Balloon Week is huge here!  And to celebrate it--I have added two extra cooking classes that I  am placing on a special price of $75.00 down from $95.00.   Also, I am discounting our November   9-11 class to  $787.50--a 25% discount.  

The Party Appetizer class, set for 11 AM on Monday, October 8 will be lots of cooking fun.  In it you will learn how to make Green Chile Cheese Triangles (a take-off on Spanokopita),  Poquito Potatoes featuring yummy little baked baby bite-sized potatoes crunchy and buttery on the outside with creamy mashed potato topped with caviar, Special Ceviche served in martini glasses, Southwestern  Black Bean and Chile topping on   Bruschetta, Chevre Wraps and Instant Bloody Marias.  With a forecasted gloomy, rainy, cool day--cooking these I guarantee will  make for a very special great time. 

On Saturday, October 13 at 10 AM we will be making a huge range of chilis   in a class I am calling Chili. Chile, Chili.  (After coming back from judging the World International Chili Society cookoff) it will be fun to be making some more chilis.  We will be making a great array of tastes and types of chili.  The menu is the classic Bowl o Red Chili, Blue Heaven Chili, Green Chile Turkey Chile with a Margarita splash, Mexican Tortilla Chili and Veggie Chili.  Chili is such a wonderful dish--you can make lots of it and freeze for many varied used later--which brings up my new "Chili Madness"  cookbook, 3rd edition,  where I feature chili in many varied side dishes.  I am placing a special on both the 2nd edition for $12.00 and the new, 3rd edition for $14.00--each will be autographed as you wish--great for all the chili heads in your family and for all types of gifts.  (And Christmas is just around the corner.)

Our famous weekend class November 9 to 11 is now on a special price of $787.50 down from $1050.00.  This class has won all kinds of awards along with the week long class.  In each I feature the history and health benefits of major ingredients such as chile and corn as well as the history of popular, historic dishes such as sopaipillas, bizcochitos and posole.  

All of my classes are 100% full participation, small in number and  taught in my home, professional kitchen.  Come join us this fall--a beautiful time here in New Mexico with our purply blue skies, red chile ristras draping homes and buildings, and our golden cottonwoods in the lower lands and aspens in our mountains.

Do register soon for our Oaxaca Culinary tour--it is a great and glorious time with cooking classes, great Chef dinners, beautiful and historic sites and fun shopping.  

Here's two more chili recipes, great for fall appetites and so easy on your time.  Make them when you have time and make a batch so you can freeze for times when you are busier.

Chili Talks Turkey

Yield: 4 to 6 servings

2 Tablespoons vegetable oil (not canola)
1 medium-size onion, chopped (about 1 cup)
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 or 4 fresh green chiles, parched, peeled, and chopped, or ½ cup canned or frozen chopped green chiles
¼ cup crushed caribe chile, preferably from New Mexico
3 cups chicken broth
1 can (15 ½ ounces) pinto beans, rinsed and drained
2 teaspoons ground cumin
3 cups cooked diced or ground turkey (about 1 ½ pounds)
8 to 12 corn tortillas, warmed for serving (optional)

1. Place the oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until it is translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, green chiles, caribe chile, broth, beans, and 1 teaspoon of the cumin. Cook, uncovered, until the flavors blend, about 15 minutes.

2. Add the turkey and cook for about 5 minutes. Add the remaining 1 teaspoon cumin, taste, and adjust the seasonings as needed. Serve with warm corn tortillas if desired.

Reprinted with permission from Jane Butel's "Chili Madness".

Speedy Chili

This is quite a respectable chili: however, it’s not the original Bowl O’ Red, my favorite. This version is made with ground beef to speed up the cooking time, whereas the “Bowl” recipe is made with hand cut cubes of chuck, requiring much longer cooking. Making lots of chili at a time is always a good idea as it really does improve with age. Serve with coarsely shredded Cheddar and Monterey Jack cheeses mixed, pickled jalapenos, chopped onion, and sour cream with lime wedges laced with red chile. This chili, with so much of all the natural oxidative power of red chile, will actually freeze quite well for a year.

1 pound ground chuck (80 percent lean)

½ cup onion, chopped (1/2- inch dice)

2 cloves garlic, minced

3 Tablespoons Freshly ground pure mild red New Mexican chile

1 4 ½-ounce can water-packed stewed tomatoes, diced

1 teaspoon freshly ground cumin, or to taste

½ teaspoon salt, or to taste

1 15-ounce can pinto beans (optional)

1. Crumble the meat into a heavy, 5-quart Dutch oven-type pot. Saute over medium heat until the pink color disappears. Tilt the pot and spoon out any visible fat. Add the onion and garlic to the pot and continue simmering for 3 to 5 minutes, until the onion becomes soft and clear.

1. Remove the pot from the heat and stir in the chile, tomatoes, cumin and salt. Add the beans, if using (see Note). Return to the heat and simmer for anther 10 to 15 minutes. Taste and adjust to seasonings. If time allows, refrigerate for a day or two so the flavors can develop. If not, serve immediately.

Note: Many Western chili buffs prefer to cook the chili and beans separately, then serve the beans on the bottom of the bowl, and topped with the chili.

Per Serving: Calories 261, Protein 21 g, Carbohydrates 11 g, Fiber 3 g, Fat 15 g, Saturated Fat 6 g, Cholesterol 72 mg, Sodium 592 mg, (Analyzed without beans and with 80 percent lean ground beef)