Volume 10, Issue 095 - May 12, 2006

Hello ,

I would like to thank the fine folks at Rio Nuevo Publishers for connecting us with Carolyn Niethammer and her book The New Southwestern Cookbook. The recipes and information about these unique Southwestern ingredients have been most enjoyable. Today we will cover some of the cheeses used in Southwestern cuisine and another of our favorite ingredients...tequila! If you have enjoyed this week of recipes, click on the image to the right and pick up a copy right now. These time tested chef recipes are now available for you.

Have a great weekend...You deserve it!

Tequila:

There's something about the taste of a margarita that evokes the feeling of sunny skies, peaceful conviviality, and tropical warmth. Because of our universal quest for that feeling, the United States' consumption of tequila has doubled since 1970 - most of that due to the ever-increasing popularity of the margarita. And sales of tequila are still growing by 15 percent a year.

Tequila is distilled from the juice of the blue agave, a tough-leaved grayish green rosette that protects itself with sharp barbs along the leaf edges. The first step in transforming this prickly plant into liquid gold is to hack off the narrow leaves with a machete, leaving a core somewhat larger than a basketball. Since pre-Columbian times, the inhabitants of Mexico have roasted hearts of agave in underground pits and used the juice squeezed from the baked core to make a mildly fermented beverage. Today the production is highly modernized, with the hearts roasted in steam ovens or autoclaves before the sugary juices are extracted and fermented with special yeasts, then distilled. Some varieties are aged in oak barrels and are called reposados if they have rested for a least two months, and añejos if aged at least twelve months.

Tequila was first imported to the United States around 1870, and in 1893 won the brandy award at the Chicago World's Fair. Today there are about 400 brands of tequila sold in the United States, although some of those don't contain a minimum of 60 percent agave juice, and thus are not considered real tequila. Premium brands advertise on the label that they are made from 100 percent agave juice with no added cane sugar syrup. These tequilas must be bottled at the distillery so that their all-agave composition can be verified.

Actually, tequila is a specialty mescal, much like Scotch from Scotland is a specialty whisky. Tequila originated in the municipality of Tequila, Jalisco, and today only mescal made in the states of Jalisco, Nayarit, Guanajuato, Michoacán, and Tamaulipas may be called tequila. Each legitimate tequila distillery is assigned an NOM (Norma Oficial Mexicana) number. This number is always displayed on the label and is how you can tell if you are buying a legitimate tequila. Any agave-based liquor from somewhere other than these five states or without an NOM is called mescal and, although they are not true tequilas, some of them can be quite good.

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Tequila-Braised Country-Style Ribs
Graze by Jennifer James, Albuquerque, New Mexico

Graze by Jennifer James is a favorite with Albuquerque diners and consistently appears on local "Best of" lists. These ribs are easy to make, and the tequila, orange juice, and chipotle chile flavors combine with the tomatoes to form a sauce that will linger in your memory (and on your fingers) long after your plate is clean. At Jennifer James, the ribs are served with mashed potatoes.

Makes 6 to 8 servings

Ingredients:

Ribs:

5 pounds country-style pork ribs
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1/2 cup 5-spice powder
6 medium cloves garlic, minced

Tequila Sauce:

2 tablespoons canola oil
1 yellow onion, julienned
1 tablespoon minced fresh garlic
1/2 cup tequila
1/2 cup fresh orange juice
2 tablespoons chopped chipotle chile in adobo sauce
2 cups canned Roma tomatoes plus juice, chopped
4 cups chicken stock

Garnish:

1 cup chopped roasted peanuts

Preparation:

For the Ribs:

Clean off any excess fat. Combine sugar, 5-spice powder and garlic and rub the mixture well into each rib. Cover tightly and marinate overnight in the refrigerator. The next day, remove the ribs from the refrigerator and let them come to room temperature, 30 to 45 minutes before cooking.

For the Tequila Sauce:

Heat oil over medium-low and add the onions, caramelize by cooking slowly until soft and brown. When the onions are almost done, add garlic and stir to blend. Then add the rest of the ingredients and bring to a simmer, cooking 5 minutes. Set aside while preparing ribs for roasting.

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Sear each rib until brown in a large skillet over medium-high heat; because of the sugar, the ribs will brown quickly, and you may need to change pans if the browning build-up gets too thick on the pan bottom. Once seared, place all the ribs, side by side, in a deep roasting pan. Add sauce to almost cover.

Cover the pan with aluminum foil and cook in the oven 2 1/2 hours, or until fork tender (time will vary depending on the meatiness of the ribs). Remove the ribs from the pan and keep them warm. Transfer the roasting sauce and drippings to a blender and purée, then pour into a saucepan and reheat for serving.

Serve the ribs over mashed potatoes with Tequila Sauce on the side for dipping. Garnish with chopped peanuts.

Mexican Cheeses:

For people who really enjoy cooking, one of the pleasures of trying new recipes is learning to use unfamiliar ingredients. For those experimenting with Southwestern cuisine, that means trying some of the delicious and unusual Mexican cheeses. To begin with, it is helpful to recognize that there are three different types of Mexican cheeses: mild fresh varieties, those best used for melting, and grating cheeses.

Fresh Cheeses:

The fresh white Mexican cheeses do not melt well. This makes them excellent for use as a stuffing ingredient, because when heated, they become warm and soft but do not run. Queso fresco, also called casero, is similar to the more familiar farmer's cheese. It is the most traditional of the Mexican cheeses and is often used crumbled as a topping over beans. Panela is mild and milky tasting, similar to ricotta or a dry cottage cheese. Queso blanco is excellent for stuffing enchiladas, serving with vegetables, or straight snacking. It has a mild flavor and is also similar to farmer's cheese.

Melting Cheese:

These cheeses are traditionally melted into hot dishes for dipping or pouring, as they do not separate into solids and oil when heated. They also make good, flavorful snacking cheese. Oaxaca (wah-HAH-cah) is named after its Mexican state of origin and is a string cheese like mozzarella. Frequently sold as a woven ball, it is the best Mexican melting cheese. Similar to jack or Muenster cheese, manchego can be melted in a dish or paired with fruit as a snack. It has become a popular cheese in many Mediterranean or tapas restaurants. Queso quesadilla is just as it sounds - a soft, mild, processed cheese that makes excellent quesadilla (Mexico's version of America's beloved grilled-cheese sandwich). Asadero is a smooth, yellow cheese similar to provolone and has more tang than queso quesadilla.

Dry Cheese:

Cheeses in this category have a dry, crumbly texture and a strong flavor; they are good for grating. A bright white cheese that might be compared to Parmesan, cotija is sprinkled on top of refried beans or salads and can also be mixed into casseroles to enhance the flavor. It is named for the little Mexican village where is originated. Añejo enchilado is a firm, pressed cheese that may look spicy, but the red powder on the outside is just mild paprika. It's most commonly used for enchiladas, tacos, and burritos.

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Cotija Rabbit Rellenos with Charred Tomato Mole
Prairie Star Café, Santa Ana Pueblo, New Mexico

The four-star Prairie Star Café is housed in a renovated 1920s adobe home located near the historic Santa Ana Pueblo. Inside, the dining rooms are roofed with ponderosa pine vigas, while handcarved fireplaces help take the chill off the evenings. These rellenos are served with a mole (pronounced "MO-lay") sauce. The term "mole" comes from an Aztec word meaning "stew". This sauce calls for Ibarra chocolate, a Mexican brand that is a combination of chocolate and sugar; it is packaged in round bars and is usually melted in hot milk then whipped for a frothy hot drink. If Ibarra chocolate is unavailable, you may substitute another brand of Mexican chocolate in bars intended for beverages.

Makes 8 single relleno servings

Ingredients:

Rabbit:

6 hindquarters of rabbit, about 8 ounces each, bone in
2 tablespoons dried thyme
2 bay leaves
1 teaspoon black peppercorns
8 cups vegetable stock

Charred Tomato Mole:

5 vine-ripened tomatoes
1/4 cup chopped garlic
5 shallots, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cups chicken stock
3 small cans tomato juice (6 ounces each, to make 2 1/4 cups)
2 dried ancho chiles, seeded and washed
2 dried chipotle chiles
1 1/2 ounces Ibarra chocolate
1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro
1/2 cup toasted piñon nuts
1 teaspoon sherry vinegar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
pinch of whole cloves
salt to taste

Rellenos:

1 cup crumbled cotija cheese
kosher salt
cracked black pepper
8 green Anaheim or poblano chiles, roasted and peeled
2 cups olive oil
3 eggs, beaten
1 cup all-purpose flour

Preparation:

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F.

For the Rabbit:

Place the rabbit, thyme, bay leaves, peppercorns and vegetable stock in a 3 to 5-inch deep baking pan. Cover the pan in foil and place in oven for 3 to 3 1/2 hours or until the meat is easily removed from the bone. Remove all meat from bones and chop coarsely; you will need 2 cups of cooked meat. (Broth can be saved for soup and stored in the freezer for up to 2 months.)

For the Charred Tomato Mole:

Core the tomatoes and cut in half. Blacken just the skins by putting them over coals on a grill, or under the broiler, or in a dry iron frying pan over high heat. Set aside. Sauté the garlic and shallots in oil over medium heat in a wide saucepan or deep sauté pan until caramelized. Then add the tomatoes and cook until they are softened. Add the remaining ingredients, turn the heat up and bring to a boil Then reduce heat and allow to simmer for 10 minutes. Transfer to a blender and purée until smooth, working in batches if necessary. Return to the saucepan and keep warm.

To Make the Rellenos:

Combine the cooked meat and cotija cheese in a medium bowl. Add salt and pepper to taste and set aside.

Once your chiles are peeled, cut a small slit down 1 side of each. Carefully remove seeds. Lightly salt the inside of each chile and fill with 1/8 of the meat and cheese filling, about 1/3 cup.

Heat olive oil in a large frying pan to 350 degrees F. Beat the eggs in a wide, shallow bowl. Roll each stuffed chile in flour, then dip in egg to coat. Place the chiles in hot oil and cook until golden brown, turning a few times. Carefully remove them with tongs or a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels.

Serve the rellenos warm with Charred Tomato Mole and slices of fresh pineapple.