush 9” square baking pan or skillet with melted shortening. Combine dry ingredients in mixing bowl, stirring to blend well. In a separate bowl, combine eggs, milk, margarine and corn. Add all at once to dry ingredients, mixing quickly and thoroughly. Pour batter into pan and bake about 30 minutes, or until bread tests done. Can also be baked as sticks or muffins. Serve hot.

I generally bake cornbread in a cast-iron skillet or cornstick pan. The trick is to grease it with the agent du jour (shortening, butter, bear grease, or whatever works in your household) (yes, I was joking about the bear grease) (unless that's really what you use; I'm not trying to insult the bear-grease lobby), and then to pre-heat the skillet in the oven before pouring in the batter.

Traditional Texas/Arkansas/Oklahoma cornbread is made with buttermilk; end of discussion. Many people (Lyndon Johnson and my grandfather Mack Johnson, no relation, just to name two) would then crumble the fresh cornbread in a glass or bowl of cold sweet milk as a late-night supper. Can't say I've ever tried this, because I am generally adding green chiles and cheese to my cornbread, and they were baking it simple and plain. I don't know how green chile cornbread would do in milk.

The cornmeal in the recipes above would have been either white or yellow. I personally also use blue cornmeal for a slightly different and more delicate texture and flavor. We had a black-bean potpie with a blue cornbread topping ready on Wednesday for a friend who drove 10 hours from Colorado and would, we knew, be tired and hungry when she got here. But that's another recipe.

Cornbread is very forgiving. You can keep it plain as above or throw in whatever jazzes it up for you. There is always an argument about adding sugar to the dry ingredients. Here's the issue: we are using very different corn varieties and hybrids from those in use in the 19th century. Theirs were naturally sweeter than ours, so they did not add sugar in the old recipes. That doesn't mean that adding sugar now is wrong--it may be the best way to approximate the original flavor. Sugar brings out the taste of the corn (and chiles, if you're using them), so, the sweeter the corn, the better the flavor of the bread. If you think that yours is a bit bland and dry in flavor, experiment with a little sugar or (even better) molasses.

Mix the dry ingredients, blend the wet ingredients, combine them into a batter, and bake it until the top is slightly springy and golden. That's all you need to do. Don't bother with a commercial mix.

Cornbread goes wonderfully with soups and stews, but perhaps best of all with chili. I'm not going to rehash (so to speak) the beans-no beans chili wars here; I'm just going to share a very old recipe that falls squarely in the no-beans camp.

Texas Red Chili

1/8 lb. suet, finely chopped
3 lb. round steak, coarsely cubed
6 T chili powder
1 T ground oregano
1 T crushed cumin seed
1 T salt
½ to 1 T cayenne (½ mild, ½ hot)
2 large garlic cloves, minced
1 T Tabasco if you dare (½ T)
1 ½ quarts water
½ cup white cornmeal or 3 T masa harina
8 oz tomato sauce

In Dutch oven, fry suet until crisp, add steak cubes and brown. Add seasonings and water; heat to boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer 1 ½ hours. Skim off fat. Stir in cornmeal and simmer uncovered for 30 minutes. Stir occasionally. Serve with cornbread or pinto beans. Serves 8-10.

This recipe dates back to the 1800’s when it was served by vendors on the streets of San Antonio.
--Vada Brooks Johnson

With real chili like this, beans are only served on the side.

The vendors she mentions are doubtless the legendary Chili Queens of San Antonio.

Jack Sprecht/Institute of Texan Cultures at UTSA. The chili queens of Haymarket Plaza in San Antonio, Texas, pictured in 1933.

For more information on these ladies, check out this link. Chili is actually a north-of-the-border invention, possibly from the 1850s, as it turns out.

I'm following a fairly common convention in using two different spellings: "chile" for the peppers themselves and "chili" for the main dish. That's not set in stone. You also see it spelled "chilli." Chile is a Nahuatl word, not a Spanish one, for the pepper itself, and every spelling is a transliteration from this deep and ancient Aztec language. Here are a few other Nahuatl food words from this site:

Avocado (ahuacatl)
Chile (chilli)
Chocolate (from xoco(l)atl)
Cacao (cacahuatl)
Tomato (from (xi)tomatl)

Stay warm in the nest and eat well. If you try these, please post the results. Happy Monday.