Green Chile and Tomatilla Pork Stew

With such a quiet day, Tim decided to use up the bag of tomatillos that we picked from the garden the prior weekend with Pork shoulder.  The smell was unbelievable for four hours while it cooked.  Delicious.

Green Chile and Tomatillo Pork Stew

6 tomatillos, husked and quartered
3 jalapenos, split lengthwise seeds and ribs removed if you don't want a lot of heat
2 cups chicken stock plus more if needed
2 tablespoons grape seed oil
1 pork shoulder , picnic or fresh ham 3-5 pounds (depending how much you want to have left over)
3 medium white onions peeled and quartered
4 garlic cloves, peeled
3 tablespoons cumin
1 tablespoon salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 bunch fresh cilantro, divided into small sprigs
1 cup toasted and salted pepitas
1 block queso fresco, crumbled
1 bottle hot sauce
Corn tortillas warmed

( We substituted a few things because we didn't have the supplies with the storm - we didn't have jalapenos and left them out, substituted pumpkin seeds for the pepitas, olive oil for the grape oil and feta cheese for the queso fresco).

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Combine tomatillos, jalapenos and1/4 cup of chicken stock in a saucepan.  Bring to a simmer over medium heat and cook until the tomatillo begins to break down and get soft.  Remove from heat.
3. Heat a large, oven-safe Dutch oven over medium-high heat and add grape seed oil.  Add pork to hot pan and brown well on all sides.  Remove pork from pan and pour off most of the oil and fat.  Reserve some fat in pan.
4. Add tomatillo, jalapeno, onion and garlic to food processor and puree until smooth. Return pork pan to medium heat and add puree to the reserved fat in pan.  Add cumin and salt and heat through.
5. Add the rest of chicken stock into pot with puree and stir to combine.
6. Nestle pork back in to the pot of puree and stock.  The pork should be covered about 3/4 of the way.  Add more stock if needed.  Cover and put in preheated oven for about 3-4 hours until pork is tender and falling apart.  Turn the pork at least once halfway through the cook time. Using two forks, shred the pork a bit and mix it through the sauce to get the flavor incorporated into all the pork.  Taste and add salt and pepper if needed.
7. Serve pork stew right out of the pot and top with garnishes (cilantro, queso fresco, pepitas and hot sauce).  Serve heated corn tortillas on the side for dipping and scooping.

It was a great stew!  Very flavorful.

Let it Snow, let it snow, let it snow

We love the first snowstorm of the season, however it's just a little bit early in October.  Snowballs, Highballs...we just sat in our living room with our new Eden Pure electric heater and watched the season end of True Blood with cocktails and magazines and a little blood and gore.

Sunday morning, we put on our snowboots and went for a walk - it was so beautiful out.  We had just finished wrapping the balance of trees and shrubs with burlap and brought in our Dahlia and Gladiola bulbs and the snow started coming down.  We caught up on television shows and played with our Wii in the basement - Dance Party 3 - nothing funnier then the two of us trying to "pump it" to Black Eyed Peas.

Bill King's Vinegar Pie

One of my dearest friends recipes.  Bill, who was from Lynchburg Virginia, used to make this pie all the time.  He was an incredible host and his dinner parties were incredible because he kept everyone on- the-floor laughing and well fed.  This is one of my default deserts.  In the south in the winter when you ran out of fruit you would substitute vinegar to make custard pies. I have experimented with this recipe over the years substituting all sorts of flavored vinegars and it is delicious.




BILL KING'S VINEGAR PIE

2 pie pans - pre made
6 eggs
2 cups sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1&1/2 teaspoon vanilla
5 tablespoons vinegar ( experiment with flavors - this weekend we used a Cassis flavored vinegar, however you can default to apple-cider vinegar)
1 teaspoon cornstarch
1/3 cup milk
1 stick butter melted

1. Combine everything and mix, pour into shell.
2. Bake at 350 degrees ( this is the challenging part - start at 30-40 minutes but monitor to be sure custard in center is baked and some ovens vary but can take longer - will make 2 shallow pies or combine and make one pie but will require longer baking time).

Soy/Ginger Marinated Pork Chops and Herb/Scallion Rice

Despite the rainy day, Tim and I  did manage a grocery run - God forbid we should miss a meal!   Tim made dinner and I made dessert.  The marinade for the pork chops was out of this world.

SOY AND GINGER MARINATED PORK CHOPS

1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
1/4 cup vegetable oil
2 tablespoons finely grated fresh ginger
3 tablespoons light brown sugar
1 scallion, finely chopped
Freshly ground pepper
4 bone-in pork chops (8 ounces each; 3/4 inch thick)
garnish: 1 scallion, thinly sliced.

1. Whisk together soy sauce, 3 tablespoons oil, the ginger, sugar, chopped scallion, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper.
2. Arrange pork chops in a 9-by-13 inch nonreactive baking dish.  Reserve 3 tablespoons marinade, and pour remainder over pork chops.  Marinate, cover with plastic wrap, flipping chops halfway through, for 45 minutes.
3. Heat remaining tablespoon oil in large skillet over medium high heat. Remove pork chops from marinade, and sear for 3&1/2 to 4 minutes.  Reduce heat to medium.  Flip chops, and sear until just cooked through.  3&1/2 to 4 minutes more.  Transfer chops to a board or platter. Let rest for 5 minutes.
4. Add reserved 3 tablespoons marinade to skillet.  Simmer over medium heat until thickened, about 30 seconds.  Spoon sauce over chops. Garnish with thinly sliced scallion.


HERB AND SCALLION RICE

1&2/3 cups water
1/2 cup packed fresh cilantro
1/4 cup packed fresh mint
2 scallions, chopped
1 garlic clove
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 cup jasmine rice
Coarse salt

1. Puree water, cilantro, mint, scallions, and garlic in a blender until smooth.
2. Heat oil in a small saucepan over high heat.  Add rice, and stir to coat.  Cook until slightly toasted, 1 to 2 minutes. Add herb puree and 1 teaspoon salt.  Bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to low, and cook, covered, for 20 minutes.
3. Remove from heat, and let stand, covered, for 10 minutes. Fluff with a fork before serving.

Zone 4 Landscapes

The weekend was almost a total wash out.  It drizzled rain the entire weekend.  Weekends like this present the lovely opportunity of no outdoor chores and lots of reading and movie watching.  We made the most of it.  We watched two documentaries - one on a Florida serial killer and the second on WW2 and a secret intelligence group fighting the war - obviously from my Netflix list. Tim always knows which movies are mine because they are usually morbid.

I made an attempt to grout backsplash tile that I have been postponing forever - I hate grouting and that chore didn't last long.  We puttered around the house all weekend and finally on Sunday the sun came out and it was a gorgeous Fall afternoon.  We have lost a lot of leaves already and we spent the mid-afternoon winterizing what was left of the garden.

Our neighbors, M&M, stopped by and invited us to an open house at their landscaper's home who just completed their patio this summer.  We were thrilled to get out of the house for a couple hours and we drove with them over to Andes.  Zone 4 Landscapes is the company M&M hired for their patio project and they did a great job. We are considering using them for a project around our pond.  I had checked out their website and was excited to see the house and garden featured on the website.  The house has a phenomenal view and this gorgeous garden that is overflowing with amazing plants, shrubs and trees.  Mel, the owner, gave us a quick tour and we wandered around the property oohing and aahing and taking pics.  It was a nice break on a rainy weekend and we drove back to the house, had a late lunch and then drove back to the city.