[christie]

Pinging Chef Carlo

[carlo3b]

What a wonderful story Luis, once again capturing the essence of the moment in your family kitchen.. oh, all of those wonderful memories, full of familiar smells, and laughter. If I had an acceptable replacement recipe, that I've prepared, for your grandma's authentic favorite Cuban dish, which I haven't, I wouldn't dare post it without this disclaimer; there were 6 women in our immediate family, 4 of which were infamous in the kitchen, and they could start a revolution over nuances in how to prepare our own family Lasagna recipe!
The following is taken from a yellowed 3 x 5 card, stuffed into an old cookbook. I filed it under Cuban because it came from my dearest friend, who's Cuban mother passed a few years ago and said she wanted me to have her cookbook. She and I would play in the kitchen when I was invited over to their home for the holidays. So I cherish it and the memories of that giant of a 4'9" woman. I hope this helps Luis;

Maria Fuente's RICE WITH CHICKEN
(typed as well as I could decipher and crudely translated what she wrote)

1 chicken of 3 pounds cut in pieces
1  minced onion
4 minced cloves of garlic
½ dry red pepper
1 teaspoon of  comine (I think this is cumin)
1 teaspoon of oregano
1 teaspoon of pepper
1 leaf of laurel (bay leaf)
2 pounds of  rice grain , short not long
1 tin of beer
1 tin of 6 ounces of tomato sauce
1 teaspoon of bijol
1 small tin of petit pois (spring peas).
¼ cup of capers
¼ cup of olives
juice of a lemon
6 water cups
3 olive oil teaspoons
1 tin of 6 ounces of peppers (I think this is hot peppers)
1/cup of dry wine
Instructions :
In an iron pot it puts the chicken, the lemon juice, the onion, garlic, the red pepper, I combine, the oregano, the pepper, the laurel leaf, the oil and sofríalo by 5 minutes; year the water, the salt, bijol and cooks by 15 minutes.    Year the rice and revuélvalo occasionally.   Lower the flame and you begin to add the beer and the dry wine, according to is cooked as well as I eliminate of petit pois and the peppers.   This rice does not have to be dry, so add these liquids little by little, according to needs it until this totally soft one.   Cocínelo by 30 minutes.   add the olives, the capers and the olive oil, adórnelo with the peppers and peas.

[stanz]

What a wonderful dish! If in doubt about the type of pepper to use, I would use bell pepper, but make sure to dump in a lot of red pepper flakes - - gotta have it spicy.

Feliz Dia de Las Madres para todos!