Southwestern Cabrito

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Traditionally served at Easter time, cabrito (young goat or kid) is sometimes smoked in a pit in the ground, but this recipe is far easier. To find kid, ask an independent butcher or locate a goat ranch in your area. There really is no substitute except, of course, a young sheep.

Ingredients

  • ½ cabrito, cut into quarters

  • 4 large cloves garlic, peeled and cut into slivers

  • 2 teaspoons cumin seeds

  • ½ cup New Mexico red chile powder, Chimayo preferred

  • 1/8 cup Mexican oregano, crumbled

  • 1 teaspoon salt

  • ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

  • 3 onions, quartered

  • 6 New Mexican dried red chile pods, seeds and stems removed, cut in half

  • 1 cup dry red wine, or more if needed

  • 1 cup water, or more if needed

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 250 degrees F. Using a knife, cut slits in the membrane covering the meat and insert the garlic slivers. In a bowl, combine the cumin seeds, chile powder, salt, and pepper and mix well. Rub the meat thoroughly with this mixture. Place the meat in a large roasting pan and surround it with the onion quarters and chile pods. Add the wine and water, cover tightly, and bake for about 5 hours, or until the meat is tender, checking on it every hour or so to make sure the liquid has not evaporated. If it gets low, add more wine and water. When done, remove the meat and onions to a glass bowl and keep it warm in the oven. To make a chile gravy, remove the fat from the remaining liquid and puree the liquid with the chile pods in a blender. Transfer this mixture to a saucepan and add about 1/8 cup of flour mixed into1/4 cup water heat and mix well with a spoon until a thick gravy forms, adding more water if necessary. Add salt and pepper to taste. To serve, carve the meat in thin slices (it will probably be falling off the bones anyway) and serve with the onions, topped with the chile gravy.

Southwestern Chipotle Corn Chowder

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The word chowder comes from the French chaudiere meaning caldron, which traditionally were the iron pots used to cook soup, and the term refers to a thick soup or stew. This chowder combines two native Southwestern ingredients, chile and corn. The chipotle chile gives the soup a rich smoky taste which compliments grilled foods, but other chiles can be substituted. Jalapeños, serranos, and green New Mexican chiles are also tasty substitutes. This soup can be made heartier with the addition of crab, clams, shrimp, or chicken.

Ingredients

  • 1 medium potato, peeled and diced

  • 2 strips bacon

  • 1 small onion, chopped

  • ½ cup diced bell pepper

  • 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

  • 3 cups chicken broth

  • 1 15-ounce can creamed corn

  • 1 cup whole-kernel corn

  • 2 teaspoons canned chipotle chiles in adobo sauce

  • 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin

  • Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

  • ½ cup cream, optional

  • Garnish: Crumbled bacon

Instructions

Precook the potatoes in a microwave on high for 5 to 6 minutes or until just done.

Fry the bacon in a heavy stockpot or saucepan until crisp. Remove the bacon, drain on a paper towel, and reserve for the garnish. Add the onion and bell pepper to the pot and saute for 5 minutes or until the vegetables are softened. Add the flour into the onion mixture and continue to saute for 2 to 3 minutes, stirring constantly to cook the flour but being careful that the flour doesn’t brown.

Add the broth, both corns, potatoes, chipotle, and cumin. Raise the heat and bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer the soup for 20 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Slowly stir in the cream, if using, and simmer for an additional 5 minutes.

Crumble the reserved bacon. Ladle the soup into a tureen or individual bowls, garnish with the bacon and serve.

Southwestern Bread Pudding

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The Pink Adobe Restaurant offers up this delicious dessert.

Ingredients

  • ½ pound stale French bread

  • 1 cup milk

  • 1/4 pound butter, melted

  • ½ cup golden raisins

  • 1/4 cup pinon nuts

  • 3 eggs, beaten

  • 1 1/4 cup granulated sugar

  • 1/4 cup brown sugar

  • 4 ounces evaporated milk

  • 8 1/4 ounces of crushed pineapple with juice

  • 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

  • 3 teaspoons vanilla

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Break the bread into bite-sized pieces, and soak it in the milk Squeeze the bread with your fingers to eliminate the excess milk and discard the milk.

Set the bread in a large bowl and add the remaining ingredients. Mix gently but thoroughly.

Pour the mixture into an 8 inch by 12 inch buttered baking pan. Bake for one hour or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Serve with the Tequila Sauce.

Southwestern Stuffed Red Bell Peppers with an Attitude

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The attitude comes from the green chiles–they definitely add the spice and heat for this otherwise ordinary dish. I like to stuff a small wedge of jalapeño Monterey jack cheese into the center of the pepper just before it’s finished cooking. That adds even more “attitude”!

Ingredients

  • 1 pound lean ground beef

  • 1 cup chopped onion

  • 2 cloves garlic, minced

  • 2 8-ounce cans tomato sauce

  • ½ cup chopped green chiles

  • 1 cup cooked rice

  • 1/8 teaspoon cumin powder

  • ½ teaspoon ground thyme

  • 1/4 teaspoon ground savory

  • ½ teaspoon salt

  • 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

  • 5 large red bell peppers, stems and seeds removed, roasted over flames, skins removed

  • 5 small wedges of jalapeño Monterey jack cheese

Instructions

Brown the beef in a large skillet. Add the onion and the garlic and saute for 2 minutes. Drain or blot off excess grease. Add one can of the tomato sauce, green chiles, rice, cumin, thyme, savory, salt, and pepper to the sauteed meat mixture and mix well.

Stuff the meat mixture into the bell peppers. Place the stuffed peppers in a shallow glass baking pan, so they are all stacked against each other and won’t fall over. Pour the second can of tomato sauce into the pan. Add enough water to bring the liquid depth up to ½ inch. Tent the peppers with aluminum foil and bake for 30 minutes in a 350 degree oven, basting the tops of the peppers with the tomato sauce base.

Add a wedge of the cheese into the center of each pepper when they are almost finished baking.

Southwestern Fettucine

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‘Executive Chef Donald W. Louie from the Golden Dragon Restaurant in Colorado Springs, Colorado offers easy and quick dishes that are perfect to prepare for a special dinner or party.’

Ingredients

smoked chicken, red pepper, yellow pepper, carrots, fettucine

Instructions