clay & cook: another butter dish & green chicken enchiladas

In order to finish building a butter dish, I needed that extra forty-five minutes that Meral extended to studio hours because she didn’t have to work her second job at the Great American Music Hall 

I made this butter dish smaller than the one I made last Saturday, sized to fit a supermarket cube of butter rather than a warehouse-sized cube that’s double in volume. Next week I’ll sand it while manning the ceramics popup sale. I was going to just put my vases in the sale, but Patrick has been complaining about too many succulent planters on the picnic table. Yada yada. I guess I’ll sell pottery and plants too. Maybe. 

I came home after ceramics to this partial tomato harvest (the ones we didn't give to the neighbors).

That orange tomato in the front? It's called Accordion. Then I took 2 of the green zebra tomatoes to chop for dinner. Below is the green chicken enchiladas-making station: said chopped green tomatoes, cilantro, onion (I should have used scallions to make it even more green), sliced jalapeno (also part of the garden harvest), green enchilada sauce (I had neither the time, nor the patience to roast tomatillos and green chilies), roasted chicken thighs (18 minutes, turning over halfway in a 425 degree oven), shredded cheddar and jack cheese, and of course, the making for a lazy person's margarita (sparkling lemonade and tequila baby).        

I softened the corn tortillas first by frying them each for some 14 seconds in vegetable oil and a hot nonstick pan. I then spooned chicken and cheese on to the tortilla and rolled--six of them--which I placed in a casserole dish. I then sprinkled the rest of the cheese, sliced jalapenos, chopped green tomatoes and onion on top, reserving some of the chopped tomatoes and cilantro for after the casserole cooked.

I was too lazy to also cook calabacitas or summer squash, but that would have been a delicious accompaniment. I did however have avocado hot sauce to "gild the lily."

 

The chicken and cheese enchiladas baked in a 325 degree oven for 20 to 25 minutes after which I sprinkled the rest of the green tomatoes and cilantro (lazy person's salad).

Dinner with condiments of avocado sauce and sour including tequila soda is done.

I look forward to cooking for Helen and myself at the beach house. Some foods are verboten for her, and so I'll be eating Caprese salads on my own but will be sharing vegetables from our garden supplemented by proteins I hope to find at seafood markets.