Ann T, I keep saying that you and I could eat together. Rare beef, fresh bread, you could have all my olives, and just an occasional bit of cheese. I DO love Michigan, I think it's just a couple of miles south of Heaven, as Renee used to tell me. I like our produce because it's fresh, I think it all suffers from long shipment. No way can a peach that was picked from the tree two hours ago at the peak of ripeness be compared to one picked 5 states away, last week, and slightly green so they can ship it successfully. I've also found that, no matter where I am, I like the local stuff best. I am hugely enamoured of peameal bacon, which I ate at a family reunion in Buckhorn, Canada, but I haven't seen it anywhere else, ever. I thoroughly enjoyed the almond champagne with chocolate port I got at the vineyard in California and no matter how I tried to replicate it, I couldn't do as well here. The tangerines lacksboys3 sent and the honeybells gardengrl sent me were far better than anything I've had here. The fresh seafood I got in Maine was far better than any I've had elsewhere, but I still like our Lake Perch and Walleye better here than anywhere else. I'm definitely one of those "eat locally" people. I'm looking forward to our trip to Texas, someplace in Brownsville sells cabrito, which I think is barbequed goat. Yup, definitely gotta try it and expand my food horizons, like I did in California with the sushi. Oh, and Sangria. Gotta try some sangria. Annie

Thanks for all of your help. I'd be happy to share the recipe. Chickpea, Chorizo and Chicken Stew with Mount Tam Cheese yield: Makes 6 to 8 main-course servings A slightly firm, mellow triple-crème, Mt. Tam cheese softens into this stew but doesn't melt. We like to add a little extra Sherry just before serving. Ingredients 1 pound dried chickpeas (2 1/2 cups), picked over 2 medium tomatoes 1 tablespoon black peppercorns 1 tablespoon cumin seeds 2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons olive oil 2 ounces slab bacon, rind discarded and bacon cut into 1/4-inch dice 3 tablespoons unsalted butter 5 garlic cloves, minced 2 tablespoons fresh jalapeño chiles (about 3), seeded and minced 2 large celery ribs, cut into 1/4-inch dice 1 red bell pepper, cut into 1/4-inch dice 1 fresh poblano chile, ribs and seeds discarded and chile cut into 1/4-inch dice 1 medium red onion, cut into 1/4-inch dice 1 large carrot, cut into 1/4-inch dice 1 small fennel bulb (sometimes called anise), stalks cut off and discarded and bulb cut into 1/4-inch dice 2 Turkish bay leaves or 1 California 1/2 cup sweet Spanish Sherry 10 cups chicken stock (page 314), or 7 cups low-sodium chicken broth plus 3 cups water 3/4 pound fresh chorizo* links (spiced Mexican pork sausage) 1 1/2 pound chicken thighs with skin and bones (about 4; preferably organic) 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/4 teaspoon black pepper 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil 4 fresh rosemary sprigs 1 (8-ounce) wheel Cowgirl Creamery Mt. Tam**, or other soft mild triple-crème cow's-milk cheese such as Explorateur, at room temperature Prepare chickpeas: Soak chickpeas in water to cover by 2 inches for 8 to 12 hours, then drain. Cut an X in bottom of each tomato. Blanch tomatoes in a saucepan of boiling water 10 seconds, then transfer with a slotted spoon to a bowl of ice and cold water. Peel, seed, and dice tomatoes. Toast peppercorns and cumin seeds in a small dry heavy skillet over moderate heat, stirring, until fragrant and cumin seeds are a shade darker. Cool completely, then finely grind in grinder. Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a wide 6- to 7-quart heavy pot over moderate heat until hot but not smoking. Add bacon and cook, stirring, until just browned, about 3 minutes. Add 2 tablespoons butter and heat until foam subsides, then stir in garlic and jalapeños and cook, stirring, 1 minute. Increase heat to moderately high and stir in celery, bell pepper, poblano, onion, carrot, and fennel, then cook, uncovered, stirring frequently, until vegetables are browned, about 20 minutes. Stir in tomatoes, bay leaves, and ground spices and cook, stirring, 1 minute. Add Sherry and deglaze by boiling, scraping up any brown bits from bottom of pot, until most of liquid is evaporated, about 2 minutes. Add chickpeas and stock and simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until chickpeas are tender and liquid is thick and saucelike, 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Prepare chorizo and chicken while chickpeas simmer: Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 375°F. Prick chorizo links several times with a fork, then brown in remaining 2 teaspoons olive oil in an ovenproof large heavy skillet over moderate heat, turning, about 10 minutes. Transfer to a plate and chill, uncovered, until cold and firm, 10 to 15 minutes. Slice chorizo into 1/4-inch-thick rounds and chill, covered. Pat chicken dry and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Heat remaining tablespoon butter in cleaned skillet over moderately high heat until foam subsides, then sear chicken, skin side down, until skin is crisp and browned, about 5 minutes. Turn chicken over, then drizzle with extra-virgin olive oil and place a rosemary sprig on each piece. Transfer skillet to oven and roast until chicken is just cooked through, 12 to 15 minutes. Remove from oven and let stand 10 minutes, then discard rosemary, skin, and bones and shred meat. Keep loosely covered. Finish stew: When stew is thickened, stir in chicken and chorizo and simmer until sausage is cooked through, about 5 minutes. Discard bay leaves. Divide stew among 6 to 8 bowls and top each serving with 2 or 3 thin wedges of cheese. *Available at Latino markets. **Available at cheese shops, Murray's Cheese Shop (888-692-4339; murrayscheese.com), and Cowgirl Creamery (866-433-7834; cowgirlcreamery.com). Gourmet, 2004

Oh, I love Peccorino, Jim!! Especially shaved. I'm not much for most moldy cheeses, though sometimes like sour, stinky ones like Brillat-Savarin. And I do like some cheeses with stuff in them like brie aux chamignons, or herbes, but I don't get pepper jack. Jack is such a mild flavor you can't taste the cheese if there are peppers in it. Chevre with peppercorns is good though. They're not as popular any more but I love a good Swiss! Jarlsberg is another one I don't dare sit next to. But guess what? I also love American cheese. I don't do Velveeta or spray cheese or anything else that looks too much like plastic, but Kraft Deluxe American, toasted on bread, or melted with a little salsa picante is just yummy. I suppose that's one of those holdovers from childhood though, like peanut butter is for other people.

If nightshade veggies don't bother you, try this yummy dish I made a couple of weeks ago. It's perfect for the last of the garden stuff. Eggplant chickpea stew with tomatoes from the Williams and Sonoma Vegetable Cookbook 2 small to medium eggplants about 1 1/2 - 2 lbs. total weight. (Note: I just used one big one because that's all I could find, but the littler ones are less bitter, supposedly) 4-5 TBLSP olive oil 1 red onion, cut into wedges 3-4 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped 1 lb. fresh tomatoes pureed with a grater or shredder (Yeah right . . . NOT! I just chop them up, or use another can of chopped tomatoes in the off season) 1 1/2 cups canned chickpeas (I usually cook my own, put them in pint jars and freeze, then thaw or microwave to use) 1 lb. diced tomatoes with juice (Like I said, I usually just use one big 24 oz. can of the diced tomatoes, or buy a snazzy can of San Marazano tomatoes and dice them myself before adding) Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste 1/4 tsp. of sugar 1/8 tsp. crushed dried thyme Pinch of ground cinnamon (Don't leave this out, it won't predominate and will give this dish the needed oomph) 1/2 cup dry red wine (Or use a dash of balsamic vinegar if you don't do wine) 2 TBLSP chopped fresh flat leaf italian parsley. (I often don't have fresh parsley, I sub 1 TBLSP dried parsley) Juice of 1/2 lemon (Again, I often sub reconstituted lemon juice, like maybe 1 TBLSP) Sautee the eggplant in half the oil until it is soft, then set it aside. Then sautee the onion in the remaining oil til soft, and add all the other stew ingredients except for the lemon juice. Cook gently to thicken, about 10 min, stirring occasionally and taking care not to smoosh the chickpeas too much. Adjust seasoning to your taste. I DOUBLED the seasoning and might even have added in some oregano. When the sauce is thick and tasty, add the eggplant back in and reduce the heat to med. low and cook 10-15 min. more. Add the lemon juice to brighten the flavors just before serving. (This is not absolutely necessary) I served it with some goat cheese sprinkled on top. Would be great with brushetta with tofu pesto, or pita with spinach dip, but I usually serve it with rice. Goes good with whole wheat pasta too. BF loves this stuff. Oh, and I peel eggplants because I am not a fan of the peel. I also salt them for 15 min. and rinse them afterwards, before sauteeing. I can't usually find good fresh eggplants. Here's another salad I am making later this week to use up my stash of cukes. I probably won't use 4 cukes in it though, and will adjust the ingredients to suit my taste. I usually find that these Eating Well salads don't have enough dressing, so I end up doubling that. Skimping on the dressing is how they cut the calories! Plus I use lowfat feta, or goat cheese crumbles I can get, which supposedly aren't as inflamatory as cow's milk cheeses. Cucumber & Black-Eyed Pea Salad from "Eating Well." Ingredients 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil 2 tablespoons lemon juice 2 teaspoons chopped fresh oregano, or 1 teaspoon dried Freshly ground pepper to taste 4 cups peeled and diced cucumbers 1 14-ounce can black-eyed peas, rinsed (I will use canelinni beans becuase I have a ton of them. Plus, that's the kind of bean I usually use for this salad. Could use garbanzos too.) 2/3 cup diced red bell pepper (I almost always use green peppers, red are too expensive) 1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese (or less or leave out) 1/4 cup slivered red onion 2 tablespoons chopped black olives 1 can of tuna (LR's addition) Can also add celery and garnish with cherry tomatoes just before serving. Fine to just use bottled italian dressing for this, and you can serve it over lettuce garnished with croutons too.