It is bitterly, bitterly cold out today – the kind of cold that bites. The woodstove has been going constantly for days. This kind of cold always sends my dreams to the Southwest. Of course, it can be cold and even snow there, like it did one January when I was in Santa Fe.
The snow was beautiful to see from my friend’s deck there. We went out looking for good, warming food in a chili pepper kind of way. We found it at the Pink Adobe, then at Pascal’s downtown. These two places are famous, along with several other restaurants in town. Some have big crackling fireplaces going and soft guitar music in the background, warming drinks and friendly people. It’s a great combination for a cold, snowy day.
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Slow-Cooked Savory Oxtail
4 pounds ox tails, cut in 2-inch lengths
2 cups (more if needed) low-sodium chicken broth
1 large onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic
1/3 cup soy sauce
2 tablespoons brown sugar
3 1/2-inch slices fresh ginger root
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
Flour to coat meat
Coat the meat with flour and season with salt and pepper. Heat oil in a large, heavy skillet and brown the ox tails. Pour off any fat. Transfer meat to a slow cooker. Add broth, onion, garlic, soy, sugar and ginger. Cover and cook on high for 6 – 8 hours. The meat should be falling off the bone at this point. Remove bones, garlic and ginger root, and let a natural gravy form for another 30 minutes or so. Serve over mashed potatoes, quinoa or wild rice.
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Rich Chicken Thighs with Black Beans
3 pounds chicken thighs
2 1-pound cans black beans, drained and rinsed
3 pounds sweet potatoes, peeled and cut in large chunks
1 small jar of roasted red pepper, cut in strips
2 teaspoons ground cumin, divided
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1 teaspoon smoked chipotle chili powder
1 cup chicken broth
1/2 cup salsa
4 cloves garlic, crushed
1/2 cup fresh chopped cilantro
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
Salt and pepper
Lime wedges
Sprinkle thighs with a little flour, 1/2 teaspoon of the cumin, salt and pepper. Heat the oil in a large, heavy skillet and brown thighs on all sides. Remove chicken and add rest of cumin, allspice, smoked chipotle powder, chicken broth, garlic and salsa. Stir to blend and turn off heat.
Place sweet potatoes and beans in a slow cooker and place chicken over them. Pour broth mixture over all; cover and cook for 4 – 6 hours. Remove thighs with tongs and place on a serving platter. Now stir the roasted pepper strips into bean-potato mixture, spoon over chicken and sprinkle with cilantro. Serve with lime wedges on the side.
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Oatmeal Bread
This bread is from my first cookbook, ”Native New England Cooking.” It’s easy to make and goes well with the above dishes.
2 cups boiling water
1 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup molasses
2 teaspoons salt
1 tablespoon butter
1 package yeast
4-1/2 cups flour
Combine above ingredients and cool. In a separate bowl, dissolve yeast into 1/2 cup lukewarm water. Add flour and oatmeal mixture. Beat all together and let it rise until double. Add enough flour to knead. Shape into a large round loaf and put into a greased pie plate. Let rise again and bake at 350 degrees for 50 minutes or until it sounds hollow.
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Bread Pudding</b?
1 loaf breadButter2 eggsBrown sugarRaisinsMilkTear up a loaf of sliced, buttered bread into a large bowl. (You can mix bread varieties.) Add eggs, a handful of brown sugar, a handful of raisins and enough milk to mix all to the consistency of mud. Bake at 325 degrees for about 1 hour.***Notes and Tips— Roasted red peppers in a jar come in handy for lots of uses, especially to give a little color to various dishes. They are great in an antipasto or cut up into soups, or plain with oil and vinegar. They’re excellent in sandwiches, grilled with cheese or whipped into a spread.– Too much salt in your diet? Try hot sauce or lemon juice as a substitute. Speaking of salt: get rid of odors on a cutting board by sprinkling with a lot of salt and rubbing it off with a lemon cut in half.
