Winging our Way North Again

Winging our way north again for fourteen straight days of art and family activity. We have had a lovely healing time of sun, our house is in order, and for the first time since we moved in to our current house, it is under control. This, plus the anticipation of seeing our children together again make the trip seem worthwhile.

I have just emerged from my last bath in the sun for a while. I lingered on the chaise to soak up just a few more rays. We are blessed.

Junebug

Holly had named our kitten Junebug. A delightful name. She will remain a foster until we arrive in Dallas to adopt her officially. I am already looking around the house at things from a "kittenproofing" perspective. As if it is possible to kittenproof anything.

We're Expecting

This is Junebug. The pick of the litter from Holly's latest fostered litter. She will soon be our new baby. We have succumbed to the desire to have the sweet energy of a cat in our house once more.

Tamales-Ole!

The tamales I tried to make yesterday were an Ole!!  As promised, here is the recipe, copied directly from www.sonofthesouth.net.  I got maybe 35 tamales- a steampot full plus overflow which I put in my vegetable steamer. Perfect for a party.

To 2 lbs (half the bag) of Masa, add:

3 T paprika
3 T salt (next time I will try 2T)
1 T cumin (I used ground, not seeds)
3 T Gibhardts chili powder (I used all McCormick spices)
3 T garlic powder

Mix the spices into the Masa until it is completely incorporated, do not leave clumps. Add:

2 cups of Corn Oil (next time I will try less, maybe 1 1/2 c. and  try olive oil,to see what flavor is sacrificed in favor of healthfulness).

Mix this all up and add 2 qt. broth. Mix well with your hands. It creates a delightful (yes) paste. Wait a few minutes for it to stiffen up, than use a big flat spatula to smear a nice thick slab of it (forget that dainty little technique shown on the website. Think brickmasonry!) on the softened corn husk, as if you were spackling. I used about a 1/2 to 2/3 cups on each.

For the filling, I used this- 2 cans refried black beans, mixed well with one envelope McCormick mild taco sauce mix. The flavor was rich and spicy. Add a tablespoon or so of this onto the slab of masa, then roll up the tamale as shown in the website. Place in the steamer with a moist towel on top to keep the condensed steam from dropping down on the tamales. Steam for 2 hours.

Mixing and assembling took about an hour and a half (with an hour of lead time to soak the husks). So figure this as a half day project while you are cooking other things. They refrigerated well, and taste even better on day 2.

I don't think you'll find the tenzo cooking this. These things definitely lead to attachment. Not really zen.