[Sca-cooks] Playing with cazuelas...

[Phil Troy / G. Tacitus Adamantius]

Hullo, the list!

Been busy with school stuff, having my rather ordinary (as far as I can 
see) homework-type papers hijacked by professors and submitted to this 
city-university-wide contest and such-and-such a publication (no money, 
darnit, at least not yet).

However, I'm off until Tuesday, and have been playing with the new toys 
my lovely wife got me yesterday: two smallish (maybe nine-inch?) 
earthenware cazuela casseroles that are dishwasher-safe (not that they 
will EVER go into the dishwasher), stovetop (gas or electric) safe, 
microwave safe (again, I don't THINK so) and attractive right on the table.

After soaking in water and heating them for a while with water inside 
them, we dumped out the water, put them back on a gentle heat, and did a 
Spanish gambas al ajillo in one -- basically shrimp fried in 
garlic-flavored olive oil -- and bacalao a la vizcaina -- salt cod 
Biscay style, in a red sauce with olive oil, green olives, capers, 
onion, garlic, bay leaf, white wine, chiles and, classically, tomato, in 
the other. I used a little roasted red pepper puree instead of the 
tomato, though, and an extra splash of wine, as the basis for the red 
sauce, since my wife is deathly allergic to tomatoes. This tactic worked 
better even than I expected it to...

Now I'm looking at the cazuelas and thinking, "Hmmm, patina of pears 
with honey... "

Happy New Year, all a' youse!

Adamantius