Bulgur or Quinoa Dressing

Quinoa Dressing garnished with Giant Italian Parsley 

Bulgur Wheat or Quinoa Thanksgiving Dressing  (Serves 4 to 5 as a side dish)

Part 1 
Cook over medium heat:
1 1/2 cups chopped onions
1/2 cup chopped celery with some leaves, in
2 to 4 Tablespoons oil and/or unsalted butter until onions are translucent. 

Add 1 cup medium to coarse bulgur wheat OR 1 cup (washed or prewashed) quinoa and 1 ¾ to 2 cups chicken or vegetable broth, cover tightly, bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes. Let sit off heat for 5 minutes. Taste and carefully adjust salt if necessary. It probably will not need any additional salt if you used salted broth.  

Part 2
Microwave 1/3 cup packed sweetened dried cranberries in 2 Tablespoons orange or apple juice or water, until water simmers. Stir, cover and allow to stand until liquid is absorbed. 

Shortly before serving, fluff warm quinoa with a fork and add softened cranberries, 2 Tablespoons chopped Italian parsley and 4 finely minced young scallions with some of the tender green parts, or some minced chives. Serve.   

Seasoning Tips: 

Bulgur Wheat version:  The original recipe called for 1/4 teaspoon of poultry seasoning, but I leave it out because I want this dressing to taste different from the more traditional dressing on the table. You can add some black pepper with the onions and celery if using bulgur wheat.

Quinoa version:  Try doubling the amount of softened cranberries.

On a day other than Thanksgiving, you can substitute a minced garlic clove or one or two shallots (added with the onion and celery) for the scallions or chives added at the end.

If there is a no-sugar purist coming to dinner, you can leave out the cranberries and garnish the finished dressing with pomegranate arils. 

Quantity Cooking:  

If you will be eating with a crowd where the kitchen will be busy, a quadruple batch of the bulgur wheat version (Part 1) holds nicely for a few hours in a 6 or 7 quart slow cooker or big covered electric skillet set to “warm”. I don’t know how well the quinoa version holds. Add cranberries, parsley and green onion shortly before serving. 

Even after adding Part 2, this dressing re-heats nicely in a microwave.  Great for breakfast the day after Thanksgiving.

 Alternate Grains and Allergy information: 

The quinoa recipe is gluten-free.  I think  a wheat and milk-free alternative with brown rice and maybe a little wild rice, cooked until done but still chewy, would also be excellent.  For a different flavor, try adding some minced green tops from a bulb of fennel and chopping some of the bulb into the dressing, or some fresh tarragon. Consider pressure-cooking brown rice at high altitudes. Or try other grains. Cook enough rice (and/or other grain) in broth to make about 3 1/2 to 4 cups of cooked grain.  Add to cooked onions and celery, add additional liquid if necessary for a moister dressing and proceed as above.    

You're on your own figuring out equivalent amounts of cooked wild rice, millet, amaranth, quinoa, buckwheat or pearled barley (people who react to wheat gluten may not get along with barley, either).   Check basic cooking techniques for these grains online to determine cooking times and the proportions of liquid which will be needed. 

This dish could easily be made VEGETARIAN.  Just use vegetable broth or water instead of chicken broth and use oil rather than butter. 

This recipe can be made free of corn products - check chicken broth and cranberry ingredients. 

Stocking Up, Preparing Bulgur Wheat without Electricity:  
The classic salad made with bulgur wheat, Tabouleh (AKA Tabouli) generally uses bulgur wheat soaked in hot or cold water, then drained before adding other ingredients.  

 In an emergency, even if you had no way to heat food and no fresh veggies, you could serve a salad using similar ingredients by soaking medium bulgur in cold water for one hour (or until hydrated), adding dried celery, parsley and onion (not as much as in this recipe) plus dried cranberries or other dried fruit, desired seasonings, a little oil and lemon juice or vinegar.  Allow to sit until vegetables re-hydrate and flavors blend, stirring occasionally.  Stir in a can of tuna or diced chicken (with the liquid in the can) if you like and serve.

Skillet Lasagna with Shredded Zucchini

Tips and Comments
This recipe is a good way to use zucchini or other summer squash when your plants are producing more than you expected. Shredding the zucchini makes this dish palatable to most people who don't like zucchini because of its texture. (You can only eat so much zucchini bread, another favorite recipe for "sneaking in" some zucchini). And the strong flavors of a tomato-based spaghetti sauce mask the flavor of even the darkest green zucchinis, with the overall effect of making the sauce taste milder.

Some of the extra moisture released from the squash is absorbed by the no-boil lasagna noodles as they cook. If you're too rushed to make lasagna, you can add a little shredded zucchini to almost any chunky pasta sauce. Or use part zucchini and part shredded carrots (for a slightly sweeter taste).

Yellow zucchini or straighneck squash looks especially nice in this recipe. It would also work with steamed and flaked-out strands of spaghetti squash. I prefer immature spaghetti squashes (when the rind can still be easily pierced by a fingernail) to ripe ones when serving with a tomato-based sauces. Even if you like ripe spaghetti squash, there are always a few fruits which don't mature to the hard-rind stage by the end of the season. This would be one good way to use them.

The recipe below makes a lot of lasagna.  If you wanted to halve the recipe, a 9 x 9 inch baking pan or skillet would allow you to use one sheet of noodles per layer of the Ondine noodles.   There are also "no boil" lasagna noodles which look more like the traditional ones, which might be more convenient for this recipe. Or see the 2-layer variation (using only 2 pounds of cottage cheese) at the end of the recipe. It cooks in about 25 minutes after layering the prepared ingredients. It's the one I usually make now.

You could also bake the recipe below in the oven (try 20 minutes at 350 degrees before topping with cheese, or estimate baking time from a recipe on the package of your no-boil lasagna noodles), but it's too hot here to bake right now, so I made it in a big (12 x 16 inch) non-stick electric skillet. I used "no boil" lasagna noodles which came in thin, corrugated sheets, about 8 x 8 inches. I broke them to fit the skillet.  The Ondine brand noodles came with a recipe for vegetable lasagna, with no tomatoes, on the package.  It includes only vegetables, oil, a little cheese, and chicken broth.  The translation wasn't perfect, and I haven't tried it yet.

Ingredients
Vegetable or olive oil
1 large onion, chopped (leave out if kids hate onions)
1 pound very lean ground beef or turkey (optional)
5 to 7 cups coarsely shredded zucchini or other summer squash (remove seeds from really big squashes)
Salt to taste (about 3/4 teaspoon, less if spaghetti sauce or cheese are quite salty)
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 large jar (32 ounces) spaghetti sauce

3 pounds (5 1/2 or 6 cups) cottage cheese *
1/4 cup minced fresh scallions or sweet onion
3 to 5 oz. Parmesan or Romano cheese, finely grated
3/4 pound to 1 pound part-skim Mozzarella cheese, grated
No-boil lasagna noodles

Directions
Saute chopped onion in a little oil in the skillet in which you will prepare the lasagna. When onions are translucent and have begun to brown (or caramelize them if you like), add the meat, breaking it up as it cooks. When about half the pink has disappeared from the meat, add the zucchini, salt and pepper and stir into the meat. Cover and allow to cook until the meat is no longer pink and the squash starts to turn translucent .

Adding the zucchini while the meat is partially pink should result in meat which is more tender. If you want the shredded squash to retain more texture in the finished lasagna, add the spaghetti sauce as soon as you add the squash.

Reserve about 1 1/2 cups of spaghetti sauce (to spread over the bottom of the skillet) and mix the remainder into the squash mixture. Allow to simmer for a few minutes, covered. Meanwhile, mix the minced sweet onion or scallions into the cottage cheese, along with 1/2 to 2/3 of the grated Parmesan or Romano cheese.

Spoon squash mixture into a large bowl. Spread reserved spaghetti sauce evenly over the bottom of the skillet. Add a little water to reduce to the consistency of common canned tomato sauce, if necessary.

Place one layer of lasagna noodles over the spaghetti sauce, breaking pieces to fit as necessary. Leave about 1/2 inch between the noodles and around the edges of the skillet.

Working quickly, spoon half of the cottage cheese mixture over the noodles and spread fairly evenly. Sprinkle with about 1/4 of the Mozzarella cheese. Dot with about 1/4 of the squash mixture, and spread it over the cheese layer.

Add a second layer of noodles, perpendicular to the direction you used for the last layer (more or less - don't be too concerned about precision). Working quickly, spread the remaining cottage cheese mixture over the noodles, followed by 1/4 of the Mozzarella cheese and 1/4 of the squash mixture.

Top with another layer of noodles, according to the directions above. Dot with the remaining 1/2 of the squash mixture and spread the mixture to cover all of the noodles.

Cover tightly and simmer (you want some bubbles reaching the top, but not vigorous bubbling) for about 40 minutes, until noodles are cooked through when you test a piece. Mix the remaining Mozzarella and Parmesan or Romano cheeses and sprinkle evenly over the lasagna. Cover and cook for another 5 minutes. (If baking in the oven, do not cover after adding the last layer of cheese). Turn off heat to the skillet but leave it covered, allowing lasagna to rest for 10 minutes. Or remove from oven and allow to rest for 10 minutes. Serve.

* 2-LAYER VARIATION:  I later made this recipe using 2 pounds of cottage cheese and only 2 layers of noodles, leaving the rest of the ingredients about the same.    I reserved plenty of sauce/squash mixture to go over the cottage cheese layer which topped the second layer of noodles.  It cooked faster with only 2 pounds of cottage cheese - in 25 minutes.  I still let it rest, covered, with the heat off, for 10 minutes. The time necessary to cook the noodles may vary with the brand of no-boil lasagna.

Allergy Information: We have a friend who is allergic to squash. Some people with a latex allergy have a cross-allergy to squash or to some other foods, especially certain immature fruits (like summer squash). Some varieties of Classico Spaghetti Sauce contain no corn products.

Skillet Chicken Fried Rice

Quick to make. Serves 2. Triple or quadruple the recipe in a big electric skillet.

3/4 pound boneless, skinless chicken breast
Up to 2 Tablespoons vegetable and/or sesame oil
1/2 cup long grain white rice
2 medium cloves garlic, crushed
1 teaspoon ground ginger OR grated fresh ginger to taste
1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes or ground red pepper (optional)
1 3/4 cup chicken broth (14 oz. can)
1 Tablespoon low-sodium soy sauce
1 cup frozen peas
1/4 cup chopped parsley and/or 2 or 3 minced scallions with tender tops.

1. Cut chicken in 1/2 inch (or larger) cubes. Crush garlic and grate or mince fresh ginger, set aside. Prepare other ingredients.

2. Saute chicken in a large skillet (a skillet you can cover) over medium-high heat, in up to 1 Tablespoon of the oil, for about 2 minutes, until very lightly browned (maybe a little longer for larger pieces) . Remove chicken to a bowl. This time, I put some Pappy's Seasoning on the chicken at this point. It was frozen/thawed chicken and I thought it could use a flavor boost (mustard, celery seed, pepper, coriander, paprika, fines herbes, etc.)

3. Add up to 1 tablespoon of oil to the skillet and saute the rice until toasted and lightly browned, about 3 minutes. This step keeps the finished rice fluffy and separate, with a texture sort of like Spanish rice.

Add garlic and saute for one minute. Add chicken broth, soy sauce, ginger and red pepper. Cover, bring to a boil and reduce heat to medium (or the temperature which produces simmering in the pan you are using). Simmer for 15 minutes.

4. Add peas and cooked chicken to skillet, cover and simmer for 2 or 3 minutes - a little more for larger pieces of chicken, if you're worried that they're not done. Taste the rice, toss in salt and pepper to taste (I didn't need any) along with the parsley and/or scallions. You may also flavor with a little light or dark sesame oil if desired. David doesn't like dark sesame oil, and I just used vegetable oil in the recipe.

NOTE: If the lid to your pan is very tight, you may be able to reduce the liquid slightly, especially if multiplying the recipe. You can also use part water in place of broth in a pinch.

Allergy information: Check soy sauce and chicken broth for wheat or corn products.

Oven-poached Turkey Breast

I wasn't sure exactly what what to call this. David's Mom once cooked for a fancy spa near San Diego where movie stars, etc. often went to lose a little weight. She sometimes prepared this turkey for 600 people. It was served cold with salads and such. Easy, low in fat and very moist and good.

Ingredients
Turkey breasts: If starting with a whole turkey breast, cut each half-breast from the bone and remove the skin. You can simmer the wishbone, ribs, skin, etc. for stock - for another recipe - if you like.

Salt, other seasonings to taste.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. For each turkey breast half, place a square of heavy-duty aluminum foil shiny side up on a flat surface and spray with non-stick cooking spray. Season the half breast of turkey, boneless and skinless, with salt. If using other seasonings (celery salt, sage, thyme, pepper, etc.) mix them with the salt and rub onto the turkey. Place half breast on the foil sheet and fold foil fairly tightly around the turkey, making sure that all seams will be above the turkey when it is placed in the oven.

Place wrapped half-breasts on a rimmed baking sheet or in a baking dish with a little room between them and bake in a pre-heated oven at 400 degrees for 45 minutes to 1 hour, depending on the size of the half breast(s). Remove from oven. Do not open foil. Allow to cool in foil to room temperature. Some of the juices which developed during cooking will be re-absorbed by the meat. Refrigerate while still wrapped, or carefully unwrap to serve, as there will still be some juices around the turkey.

Slice and serve cold, or if you wish to re-heat the turkey, re-heat it in the juices saved from cooking.

Allergy information: No corn, wheat, milk or eggs.

Mexican crockpot chicken

Our friends Manuela and Ana taught us to make this wonderful, amazingly simple dish.

Medium-spicy rather than hot, if you fill a 3 or 4-quart crockpot with chicken thighs and use one small can of hot sauce.

Menos pollo, màs piquante. - The less chicken, the spicier the dish.

DIRECTIONS
Place thawed chicken thighs in slow-cooker. One family-pack (4 or 5 pounds) will usually fit in a 3-quart cooker if you remove most of the skins (you may want to leave the skins on the top layer of chicken. Pour a small (about 8 oz.) can of El Pato Mexican hot sauce (in the little yellow can) over chicken. Add a little salt. Cook for several hours, until chicken is tender, stirring at least once after juices are released from chicken. Adjust salt and skim fat from sauce. Serve with rice and/or tortillas, spooning some of the sauce over the rice. Serve with some vegetables or a salad. David likes refried beans with it.

Serve with hot sauce for those who want more heat.

Leftovers still taste good. For a milder flavor, use enchilada sauce (El Pato brand is in a red can. For a slightly different, spicy flavor, use Jalapeno salsa. I think the sauce in the yellow can is the best choice.

VARIATIONS

This is a family-style dish. There's an easy-to-serve variation for a crowd here.

Or you can make this dish "gringo style" by cooking the chicken thighs first, removing skin, bones and cartilage, skimming fat from liquid then adding the hot sauce and cut-up or broken-up chicken to the cooking liquid and allowing everything to cook together for a few more minutes. If you don't have time to cook the chicken in a slow-cooker, you can simmer it on top of the stove in a little broth or water until tender but not falling apart.

You should end up with chunks of chicken in about enough sauce (including liquid from cooking the chicken) to almost cover the meat. This method allows you to remove a little more fat from the dish. You can serve the chicken and sauce with Spanish or white rice or mix the chicken and sauce with cooked white rice. Plus vegetables, beans, etc. as desired.

French Garlic Chicken

Easy. Requires an oven, so it's not a recipe for summer.

Spray the inside of a glass baking dish with non-stick cooking spray. Use a baking dish in which the number of chicken pieces you are cooking will fit fairly tightly. Sprinkle salt and fresh-ground pepper on the dish, then sprinkle lightly with peeled, sliced fresh garlic.

Place one layer of chicken thighs over the salt, pepper and garlic in the dish, skin side up. Sprinkle with a little more salt, pepper over the chicken and lay at least 3 garlic slices on each piece of chicken. Cover fairly tightly (if using aluminum foil, grease the side which will touch the chicken, or spray with non-stick cooking spray). Run your finger along the inside edge of the foil-covered dish to push the foil below the top of the dish (to keep liquid from falling outside the dish).

Bake at 325º F. for at least 1 1/2 hours. Longer is better. You may cook at 275 degrees for several hours if you will be away. If chicken is not slightly browned as cooking nears completion, lift edge of cover to allow juices to concentrate and chicken to brown very slightly. Serve with French bread, roasted potatoes or baked potatoes to soak up juices. And some vegetables or a salad. Leftovers lose some of their flavor, especially if you're short on leftover pan liquid, so don't make too much extra.

Note: The original recipe calls for whole chicken, cut-up, many cloves of whole, peeled garlic and lots of butter. You may dot thighs with a little butter before cooking, if desired. Or remove skin from chicken and baste with butter and broth from the pan during cooking.

Buffet-style Pozole Rojo - chicken or pork

A big, easy-to-serve version of Family-style Pozole.   Instructions for the pork version are below the chicken version.  Very popular for parties in the fall to winter season, especially as Christmas approaches. Pozole is traditional for Christmas Eve.  It is very simple but somewhat time-consuming to prepare. It's way easier to make than homemade tamales. Special tamales, including sweet tamales, are about the most labor-intensive Christmas-time food project in our town.  And Pozole is easier than its cousin, Menudo, too.

Pozole can be largely prepared in advance of a party, except for the raw vegetable accompaniments. It is served in bowls. Not for a formal-style gathering.  Good for brunch on cold mornings, or for people with a cold. The recipe may be doubled or tripled to serve from an electric roasting pan (they vary in capacity), but the weight could strain the handles of the roaster if lifted. Transport part of Pozole (especially liquid) in a separate container.

CHICKEN POZOLE

Ingredients

One family-pack chicken thighs (about 5 pounds)
Chicken broth or water
One very big can of Mexican-style hominy - about 3 Kg or almost 7 pounds
One 8-oz. package dried pods of Chile California or similar very mild chiles
One 2-oz. package dried pods of Pasilla, Pasilla Negro or Pasilla-Ancho chiles (optional)
Garnishes (see below)

Chicken and Broth: Simmer chicken thighs in enough water and/or chicken broth to cover, until tender but not falling apart. Remove from broth. Cool, remove skin, bones and visible fat and cut chicken into chunks.  Strain chicken broth, mix some warm water with the skin and bones and strain into broth.  Skim fat from broth.  If making ahead, it will be easier to remove the fat from the broth after refrigeration. 

Chile Puree (Red Sauce): Tear off and discard stem ends of chiles. Tear in half lengthwise (or break very dry chiles into pieces). Remove as much of the central seed membrane as can be done without too much work and shake out loose seeds.  Tear each chile into several pieces.  Sometimes chiles are toasted at this point, but I learned to make this dish without toasting the chiles.  Pack chile pieces into a large saucepan, cover with water, cover pan and bring to a boil. Remove covered pan from heat, setting aside for 30 minutes to soften and cool chiles.

When at least cool enough to leave your hand on the bottom of the pan, process chiles and part of the liquid in a blender or food processor until skins are reduced to about 1/4 inch chunks, or until smooth. Work sauce through a coarse sieve to remove skin and seed fragments. Or use a food mill or berry press to remove the seeds and skins. You may add the remaining liquid or some water to the skins, stir and strain again. Discard skins. Chile puree may be prepared the day before and refrigerated, or up to a couple of weeks in advance and frozen.

Final Preparation:  Heat broth and chunks of chicken meat in a large kettle.  You can also use an 7 or 8-quart slow cooker turned to high heat, but heating and simmering will take longer. Drain, rinse and add hominy to chicken and broth. Add chile puree and salt to taste. You should have leftover chile puree (red sauce).  Many recipes call for 4 ounces of dried chiles to make puree for this much hominy and meat.  The packages above should make enough sauce for 2 big batches unless you serve additional red sauce as a garnish.  The red sauce can also be used to flavor other dishes.   

Add water and/or additional chicken broth to bring Pozole to a soupy consistency. Adjust salt and simmer to blend flavors, for at least half an hour. The hominy swells as it simmers, so you may need to add additional water, broth and/or chile puree later. Refrigerate or freeze extra chile puree.

To Serve: Ladle into serving bowls and serve with these garnishes:

• A big bowl of thinly shredded or finely chopped cabbage (with tongs for adding cabbage to the Pozole).  I think pre-packaged Angel Hair Coleslaw (cabbage only) works very well.

• Finely diced red or white onion (offer minced scallions for more sensitive tummies or when available onions are very strong)

• Lime and/or lemon wedges (or lemon or lime juice)

• Sliced or julienned radishes

• hot pepper flakes, reserved red sauce and/or hot sauce 

• dried whole oregano to rub over individual servings as desired. 

 Cool and refrigerate leftover Pozole.   You may need to add additional liquid when reheating.   

Notes, including directions for Pork Pozole

The cabbage, onion and/or scallions and citrus are mandatory accompaniments. Other garnishes are optional but may be expected. Minced cilantro and/or Italian parsley are not traditional garnishes for this dish in winter in many regions, but are often offered.  Sometimes shredded iceberg lettuce is substituted for the cabbage and avocado is offered.  I don't know if these are traditional, however.    

I learned to make this style of Pozole from a friend who grew up in Michoacán.   Many of the people who live in our little town are from this state of Mexico.  This state includes mountainous regions where it freezes in winter, so cilantro is not available then.  This state also includes wintering grounds for Monarch butterflies.

PORK POZOLE

In our little town, Pozole made with pork butt or pork neck and a pig's foot is common at Christmas-season family gatherings. You may also use pork in the recipe above.  Pork shank and Boston pork butt are common choices for this size recipe.  Four or 5 pounds of lean country-style spare ribs (not real spare ribs) is an easy choice. Cut into large chunks before or after simmering in water or broth until tender.  Cool meat enough to remove visible fat and any bones.  For buffet-style Pozole, shred meat with two forks.

In some recipes, the pork is cut into one inch or 1 1/2 inch chunks and browned before simmering, adding some minced garlic at the end.   Rubbed oregano or coriander and a bay leaf may be added to the liquid as the meat simmers.   In some regions, the cook may add garlic cloves, cumin and/or a little ground allspice to the red sauce as it is placed in the blender to be pureed.   Garlic, cumin and oregano will make the dish taste more like chili.  Coriander is the seed of cilantro, but has a different flavor.  I have made pork pozole with bay leaf and a little coriander added to the meat, and liked it.  Remove bay leaf before serving. 

Our friend Rosie likes to add some dried Pasilla chiles with the traditional dried California chiles.   I believe that the name "Pasilla" refers to the wrinkled appearance of the dried chiles (like a raisin).   You could also try Ancho/Poblano chiles, which are sometimes smoked while drying.  Here, one popular choice is called "Pasilla-Ancho".  These may be dark Ancho peppers, but I'm just guessing.  Any of these will give a deeper color and more complex flavor to the dish. None of them are very spicy.   We have used a 16 oz. bag of Chile California and an 8 oz. bag of Chile Pasilla-Ancho to make red sauce for a season's worth of Pozole. Chile California is a red, dried version of the Anaheim Chile.  It is very similar to New Mexico Chiles, but milder.  Guajillo chiles are also used for Pozole, often in combination with one of the others above. 

Sometimes we see red hominy (made from red corn) in big cans this time of year, too. 
 
In Mexico, various raw or cooked vegetables (and other accompaniments like chopped hard-cooked eggs) are also offered when other kinds of soup are served, so diners can add the ones they like.

Allergy information: Contains corn.

Family-style Pozole

When the weather gets cooler in the fall, we start seeing big bags of dried, whole Chile California on sale at the store.  It's time to think about making Pozole, a cousin to Menudo. We're not quite up to making Menudo.  Pozole  looks like it contains tomatoes, but the color comes entirely from dried chiles. In summer, diced green chiles and chunks of chicken are often used.

Pozole can be prepared a day or two in advance of serving. Leftovers are good. David likes it for breakfast on cold mornings.

For Pork Pozole, follow the recipe on the 29-oz can of Teasdale Mexican-style hominy, substituting about 7 large dried Chile California peppers for Ancho or Chile sauce and Cayenne pepper. These peppers are mild, but the ones we buy are not smoked like dried Ancho (Poblano) peppers sometimes are. You could also used other dried, mild chiles, or combine California and Pasilla chiles for richer color and flavor. as our friend Rosie does. I use lean "country-style spare ribs" in place of the pork and pig's feet in the recipe on the can.

Remove stems and most of attached membrane and seeds from chiles, rinse and tear into pieces. Place in small covered saucepan and bring to boil in water to cover. Turn off heat and allow to sit until cool enough to comfortably keep your hand on the bottom of the pan. Process cooled chiles and some of the liquid in a blender or food processor until the skins are broken into about 1/4 inch pieces, or until smooth. Strain and press (while stirring) liquid and pulp through a coarse sieve, leaving skins in sieve. Add remaining liquid to skins, stir and press again.  Or try using a berry press or food mill to remove skin and seeds. Add chile puree to Pozole to taste. Adjust salt.

For Red Chicken Pozole, substitute 6 to 8 chicken thighs or a whole, cut-up chicken for pork and pigs feet. Cook chicken until tender in water and/or broth to cover. Remove from broth. People who grew up eating Pozole often like chicken or pork neck and/or pig's foot pieces served whole. For Gringos or for a big party, you may cool chicken enough to remove skin, bones and visible fat, breaking or cutting into bite-sized pieces. Skim fat from broth and return chicken to broth. Drain and add a 29-oz can hominy. Add salt and strained Chile puree to taste as above. Add water or additional chicken broth to produce a soupy consistency. Adjust salt. Simmer until flavors are well-blended.

Serve either pork or chicken Pozole with finely shredded or chopped cabbage, chopped onion or minced scallions, lemon or lime wedges or juice and sliced radishes to be added individually by diners. Also offer dried oregano to rub into Pozole (or finely minced fresh oregano to add) and hot sauce or hot pepper flakes.

Allergy information: Contains corn.

Tomato Flowers with Cottage Cheese Salad

When Miss Hauser taught us how to make these in high school cooking class, we peeled the tomatoes after rotating them over the flame on our gas stoves on a fork stuck in the stem end. You can also blanch tomatoes to remove the peels. I prefer to use a variety of tomato which is easy to peel while it is raw. This works best with fully-ripe tomatoes.

A fancy-looking dish from ordinary ingredients. I don't have Miss Hauser's exact recipe, but I do remember being surprised that MSG and a little extra salt were added to the cottage cheese. The MSG really does make a difference in flavor, but I don't use it anymore.

Cooking Science: In China and Japan, where the use of monosodium glutamate is commn, there is a theory that our tongues have receptors for a "meaty" flavor in addition to sweet, sour, salty and bitter. Monosodium glutamate is the sodium salt of an amino acid (one of the building blocks of protein), glutamic acid. I believe it is sometimes extracted commercially from sugar beets. It is also present in hydrolyzed protein products. If you react to it with a headache, flushing or other symptoms, don't use it. The higher the dose, the more likely a reaction is. A 5 mg dose reportedly causes a reaction in many people.

I have a cookbook from the 1950s, and era when exploration of the uses of processed foods was in full swing, in which almost every recipe with a savory flavor contained MSG. It is most familiar in the US under the brand name ACCENT. It is used in a variety of foods, especially soups and salad dressings (like Ranch). Some evidence suggests it increases weight gain (perhaps by making food tastier).

Ingredients
1 pint cottage cheese, regular or low-fat
1/8 teaspoon salt - optional
1/16 teaspoon monosodium glutamate (ACCENT) - optional
2 Tablespoons diced or chunked green bell pepper
1 - 2 Tablespoons minced scallions (white part, maybe with some of the tender inner green tops) and/or up to 2 Tablespoons chives

3 or 4 medium to large tomatoes
Salt and fresh ground pepper
Lettuce, if desired

Directions
Mix all ingredients except tomatoes and allow flavors to blend for a few minutes to overnight, refrigerated.

When ready to serve, peel tomatoes and remove a slice from the stem end so that they will sit flat on a plate. Remove the shallow white cores from the cut end and place cut side down on a cutting board. Carefully cut across tomatoes to make eight segments, stopping an inch or less from the bottom. Gently spread into "flowers", sprinkle with a little salt and fresh-ground pepper and allow to drain for a minute or two. Carefully transfer on a spatula to individual serving plates, over lettuce leaves or on a bed of shredded lettuce if desired.

Pile cottage cheese mixture into the center of the tomato flowers. Serve.

Variations:

1. I cut the peppers in chunks because I have trouble digesting them. They will flavor the salad, but I can push them aside when eating the salad. If your tummy REALLY can't take raw green peppers, substitute ripe red, orange or yellow bell peppers or canned diced mild chiles or pimento. Or add minced Italian parsley in place of peppers.

2. Use a different hearty salad mixture in tomato flowers - chicken, tuna, potato, etc. Let me know if you have other ideas.

Sarah's Favorite Twisty Pasta

We had Sarah, age 3, over to visit not long ago during a stressful time for her, and she wanted this pasta at every meal. Definitely kid comfort food. No onion, pepper or other strong flavors added. Slightly more palatable to adults than the canned kid stuff. A nice way to incorporate some vegetables for veggie-resistant kids. Divide and freeze some of the sauce if you like.

Ingredients
about 1 pound ground turkey or extra-lean ground beef
about 2 medium or 3 small grey zucchini (Mexican or Lebanese type), finely shredded. Sarah will pick it out if she can see it. You could use dark green zucchini for less-picky kids. You could also try adding shredded carrot, skipping the sugar in the recipe.

1 jar spaghetti sauce (about 26 ounces)
1 tsp. sugar or to taste (optional)
salt to taste

Cooked rotini or other twisty pasta
Shredded or diced medium cheddar cheese (or cheddar and mozarella, etc.)

Directions
Thaw meat if frozen. Frozen 1-pound chubs of ground turkey are convenient for this recipe, and the fats are more healthful than those in ground beef.

Cooking Lesson Adapted from a recipe for Sloppy Joes by the obsessive people who produce books like this:

For some recipes, we want ground beef to "give" easily when chewed. This result can be accomplished by not browning the meat too much before liquids (or moist vegetables, etc.) are added. For this recipe, saute meat in a lightly oiled skillet just until it starts to lose its pink color, breaking it up with a spatula as it cooks. We don't want the meat to turn firm. We're feeding kids. (For adults, you can start with some chopped onion sauteed until it becomes translucent, or until it starts to caramelize.) Mix in zucchini (and/or carrots), stir and cook until vegetables are limp. Mix in spaghetti sauce.

Simmer for at least 10 minutes. Add sugar and salt to taste. You can cool and freeze part of the sauce at this point.

Boil twisty pasta until done. Drain and mix with hot sauce and a little cheese and serve.

Leftovers keep refrigerated for a couple of days, though some of the moisture may be absorbed into the pasta. Microwave individual servings topped with a little extra sauce and/or cheese if you like.

Sloppy Joes: Use the same principle of partially cooking meat before adding zucchini. You could probably work up a nice recipe using undiluted condensed chicken gumbo soup, tomato sauce or paste and ketchup. Aunt Elizabeth prepared Sloppy Joes once for a family party using condensed chicken gumbo soup when I was a teenager, and they were wonderful. I can't eat it now. Corn products. Let me know how it works.

Allergy Information: You can find commercial spaghetti sauce with no corn sweeteners if you look hard. Many Classico varieties contain no corn sweetener.

"Boiled" ham - better than it sounds

Mom introduced me to the idea of boiled ham, which she prepared for some holiday (I don't remember which).  Over the years, I've decided that for busy holidays and for potlucks or buffets, "boiled" (actually, gently simmered) ham makes a lot of sense. It frees up the oven for other foods, and the ham is a little less salty than a baked ham.  You run less risk of over-cooking or of scorching a glazed ham in the holiday rush.

A "boiled" ham generally doesn't look as impressive as a baked ham. If you're a fan of glazed ham, try turning your favorite glaze ingredients into a sauce and serve it alongside the ham to partially compensate for the missing sight of a gloriously glazed ham. Then people who want their ham "straight" have a choice. And the leftovers are useful in more ways. You might even throw caution to the wind and offer two different sauces or condiments.

You could hardly pick an easier choice for a buffet or potluck. You can start a slow cooker on high heat and turn to low heat after the ham has heated through, or cook overnight on low heat.  For holidays, you can even cook your ham in a slow-cooker a room other than the kitchen if you need to. Same with one of those large electric roasters that go on sale just before Thanksgiving.

Types of ham to choose:  Spiral-sliced ham DOES NOT work out well when simmered like this. Though I prefer natural, bone-in hams, I have had good luck doing inexpensive (but not the very cheapest) formed hams in an oval slow-cooker.  All the hams I have prepared this way have been pre-cooked.  For saltier "country" hams, typical directions call for covering the ham with water in a pot just larger than the ham, simmering for several hours then turning off the heat and leaving the ham in the liquid.  Look up the full directions before doing a country ham.

Directions:  To simmer a bone-in ham on top of the stove, choose a shank or butt portion which fits into a heavy-bottomed kettle which you already have. You can cut off a piece and place it to the side if the ham is too wide, but it's difficult to accomodate a shank bone which is too tall for your pot. Place cut-side down in about 1/2  inch to an inch of water and simmer gently for several hours. Check and replenish water occasionally. The key to a tasty, tender result is to cook it slowly for a long time, but not to use too much water.  About 1/2 inch of water in the bottom of the pan is usually about right to start.  The ham may release more liquid as it cooks.

I've done small formed hams in a 3-quart slow cooker in half an inch of water, and a small butt portion of a natural ham in an oval 6-quart slow cooker. The natural hams I've cooked this way have been wonderful, and the formed hams have been better than baked formed hams.   Always turn off the heat completely at least half an hour before serving.

I have simmered a 22 pound pre-cooked natural whole ham in an 18-quart electric roaster for 6 hours at 265 degrees, leaving the ham in the roaster with heat turned off for an additional hour and a half. I added just a pint of water.  But remember Mark Twain's definition of eternity as "two people and a ham" and plan your quantities accordingly.

If you let the ham it cook too long, it can get TOO tender, so be prepared to turn the slow cooker or roaster to "warm" after several hours, say, if you cooked it overnight and you're serving it at noon. If you let the ham boil or simmer too long, it could become a little stringy.  It is particularly important in this case to let the ham "rest" in the pot with the heat turned off before trying to slice it.  A too-tender ham is better sliced warm than hot.

Save the liquid and leftovers for bean, lentil or potato and ham soup and other dishes.

Migraine and allergy information: Many migraineurs are sensitive to cured meats, which often contain vasoactive compounds. Don't overdo it with ham even if you've never noticed a problem before. Some people get migraines from all pork, especially when eaten more than once within a few days. Many hams contain corn sweeteners. Check the label.

Stocking up: Hams keep quite well in the refrigerator and can be left out in a cool location for a little while during winter. Fully cooked hams can be served without cooking if the power goes out. Though you might think that hams would keep practically forever in the freezer, long freezer storage is not recommended by sources I have read. They may lose quality in the freezer faster than some fresh meats (not that the ham would become unsafe). Check recent recommendations from authoritative sources.