use real butter

[Go to the updated posole post.]
I’m not sure where I got my recipe for posole, but I know who introduced me to it. Jeremy is a native son of New Mexico (which is one of the 50 states and not a separate country as some US citizens might think). Despite being a white boy, he is particular about New Mexican food and scoffs at what Coloradoans try to pass off as Mexican food. I love Colorado, but damn it if these people don’t know how to cook…

Okay, so with the cooling temperatures and changing aspens comes my appetite for hot soups and stews – things I generally avoid during our warm months. Posole is incredibly simple and yet it produces such a satisfying and hearty meal. It is named for the star ingredient: hominy or posole. I use whole dried red New Mexican chile pods for this stew. I’ve substituted with other dried chiles before and I didn’t like them so much. So if you can get your hands on some New Mexican reds or bribe a friend in the state to send you some, it’s worth the trouble. I also like to add roasted Hatch green chiles (of New Mexico – see a pattern here?) at the end of the cooking.

Recipe: thin crust pizza

We like to make pizza at home because it’s delicious, fresh, and most of all – I hate disposing of that damned giant cardboard box when we order from our local (only) pizza takeout joint in town. The shameful truth is, Jeremy makes the pizza dough. I’m the cook, but I’ve never made the pizza dough before. He just tried it one evening and it was great, and ever since then he has been the goto pizza dough boy. Actually, he used the Crusty Pizza Dough recipe from the KitchenAid stand mixer recipe book that comes in the box and I have to (bashfully) admit that he did this because I was afraid to use my KitchenAid mixer. Ridiculous (me), I know!

I had always mixed my double batches of cookie dough by hand. I figured it helped maintain my hitting arm for volleyball. I didn’t trust the shiny white KitchenAid that my dear sweet in-laws had given to me for my birthday. It sat on the counter for well over a year before I ventured to test it out.

**Jump for more butter**

Finally, finally I went into town today to buy groceries. It’s not as if we’re ever in dire need of food for fear of starvation. *snort* I mean, we have enough food to live off of for months. Lately I have moved into the mode of “what can we scrape together here?” from the mode of “I have this meal in mind and I need the following ingredients…” Planning is good and I love it and I do it a lot, but mastering spontaneity in the kitchen is bringing my creative cooking juices to a nice simmer. Shocking, I know! Next I’ll be sleeping in past sunrise…

Tonight was a twist on the old steak and potatoes. Something beautiful and delicious in all its simplicity of preparation and flavors. Took less than 30 minutes to prep it all and serve. I tend to eat less when things are chopped up. Does that make any sense?

**Jump for more butter**