Road trip in New Mexico - Where must we eat?

May seem odd to recommend a French restaurant in Albuquerque, New Mexico but P'tit Louis is consistently fantastic (mussels are the best), great price, and a charmingly small bistro. For a wild experience of Mexico, check out the Pro Ranch Market in Albuquerque. Walmart-sized market and prepared foods and aguas that you can sit and enjoy with a streaming soccer match on the overhead t.v.'s. Again on a budget, the Frontier on Central (in front of UNM) is where we take out of town friends. Quick, inexpensive, and a great place for people watching. Go for any of the New Mexican specialties, especially their smothered burritos or anything with green chile. Tortilla roll hot and fresh off the machine, which you can view as you wait for your food. If you are in Santa Fe, splurge and go to Santacafe (see if you can't make reservations for the patio) Every meal has been one to dream about and the service is polished but not obnoxious. Buen provecho!

foodarts56 in Southwest

What's The One Thing You Can't Eat, even for money.

number one on my list is cooked raisins....those, weirdly wrinkled and plump things that make me shudder when I discover one buried in rice pudding. Like raisins the way they were intended, dry.

foodarts56 in General Chowhounding Topics

what do you prefer that most foodies would scoff at?

Here in New Mexico we an abundance of great green chile cheeseburgers. Flay lost a green chile burger cookoff to a hole in the wall called the Buckhorn in southern New Mexico.MMMMgreenchile and cheese!

foodarts56 in General Chowhounding Topics

Blast from the past - Salmagundi's [moved from San Francisco Bay Area board]

Going over my clippings notebook I saw that Bon Appetit had run their German Lentil Soup with Garlic Sausage recipe. Never tried it so cannot confirm that it is the real deal but it is worth a try. Hope it fits the bill.

Salmagundi German Lentil Soup with Garlic Sausage

Serves 6
2 quarts beef or chicken broth
1 cup lentils, rinsed and sorted
1/2 cup finely chopped carrot
1/2 cup finely chopped celery
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1 medium orange, quartered
3 parsley sprigs
1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves or 1/2 tesapoon dried, crumbled
1 bay leaf

1/2 pound salt pork
2 tablespoons all purp. flour

1/2 cup sour cream
2 tablespoons dry Sherry
6 cooked unsmoked all beef garlic sausages, cut into 1/4 inch slices

Combine broth, lentils, chopped vegetables, and pepper in a large saucepan. Tie orange, parsley, thyme, and bay leaf in cheesecloth bag. Add to saucepan. Bring mixture to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat and simmer until lentils are tender, about 45 minutes. Meanwhile, bring large saucepan of water to boil over high heat. Add salt pork and blanch for 10 minutes. Drain well and cut salt pork into 1/2 inch cubes (about 1 1/2 cups). Transfer to medium skillet. Place over medium heat and cook utnil salt pork begins to render fat, then increase heat to medium high and saute until browned on all sides, about 20 minutes. Pour off all but 2 tablespoons of fat and reduce heat to medium. Add the flour, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes. Add to simmering lentil mixture and sontinue stirring for 15 minutes. Discard cheesecloth bag. Combine the sour cream and Sherry and stir into the soup. Taste and adjust seasoning, adding more water if too thick. Add sausage and heat through.
enjoy!
susan wing

foodarts56 in Home Cooking

Sweetbreads question

The only way I have ever had sweetbreads is Argentine style, grilled on a parilla. They were crisp on the outside and sublime on the inside. They have a toothsome quality and are not as delicate as when prepared in sauced recipes. But I can't imagine something as good as they are grilled, with a little chimichurri on the side, a watercress salad and some great crusty bread. How were yours prepared?

foodarts56 in General Chowhounding Topics

Santa Fe Provisions (where to buy chiles and such)

Not sure about mexican markets in Santa Fe but Albuquerque is only one hour south where you can get anything you can imagine at the Pro Ranch Market. It is a huge place with all types of dried and fresh chiles, herbs, canned and packaged groceries. Take a cooler with you and you can pick up fresh masa (for both tortillas and tamales), fresh tortillas, chorizo, carnitas, salsas, vegetables like fresh garbanzos (in the pod) queso fresco, and cremas. Plan on lunch there. They have a vast menu and it is cheap and fresh. Washed down with an agua (they have around 8 types each day...watermelon, horchata, jamaica, guava). My favorite part is that you can also buy a plastic version of the big glass jar from which the waters are dispensed). The place it in the south valley at the intersection of Central and Atrisco. Good shopping!

foodarts56 in Southwest

Santa Fe in July

Hope you will be in S.F. for the Folk Art Market but if not a favorite place (and reliably excellent) for lunch or dinner is Santacafe. Beautiful to sit inside or on their patio. Make reservations if you can as it is a popular place and not too far from your hotel. Walking is a very safe activitiy.

foodarts56 in Southwest