I had a most prolific pear tomato plant that really produced in September/October, but it got too cool to ripen the toms. I pulled all the tomatoes off last week and let them sit to maybe ripen a bit before I turned them into jam. Boy, did they turn out wonderful! See the red pepper in the middle? A nice, polite cayenne-not too hot, not too mild. Sweet and savory and hottish! Lovely! Read the rest of this entry »
Growing up in Texas exposes one to various forms of chili from an early age. In central Texas, what you usually find is red chili. As you travel west into New Mexico, however, the chili turns green. When Scotia and I honeymooned in Taos, we never seemed to be able to get to the really good Mexican Restaurant, as it was always packed. I never was able to find a decent green chili sauce or green chili stew. I had forgotten this disappointment until reading about a chili cookoff here in town, where one of the categories was Chili Verde. I had to try making some, so I looked at some recipes on the Net, didn’t like them, and made up my own. We think it came out pretty good!
The version in the photo has the Pork Shoulder cut into about 1½ in cubes, but the chili would be better with it cut into ¾ in cubes. Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: Food, Mexican food, Recipe
I DID get a bee in my bonnet to make a good soup out of the last of the veggies. WOW! Did the soup come out really tasty or what? It really gets better and better the longer you keep it. Using parmesan cheese rinds adds a lot of flavor to the soup and you can freeze as you use up the cheese for future use. I just pulled out a few rinds and threw them in the soup. We used a package of naan from Trader Joe’s to round out the dinner and some really good garlic butter. Yum! Read the rest of this entry »
When you think of bananas and plantains, something sweet comes to mind. With bananas; well obviously a sweet treat to eat without much hassle when bright yellow. Plantains, on the other hand are eaten fried or cooked after turning dark yellowish brown or even black. Some people may not be aware that both of these can be eaten “green” when their taste is savory, as opposed to sweet. Where I come from we cook green plantains into treats that can substitute french fries as an accompaniment for many entrees. Certain people have asked me how to make tostones, and I will therefore do my best to oblige on tonight’s edition of WFD.
So, what are plantains Read the rest of this entry »
It has turned cold and rainy here in the great PNW and last night I decided to make a favorite at our house, meatloaf stuffed peppers. We got some beautiful large bell peppers at the Oly Farmer’s Market last weekend and had a lovely dinner with our own homegrown salad of spicy arugula, chard and green ice lettuce with a homemade tarragon dressing. Simple? Yes! Savory? Yes! Satisfying? YES! It also makes a little meatloaf on the side to make some sandwiches from! Read the rest of this entry »
We have an abundance of zucchini at the moment. I have made zucchini sauteed, zucchini thinly sliced chips for dips, in salads, in soups, shredded in bread and cake. Zucchini is a very prolific plant and loves to reproduce! I love the various eggplant baked dishes like parmesan or moussaka, so I decided to make a zucchini parmesan dish. It turned out wonderful! Read the rest of this entry »
It’s Fair time! This time of year is for going to the State/County Fair. Lots of rides, corndogs, funnel cakes and animals. When I was young, my Mom would make fried chicken and pimento cheese sandwiches. We carried these around the fair until we got hungry and had a picnic by the lake in the fairgrounds with 100 of our best friends! Read the rest of this entry »
I saw the most beautiful yearling today. He had about 12″ and two tiny branches on his antlers. I was standing in the kitchen looking out the patio door and he came into the yard next to the house. He looked at ME-I looked at HIM. Wow, what a moment. He really was beautiful and healthy. I marvel at the wildlife here in the great PNW. Most are plump and healthy, where I am from in Texas, they are scrawny and mean.
This soup is really decadent and delicious. It really is easy to make. I use frozen shrimp to ‘kick it up a notch’ that is always in my freezer. Read the rest of this entry »
We have so many cucumbers on the vine right now! YUM! I love growing food this time of year. The weather is so mild and beautiful and everything is so vividly green. I love the tiny baby cukes with beautiful yellow flowers and the fat, fuzzy, black bumblebees that pollinate them!
Here is a good, fresh recipe that I could eat all summer. Next week I am canning Bread and Butter pickles and Roasted Tomatillo Salsa. Read the rest of this entry »
We’ve been on a lean and mean diet over the past few weeks, and it is paying off! We are feeling better and dropping a bit of weight. I have been making alot of salads out of our garden, but this one takes some cabbage which we do not have growing. I got the cabbage and the “BEST” celery I have ever tasted at my local organic farmer’s market. It is an Atkins recipe with a little change from me-of course! Read the rest of this entry »