HUNGRY GERALD

The Pojoauque Pueblo is HG/BSK’s Native American neighbor and its retail complex (strategically located at the juncture of Highway 285/84 and Highway 502) has been HG/BSK’s source for household necessities and outstanding New Mexican food. The Pojoauque Farmers Market (much expanded through a $44,616 grant from a Department of Agriculture program which encourages marketing by local farmers) operates every Wednesday and is BSK’s source for superb little potatoes, juicy tomatoes, chiles and herbs. A stand simply identified as “Orlando’s” offers freshly made burritos and tamales. The Pojoauque Super Market carries an extraordinary range of salsas, locally processed spices, hot sauces and everything necessary for preparing authentic New Mexican dishes. The prepared food section (good menudo and green chile stew) does a brisk luncheon trade and local women prepare fresh pico de gallo and ceviche on a daily basis. At the entrance to the supermarket, Native Americans offer traditional fry bread (as well as jewelry). Besides a bank, hardware store, government offices and a drug store, the retail complex contains Sopaipilla Factory. a restaurant much favored by HG for its suave menudo and its generous chicken enchiladas prepared Christmas style with both red and green chile sauces. The friendly staff offers all-you-can-eat sopaipillas (New Mexican popovers) with honey and butter. Yes, the Pojoauque complex has been a locavore paradise. Until now. Enter McDonald’s. Yes, Mickey Dee has made an unwelcome appearance in a large building with much parking at the entrance to the retail area. Construction had been going on for some months and most people believed the building was an addition to the nearby group of Pojoauque government buildings. Unhappy surprise. McDonald’s opened last week and, sadly, has been very busy. HG finds McDonald’s factory food nasty, inedible and unhealthy. HG hopes it will not negatively impact Sopapilla Factory and the very good nearby El Parasol, a bastion of down home, hearty Northern New Mexican cooking.

Green chile menudo and carne adobado tostadas at El Parasol. Red chile menudo, sopapillas and Christmas enchiladas at Sopapilla Factory. The sweet fragrance of freshly roasted green chiles circling around sweet peas and Japanese eggplants from Pojoaque Farmers Market. More roasted green chiles, shishito peppers, tiny potatoes and world’s best greens from Santa Fe Farmers Market. Watching the colorful fish in HG/BSK’s pond; long swims in the comfy warm water of HG/BSK’s lap pool; watching (with pre-dinner drink in hand) the sun coloring the Barrancas cliffs and mesas. Your guess is right. HG/BSK are back in New Mexico or as the state’s license plates proclaim: The Land of Enchantment. Adding to the joy is the presence of Gifted Daughter Lesley R. (for a too-brief visit) and Lovely Granddaughter Sofia R. (happily remaining to finish her prep school senior year at Desert Academy). BSK is planning to add a dog to the family. Though once opposed to such a plan (selfish HG likes all of BSK’s attention to be focused on HG), the aged hungry chap is now looking forward to meeting a new furry friend.

Kale seems to be the trendy, green, leafy vegetable of the moment but HG still prefers spinach. HG did not always love spinach. As a little fellow, HG expressed negative opinions regarding spinach. A believer in the nutritional value of the leafy, green wonder food, HG’s cunning Mom would enclose spinach in a mound of buttery, creamy mashed potatoes. She called the dish “buried treasure.” The romantic name — evoking pirates, the Spanish Main and wealth beyond imagination — convinced HG the vegetable was good stuff. These days HG associates spinach with many splendid restaurant dishes. Creamed spinach of sublime quality would accompany a thick cut of savory boiled tongue (plus a boiled potato and fiery English mustard) at Al Cooper’s Restaurant (long closed) in New York’s Garment Center. Creamed spinach was very good at Ben Benson’s Steak House (also closed) in midtown New York. Palm Restaurant (branches all over the country) serves whole leaf spinach sauteed in high-quality Italian olive oil and plenty of garlic with its steaks and hash browns. The Compound, in Santa Fe, flanks its Chicken Schnitzel in parsley caper sauce with some leaves of sautéed spinach. When HG lived in Colorado he lunched daily at 240 Union, the very good restaurant in Lakewood. The chef at the time, Matthew Franklin, would nest broiled or sautéed fish on a mound of spinach. There was always a plentiful amount of mashed potatoes. What made the dish sing was the abundance of melted butter. Cooking at home, HG likes to place a grilled paillard of chicken breast on some spinach cooked with oil, garlic and a tiny bit of nutmeg. A spinach risotto is a comforting dish as is a rice pilaf mixed with spinach. A very simple dish is some good tortelloni or ravioli plus spinach in steaming chicken broth. Popeye was right. Spinach makes muscle. Take that, Bluto!! Wham ! Bam ! Kazam !

When HG is feeling particularly festive, the ever hungry oldster manages to forgo the lunchtime treats of Menudo, Chicken Enchiladas, Carnitas, Arroz con Pollo, Posole, Green and Red Chiles that are always available at El Parasol and Sopaipilla Factory in the HG/BSK New Mexico neighborhood of Pojoaque. Instead, HG and BSK dude up a bit and lunch at The Compound on Canyon Road in Santa Fe. Beautiful, restrained decor (by Alexander Girard) in a landmark Southwestern building. A few pieces of good art on the white, plastered adobe walls. Usually, HG/BSK chooses among three specialties: Stacked Salad (very savory variation on the California Cobb salad); crispy Chicken Schnitzel with a caper, lemon and parsley sauce with sautéed spinach; Wild Mushroom Saute with Organic Stone Ground Polenta with a side of Arugula with Shaved Parmesan. Splendid victuals. Today, BSK opted for the mushroom/polenta dish while HG delved into the unexplored side of the menu. HG had a very sumptuous Spiced Panko Crab Cake served with frisee, Old Bay aioli and a small bouquet of sweet herbs and fennel seeds (gave a nice, unexpected bit of crunch). The crab cake was loaded with high quality lump crab meat with just enough Panko to hold it together. Best crab cake dish HG has ever had. Dessert was equally unusual: Black Pepper Sorbet. Cool. Creamy. A love bite of spice. Summing up: The Compound lunch is superb and moderately priced. The wine by the glass list is thoughtful. The light. The seating. The clientele composed of elegant ladies who lunch. Deft service. Quiet voices (unusual in the Land of the Free and Brave). The Compound is a don’t miss experience.

So, pal, life getting you down? Boss giving you the bad eye, buddy? Boyfriend/girlfriend announced a break up, bunky? You need comfort, friend, so do what Asians (and HG) do. Have a few bowls of Congee. If chicken soup is Jewish penicillin then Congee is Asian penicillin. Every Asian mom has her own version (the dish is also called okayu in Japan, Jook in Korea and in Indonesia, Bubur Ayam.) Essentially, it is rice porridge. You can add, shrimp, scallops, pork, beef, chicken or hard boiled egg. You can top it with peanuts, fried garlic, fried shallots, sesame oil. You can flavor it with Sriracha, soy sauce, garlic chile sauce. With each spoonful, the blues will be banished. HG guarantees it. HG began eating Congee at the busy, no frills Congee Noodle House on Broadway in the Mt. Pleasant neighborhood of Vancouver, B.C. A very heartening breakfast on one of Vancouver’s many rainy mornings. At Congee Noodle House, the Congee was accompanied by a fried cruller (a rather greasy special taste). HG ignored the cruller but accompanied the Congee with fiery chile pepper fried squid or minnows. The Congee at the restaurant was very smooth similar to grits or Cream of Wheat. At home in Santa Fe, HG makes the Indonesian version—Bubur Ayam. The rice is not a puree. It retains some body.You can find a very good, authentic recipe on The Asian Grandmothers Cookbook website. Eat Congee. Be Happy.

A good cookbook usually has many pages stained by spices and sauces. That’s because it is a book that is used, not a coffee table ornament. Michael Field’s Cooking School (published in 1965) was one of the first cookbooks acquired by HG/BSK and the duo has consulted it numerous times for better than 40 years. Michael Field’s recipes are foolproof. In the introduction to the book, Field makes it clear: “I cannot emphasize enough the need to follow these recipes precisely, especially the first few times you make them. Departures are all good and well providing you know exactly what it is you are departing from.” Last night, HG/BSK had two Colorado pals for dinner. BSK prepared a Field classic: Broiled Leg Of Lamb With Avgolemono Sauce. The leg is butterflied and marinated before broiling. The sauce is Greek in origin, lemony and invigorating, excellent over the lamb and even better over the steamed asparagus BSK served. The sauce is composed of egg yolks, lemon juice and chicken broth (plus a bit of arrowroot, cayenne and salt). Add more chicken broth and you’ve got a delicious soup (HG often had many bowls at the Pantheon Restaurant on Eighth Avenue in New York). Add rice, poached chicken and chopped parsley and you’ve a got a sumptuous dinner (precede it with a mezze of feta cheese, Kalamata olives and giant lima beans). Instead of chicken in the soup, try poached cod or other firm fleshed fish. Don’t see Avgolemono on many menus these days. A pity. As for Michael Field, he and his cookbooks seem to be forgotten. That’s a shame.

Revueltos is a scrambled egg dish that is a staple in Spanish homes, restaurants and tapas bars. Easy to prepare. A delight to eat. Pure comfort. Here’s the way HG/BSK made it for a late supper last night. Cut a few slices of rustic bread into cubes and browned them in sizzling olive oil flavored with a crushed clove of garlic. When done, removed the bread cubes and let cool on some paper towels. Then, more oil was added to the pan in which an ample amount of thinly sliced potatoes were fried. Meanwhile, in another pan (a smaller one) chopped onions and garlic were sauteed until soft and slightly caramelized at which point a handful of fresh herbs was added. Six eggs were beaten with salt, pepper and pimenton (Spanish smoked paprika). Combined the herbaceous onion/garlic mix with the fried potatoes. Poured the eggs over everything and cooked until just done but still soft. Topped it all with the bread cubes, reserved chopped herbs and a swirl of olive oil. A bottle of red Malbec and a green salad completed the meal. Spaniards like to omit the potatoes and make the dish with wild asparagus (domestic American asparagus works splendidly). Experiment. Make the dish with a variety of vegetables and sausages. (HG likes to add slivers of fried Chorizo or smoked Andouille). HG had this dish with lamb brains in a Barcelona bar. Mighty good but not for the squeamish or offal haters.

Ominous story in this week’s Santa Fe New Mexican newspaper. Menudo, the Mexican tripe stew adored by HG, does not have a bright future in New Mexico. The story is entitled: The Future of Menudo. Can This Beloved Hangover Cure, Known for its Potent Aroma, Find Popularity Among Younger Generations?. It points out that menudo is a dish favored by an older generation (of which HG is a member) that is only getting older…and disappearing. Santa Fe restaurateurs say that menudo is being kept alive by one group: Mexican-born citizens. As they become more and more Americanized will they lose their taste for menudo? That’s one of the big questions. Young folks in New Mexico of all colors and ethnicity enjoy the New Mexico traditionals: Tacos, enchiladas, flautas, carnitas, quesadillas, etc. But, they will not eat menudo. There’s only one place in New Mexico where menudo sales are increasing: The historic town of La Mesilla near Las Cruces in southern New Mexico. Andele Restaurant, a long time favorite there, sells over 30 gallons of menudo every week. They make their menudo with pig’s feet as well as beef tripe. Proprietor Andrea Schneider says: “We do a serve-yourself, all-you-can-eat special. People can pick what they want–more hominy, more broth, more tripe, more pig’s feet–and build their own bowl.” Schneider says it’s enjoyed by all generations–college students, older people, folks dining after church. HG thinks the secret is pig’s feet. HG would love to try the Andele menudo but, unfortunately, La Mesilla is 340 miles south of HG/BSK’s home. So, HG will have to make do (happily) with the fragrant and robust green chile menudo at El Parasol, the red chile menudo at Sopaipilla Factory and the even more rustic and robust menudo HG takes home from the prepared foods counter at Pojoaque Super Market. All three locations are minutes from the HG/BSK home. Joy for HG’s immediate future.

HG/BSK’s dear friend Jackie Cain (one half of the marvelous jazz vocal and music duo of Jackie and Roy) has always looked beautiful and slightly ethereal but her tastes in food are robust. Cooked some powerful Polish and Czech specialties for her husband and musical partner, the late Roy Kral, and fortunate HG/BSK. While presenting a lush platter of long cooked spicy beef (or pork), puddles of spicy gravy and nicely absorbent dumplings, Jackie would say: “I just had a taste for it.” If it were a lush and savory noodle kugel (or the Polish equivalent of the dish), Jackie would introduce with the same words: “I just had a taste for it.” A few years ago, BSK enjoyed a hearty bowl of deeply spiced short ribs and soba noodles swimming in a fragrant broth. It was a temporary offering at Bones, the very good Asian fusion restaurant in Denver. Well, it seems that the dish had been haunting BSK. So, BSK did some intensive research (no recipe available at Bones) and found an approximation in the archives of Food & Wine Magazine. The dish, “Five-Spice Short Ribs With Udon Noodles,” is fairly labor intensive but BSK was up to the task. Chinese five-spice powder, garlic, thyme, red wine, chicken stock, ginger, celery, carrots, onions, daikon, mushrooms and konbu were involved. Meaty short ribs were browned and then simmered. Finally, the bowls of meat, noodles and vegetables were topped with poached eggs. Spectacular dish. Layers and layers of flavors. Exotic and earthy. HG expressed fervent gratitude. Said BSK: “I just had a taste for it.”

HG has never had really good risotto in a restaurant. It figures. Risotto requires patience. Steaming chicken (or beef) broth has to be added to rice spoonful by spoonful. The liquid has to be absorbed before any additional liquid is added. HG, a risotto master, takes at least 20 minutes to a half hour to produce a pot of risotto that combines slightly al dente rice gilded by creamy starch and delicious fats. Can’t be pre-cooked. Can’t be reheated. HG/BSK eat it the moment the pot is removed from the range. Anyway, here’s a step by step recipe for the lush spinach risotto HG/BSK ate last night: First, start with Italian Carnaroli rice a.k.a. The King Of RIces (okay, in a pinch you can use Arborio). Best Carnaroli brand is Riso Bello. The process starts with gently cooking chopped onion in butter and olive oil. When the onion has softened, stir in a cup of rice. Stir for a few minutes over low heat allowing the fats to coat each grain. Add a half cup of white wine and turn up the heat until the wine is absorbed by the rice. Meanwhile heat chicken stock (Trader Joe’s Free Range is the best). Add the heated stock ladle by ladle. Don’t hurry. Add only when previous ladleful is absorbed. Meanwhile saute baby spinach leaves in oil and a bit of garlic until the spinach is just wilted. About three or four minutes before the rice is done, add the spinach to the pot and stir. (At this juncture, if HG has a chunk of left over Parmesan in the refrigerator, HG cuts it into slices and tosses it into the pot). Two minutes before serving, HG tosses some grated Parmesan into the pot with a big chunk of butter. It all gets a final stir before being placed on the table and spooned into heated bowls. Additional Grated Parmesan to taste, freshly ground pepper, Maldon Smoked Sea Salt Flakes, a crisp, tossed salad and abundant hearty red wine. That’s the meal, folks, HG/BSK’s definition of home comfort. Not to be found in a restaurant.