There are times when we all need to hear a feel-good story. This week is certainly one of those weeks for me. As the green chile roasters get pulled out in Santa Fe, I am reminded of one of my favorite such stories and the recipe that accompanies it (it uses green chile y’all).

Toni Cleland and I worked together in Oregon. We lost touch after I moved, and then she found me through the world of modern technology. I am grateful for her doing so. While she and I are tied by our similar beliefs and interests, her example as a human being is what I appreciate. And most importantly as a lover of stories, her story that follows is one that inspires me. Hopefully it will do the same for you. What follows is Toni’s story in her own words, and an amazing recipe using green chile to soothe whatever ails you.

Toni Cleland on family, friends and food

Scott (Toni’s husband) was transferring from a desk job at the sheriff’s office to a deputy position. He had to take a pre-employment physical and that’s how they found his tumor – when they did a chest x-ray. The tumor was HUGE, and he hadn’t experienced any symptoms…so his doctor told us that if Scott hadn’t had the x-ray, by the time he DID have symptoms, his cancer probably would not have been treatable. So the decision to switch jobs was life-saving!

So they found he had Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Scott had chemo for about 4 months and radiation for about 3 months. He’s been in remission…let’s see…it’ll be 7 years this October (woohoo!).

When Scott got sick, one of our church friends started a dinner group – that fed us periodically so I had one last thing to deal with while I was working, doing basically all the child care and housework, etc, etc, etc. The meals were so, so appreciated – not only were they far healthier than anything I could have slung together at that time, but they gave us a sense of normalcy and allowed us to have some actual family dinners.

Our Master Chef friend is named Mike Peterson. Mike is a Vietnam veteran and retired vintner (He made wine.). He is also a major community activist, volunteering to help homeless vets. He volunteers at the Eugene family Dining Room several times per month. He also pushed our church into becoming a site for the Egan Warming Center. Named after a homeless vet, Major Thomas Egan, who froze to death one night while sleeping outside, the Egan warming centers open at churches throughout Eugene when the temperature drops below 30 degrees. Our church has some grumpy people who love the idea of Christianity…just not of letting stinky homeless people sleep in the church. Mike stood up and fought HARD to overcome that sentiment, and now the grumpy old people are super proud that we are an Egan Warming Center. Mike is seriously one of the kindest people I’ve ever met – LIVES his faith if you know what I
mean.

Mike cooked for us a few times, but our favorite meal was his chile verde. He personally delivered a complete meal of chile verde, homemade Spanish rice, and tortillas, along with some pre-packed leftovers for the freezer. It was so, so good – Scott’s taste buds were kind of wacky from the chemo (a common side effect), and the spiciness was perfect – spicy enough that he could taste and enjoy it, but not so spicy that the kids wouldn’t eat it.

We liked it so much, and told Mike afterwards…so he, out of the blue, made it for us again once or twice after Scott was well. At the time we were neighbors with Mike, and he just popped over a few times with a meal and a bottle of his own wine. What a wonderful neighbor!

When you’re dealing with a life-threatening illness, there are some blessings that you discover along the way. One of them is an understanding and appreciation of the fact that you are loved – loved and supported by people like Mike. It’s been so long since Scott was sick that sometimes it all seems like a dream – a bad dream, but a dream. But we will never forget our friends like Mike, who rallied when our family needed it the most.

So here is the recipe for Chile Verde. We swore it had healing properties.

CHILE VERDE

– 3 pounds pork, cut up
– 1 large onion
– 4-5 potatoes
– 3 large  7 oz. cans green chiles, diced ( approx 3 cups of fresh roasted green chile diced if you have it)

– garlic granules
– salt
– pepper
– crushed red chiles, pods, and seeds, to taste

– flour (if needed to thicken)

1. Saute onion until transparent, about 2 minutes.

2. Cut pork (de-bone if needed) into large pieces.

3. Dice potatoes medium-large.

4. Add pork (and bones, if any) to stockpot or frying pan.

5.Cook over medium-low heat for 6-9 minutes.

6.Once you have a small amount of juice in the pan, add potatoes and cook until 3/4 done.

7. Add enough flour (mixed into a paste, or roux) to thicken and cook last 1/4 until done.

8. Add chiles (canned of fresh)  to desired consistency and all seasonings.

9.Cook 24-36 minutes longer.

This is great with tortillas or just plain.