Spanish Chickpea Stew with Kale and Salt Pork

Spanish Feast

A couple of weekends ago we had our cookbook club dinner and I have to say it was one of the best dinners we have had in a while. It may have been the subject matter. You can’t go wrong with Spanish fare…

The book was Curate by Katie Button, and I don’t think there was anything that we made that wasn’t fantastic. Everything was good. Even the octopus—and I am not a huge fan of octopus. The very best part? The book is intended for American kitchens, which means the ingredients aren’t hard to find and the recipes aren’t too involved.

One of the recipes I made was Stewed Chickpeas with Collard Greens and Salt Pork. Because of schedule overload I had to make this the night before, and it was so good that my husband and I couldn’t keep ourselves from having a bowl. This stew is more like a hearty soup, but it makes for a super (see what I did there? ) satisfying bowl that hits the spot on a cold night.

I would definitely recommend using the Edison Grainery Garbanzo Beans that we have here at the store, as they seemed to re-hydrate better than others I have tried. And, I choose to use kale rather than collards.

Serve this with some warm crusty bread and a nice Spanish Rioja….

Spanish Chickpea Stew with Kale and Salt Pork
Adapted from Curate by Katie Button
Serves 4 to 6 as a main course
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Amy’s Sage Stuffing

Traditionally Bad
I can’t speak for your family, but in my family there are holiday traditions that are sacred. And these cannot be messed with without serious repercussions. The rules are more strict for Christmas, but the other holidays still have their musts.

There must be Gam’s purple glasses on the table for Easter and, of course, a ham. There must be warm Gingies and Ebleskiver for Christmas. (There is no wiggle room for this one. Ebelskeiver in the Summer is a capital offense—though I have noticed a relaxing of the rules a smidge in recent years…) Thanksgiving is no different, though I do think it’s time for some thought and self-reflection on this one. Here’s why…

For my entire childhood, there were creamed onions on the dinner table for Thanksgiving. The only people who liked them were my grandfathers. And it baffles me to this day that they did. They smelled horrible as the onions bubbled in their sauce on the stove. And, the taste made me gag, Still does—even worse than red cabbage. (Seriously. I am gagging as I write this…) Of course there were always left overs, ’cause after my grandfathers had their serving, that was it. No one else went within five feet of ‘em.

Despite their position as the Thanksgiving pariah, the onions were still there year after year. My grandfathers have been gone for a while now, and I think it’s time that we consciously uncouple from the onions…as a public service. Who’s with me?

So, I asked a number of my friends if they had similar experiences with their Thanksgiving feast. I was pleased to know that my family wasn’t alone in it’s tradition weirdness. Not surprisingly, the one Thanksgiving side that avoided any bad press was the stuffing. I mean it makes sense. How can you go wrong with seasoned buttery bread goodness? And if you make your own not from a mix? Forgeddaboutit!

It’s got to be simple though. None of that newfangled stuffing. If you get funky with the stuffing, we might have problems…

Amy’s Sage Stuffing
Serves 6
This recipe for Amy’s Sage Stuffing tastes best with fresh sage, and is only as good as its ingredients. But it’s so good…
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Comforting Slow Cooker Pot Roast

Give me Comfort…
When I sat down yesterday to write this post, I came up with nothing. I was having a difficult time putting together a coherent thought. To say that I was distracted by Tuesday’s events would be a gross understatement—frankly, I wanted go back to bed. Since that was not an option, I chose to comfort myself with carbs.

There is something about the starchy and the cheesy that can make the most difficult of days just a tad brighter. Also, little slow-cooked protein can go a long way towards a positive attitude adjustment. The combination of the two has been my M.O. for the past couple of weeks.

In fact, over the weekend I made a Slow Cooker Pot Roast with mashed potatoes and gravy. (That’s a whole lot of comfort in a crock pot.) There’s nothing easier than pot roast and it’s a great way to have dinner done when you walk through the door at the end of the day…

Comforting Slow Cooker Pot Roast
Adapted from the Food Network
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Hungarian Goulash

Ghoul-ash

It’s officially October. (What the heck happened to September?) You know how I know it’s October? Well, besides that calendar thing? Because our cookbook club was scheduled to have our latest dinner on Saturday the 1st—and that’s what we did.

I gotta say, I am more excited about the date on the wall than I was with the food we made. And, the rest of the group agreed.

Our theme this time was anything by Jamie Oliver. And, we could pick any recipe of his from a book or online. Initially, I was looking forward to it. And, I figured with his get everyone eating better movement, and the overall success of his restaurants, we would once again be eating very well. Wrongo!

To be fair, it wasn’t that bad, it was totally edible, but the man does not season his food. Every single one of us said we had to alter the recipe by adding salt and other spices. Maybe it’s a British thing? Maybe it’s just him? Who knows but the food was bland.

I had high hopes for the Spicy Pork Goulash with Chilies that I made. It sounded so good to me, and perfect for a blustery fall dinner. While it was cooking, the aroma was amazing. The end result? Meh.

I love a good goulash. It’s hearty and satisfying and paprika is one of my favorite spices. Since this weekend’s disappointment, I have been looking forward to having the real deal. And, Goulash is another great option for your freezer so make more than you need and freeze some for later.

Hungarian Goulash
Adapted from Lizthechef on Food 52
Serves 4