Brrrr! This time of Fall heading into Winter, my thoughts turn automatically to warm soups and wonderful, thick stews which stick to the ribs and warm the bones. Nothing in the world – in my opinion anyway – is more wonderful than a great Green Chile Stew made with my beloved Hatch green chiles, of course. This is one that I am proud to share and hope that everyone who sees it tries it. It is remarkably hearty, tasty and economical as well. It can be made very hot (i.e., Hatch especiale chiles) to mild, but satisfying (using Hatch Regular or Mild chiles). Any way you make it, it is sure to be a hit. Each dinner guest can customize their bowl with condiments and toppings such as sour cream, pepper jack cheese shreds, sweet cold crisp radish slices, cilantro, tostado chips dropped in the bowl or served alongside. Sweet creamery butter on hot flour tortillas are my favorite along with a few fresh leaves of cilantro for that extra fresh bite.

    One other neat aspect of this Treat (pardon me, I could not resist this as it is Halloween) is that you can use it in different ways. Not only is it a superb stew, but using just the basic chile-pork-broth mixture with just a bit of flour or corn meal slurry stirred in becomes a marvelous topping for blue corn tortilla enchiladas and even to spoon over homemade pork tamales or rice. This is a really versatile meal for your cooking repertoire.