small lamb meatballs

This was a spiced ground lamb mixture that I formed into small meatballs and fried.  I served them with a Greek yogurt dipping sauce for dinner, I think they would make a nice appetizer on little skewers to dip.

homemade burrito comfort food

I make up a dozen of these at a time, then individually wrap and freeze them so a comforting dinner is always readily available.  My filling contains ground pork, ground beef, onions and green chile all spread over refried beans and topped with cheese.  I like to smother them with red chile for serving.  The side of Spanish rice is an old family recipe that has just the right balance of onion, tomato and cumin.

elk pot roast

A lunching companion brought me some game meat from her family so I prepared an elk chuck roast in the slow cooker just as I would a beef pot roast.  Elk is super lean so I used the pan juices to reduce down to a very thick sauce (with red wine) to use as a gravy.

scallops with grapefruit and bacon

Thanks to Food and Wine magazine for this bright entree - I love the tang of grapefruit and capers with the sweetness of scallops and the salty bacon, all held together with a white wine sauce.
http://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/scallops-with-grapefruit-and-bacon

braised chicken in white wine sauce

Chicken thighs are my favorite part - juicy, flavorful dark meat.  Here they are browned and then braised with shallots in a white wine sauce.

lamb meatballs

I have been enjoying my journey with ground lamb. Here we go to the Middle East with some ground lamb meatballs, served with sauteed onions on top. There is Greek yogurt and a chutney-like sauce on the side so you can mix-and-match your bites of meatball, sauce, and pita bread (almost like soft tacos).  Happy Valentine's Day!

tamale and chile

We like to stock up on the big, meaty tamales from El Modelo in Albuquerque. I just thaw them, steam them, and top with my own chile caribe for a winter warm-up meal.

book signing & lunch

A big thank you to the wonderful Green House Bistro in Los Lunas for hosting a lunch, cooked from my cookbook, and book signing. http://greenhousebistro.com/ Check out the antipasto platter, lasagna with chicken and pepper sauces, and ice cream filled cream puffs!

deluxe macaroni and cheese

As winter storms move in over parts of the country I delight in comfort food. Macaroni and cheese is wonderful - I added leeks and bacon to this batch for extra comfort!

grilled fish soft tacos

This is as easy and tasty as it looks. I just seasoned some fish and grilled it to serve on soft (warmed) corn tortillas, to top with lime juice,cilantro, and/or avocado. Just make sure your grill or grill pan is well oiled so the fish does not stick.

chicken and leek stew

This only takes about 30 minutes and is a delightful reminder of some pub food we enjoyed outside London. To serve 4: heat 1 Tbs. olive oil in a large skillet. Add 2 thinly sliced leeks and cook over moderate heat, stirring, until softened (about 7 minutes). Season with salt and pepper. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until the leeks are tender (about 4 minutes). Scrape the leeks onto a plate. Cut a pound of skinless, boneless chicken breast into 2-inch pieces. Season chicken with salt and pepper and lightly dust with flour, shaking off any excess. Heat another Tbs. of olive oil in the same skillet, add the chicken and cook over moderate heat until golden brown, about 2 minutes per side. Add 1-1/2 c. chicken broth and 1 Tbs. chopped fresh thyme and simmer over moderate heat until the chicken is just cooked through, about another minute. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the chicken to the plate with the leeks. Simmer the broth remaining in the skillet over moderately high heat until reduced by half, about 2 minutes. Return the chicken and leeks to the skillet and simmer over low heat until warmed through, about a minute. In a small bowl blend 2 Tbs. sour cream with 2 tsp. Dijon-style mustard and stir into the stew. Remove skillet from the heat; season with salt and pepper and serve.

pesto pork

I just pan sauteed some slices of pork, topped them with pesto, and added some Sherry to the drippings for a pan sauce. It was delicious served over rice.