Chile Verde

After a very cold parade this Mardi Gras, we discovered this dish at our favorite local Mexican restaurant. We've been trying to duplicate it ever since. This is the recipe I used yesterday, and it was a unanimous hit. I will broil the tomatillos and peppers again in the future, but if I am in a hurry, I will not hesitate to use canned salsa verde.

4 pound pork shoulder/butt
1 green bell pepper, seeded and diced (I used frozen)
1 small onion diced (again, frozen)
1 (4 ounce) can green chiles, diced
1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes
10 tomatillos (about 1 1/2 pounds)
2 Anaheim or Poblano chiles (optional)
5 cloves garlic
2 teaspoons cumin
1 teaspoon chili powder

Remove the outer (papery) husks from the tomatillos. Rinse well, slice in half, and place on a foil-lined baking sheet with the cut side down. Place unpeeled garlic cloves and rinsed chiles on sheet also. Broil 5-7 minutes to blacken the skin. Let cool enough to handle. (If doing peppers, place them in a plastic bag to sweat, then, when cooled, remove skin, seeds, and stems.)

Place tomatillos (including blackeded skins) into blender. Remove garlic cloves from skins and add to blender. Add any other chiles (after removing skins, seeds, stems). Pulse until all ingredients are finely chopped and mixed. (You could also add cilantro to the blender, but we add it as we serve as some of our crowd HATES it.)

In a large (5-6 quart) slow cooker, place the pork (after removing any visible fat). Add all other ingredients, making sure spices are well incorporated. Cover and cook on low for 8 to 10 hours, or on high for 6 hours - until the meat shreds easily with a fork.

Serve with cilantro, sour cream, guacamole, shredded cheesed, etc over cornbread, tortillas, rice, etc

Spanish Rice

In search of the perfect rice to serve with our favorite Mexican entrees, I tried this recipe. I didn't have tomato paste, but I plan to use that next time to get the traditional color in this dish. The rice was delicious, and well worth the extra step of browning before cooking.

Amazing Cake!

A friend sent me a link to this one a while back, and I've been meaning to post is since.... One of these days, I'm going to have to make it!

Tennessee Jam Cake.

Tennessee Jam Cake

1 cup butter 

2 cups sugar 

1 cup buttermilk 

4 eggs beaten 

2 tsp. baking soda 

1 tsp. allspice 

1 tsp. cloves 

1 tsp. cinnamon 

2 cups blackberry jam—seedless 

1 cup canned pears –chopped 

1 cup chopped nuts 

1 cup raisins 

Cream butter and sugar. Add nuts, pears, eggs, and jam. Mix well. Add flour with buttermilk. Bake 1 hour at 350 degrees in 2 (9-inch) cake pans. Ice with favorite frosting! 

Blend of the Bayou.

Blend of the Bayou

1 8 ounce cream cheese 

1 stick butter 

1 lb. shrimp 

1 lb. scallops 

1 large chopped onion 

1 large red and green pepper chopped 

1/2 cup celery 

1 tsp. margarine 

1/2 can mushrooms 

2 cans mushroom soup 

2 Tbl. Garlic salt or fresh garlic 

2 cups uncooked rice (cook before using) 

1 or 2 Tbl. Tabasco sauce 

1/2 tsp. red pepper 

2 cans crab meat 

Grated cheddar cheese 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Melt cream cheese and butter. Sauté onion, bell pepper, celery and shrimp in maragine. Add to first mixture. Add soup, mushrooms, seasonings, crab meat, and rice, mix well. Pour into a glass casserole dish. Top with sharp grated cheese. Bake at 350F for 15 to 20 minutes (or until bubbly).