Red Sauce Chicken Enchiladas

by Sandra Hamilton 

Step 1: Boil one whole chicken in plenty of water .

Step 2: Once your chicken is cooked, shred the chicken off the bones and set aside. Save all your chicken stock.

Step 3: place one bag full of New Mexico chili’s into a pot and add water until it barely covers the chili’s. Boil on med until the chili’s are very soft and tender.

Step 4: Take only the chili’s that have been cooked and put them into the blender and add your chicken stock to top off the blender. Add a pinch of cumin , a pinch of salt, and a pinch of pepper only. Blend it all until it is a sauce consistency.  Check for flavor.

Step 5: add the sauce into the pot of shredded chicken and mix it all up very well.

Step 6: wrap a stack of corn tortillas (approx. 10) in a paper towel and place in the microwave for approx. 3 minutes until the tortillas are soft and can roll easily.

Step 7: Place a little chicken/sauce on the tortilla and roll it. Then you place your enchilada on your casserole dish and continue until it’s all filled.

Step 8: Top your enchiladas with more sauce and add a mixture of shredded cheese i.e. Mexican cheese called Cotija, Queso Fresco, or Mozzerella

Step 9: chop green onions and add to the top. Place foil on top and bake for 15 minutes on 400 degrees in the oven or until the cheese is all melted.

Spanish Rice: Cook rice as usual, although, for added flavor instead of using water, add the chicken stock ,a spoon full of the enchilada sauce, and a handful of green onion for the Spanish rice.

Refried Beans

To make the beans you will need beans(black or pinto), water, onion, and a small bag of beef bones.

Step 1: rinse the dry beans and bones.

Step 2: Add the beans and bones to your crock pot along with water almost to the top because remember that as the beans cook, they will expand so your water level will also increase. 

Step 3: Chop ½ of an onion into small pieces and throw it into the crock pot.

Step 4: Cook your beans overnight on high and in the morning, switch it to low and stir making sure the beans don’t stick to the sides and make sure there is plenty of water.

Step 5: Grind the beans up in blender and transfer the beans back into the crock pot on low .  Just add a little garlic salt if you need more flavor, otherwise, they are ready to eat. 

Squash/Potato Curry Soup

by Sandra Hamilton 

Ingredients

▪    Oil

▪    Onion 1/2

▪    Potatoes 3 (small scrubbed and halfed) 

▪    Butternut Squash (peeled and cubed) or whatever squash is in season

▪    Coconut Milk – 4-5 cups (low fat if you like) or chicken broth which I chose to use

▪    Chillies (to taste)

▪    Madras Curry Powder Or any Curry Paste

Method

Fry off the onion first add the curry powder / paste and the chillies and fry for another 2-3 minutes.

If you are using powder ensure that it does not burn by adding some water (or milk if you like), add the potatoes and the butternut squash with the Coconut Milk and leave to simmer for half an hour.

Season to taste with salt and pepper to adjust flavour

Notes:

If you do not have coconut milk you can use chicken stock. In my opinion the coconut milk does add to the flavour and the low fat variety has as much flavour as the high fat one.

I happen to have a Blend tec which I used to add all my ingredients into and blended it all up. The consistency came out thick and very creamy with a soup consistency.

Chicken Noodle Soup

Boil 16 cups of water along with your uncooked chicken and chopped onion and cook with a gentle boil for approximately 30 minutes. 

While the chicken is cooking, add :

*  Knorr Chicken flavor Bouillon ( 1/4 cup)

* a sprinkle of garlic power
*  a pinch of pepper

Mix and taste. Only add more bouillon if needed.  

Once the chicken is fully cooked, add chopped celery, chopped carrots, potato chunks. 

Add your noodles or rice(1/4) cup. Once the rice/noodles and veggies are cooked in approximately 8 minutes, soup is done. Enjoy!

Curtido

Curtido

This is that lovely stuff we eat on top of pupusas, panes con chumpe, tamales, pastelitos, enchiladas, or a simple bed of rice.

If you like pickles, I think you'll like this.  It's kind of a cross between Korean kimchi and German sauerkraut and also a bit of Italian Giardiniere pickles. 

Ingredients:

1 small or 3/4 head of cabbage, shredded

1 small onion, finely sliced

2 carrots, finely grated or mandolined

1 chopped green onion

1 small bunch of radishes

2 fresh jalapenos (optional)

5-6 cups boiling water

Brine:

½ cup water

¾ cup apple cider vinegar *

1 to 1 1/2 teaspoons coarse salt

3 rounded teaspoons oregano

Sprinkling of red pepper flakes (optional) **

1 tsp. pepper

* I like my curtido super punchy, so I do 1/4 cup water and 3/4 cup vinegar.  Try different ratios and see what you prefer.  However, I would stick with apple cider vinegar.  I've tried other vinegars and they can be way too strong.

** I like my curtido hot, so I add a lot of jalapenos or red pepper flakes, but you add it to your taste, or don't add any!

Method:

Place all the fresh ingredients in a large bowl , pour your brine evenly over the fresh ingredients and add the 5-6 cups of boiling water.  Mix everything well and cover bowl with plastic saran wrap. Leave on counter for 40 minutes. This helps take the worst bite out of the onions and helps the veggies absorb the rich flavors.  

Place a colander in sink and poor your curtido into it until most of the juice is all drained. Then scoop out all the curtido and place in a jar or container for easy storage in your fridge.  You should have a little bit of juice left in the jar/container. Allow it to chill in the refrigerator in a glass mason jar for 6 hours. This curtido keeps well for weeks in the fridge.  

As with all my cooking, I recommend tasting and adjusting as you go.  Different people like their pickles at different "strengths."

And that's it!