I'm hooked..obsessed, if you will, and if you don't, you will after reading this.
On vacation right now and have much to tell.  Entering our 4th day in New Mexico right now.  A very sparse state this is,
not much between points A and B...there is LOTS of undeveloped land out here. But, there is a climate that is perfect
for the cultivation of the green chile, which I am finding comes in all shapes, sizes, dried, fresh, powders, sauced,
jarred, canned...it is the life blood of New Mexican cuisine...let me know if I'm wrong, but it is an honest and deeply
flavored mix of Mexican and Southwestern American produce, cheeses, cultures..In doing my research on where we
were to be vacationing, the one thing I insist on is being as much a locavore as possible. Please note the "as pos-
sible"..if I want shrimp I'm going to have it..I know it doesn't "grow" outside of Soccoro or Sante Fe...lol..
     The green chile pops up on every menu..usually as a sauce...wow...on burgers, on Tacos, on Enchiladas, in
a knock-out pork stew...wait till I get back to the Jersey Shore!!  I'll be blogging up a storm about this, but since the
girls have kicked me out of the room to enjoy The Bacherlorette, I'm using this "downtime" to excerise my creativity..

    So far my favorite condiment here has been the mildly spicy and peppery Green Chile sauce...and it has tasted
different wherever I have enjoyed it.  On a cheeseburger in Alberquerque it was merely cooked and smashed, very
tasty. On a chicken taquito it was spicy and loose.  On a great lunch special at the Burrito Co. Cafe in old Santa
Fe, it was a thick condiment served to go along with my Dos Tacos platter of Grilled Faijitas Chicken and Chile
Rellenos, two soft tacos (my preference)..just a perfect lunch dish, so filling in fact, we didn 't do dinner last night.
Just some cereal...the black beans, the rice, the garden fresh micro green salad...plus the chocolate fiesta we
had did us in for the day.  New Mexico is a state of great natural beauty and a phemonenal culinary heritage.
Most of the food is fresh and local.  Lots of farmers.  And a great pride in the produce they grow, the cheese
and dairy they make, and the meats and game they raise.
  From Google Images is this pic of a traditional green chile
sauce.  When I get home (left the USB cable there) I'll be posting all my food pix. Till then, enjoy this one by
Lisa's Kitchen from Google Images..don't want you to think I'm stealing them!!   A cook I spoke with in Santa
Fe says simply clean a batch of green chile peppers, seed and slice them, saute' them in oil with one diced
onion, one sliced clove of garlic, salt...then after they get soft, add them to a food processor and let it ride for
about 1 minute.  Check for seasonings, then add a tsp. of cumin, and 1/2 tsp. of oregano.  Again, this is
most likely a sauce with more or less the same ingredients, a little more of this...a touch more of that...maybe
some chicken stock, or vinegar..more heat...a recipe that each family or cook treasures and calls his or her
own.  You can bet when I'm home I will be experimenting and giving you a more documented recipe.

Only 4 days since we left home, but I was missing you all....so...Buenos Noches...and talk to you all later
in the week...think authentic ..not Taco Bell...that's really thinking out of the box....