Last Saturday evening, my husband and I attended the Bonanza community’s Meet Your Neighbor Stew. It was the first time that we had ever been in the Bonanza Community Center and it is indeed a treasure. The organizers arranged for several stews, homemade cornbread and wheat bread, pickles and other fixings. And the array of desserts was most impressive.

Our community is made up of individuals who have lived in the Bonanza area all their lives – even attending the school before Rains opened, individuals who had left, yet returned because of their love for the area and the relative newcomers like my husband and me who were seeking the peace of country living. I did not bring stew to the event – maybe next time – but I did make beef stew last week.

I usually look for a nice roast and cut it into 3⁄4- to 1-inch cubes. Dredge the cubed meat in flour seasoned with salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, celery seeds and oregano. Clean and cut onions, carrots and celery into the same sized cubes as the meat. Also, mince 4 garlic cloves. I use two pots while making this stew, one that is wide to brown meat and sauté the vegetables and one that is tall enough to hold all the ingredients as I build the stew.

Heat vegetable oil in the wide pot and add the meat. Sizzle the meat until it is nicely browned on all sides. The flour will stick to the bottom of the pan, but don’t worry, just add about half a cup of good red wine to deglaze it – beef stock will also do the job. When most of the stuck-on bits have released, pour the contents into the tall pot.

Return the wide pot to the burner, add a little more oil and sauté all the vegetables over medium heat. As the vegetables cook, they’ll release liquid and finish deglazing the bottom of the pan. Those brown bits are important since they add a rich flavor to the stew. Pour the finished vegetables into the tall pot.

Cube potatoes and add them to the tall pot. Pour in enough beef stock to cover all the ingredients, along with a jar or can of tomato bits, and turn on the heat. Add seasonings. I always add bay leaves and usually add a small amount of crushed fennel seed, dill seed, thyme and black pepper. When the pot comes to a boil, add salt. Reduce the heat to a simmer, cover the pot and cook 15 minutes to finish the potatoes.

Meanwhile, I cut up okra and dredged it with flour, cornmeal, salt and pepper and pan-fried it in the wide pot. That process keeps the okra crisp and it doesn’t turn to mush after it is added to the stew. When the potatoes in the tall pot are fork tender, add the fried okra and a small bag of frozen peas. Simmering the stew for 10 minutes more warms the peas, and the okra breading additionally thickens the stew.

A few tablespoons of Worcestershire sauce (or red wine vinegar) helps brighten the stew. Taste and add salt and pepper as necessary. The rich stew is now ready to serve and enjoy with family and friends.
Holding a community supper is a great way to build a strong community. The Bonanza gathering was a treat and it was enjoyable to meet and converse with young and old alike. The food was wonderful, but certainly our greatest treasure is the community of neighbors and friends.

This weekend I cleaned up my garden, uprooting tired purple-hull pea bushes, cutting back leggy okra and pulling out some old root vegetables. I was able to scrounge up a handful of gnarly carrots. They looked horrendous, but had a surprisingly good taste. I decided that a spiced carrot soup with crusty bread would be a perfect dinner for a cool fall evening.

Carrots provided the inspiration, but they were lacking in quantity. So I peeled and chopped those carrots into 1-inch pieces and did the same with 2 lbs. from the store. I also chopped a large onion, 3 garlic cloves and finely shredded about a tablespoon of ginger root. I added all to a medium-hot pan with olive oil, salt and pepper. Ginger provided some spice, but I didn’t stop there. I added two bay leaves, a dash of ground coriander and 2 teaspoons each of red curry powder and ground turmeric. That kicked up the spice level.

I stirred in 6 cups of chicken stock (vegetable stock would work as well) and let the pot simmer covered for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Then after testing the carrots to make sure they’re done, turn off the heat. Let the soup sit and cool about 20 minutes before processing. It’s also a good time to remove the bay leaves – they don’t blend well and can be bitter if left in the soup.

I used an immersion blender and the soup didn’t need to cool much. If a food processor is to be used, let the soup cool more. Scary hot liquid flying around in a food processor or blender is not a good thing. The soup can always be reheated if it has cooled too much.

Once the soup is silky smooth, add about 2 tablespoons of Worcestershire sauce. Taste the soup and season with salt and pepper as necessary. The soup is yummy served with a dollop of Greek yogurt or sour cream, crumbled bacon bits and fresh chopped cilantro or parsley. I added a hunk of crusty bread to the meal. The ginger gave the soup a hint of heat and the other spices rounded out with warm autumnal tones. That’s comfort food to me.

Pressure canning is something I have always wanted to do. I’ve pickled vegetables and processed them with the water-bath method, but the ability to preserve food without all the vinegar and salt seemed out of my reach. That is until I purchased a used pressure cooker/canner. What makes it even more interesting to me is that it once belonged to centenarian Hazle Terry. Hopefully, I can do as well with it as she.

So far I’ve processed tomato quarters and hot salsa. Pasta sauce was next on my list. I knew the effort would take a few hours since I needed to remove the tomato skins by boiling them in water and peeling as well as allowing the tomatoes to simmer with onions, garlic and savory herbs before pressure canning.

Since I was going to be in the kitchen heating up the house anyway, I decided to cook the huge pork loin my husband picked up when he offered to get the groceries – it’s been a busy week. I was thinking a small one-pound loin would be nice for a dinner, but like most men – go big or go home – he bought almost four pounds of pig. Actually he did very well; it was a beautiful roast.

While water started to boil for the tomatoes, I set the oven for 350 degrees and seared on the stove-top all six sides of the pork loin – that included the ends. Placing the loin in a roasting pan with the fatty side up, I salted and peppered and spread rosemary pesto all over the top of the loin. (Rosemary pesto is a paste made with rosemary, garlic, walnuts, olive oil, parmesan, salt and pepper. Made up in 4-oz. container portions, it can be frozen and used as needed.) I also sprinkled panko bread crumbs on top of the loin and drizzled it with olive oil. It already smelled good.

Because of its size, that loin was going to need to cook for almost two hours. So into the oven with the timer set for 45 minutes. Then I began processing tomatoes. After 45 minutes, I made a tent with foil and placed it loosely over the roast. This keeps a little moisture in and more importantly, keeps the rosemary pesto from browning too much. Back into the oven and set the timer for another 45 minutes.

By this time the tomatoes have been peeled; onion and garlic have sautéed in a huge pot; the pot has been deglazed with a little red wine; herbs, seasonings and tomatoes have been added; and the sauce is simmering nicely. And I needed to decide what to serve with the loin for dinner. Potatoes or rice came to mind and I decide on potatoes since I still had a few left and rice will keep. I made the smashed potato recipe from last week’s Leader and since I had so much going on, I just popped frozen spinach into the microwave. Both are quick and easy.

After the second set of 45 minutes had passed, I pulled out the loin and checked the internal temperature with a meat thermometer. I was looking for 160 degrees and we weren’t there. I ended up cooking the loin for another 30 minutes before reaching 162 degrees. I let the meat rest for about 20 minutes before slicing.

The rosemary pesto and panko bread crumbs made a flavorful crust over the meat that was moist and perfectly seasoned. The smashed potatoes and spinach paired nicely with this incredible roast. I still need to pressure can the jarred pasta sauce and it looks like we’ll be having pork loin for a few more meals.