2 lbs. cubed Stew Meat
4 to 6  Potatoes, cubed
3 to 4  Carrots chopped 
1 tsp  Salt
¼ cup Cooking Wine (optional-it’s still great without it)

2 cups of broccoli florets- if you happen to have some around
Make sofrito: chop onion, garlic and pepper finely. Sautee in olive oil on medium high, for 3 to 4 minutes. 
Add the meat and brown it for about 5 minutes.

Cube potatoes, cut carrots in large round pieces.

Add the tomato sauce, potatoes, carrots, salt, and cooking wine to the meat, (broccoli too, if you are including it). Turn temperature down to medium-low, cover, and cook for 45 minutes.
Serve with rice and a salad.

I guess that is why I cringe as I notice the erosion of liberty going on in our society. Many well meaning entities wanting to tell us even something so basic as what we should eat and drink. Let us learn, even educate one another and then make our own choices!

But getting the information we need is not always easy, for example some of us might not want to eat genetically modified food. Fifty other countries label it as such, but not yet the US. California is trying to remedy that with Proposition 37, the  California Right to Know Genetically Engineered Food Act 
which will require that genetically engineered food be labeled, so that we have the freedom to choose wether we want to buy it or not. I think the companies fighting this are afraid of what the consumers will choose. If it passes in California, it will benefit the rest of the country. You can learn more about it  HERE






This recipe will have you making some choices, since it is not very exact...but it is delicious! I will give you the recipe for a normal size cucumber (I used a giant one this last time), but it's all very much to taste. This is the way my mother always cooked, and I do take after her in that respect.

Two types of tomatoes and a very large cucumber my niece Michelle gave me

I am loving this extended summer we are having in Utah! It's in the 70-80's and my garden is still producing wonderful tomatoes, zucchini, swiss chard, etc.

When my parents came to live with us in Utah, summer became my father's favorite time of the year and not just because he hated  cold weather. He loved to grow food and I loved gardening with him. Papillo did the hard work and I helped. It has not been the same gardening on my own, and I'm not as dedicated to daily watering, etc, so I don't get quite the same results, but I feel him close anytime I'm out in the garden.
There was sometimes a battle between my parents because Mamina wanted to grow roses and Papillo wanted to grow vegetables. When they came to live with us I gave Mamina an area of the yard for her roses, on the South side with plenty of sun. Papillo bought her a new rose bush each year for Mother's day, and they planted it together.

Mamina among her beloved roses

Her rose garden turned out to be the best spot in the yard, and after a while Papillo and I began to covet her prime garden spot, and  tried to convince her to let us have it for growing vegetables. She was immune to our persuasive efforts, so I made do in a shady spot and he planted other gardens in our neighbors' yards. One year  Papillo planted garlic among Mamina's roses. She was not happy but the roses loved it, and the garlic continued to come up for several years. 

I have now planted raspberries that I got from Nina right among the roses and installed a small grow box right in the middle of the roses. It's crowded, random and a bit crazy, but quite effective. 

My garden now

 Here is a recipe I still look forward to making and eating each year. The only thing Cuban about it is that my father made it often, with herbs from our garden. He learned to make it from a Chilean friend of Italian ancestry. He usually left out the nuts, since he “didn’t think they agreed with him” and it was still delicious.



PESTO
1 lb fresh basil leaves
1 lb fresh parsley leaves (not stalks) 
5-6 cloves garlic
2 cups nuts (pine nuts, walnuts or almonds)-OPTIONAL
2-3 teaspoons sea salt (to taste)
3 Tablespoons grated parmesan cheese
1 cup olive oil
Wash and drain basil and parsley. Put in food processor; add pealed garlic cloves, nuts, salt, and parmesan cheese. Add oil a bit at a time as you process everything to a creamy consistency. 

This is great on pasta or even crackers. Pine nuts are traditionally used, but I actually like it better with walnuts or even almonds.

Store in a glass jar, and pour a thin layer of olive oil on the top, to keep from drying or oxidizing. It will keep in the refrigerator for several weeks or frozen for several months. 

This is the King of Bean Soups and about as Cuban as you can get. I can't imagine any Cuban get together that doesn't involve food, and specifically Black Beans and rice as a featured complement to the main course. Many people think of beans as healthy, sensible, inexpensive, something you make to stretch your food budget. This bean soup is all that, but it is also delicious and an exotic experience for your taste buds. Picture yourself on a veranda, feeling the tropical breeze, eating these wonderful beans!

There are a many versions of this recipe, none as good as my mother's. Mamina made this for every family gathering, now it's my turn to continue this delicious tradition.

FRIJOLES NEGROS-Black Bean Soup


1 lb bag (2 cups) dry black beans (you can use canned beans and add the sofrito, but it won’t be as good)

3-4 bay leaves
2 teaspoons salt



Sofrito:

3-4 Tablespoons of olive oil

1 large green bell pepper

1 large onion

4-5 garlic cloves


1 teaspoon oregano

1 teaspoon cumin

2 teaspoon sugar

1 Tablespoon of vinegar
1 Tablespoon of olive oil



Sort through the beans to take out any debris. Rinse and then cover them with water and soak overnight. Cook in soaking water, do not change it, so they don't loose any of their beautiful inky blackness. Add more water if needed, to about 2 inches above the beans, add the bay leaves.

If using a pressure cooker, cook 20- 25 minutes after pressure is reached. Otherwise use a heavy pan, bring the beans to a boil, then lower the temperature to low and cover them. Cook them for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, until the beans are soft; if they dry out you can add more water. I like to set them at the back of the stove and forget about them. Don't worry, the aroma will remind you that they are cooking.

You can also cook them on high in a slow cooker for 7-8 hours. This actually works quite well. Then proceed with sofrito, etc.

Add the tablespoon of salt after they are soft, if you add it before cooking, the beans will be tough.

SOFRITO

While the beans are cooking, chop up pepper and onion. My mother stressed that the secret to her marvelous black beans was lots of green pepper. Sauté in olive oil, be generous with the oil for this one. Cook until the onions are translucent. Mash or mince the garlic and add to the sofrito, continue cooking for another minute or so.

When the beans are soft add the Sofrito to them, also the oregano, cumin and sugar. Stir and cook on low, covered, for about 20 more minutes. It will thicken a bit and all the flavors will blend. Taste it and add more salt if needed. Some people like to take out a cup of the beans, mash them and add them back to the soup to thicken it.

The last 2 ingredients, vinegar and olive oil, are for drizzling over the beans before serving. My mother would invariably tell me “most people add vinegar and oil to their black beans”, but she rarely did, as the kids would complain. I also skip the vinegar and oil as they are delicious either way. I say try it without and then if you want to, try adding the vinegar and oil, see what you think.

Serve over white rice or add the rice to your soup bowl. If they are not too thick, you can also eat them as a soup, with crusty Cuban bread.

ACELGA- Swiss Chard

This is one recipe I am particularly fond of because it reminds me of both my parents. My father loved to garden, grow food. When we lived in Miami (and in Cuba of course) he grew platanos (bananas of many kinds), mangos, papaya, vegetables, etc. When my parents moved in with us in Utah, he continued to grow vegetables. Sometimes one garden was not enough, but fortunately we had kind neighbors willing to let him plant gardens in their yards!

Swiss chard was one of the vegetables my father really liked and always planted. Even in Utah it has a long growing season, withstanding heat and cold. Sometimes it would even come back in the Spring, after having been covered with snow for months. It is very dark green, so it has lots of nutrients and a strong taste. My mother prepared it this way and it's delicious. Sometimes I leave out the tomato sauce.

Prepare a Sofrito:

Olive oil to coat frying pan
1 onion
3-5 garlic cloves
1 8 oz can of tomato sauce, you can use fresh tomatoes, but Mamina rarely did
A big huge double hand full of chard, it cooks up into almost nothing
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 Tablespoon cooking wine (optional)

Wash chard, cut off thickest part of stalks, chop and set aside. Chop the onions and garlic, sauté in olive oil for 2-3 minutes, then add the Swiss chard, tomato sauce, salt and cooking wine. Stir then cover it with a lid and simmer on low for 5-6 minutes. I like to serve it on rice.