I'm usually in bed and fast asleep long before the clock and
calendar changes to the New Year, but we do celebrate the first
day of the year with traditional food offerings: Huevos de Muerte
to chase off the old year and Hoppin' John and cooked greens for
good luck and prosperity in the new year. A neighbor introduced
us to Hoppin' John (black-eyed peas cooked with peppers, onion,
garlic and hot country-style sausage) and cooked greens (collard,
kale, spinach...) many years ago. Eating such is supposed to bring
good luck and prosperity in the new year...I think it's a southern
U.S. thing. I've gotten tired of the cooked greens, and since I've
got lotsa unripe tomatoes in my garden that aren't likely to ripen
now, due to the frosty nights we've had since Christmas night,
this year we're having fried green tomatoes instead of the usual
cooked greens.

I came across a recipe for an egg and sausage dish in a local
newspaper when we lived in Orange County, Calif. many years ago.
It was named Huevos de Muerte, Quiche of Death. I've never seen
the recipe or anything like it since, nor is quiche mentioned in
any of the Mexican cookbooks that I have on hand. So, it's not
likely Mexican in the traditional sense, but it does have two
or three typical Mexican ingredients; and...it is quite tasty.

I assume the rough translation, Quiche of Death, in the recipe name
was intended as a humorous poke at the number of jalapenos called
for in the recipe, but there really isn't all that much chile heat
in the finished dish, trust me...

Huevos de Muerte, Quiche of Death

Makes one 10 inch pie.

1/2 pound - hot country style sausage
1/2 pound - Mexican style pork chorizo
1 - large onion, chopped
1/2 cup - red bell pepper, chopped
15 - pickled jalapeno chiles, chopped
1 cup - grated cheddar cheese
1 cup - grated jack cheese
4 - eggs
1 cup - milk
1 cup - cilantro, washed and chopped
1 - 10 inch pie pan
flour tortillas as needed

Fry country sausage and chorizo together. Add onion and bell pepper
and fry to wilt. Drain, but save, rendered fat. Beat eggs and milk.
Stir jalapenos and cilantro into egg/milk mixture. Using a basting
brush, paint 3 to 4 flour tortillas with rendered fat and cover the
bottom and sides of the pie pan, overlapping as necessary. Repeat,
with another layer of tortillas painted with rendered fat as before.
Spread sausage/onion/pepper mix over tortillas. Spread cheeses over
sausage. Pour in egg/milk mixture. Bake in 375 degree oven until
eggs are set. If necessary, put some aluminum foil around the edge
to keep it from browning too much before the middle is set. Serve
with hot sauce, fresh salsa and sliced, pickled jalapenos on the
side to add per individual discretion.


I'll also be making tamales over the next couple of days for dinner
on Thursday, using beef braised in home canned beef broth, then
shredded and mixed with mild red chile sauce; and, BBQed pork roast
(left over from Christmas dinner) chopped and mixed with the cinnamon
and clove spiced apples braised in apple wine that I served along
side the sliced pork. I meant to make tamales before Christmas
but ran out of time.

Hope ya all have a wonderful new year. I know I'm certainly looking
forward to the first day's feast...

Rich

What is the preparation for fried green tomatoes? I too have lots of green
ones on the bush..Thanks.

"Rich McCormack" wrote in message
...

I'm usually in bed and fast asleep long before the clock and
calendar changes to the New Year, but we do celebrate the first
day of the year with traditional food offerings: Huevos de Muerte
to chase off the old year and Hoppin' John and cooked greens for
good luck and prosperity in the new year. A neighbor introduced
us to Hoppin' John (black-eyed peas cooked with peppers, onion,
garlic and hot country-style sausage) and cooked greens (collard,
kale, spinach...) many years ago. Eating such is supposed to bring
good luck and prosperity in the new year...I think it's a southern
U.S. thing. I've gotten tired of the cooked greens, and since I've
got lotsa unripe tomatoes in my garden that aren't likely to ripen
now, due to the frosty nights we've had since Christmas night,
this year we're having fried green tomatoes instead of the usual
cooked greens.

I came across a recipe for an egg and sausage dish in a local
newspaper when we lived in Orange County, Calif. many years ago.
It was named Huevos de Muerte, Quiche of Death. I've never seen
the recipe or anything like it since, nor is quiche mentioned in
any of the Mexican cookbooks that I have on hand. So, it's not
likely Mexican in the traditional sense, but it does have two
or three typical Mexican ingredients; and...it is quite tasty.

I assume the rough translation, Quiche of Death, in the recipe name
was intended as a humorous poke at the number of jalapenos called
for in the recipe, but there really isn't all that much chile heat
in the finished dish, trust me...

Huevos de Muerte, Quiche of Death

Makes one 10 inch pie.

1/2 pound - hot country style sausage
1/2 pound - Mexican style pork chorizo
1 - large onion, chopped
1/2 cup - red bell pepper, chopped
15 - pickled jalapeno chiles, chopped
1 cup - grated cheddar cheese
1 cup - grated jack cheese
4 - eggs
1 cup - milk
1 cup - cilantro, washed and chopped
1 - 10 inch pie pan
flour tortillas as needed

Fry country sausage and chorizo together. Add onion and bell pepper
and fry to wilt. Drain, but save, rendered fat. Beat eggs and milk.
Stir jalapenos and cilantro into egg/milk mixture. Using a basting
brush, paint 3 to 4 flour tortillas with rendered fat and cover the
bottom and sides of the pie pan, overlapping as necessary. Repeat,
with another layer of tortillas painted with rendered fat as before.
Spread sausage/onion/pepper mix over tortillas. Spread cheeses over
sausage. Pour in egg/milk mixture. Bake in 375 degree oven until
eggs are set. If necessary, put some aluminum foil around the edge
to keep it from browning too much before the middle is set. Serve
with hot sauce, fresh salsa and sliced, pickled jalapenos on the
side to add per individual discretion.


I'll also be making tamales over the next couple of days for dinner
on Thursday, using beef braised in home canned beef broth, then
shredded and mixed with mild red chile sauce; and, BBQed pork roast
(left over from Christmas dinner) chopped and mixed with the cinnamon
and clove spiced apples braised in apple wine that I served along
side the sliced pork. I meant to make tamales before Christmas
but ran out of time.

Hope ya all have a wonderful new year. I know I'm certainly looking
forward to the first day's feast...

Rich

Aria wrote:

What is the preparation for fried green tomatoes? I too have lots of green
ones on the bush..Thanks.

I've come across two basic ways of preparing fried green tomatoes:

1) sliced, dipped in a flour, egg and water batter and then pan
fried in lard or vegetable oil

2) sliced, dipped in beaten egg, breaded with seasoned bread crumbs
and then pan fried in lard or vegetable oil

I've also come across a variation of number 2 using cornmeal instead
of bread crumbs; and, one using cornmeal without first dipping the
tomato slices in egg before coating with cornmeal. The tomato was
pressed into the cornmeal to sorta push it into the soft surface.

I used the "seasoned bread crumbs" method, using salt, ground dried
red chiles, crushed dried red chiles and Mexican oregano for the
seasoning. In a moment of madness, I used egg nog instead of beaten
egg for dipping before breading. Next time I'd just use the egg,
as the nog didn't work very well to adhere the crumbs to the surface
of the tomato slices. Came out pretty tasty, though.

I doubt fried green tomatoes could be considered Mexican cooking,
I think it's a southern U.S. thing. However, the method using
cornmeal does use ingredients that would have all been available,
if not actually utilized, in pre-Columbian Mexico.

Rich

Thanks, I appreciate your input....

"Rich McCormack" wrote in message
...

Aria wrote:

What is the preparation for fried green tomatoes? I too have lots of
green
ones on the bush..Thanks.

I've come across two basic ways of preparing fried green tomatoes:

1) sliced, dipped in a flour, egg and water batter and then pan
fried in lard or vegetable oil

2) sliced, dipped in beaten egg, breaded with seasoned bread crumbs
and then pan fried in lard or vegetable oil

I've also come across a variation of number 2 using cornmeal instead
of bread crumbs; and, one using cornmeal without first dipping the
tomato slices in egg before coating with cornmeal. The tomato was
pressed into the cornmeal to sorta push it into the soft surface.

I used the "seasoned bread crumbs" method, using salt, ground dried
red chiles, crushed dried red chiles and Mexican oregano for the
seasoning. In a moment of madness, I used egg nog instead of beaten
egg for dipping before breading. Next time I'd just use the egg,
as the nog didn't work very well to adhere the crumbs to the surface
of the tomato slices. Came out pretty tasty, though.

I doubt fried green tomatoes could be considered Mexican cooking,
I think it's a southern U.S. thing. However, the method using
cornmeal does use ingredients that would have all been available,
if not actually utilized, in pre-Columbian Mexico.

Rich