White Chicken Posole

We arrived at the Nickel and Dime last night at 11 p.m., road weary but happy to be back. Visiting relatives and friends in SoCal is always fun, but there's a sigh of relief as we turn onto the dirt road for the final miles to our place. I flipped off the radio so we could have some blessed silence as we made our way home. Ten hours of satellite radio will do anyone in. Just saying.

We came home to temps in the 20's, dropping into the single digits tonight and tomorrow. Today I did a little Facebook catching up and saw a friend's abuelita (grandma) making posole for New Year's. Ahh. Posole and a grandma making soup for the holidays is something special and worth memorializing anywhere. I could almost smell the chiles and the comforting broth and thought, "Dang, I want some of that!" 

Posole, sometimes spelled pozole, is a lightly spiced, hominy soup made with pork or chicken, but here I've opted for chicken. With the added garnishes, it makes a satisfying lunch or dinner and not just for the holidays.

This recipe is a quick and easy version, so you should be done cooking in about 30 minutes, which is definitely a winner. I won't be making posole tomorrow, but with these cold temps, you can bet it will be on the menu sometime soon.

Chicken Posole

Ingredients

1 lb. skinless, boneless chicken breasts, diced
1 t dried thyme
Salt and pepper
2 T olive oil
1 large onion
1 jalapeno pepper, chopped (remove seeds and veins)
2 cloves minced garlic
3 small cans diced green chiles (or to taste)
4 c chicken broth
2 15 oz. cans hominy, drained

Optional garnishes: Cubed or sliced avocado, chopped radishes, chopped cilantro, salsa, lime wedges, shredded cabbage or lettuce, tortilla chips



Directions

1. Toss the diced chicken with 1/2 t thyme and some salt and pepper. Set aside.

2. Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion, jalapeno and garlic and cook until soft, about 3-4 minutes. Add chiles and the remaining thyme. Cook over medium heat for about 5 minutes.

3. Add the broth, hominy and chicken to the saucepan. Cover and simmer until the chicken is tender, about 10 minutes. Garnish to your heart's content.

And remember what your abuelita always says: "Eat your posole while it's hot!"

It's Trudy's Birthday and She Made A Gorgeous Afghan (or two)

Happy Birthday to Trudy who is 93 years old today. She's my treasured mom-in law, caregiver to husband P, mom to three, grandma to 8, great-grand to 7, and there's even one great-great granddaughter!

She's an accomplished sewist, knitter, and crocheter, tireless go-getter, and still keeps on going, like the Energizer Bunny.

The day or two after Christmas she says, "Okay, if you want me to make anything for your Christmas presents next year, you have to tell me now!" For a while T asked for two sweaters every year, and he has an amazing collection that will last him until he is 93 himself.

So we get out the books, look on the internet, and choose what we want.

Last year M and I chose the same afghan. What's nice about choosing a year ahead of time is I almost always forget what I ordered.

Christmas is about surprises, so that's what happened again this year.

 
Trudy used all her scrap yarn and bought more to complete two big afghans. She says it's something she likes to do while watching television in the evening. Trudy doesn't like to just watch; she has to have a project going. I can relate.

So Happy Birthday, Trudy! The Sizzler salad bar awaits.