Made my Chicken Pepper Soup, but this time boiled it down into a stew and served it over rice and pinto beans, with salad greens and avocado. A little variation, without really doing much different. Skinless, boneless Chicken thighs, fried in olive oil until crispy, covered with water - then throw in 4 huge or 6 smallish Poblano (also called Pasilla) peppers, a huge onion, 8 Jalapeños, and a Fresno or plain old red bell pepper; all chopped and/or seeded - then add 1/4 cup cumin (you can start with half as much and add more to taste) and a teaspoon of coarse ground black pepper. Done. I usually add a bunch of thyme, but my new thyme plant deserved at least of week acclimating to its new home before someone started hacking off bits of it, and, as it turns out, the soup was just as good without it.
There's rice cooking in the very, very old Descoware pan. Do you have things around that are older than you are, but they still work better than anything new? (If I wasn't older than John, I might have answered, "him".) But seriously, if you can get your hands on Descoware, you will love it. It's from Belgium, and other than the Chocolate, can you think of anything else that is? (Don't answer "sprouts".)
Here's the view out my backdoor. For some odd reason, there were blinds covering the window in the door onto the (tiny) balcony. After settling for opening the slates to allow the limited light into the dining room for a year, today I decide to figure out whether it was possible to pull the blinds totally open - and it is! You just have to break this little plastic clip at the bottom - and Voilà - light streaming through the open (although broken) blinds. Did I mention that I rent this place? Yes, I am a renter, both in Tulsa and Southern California. I have been a homer owner since my early 20's, but I find the sheer lack of responsibility of renting to be the epitome of stressless living! Of course, now I have to locate another of these plastic clip thingies to install so as not to lose my deposit.
My seeds are sprouting!
More Descoware
This yellow pan with the white interior is Le Creuset, Marilyn Monroe's favorite cookware. They bought Descoware, and continue to make these enamel coated cast iron today.
Beryl - what a great recipe and I've never heard of Descoware. Must be an American brand? I managed to burn all our happy yellow Crueset pots which is apparently impossible so somehow I did it.
ReplyDeleteAh ha - did the (on commission) clerk lie to you and tell you that? Le Creuset is amazing easy to destroy. Drop it, put the lid on too exuberantly, boil all the water out of what you're cooking, or just plain old burn it - I could go on, as in 50 ways to leave your Lover (or pan). I put all mine in the attic until the kids were older, since I don't care all that much if I destroy the Le Creuset, but know how annoyed I'd be if my kids wrecked it. So happy to have it around now, since nothing does a better job for cooking rice.
DeleteI'm using a very old kitchen mixer which my Grandmother had from new, it still works really well and must be around 40 years old!
ReplyDeleteHi Jay - How cool that you have your Grandmother's mixer. Do you sometimes think of her cooking when you use it?
DeleteI have an old mixer that I use in California, but in Tulsa I decided I had to have a red one, so this one is much newer. But not as powerful, and I'll bet the older one will still be running when this red one is done
Never heard of Descoware, but I'm now a fan! That first picture isn't pretty, but the recipe and the lower ones are scrumptious. I can appreciate not having responsibility and also being able to move around more easily, but I would worry about my income keeping up with the rents. I expect there is no one best way... Loads of older things are better than new - they last a lot longer!
ReplyDeleteIt is so hard to take a picture with the steam swirling around, so I usually cool stuff off before I even try, but this time I just took it hot. By the time I decided I didn't like the picture, we'd eaten the subject. You might be able to find Descoware in the Thrifts in England. I just hate it when the rent gets raised, but every year they raise Social Security, so when we retire, that should work out. It's also difficult to find a newer small house to retire in - all the new houses are so big, and the old houses need constant repair.
DeleteI have (or had) a large oval Le Creuset dutch oven. My daughter borrowed it and now it seems to live with her. She didn't destroy it but it certainly seems she stole it! Hahaha. I no longer used it much as it is pretty big for two people. They are great pans though.
ReplyDeleteDarla
The larger Le Creuset Dutch ovens are a treat reserved for the young and strong. I love my smaller ones, but still have John lift them when they are full. When my daughter left for Berkeley, she let my son in Southern California (the middle guy) keep the one that is just right for a baked chicken.
ReplyDelete