It’s been a few weeks since posting anything, and quite a
lot has happened. My husband and I are finally moved in to our new place! While
most everything is unpacked and organized, there are a few boxes left to sort out,
and a few details that need attention. I’ve been photographing the whole moving
in process to show the before and after. I am looking forward to finally having
all the boxes unpacked and every last item in its appropriate place. There are
few things as frustrating as wasting extensive, precious time trying to dig
through boxes in search of some necessary item.
The day after we moved, I came down with a cold and slight
fever. As if moving and unpacking while having to still work wasn’t enough on
my plate, now I felt physically miserable. Super. I’m not sure if getting a
cold was the result of the stress from moving or simply because I work around
young children and they’re all sick; either way, I was not pleased. All I
wanted was some soup, but nothing too heavy or creamy. The time had come to
break out my mother-in-law’s Pozole (Posole) Verde recipe.
This is an excellent soup, but a variation of traditional
Pozole. This version trades the typical pork or chicken for squash, making it a
vegetarian soup. I took a few liberties this time around in adjusting the
recipe to be more to my taste, and I absolutely love how it turned out. The “broth”
has a lot of flavor and kick to it, and the vegetables are hearty and filling
without being overwhelming.
What I Used…
2 cubes of vegetable bouillon OR 4 cups low sodium vegetable broth
5 cups water
About 1 lb of tomatillos-
husked and halved
2 jalapenos- cut and seeded
1 large pasilla pepper
1 zucchini- sliced and quartered
1 yellow squash- sliced and quartered
1 butternut squash-cut in to bite size pieces (delicata squash would be
better and easier to cut, this however was not available at the time)
1 yellow onion- peeled and halved
5-6 total garlic cloves- 2 whole, 3 or 5 finely diced
1 or 2 of 15 oz cans of white hominy- drained and rinsed
1 can of pinto beans- drained and rinsed
1 can of white beans- drained and rinsed
2 limes- halved
1 ts chili powder
1 ts cumin
1 TB extra virgin olive oil
What I Did…
First, I boiled four cups of water in a large Dutch oven.
Once the water began to simmer, I added two vegetable bouillon cubes and
stirred them in to create my own broth. When the broth was at a boil, I lowered
the heat to a low-medium flame and added my tomatillos, jalapenos, and whole garlic
cloves. I allowed that to simmer for roughly 15 minutes, until all the
vegetables felt soft. I then used a hand held, or stick, blender to puree the
mixture of the broth, peppers, tomatillos, and garlic until it looked like a
really liquid-y salsa. Then I added the juice of one lime, followed by my chili powder and cumin.
While the broth and tomatillos were cooking, I cut the pasilla
pepper, all my squash, the onion, and my remaining garlic cloves. In a large
pan, I heated up the olive oil.
Once hot, I added the chopped pasilla pepper,
garlic, and onion to the pan. I had that mixture cook for about five minutes, then
I tossed it along with all the cut squashes and the remaining cup of water into the Dutch oven. After giving the whole mixture a good stir, I put the
flame on low-medium and covered the pot. I had that cook for about 15 minutes.
While all the vegetables were cooking, I prepped my beans
and hominy by draining and rinsing them. After 15 minutes had passed, I added
these to the Dutch oven to cook with the vegetables and broth for another 15
minutes.
After this, my soup was done! I served it topped with some
crushed tortilla chips and grated cheddar cheese, and sprinkled a little lime
juice over top for some extra zest. This soup was just what I needed to nurse
myself through that nasty little cold.
I ended up having enough soup for the whole week, so it was
nice not to have to cook every night while I wasn’t feeling well. All my
husband or I had to do was heat a serving size up in a small pot (or the
microwave, if you’re an impatient male) and we were good to go. I can’t wait
for it to get colder here so I can try more soup recipes! Hopefully we’ll
actually have some cold weather in Southern California. It doesn’t seem as if
that’s ever going to happen, but I’ve not yet lost hope. Till next time!
Love, Little Mouse
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