* Pea Salad

·        1    package frozen baby peas

·        3    eggs, hard boiled

·        1    cup chicken juice

·        ½    each cup finely chopped onion, red bell pepper and celery

·        1    cup Mayonnaise, or as much as needed for your taste

·        2    Tbl. Dijon mustard

·        a few dashes of Tabasco

·        salt and pepper to taste

While the eggs are boiling, dump the frozen baby peas into a saucepan and add enough chicken juice to lightly cook. Salt and pepper to taste. Cover pan and slow simmer a few minutes. Peas should be fully cooked but still firm. When peas are cooked, drain any stock that has not been absorbed by the peas and set aside to cool. Add the chopped boiled eggs and veggies. Mix in the mayo, mustard and dash or two of Tabasco. Chill before serving.

Roasted Sweet Potatoes

Choose sweet potatoes that will be most easy to peal and slice. Long pointy ones tend to be the hardest. With a sharp paring knife, peal and then using a knife large enough, cut the sweets lengthwise. Now slice them into approximately ¼ in. slices. Place slices in a mixing bowl and douse liberally with EVVO. Sprinkle all over with ground Cumin and ground allspice. Use 2 parts cumin and 1 part allspice. Use your judgment here, a little bit is better than nada and both of the spices are rather strong, but we do want the sweets to be spicy, right? Toss to evenly coat and dump into a storage bag for later.

When you are ready to roast, pre-heat oven to 350F. and dump sweets onto a cookie sheet. Use two if they look too crowded. Roast, turning them every 15 minutes or so until they are starting to brown and are tender. This should take about 45 minutes. Remove from oven and place in a large mixing bowl. Sprinkle with plenty of brown sugar and toss. Serve hot.

*Frijoles Borrachos or Austin Baked Beans

Frijoles Borrachos is Texican for Drunken Beans. The great thing about this dish is that it is guilt free. There is no fat in this pot of beans. No, it is not some Vegan nightmare receipt and contains no tofu.

• 1          Lb. Pinto beans
• 1          large onion, chopped
• 2          cloves garlic, chopped
• 1          can beer (optional, it will, however add flavor)
• 2          cans beef juice
• ½          cup Jalapeno slices, more or less to taste
• ½          Tsp. Mexican Oregano
• Salt and pepper and Tabasco to taste.

Wash and count the beans. Soak in branch water over night. Drain beans, place in a heavy Dutch oven or large pot and add onion, garlic, beef stock and beer. Cover pot and adjust to slow simmer. Add water as needed to slow cook until tender. Add the remaining ingredients and season to taste and cook for another 30 minutes. Add more fire, maybe?