HOT "N HEARTY, SLOW AND SPICY

When I meet someone new and they find out that I'm a bit silly about cooking, they always get around to asking me what is my best dish. You can almost bet it's a non-cook or novice cook that asks a question like that. I think my best dish is the one we sit down to on any given day. Because I'm a "Craver" I tend to be all over the place when it comes to what delights my taste buds. I am a real fan of Italian food, and probably cook it more than any other ethnic food group, but I'd have to say that I am truly a fan of AUTHENTIC (key word here being Authentic) Mexican fare. I love the deep, intense mysterious flavors that are such an essential part of a real mexican dish. No kidding, it can seem pretty odd to a southern gal to read a recipe that mentions cinnamon, olives, cloves, raisins, almonds and sometimes chocolate in the list of ingredients. That's in my Picadillo for Chile Rellenos. And what are those little green, papery tomato-lookin' little things? Luckily, because I happen to love each of those ingredients I mentioned, I am more apt to be intrigued than intimidated. I can't handle a lot of heat, but I've found that most Mexican recipes are only hot if you take them in that direction. The taste says it all and Geraldo and I love sharing some of our favorite Mexican dishes with friends. You can bet on some interesting table conversation when a guest takes that first bite of something they thought would taste like something from Taco Bell. "Cinnamon, what? And Chocolate? Cloves, olives? That's all in here? You've got to be kidding...who'd have thought?"
So with Fall now in full swing and the days and nights getting cozier and cozier, I'll be spending
more time inside, but not necessarily at the stove. This recipe is for the slow cooker and it takes a little time to assemble but then it cooks for several hours to develop the rich flavor of the chile and tomato- sauced pork cubes. If you've never cooked with Ancho chiles, this is a real good recipe to start with. Anchos are the dried version of the green Poblano pepper. The following dish is one of my very favorites and one we enjoy several times a year with good friends and lots of laughter. Ole! (Check out the Chile Relleno recipe, too.)

PORK ADOBADA
8 dried ancho peppers
2 cups water
1/2 cup cider vinegar
2/3 cup chopped onions
1/2 cup chicken broth
1/2 cup orange juice
2 TBS packed brown sugar
2 TBS tomato paste
1 TBS ground cumin
5 cloves garlic, minced
3 pounds lean boneless pork, cut into 3/4 in. cubes
6-8 8 inch flour tortillas
Assorted toppers, such as chopped tomatoes, shredded lettuce, shredded Monterey Jack cheese

HEAT a 12 inch heavy skillet over med. high heat. Add the peppers: toast until they begin to blister turning frequently. Transfer peppers to a medium saucepan: add the water and vinegar. Bring to boiling: reduce heat. Simmer, covered for 20 minutes. remove peppers with slotted soon, reserving liquid. Cool peppers slightly.

IN A 3 1/2- OR 4 QUART SLOW COOKER, combine the onions, chicken broth, orange juice, brown sugar, tomato paste, cumin, and garlic.

USING GLOVED HANDS, remove stems from the peppers. To remove seeds, use a small knife to make a lengthwise slit on one side of each pepper. Spread peppers open and lightly rinse under cold water. Strain any seeds from cooking liquid. Transfer peppers and 1 cup pf the cooking liquid to a blender. Cover and blend until the peppers and liquid form a thick paste. Stir paste into mixture in slow cooker.

ADD PORK to slow cooker and stir until all the meat is coated with the sauce. Cover and cook on low heat for 5-6 hours. Season to taste with salt.

After cooking time...
PREHEAT oven to 350. Wrap tortillas tightly in foil. Heat in oven about 10 minutes or until heated through. Use a slotted spoon to serve pork with warm tortillas and assorted toppers. Spoon some of the sauce over each serving.

TIP A great variation on this dish is to make up each of the tortillas with the finished filling and place in a casserole dish. Spoon pork and sauce over the top and top with cheese. Heat in oven till cheese is melted and bubbling.

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WHITE CHICKEN ENCHILADAS

In past posts I've talked about the fact that I am a little obsessed when it comes to cookbooks, food magazines or any media pertaining to food and cooking. I have a few all time "GO TO" cookbooks and some of my all time favorites are the quarterly publications from Southern Living, Better Homes and Gardens and Taste of Home. These tend to be specific to a season or to a cooking method, i.e. grilling or 225 ways to cook a chicken. I have found some of my family's favorites this way. Having said that, I refer to the fact that the other night I was on the deck with 3 cooking "magazines" in front of me and 4 Bone in, skin on, chicken breasts in the refrigerator. With chicken on my mind, I went to the grilling section in each one and then got more specific and began combing through the all chicken one by Taste of Home magazine,
"225 Chicken Dishes." It was there that I came across a picture of some White Chicken Enchiladas that looked ( and sounded) delicious. Let's see....Cream cheese? Check. Sour cream? Check, check. Cheddar cheese? You get the picture...this was hitting all the high notes for me. I had been healthy enough with all the grilling that had been going on. Time to get a little ooey- gooey goodness back on the table.
The following is the recipe from Taste of Home. We loved it and it was so easy. I made a couple of changes to the original, which I have duly noted. You are really gonna like this and if you think it's a little too heavy for this time of year...hang on to this recipe and make it in the fall. Do make it though...it's a "keeper."

WHITE CHICKEN ENCHILADAS

12 white or yellow corn Tortillas (6 in. size)
4 Oz. cream cheese
1 TBS plus 1 cup 2% milk, divided
2 teaspoons ground cumin
4 Cups cubed cooked chicken breasts
1/2 C chopped green onion (whites and tops)
1/2 cup chopped sweet red pepper
(NOTE:
I substituted 4 oz can of chopped green chillies for the red pepper )

1 Can(10-3/4 oz) Condensed Cream of Chicken soup, undiluted
1 C (8 oz) sour cream
2 jalapeno peppers, seeded and chopped
1/4 tsp Cayenne pepper
1/2 C shredded cheddar cheese ( or substitute Monterrey jack for spicier version)

Wrap tortillas in foil. Bake at 350 for 10 min. till softened. Meanwhile, in a large bowl, combine cream cheese, 1 TBS milk and cumin until smooth. Stir in chicken. In a nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray, saute onions and red pepper until softened. Stir into chicken mixture. (If using canned green chillies, add directly to chicken mixture.)
In another bowl, combine the soup, sour cream, jalapenos, cayenne and remaining milk. Stir 2 TBS soup mixture into chicken mixture. Place 1/3 cup of chicken mixture down the center of each tortilla; roll up.
Place seam side down in a 13x9x2 in. backing dish coated with cooking spray. Top with remaining soup mixture. Cover and bake at 350 for 30 minutes or until cheese is melted and dish is heated through. Yields 6 servings.
TIP: Use reduced fat cream cheese sour cream and milk to cut back on the fat and calories. It's still a great dish.

http://www.myrecipes.com/
Southern Living recipe site

http://www.tasteofhome.com/
Taste of Home recipe site

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www.comfortcook@gmail.com

COMFORTCOOK CATERING
615-525-8336
Nashville, TN

WHICH CAME FIRST?

I was going thru some of the old ( and I do mean old) cookbooks that my Mom gave me on my last visit home and noticed the amount of casserole recipes and how little they have changed over the years. The wording may be a little different and we may use margarine, or butter now in place of "oleo", but one thing stood out really clearly to me and I thought to myself "Which came first? The chicken or the Cream of Mushroom Soup?"

Well, according to old casserole folklore and the good folks at Campbell's, their Cream of Mushroom Soup gets the credit for setting the table. Campbell's Cream of Mushroom soup was actively promoted to American consumers in the 1930's as a quick and economical alternative to homemade sauces. What did these poor women do before "condensed" became an ingredient? You see, it was suggested that, because of their extreme concentration, a single can of undiluted soup could double as a sauce or stock. "Many times," the booklet Helps for the Hostess stated, "unattractive leftovers are thrown away when, by using a can of Campbell's Soup, they could have been made into an attractive, appetizing dish." Well, now...How 'bout that? I guess we still follow this advice today and every properly stocked pantry has at least one can each of the "Cream" version of mushroom, chicken and celery soups. I sure do and on special occasions, I've been known to break out the GOLDEN Cream of Mushroom Soup that's usually reserved for THAT green bean casserole and always when company's involved. Gosh, we are creatures of habit!
Of course the chicken came first, but after my Google history lesson on casseroles, I'm thankful that all us harried and hurried moms and pops and cooks today have the convenience of the "boneless, skinless" and "Cream of Something Soup", so that we, just like the Happy Hostesses of Yore, can have dinner on the table in a matter of minutes and serve our busy families an "attractive and appetizing dish." Give me a break.
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Casseroles, Casseroles, Casseroles (at right under Simply Recipes )

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