Let Me Sleep All Night in Your Soul Kitchen

African Turkey Stew or my name, Guiso del Diablo. I didn't invent it or the recipe.  allrecipes.com/recipe/african-turkey-stew/detail.  I just searched for a good way to use habanero peppers and boy am I glad I did. This feels very 'special occasion'. And it was. Just eating it became a special occasion.
And the highlight was the actual aroma and zing of the habanero peppers themselves. 
As usual I took big liberties with the recipe because I feel you can do that with stews and soups. Instead of all smoked turkey legs, I used smoked turkey wings. legs and necks for flavor and then ground turkey for the majority of the meat. Sometimes they have gorgeous smoked turkey wings at PathMark but this week not even cute. I added a few more habbies too because I never think anything will be hot enough.
But the way you make the sauce is like a magic potion and it makes a vibrant color. The sweetness of the red bell pepper stands out and balances the heat of the habbie. I love that most of the ingredients are red. You really eat this stew with your eyes as well as your mouth because of that color. It is festive. It seems like what the Devil himself would make for you down in his soul kitchen when he was feeling celebratory.

But you'd better not stay too long and mind having seconds of this stew. Habaneros like the Devil are not your friend my friend.

If Ideas Were Horses, I'd Ride This One Right Out of Town

I had an idea today. I've been trying to come up with a unique use for these dried habaneros that were the last of the season from Big Ed's farm. A couple of years ago everyone was putting chipotle peppers in everything and I really love playing around with the flavors in brownies so I created a Habbie Brownie with Spicy Walnuts.

First I mixed up a cup of chopped walnuts in some of my cayenne chili powder mix with a little cinnamon and then I toasted those up for about 10 minutes, added a little salt. Set those aside. Then I made my basic one bowl recipe with Baker's Square chocolate but added a third egg and to the flour mixture, a teaspoon of freshly ground habanero powder, a 1/4 teaspoon cinammon and a dash of nutmeg and two tablespoons of cocoa powder. To the nuts I added a 1/2 cup of mini chocolate chips.


I actually love them! There is heat to the back end and you can actually taste the flavor of the pepper which is very different when mixed with chocolate. But they make a very good hearty chewy brownie. I sent a bunch with P for his boss, she's an adventerous eater and likes interesting foods. Hopefully I'll get a review tomorrow.

Unfortunately I didn't invent the wheel here. I researched and there were other pepper spiced brownie recipes on the web. Dang it. But I'm thinking they could possibly go over the tippy top with other some tweaking...maybe a chili caramel sauce running through them or caramel covered bacon bits sprinkles!!! Hee Haw!!

Hey Hey My My, There's More to Cayenne than Meets the Eye

Got some new dried cayenne peppers straight from Big Eds farm. I believe this is the last of the 2010 harvest. I'm trying to come up with unique uses but its also hard not to just make a fresh chili powder mix because it is so darn useful. Also I'm in the immediate need of a dry pork rub because the pork shoulders were priced to move.


So I made a blend but the mixture changed to have more focus on toasted cumin seeds and cayenne flavor then heat. Also I added tons of fresh thyme to the rub to bring it alive and vibrant. The pork got a righteous rub down after being stabbed to insert lots of garlic cloves. Again I'm slow roasting the pork on a low temp to get moist fall-off-the-bone succulent meat.


I was careful to save some for another project. I was doing a little research and Cayenne is apparently amazingly good for you and known to be one of the most useful and valuable herbs! Did not know that? It is also very high in nutrition, a good source of A, C, E,
B-complexes as well as calcium and potassium. It is big-time healing for the digestive system, heart and circulatory systems. It can actually heal a stomach ulcer and regulate high blood pressure. What?! Its full of antioxidants and beta carotene which is good for the immune system. It can lower cholesterol and prevent stroke causing clots from forming. It can make your skin look healthier and actually makes you feel better AND it stimulates your metabolism. Kinda shocked.

All the sudden these peppers have opened up a whole new world to me. I'm psyched to send my dad a nice new chili powder blend this time touting all the benefits. He has high blood pressure, he's had troublesome blood clots, he has arthritis (for which its been known to actually cure) among other ailments.

I also received some hybrid habaneros that Ed calls cherrie habbies. I need to find the best creative use. Lots of the same benefits from this pepper too but I'm hoping to capitalize on the endorphin rush. Who doesn't want a natural high?

Scouring the internet for ideal uses mostly I find the tried and true.

Been done - but a good use:
- You can put these in a good vodka for a great gift idea and added boost.
- Jerk chicken is hard to beat and really highlights the pepper.
- Chili oils are fun to make and have all kinds of use in everyday cooking.
- Chili powder blends (given)
- Big pot of real beef chili (also hard to beat but not creative enough for this project)
- Liquid hot sauce, vinegar based. Thousands on the market but I should make my own just to see if the flavors are that much fuller making it fresh.
- BBQ sauce - also tons on the market but also worth a shot.
Not interested in making but always sounds good:
- hot pepper jams & jelly

Nothing is screaming out at me yet. I'll keep searching. Meanwhile the pork is on it's 12th hour....

Are you Jerkin' my Chicken?

I received a fresh batch of very beautiful habbies from Big Ed. I'm so excited to feature them in a baked jerk chicken.



Last night I soaked the chicken in this wet marinade made from tons of fragrant dried spices (my arms are sore from grinding), vinegar, orange & lime juice, soy sauce and olive oil. I added 7! of the dried habanero red peppers, the motivation for this dish (didn't take out the seeds, yikes!). We're thrill seekers. We have amazing jerk in the neighborhood, and I think to really get it spot on you need to smoke the meat on a grill. So I stand here humble and knowing my place.

But unless I want to set the fire escape in flames, I'd better stick to interior heat. But you can't get stuck in the details. I'm sure it will be delicious either way. I am going to try to get that grilled flavor, the crisp and slight burn on the chicken with a brief trip through the broiler. I'll serve it with some of that reserved marinade heated and reduced on top. Instead of collard greens and mac & cheese, the amazing familiar sides, I'll need to figure something more heart smart. You know, P's gettin' a little long in the tooth, so I gotta watch his ticker.

Recipe from: The Sugar Reef Carribean Cookbook," by Devra Dedeaux (sounds legit, although she only used 1 scotch bonnet in her recipe). I say, if you're going to go, go BIG right? So I thought seven peppers should provide the 'Yeowww!' that you need to feel automatically when you taste the jerk sauce. Then all the various other flavors will swarm your pallet before the heat comes back to b#@$h slap your tongue into the next room.

Next day:
Okay we just came out of recovery. We got jerked! This was some full bodied flavor and heat. Delicious, but we decided this was a creeper jerk. The heat rolled up on us like a Mexican home grown. Overall rating - best use of habbies so far.

Big Ed's Squirt Alert!

This food monkey has gone undercover to create a wicked hot habanero chili powder as gifts for Big Ed, the pepper grower and also mi padre.

The B-in-law sent a four finger bag of habanero peppers and seeds. This stuff was so potent that I had to let the blender sit unopened for five minutes each time, before I could open the lid and stir. I had to wear a scarf around my nose and mouth,glasses and of course gloves. And I STILL sneezed and coughed all night.





A couple of quick thoughts while making this chili powder blend; I can't believe how many peppers it takes to make a small amount of powder, no wonder they charge so much. I can't believe I never thought about doing this before because it is super fun and right up my alley! I don't see saving much money, if any, by making your own. But its SO cool to add your own mix of spices and play around with the different peppers and honestly the difference in taste and level of flavor is indescribable!

I'm using what I feel would be good as a rub, or in a soup and in chili. Good, that is, if you enjoy painful movements, rectal bleeding and profuse sweating. The mix: Habanero (the whole pepper, seeds and all!), cayenne, ancho chiles, new mexican chiles, garlic, mexican oregano, spanish paprika, dried cilantro and lots of toasted whole cumin seeds.

Let's talk Mexican oregano a second: for me, just as important as the cumin in a lot of mexican dishes. It is way less sweet but its strong and has a lemony scent. It is a completely different plant then the greek version, not a mint at all. Its hard to find it in New York unless you hit the gourmet shops. They even carry dried cilantro. I finally found it at The Green Grape on my corner. I haven't gone there out of protest because everyone says how wonderful it is and I thought it was a lot of pretentious hippety-hoo-haa, but you you know they have great stuff and exactly what I had been searching for all day so I should just shut my mouth and enjoy them being so close. I had to brave Sahadi's for the whole cumin earlier that day too. I wanted to make sure it was fresh and not sitting on the store shelf for 2 years. When it was toasting I wanted to really smell it, and I did.




Since I had the blender running and all the spices out, I went ahead and made a little chipotle blend for myself and a lighter version of the devil dust.

I saved just enough of the good stuff to add to my Holiday Pork Pozole that I made last weekend.