My Spruce Goose

Around this time of the year, I set one or two culinary goals and spend the summer striving towards achieving these goals. I can be a bit hardcore and obsessive about these quests (Think Howard Hughes and the Spruce Goose obsessive). This can be a bit unsettling for my family. One summer I purchased a smoker and worked on mastering the art of BBQ. By the end of the summer, my wife threatened to become a vegetarian if she faced a plate of BBQ one more time. Coming from a rancher's daughter, I knew this was a serious threat.

I've learned to down size my culinary goals over the last few years, so I no longer drown my family in the monotony of my madness. This year I've set two goals:

1. I'm going to learn new ways to use chile peppers in my cooking. When I say chile peppers, I mean all forms of peppers - dried, ground, and of course, fresh. I'm not setting out to add heat to my cooking; my goal is to add layers of flavor to my dishes.
2. I want to learn to make my own flour and corn tortillas.

Tonight I'll take my first steps in my quest. I'm going to prepare a new rice dish using chile peppers, and I'll be making an enchilada sauce from scratch using a chile puree made from dried peppers. I'll let you know how it goes.

Bless this food,
muddywaters