My Winter Kitchen
tidy pantry • snow cakes • enchiladas • winter recipe collection from RiPE
Tidy Pantry
We’re in the midst of a tidying frenzy around home and does it ever feel good! The pantry is almost done, I’ve got to do the tip-top shelf that houses my wok and baking pans as well as the vertical storage of sheet pans, racks, and baking stones over to the right. Today is the day!
This time I found it more fun and less overwhelming because I took it a section at a time, instead of unloading everything onto the kitchen counters as I have in the past. Moist microfiber cloth in hand, I dusted the empty shelves and the tops of jars, shook the loose onion and garlic skins from the basket into the sink, and organized my cans and jars which hide over to the left in two pull-out drawers.
Like clothes closet cleaning, if you haven’t used it in a year, give it, compost it, or pitch it. Does it spark joy? If not, bye bye. It’s okay. Sometimes you have to throw some things out. Instead of guilt, let it help you become a more careful and considered shopper—do I really need it? will I use it? how does it make me feel?
Kitchen Window Happies
Snow cakes on a sunny day really make me happy. As do these hyacinths. Here’s the view from my kitchen window earlier this week. What makes you happy from your kitchen window?
How to Make Enchiladas
Enchiladas seem like a big deal to make, but they are really quite easy, especially when you think about it as four parts: filling, sauce, tortillas, cheese.
For “easy” buy the sauce: enchilada sauce, or use a jarred salsa like Frontera’s tomatillo and either leave it as is or purée with a blender. Green chiles go great in the sauce, either the little cans of “diced green chiles” or perhaps fresh roasted that you put in the freezer from last summer’s Hatch Chile Roast at the Co-Op (hint: do it this summer! buy lots, peel off the charred layer, dice the flesh, and freeze in ½-cup or 1-cup portions.)
If you have time for a little cooking, make the sauce, either this creamy (from my Green Chile Enchiladas) or a more traditional, tomato-chile one (from my Butternut Squash and Hominy Enchiladas.
For the filling: In less than 20 minutes you can chop the vegetables and cook on the stovetop. Think butternut squash, sweet potatoes, beans, tomatoes, onion, hominy, corn, and/or chiles. For a meat version: rotisserie chicken (no cooking required!), chicken-chicken, or chopped or ground beef or bison with onion. And don’t forget the cheese! Enchiladas are all about the cheese! (2-cups minimum but have more on hand.)
To assemble, either roll ‘em up or layer them flat, casserole-style. Bake 375°F for 45 minutes until filling is bubbling. If you are reheating, sprinkle a tablespoon of water over the top, cover with foil, bake for 30 minutes (longer if frozen), then remove foil, add cheese for a fresh topping, and bake 10–15 more minutes.
Winter Recipe Collection from RiPE
I keep hundreds of my favorite recipes on my blog, ripefoodandwine.com. You can search by ingredient, or by collection, including seasonal groupings like these Winter recipes. I hope you’ll find something that you like to make!
Hope you have a great rest of the week. Thank you for joining me here at About Love & Cookies!
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