Six Geese a'Laying

Whew! Half-way there! Only one more day of fowl then it really gets interesting. With this one, it was obvious what I was going to do. Eggnog! Just kidding. Actually, that was my mom’s idea and it’s not half bad. Her Eggnog rocks. Maybe I’ll save that for New Years.

There are at least 1000 ways an egg can be cooked. There is no way I’m going to mention all of them. I don’t think I could remember them all. I don’t think I know them all! But to me, it doesn’t matter. I love eggs. I’ll eat them anyway I can get them. I’ve even drunk one raw in a glass of milk. Ah, those were the days. Don’t think my body could handle that again, though. Kind of reminded me of an oyster shooter. (And no, it’s not someone who shoots oysters.! It’s a raw oyster in a shot glass with a dollop of cocktail sauce)

I can’t stay in France all Christmas. I think Ron Weasley was right. Muggles who slide down the side of a mountain with wooden sticks strapped to their feet, have got to be insane. So, I’m heading South of the Border or as far South as I can get without needing a passport. Phoenix will do nicely, but I’ll settle for San Diego or even as far North as Santa Barbara. But let’s not do something ordinary and ‘gringo’. It’s Christmas. Make it special!

Six Geese a’ Laying

Huevos Ranchero with Goose Sausage, Refried Navy Beans and Roasted Salsa Verde

Goose Sausage

Sausage is not particularly difficult to make. If you don’t have access to goose, chicken is fine, of course. You should be able to find some goose sausage online. There’s no shame in Maybe later we’ll talk about making sausages. For this dish, cut the sausages in half and fry them up in a skillet until brown and juicy!

Salsa Verde (Green Chili Sauce)

Before we start, there are several things you should know. It’s best to use the canned green chilies. Roasting chilies involves rubbing them with oil, putting them on a hot grill until completely black, putting them in a bowl and covering them with plastic to let them steam in their own heat for an hour and then rubbing off the burnt skin. Way too much effort. However, if you want to go through all that trouble, the taste is totally worth it. Also, using canned tomatillos is totally acceptable because blanching them involves peeling off the paper-like skin, cooking them in hot boiling salted water for one minute and immediately cooling them in an ice water bath. Again, if you want to do that it is totally worth the effort. If you have a tomato garden and you have some nice green tomatoes, those work just fine instead of tomatillos. They are not related in any way (even though they look the same), but the flavors are very similar. You don’t even have to blanch them. Finally, you don’t have to clean the seeds out of the Poblano chilies because they aren’t all that hot. If you want some heat, add a jalapeño or two. If you are feeling brave, you don’t have to clean the seeds out of that one either. Of course, there is no shame in buying a bottle of ready made Salsa Verde.

1 T Olive Oil
1 Small Onion, chopped
2 fresh Poblano chilies, chopped
1 teaspoon fresh minced garlic
½ teaspoon ground cumin
¼ teaspoon dried oregano
1 8oz can green chilies or 10 - 12 roasted fresh Anaheim chilies
1 7 oz can tomatillos or ½ lb fresh tomatillos cleaned, blanched and cut in quarters, or
1 14 oz can chicken or vegetable broth
1 bunch fresh cilantro, chopped fine
1 T lime juice
salt and pepper

In a medium-sized sauce pan, heat the olive oil just a little. Sauté the onions, Poblanos, garlic, cumin and oregano until the onions get soft and the garlic and spices start to sweat. Put this mixture in a food processor with the roasted chilies, tomatillos and half of the broth and blend until smooth. Put all this back into the same sauce pan with the rest of the broth and bring the sauce to a simmer. Let the sauce cook for about five minutes. Add the cilantro, lime juice and salt and pepper. Taste it and add a little more salt and pepper if needed.

Refried Navy Beans

Canned refried beans aren’t as good as the real thing. However, if you want to use canned beans and mash them or put them in the food processor, that works just as good as cooking the beans all day yourself. Just rinse two cans of Navy beans, and mash them in your food processor with ½ cup of the salsa verde.

To plate this fine dish, start with cooked white rice topped with a little salsa verde. Top with a tostada shell (those come ready made too! How convenient!), spread with plenty of refried Navy beans. Top with an egg, fried however you like it (or scrambled if you want…I don’t care!), topped with melted shredded cheese. Top this with some more salsa verde, the sausages on the side and there ya go!

I’d say, “Bon Appetit” but no one in Mexico would understand.