Hello, greetings from San Antonio, Texas. Recently, I was given a large collection of books by a NZ writer named Essie Summers. I imagine some of you may know about her books. They were written mostly during the 60's and 70's. I've very much enjoyed reading about the beauty of your North and South Islands. Her decriptions of the different areas of NZ with the flowers, trees, and scenery are fantastic. What a beautiful country NZ must be. She also has quite a bit of description of NZ cooking, her heroines are usually very proficient cooks, but somethings I don't understand some of the ingredients. What is Marmite? is quince a fruit or a vegiie?
Thanks and greetings from Texas

Hello Judith, welcome to the forum. Wikipedia is a good start to explain Marmite (personally I can't stand it or the smell,brrrrr), but it is a staple
[en.wikipedia.org]

and Quince is a fruit... and once again wikipedia explains it well
[en.wikipedia.org]

look forward to you sharing some of your food ideas etc

Cheers, Irene

Thanks Irene, had not thought of looking in wikipidia, will do so from now on when I come across other things in the ES books I'm unfamiliar with.
Must admit after reading the description of Marmite, it sounds not so yummy.
I'm looking forward to getting a lot of good information about NZ food from this forum. I'm a Hispanic, and a 4th generation Texan, so I'll be happy to share Mexican and Texas recipes, I moved here from Brownsville,Texas, which is on the southern most tip of Texas, right on the border of Mexico, so my recipes are mostly from the Northern Mexico region.

Marmite is a Kiwi Institution really, although some NZers prefer Vegemite (which I think originates from Australia). I love it on "Vogels" toast which is a dense whole grain bread. I think if you grow up on the stuff you become addicted, but Marmite would be harder to grow to love as an adult...

I love Mexican food, but in my experience, in NZ, to get good stuff you have to make it yourself. Some of the ingredients are not readily available but we have plenty of beans, avocado's, limes and sour cream which is a good start.

I haven't been to Texas but my husband has visited at least twice and had a fantastic time

Hi Judithgrace

I would be interested in a recipe that has a green chilli sauce. Perhaps shredded meat wrapped in tortilla recipe as well.

Have fun
Ruth

Have fun!
Ruth

Marmite and Vegemite are generally aquired tastes, I have heard of people just trying it on a spoon- YUCK!!!! - LOL
I love them, and often have one or the other, thinly spread on toast, then, covered in cheese and grilled! Both marmite and vegemite go really well with cheese in scones roll ups as well.
I find they are very strong, so use sparingly, but add a tablespoon to add a nice boost to soups and stews etc...
Although I never got into the marmite and lettuce sandwich thing, which was big at school, many ... many... years ago - lol.

Ruth, would you be interested in a Green Chile Enchilada recipe? it has shredded chicken as the filling. If so, I can find it in my recipe box and send it on to you, just let me know if you want to try it.
Judith

Having never heard of Essie Summers, I did a Google search and this is what I came up with: [christchurchcitylibraries.com]
Seems she was a Mills & Boon author for much of her career in writing, which is a pity because it sounds like she wrote some quite decent stuff.
Judithgrace, in case you're not familiar with M&B other than your Essie Summers books, this publishers 'stable' of writers are rather looked down on by 'real' authors. All the story-lines seem to be very similar, just the hero's & heroine's names changing, and they were usually something pretentious such as Peregrine Carruthers and Hermione Cuttingfold.
The stories would follow a universal pattern of boy meets girl, they fall in love. Boy hurts girl in some dastardly way, leaving her broken hearted and usually destitute. New boy comes along, picks up the pieces, they fall in love, and nearly always marry on the last page. It has been said if you have read one M&B, you have read them all!

I must admit I have a rather weird sense of humour (being English). I once was in a discussion with a woman who told me she had recently earned a degree in the Romances. I asked if she had to read every Mills & Boon to get her degree, continuing my riposte with 'but then, you'd only have to read one, wouldn't you.' Fortunately, the woman was also English and understoon my humour, not taking it as sarcasm, which it was not intended to be. (If Shakespeare can use 'to be' to end a sentence, so can I).






Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/22/2008 10:49PM by Lorna.

Dear Judith, I would absolutely love a Green Chile Enchilada recipe too please!!! I love Mexican food and have relatives in San Antonio where I have fond memories of visiting some 25 or more years ago!

Add me to the list JudithGrace - I would love your recipe please...

Lorna, I am not familiar with Mills and Boon, but the books sound alot like the Harlequin or Silouette romances that we have here in the US. I am enjoying the Essie Summers books a lot. Although somewhat dated, her discriptions of the different areas of NZ both the N. and S. Islands are just wonderful. Makes me want to visit your beautiful country. High country sheep ranches and discriptions of the high country scenery and the ranch work there with the sheep herding is so interesting, and I contrast it to Texas ranch life and find some similarities. I will do some further research on Essie.

Ladies, here are two recipes for Green Chile enchiladas. The first is the genuine individual green chile enchilada recipe, the second is the casserole which is less authentic, but just as yummy....
I hope you enjoy both.

GREEN CHILE CHICKEN ENCHILADAS

1 whole chicken
1 can green chilie sauce
8 to 10 oz. Monterey Jack cheese
Seasoning salt
Oil
1 pk Corn tortillas
1 small carton Sour cream

Boil chicken. When slightly cooled, shred and then stir the shredded chicken in a medium skillet with a little oil, and season with seasoning salt, set skillet aside close by. In a small skillet, heat the enchilada sauce but don't let let the sauce get too hot or simmer. Heat the oil in a third small skillet. You are now ready to assemble the enchiladas. Dip each tortilla in the oil for 10 seconds until soft and then dip each in the green chile sauce.( I use tongs to protect my fingers) Fill each softened tortilla with chicken, roll them, and put them one by one in a shallow baking dish as you assemble them. Put the shredded cheese and the remaining sauce on top of the enchiladas. If they cool you may reheat the enchiladas in a warm oven for a few mintues. When ready to serve, put a small dollop of cold sour cream on top of each enchilada. Spanish rice is good as side dish.



GREEN CHILE CHICKEN ENCHILADA
CASSEROLE

1 pkg. (24 ct.) corn tortillas
3 cans cream of chicken soup (also can use chicken mushroom)
1 1/2 c. milk ( you may use low fat or 2 percent)
1 small to medium onion, diced fine
2 cans green chilies
2 lbs. shredded cheddar cheese
2 cloves of garlic finely minced
Salt & pepper to taste
1 fryer, cooked, cooled & diced (I add a little ground cumin in the water)

Fry corn tortillas in grease 1 at a time just until soft. ( just take a second or two) Then drain them on paper towels, tear all tortillas into quarters.
Combine in saucepan the soup, milk, onion, green chilies, salt, pepper, garlic and let cook at low hear just until all ingredients are combined. Spray a 9"x13" or 10"x15" casserole with Pam, then put a small amount of the sauce on the bottom of the pan to coat it so tortillas don't stick. Put a layer of corn tortillas on bottom, then a chicken layer, then the soup mixture, then the cheese. Then start over again with the tortillas and continue layering until all ingredients are finished. Sprinkle the remaining cheese on top. Bake in 350 degree oven for 25 minutes. Then let set for 15/20 minutes before serving

Thank you so much Judith, can't wait to try!

Wow thankyou ever so much Judith; like AnneB - I cannot wait to try out the recipes - I will endeavour to make it a priority for next week - thankyou again and welcome and thankyou for your FAB contributions to the forums...

AnneB, looing for your advice and guidance on this one - where can I get 1 can green chilie sauce from or what can I substitute for this? Would the Ol El Paso tins of jalepenos do the trick or the Sun??? glass jars of jelapenos?

Judith, what size is the 1 can green chilie sauce and the cans of green chillies? I mean in oz or gms please...

And Judithgrace, how would you describe Monterey Jack cheese? Is it a processed cheese or a cheddar type? Strong or mild? We nearly always make things from scratch here and recipes that have cans of this or that can be problematic. But both your recipes sound just right for the wintery blast we are currently weathering. Thank you!

Stephanie,
Monterrey Jack Cheese is a milder form of white cheddar that is often used in Mexican dishes, you may substitute a mild yellow cheddar if you can't fine MJ cheese in your grocery stores.

Kathie,
For the CASSROLE: The cans of green chiles that we get here are two sizes, one is the small 4 oz can and the other is the large12 oz. can. You may use two small or one large can for the casserole recipe. Exact size is not too important since it's a cassrole.

Please note that in the authentic enchilada recipe, it is a green chile SAUCE, that is used, it has the consistancy and looks of the red picante sauce found in glass jars. This green chile sauce has as it's base the green tomatillos. It is a mild, slightly tart, but spicy sauce. If you can't find it, you may use red chile sauce to soak the tortillas, but then they will be "red chile enchiladas" which are delicious also, and just follow the same instructions to make the red enchiladas.

Ole El Paso jalapenos, will not work, it must be a tomato sauce, the jalapeno brine will be too watery, and too hot, for enchiladas and it will not coat the tortillas at all. It's just basically water, salt and jalapeno juice, and not appropriate for use in the enchiladas.

I hope you all can find all the ingredients or substitutions. I'm not sure how much specialty ethnic items your grocery stores have available, but if you have Mexican restaurants. maybe you all can ask where they buy their supplies. Good luck.....

Kathie, the good old Mexican supplies store in Ellerslie sells cans of green chile sauce. Also a New Zealand brand called Rio Dolores from the South Island make small jars which are delicious. Nosh and Farro stock this brand but they also do mail orders. I discovered them in a Cuisine magazine article a few years ago - a lovely American couple in Cromwell started the business but they sold it to a company in Nelson (I think) about 2 years ago. I helped them about four or five years ago demonstrate their products at the Auckland Food Show. Their green chile sauce is divine cooked with minced chicken and put inside burrito wrappers with refried beans, grated cheese and rice. Sounds horrendous but is absolutely delicimo! My kids favourite meal!

Thankyou Judith and AnneB - I will check out the Rio Dolores website now...

Kathie let me know if you ever want more Mexican food recipes...I have an extensive collection, some family recipes from my mom, and some that I've just acquired.

Oh Judith (Your an angel), you have opened up a can of worms on this one; my son and I love Mexican food, so I would love any recipes you would be prepared to share with me. I am also training MM who is pretty easy to feed to the Mexican Foody thing. It would be better for you to PM (Private Message) the recipes to me however, as we probably wouldn't want to clog up the forums...

Lorna,
I finally had time to do some research on Essie Summers and found out some very interesting material about her life here is a web site that is devoted to ES. The short bio below is from the website.

[groups.msn.com]


"New Zealand’s Queen of Romance.
Essie Summers wrote 55 romance novels, selling more than 19 million copies in 105 countries and published in 25 languages. Her novels focused on romance and family life with touches of adventure and humour and her winning formula earned her the loyalty of millions of readers.

Essie was born in Christchurch, New Zealand, to Edwin and Ethel Summers on July 24, 1912. She died in Taradale, Hawkes Bay on the August 27, 1998, at the age of 86.

Essie was born a year to the day after her parents left for New Zealand, in Linwood, Christchurch. At four years old, out of "sheer cussedness", she started at North Linwood Primary School. She survived the 1918 influenza epidemic and at twelve years left primary school to go to the Christchurch Technical College. At the time New Zealand was entering the depression and when she left college she got job at the Londontown Drapers instead of pursuing the career in teaching that she desired.

She met her husband, Bill Flett, when she was 13 but it was another 13 years before she became interested in him romantically. He eventually proposed by a letter; not recognising the handwriting she flicked to the last page to see who had written it and spotted his proposal in the final paragraph. A six week courtship by mail ensued until Bill was able to come to Christchurch and they ratified their engagement beneath the moon at Scarborough. The Second World War broke out that September and they were married the following May at the Oxford Terrace Baptist Church. Bill and Essie honeymooned on Banks Peninsula.

Essie and Bill moved to a manse in Ashburton, where their son William was born, then to Wanganui where Elizabeth their daughter was born. After changing to the Presbyterian ministry they went to Dunedin but Essie found the Dunedin manse too damp and was afflicted with fibrositis so they moved to Weston, four miles out of Oamaru in North Otago. They spent many years in Weston before moving north to Rakaia where Essie wrote her first novel. In 1958 they returned to Dunedin where they bought a house. Essie and Bill eventually retired to Napier in 1976.

Her travels around New Zealand, and later the world, provided Essie with settings and plot ideas and many of her readers have travelled to New Zealand to see for themselves the places she describes. In the tourist season it was a regular occurrence that someone would turn up wanting to meet her and this could put great demands on her time. Nevertheless she loved that her books brought people to her homeland and enjoyed meeting her readers.

Her Writing Career
Essie knew that she was destined to be a writer when her teacher read Anne of Green Gables to her class. She started writing verses and short stories when she was eight and never really stopped. She had her first piece accepted when she was eighteen, a poem titled Gypsy Heart, for which she received eight and sixpence from the Australian Woman’s Mirror. After this success she continued to submit poems, short stories and articles to magazines and newspapers with mixed results, but learning all the while.

After her marriage Essie kept submitting short pieces to various publications both within New Zealand and overseas. Eventually she became a weekly columnist, under the pen-name Tamsin, for the Timaru Herald. After six years she became jaded with it and when she admitted this to her husband he encouraged her to start seriously writing a novel. He reminded her that she had resolved to have a novel published before she was forty five and that that time was drawing close. New Zealand Inheritance was accepted in 1956 and was published by Mills and Boon in 1957, the day after her forty fifth birthday.

Essie usually wrote two books a year - her publisher would have taken three but she felt that both her work and marriage would suffer. She wrote fifty two novels for Mills and Boon until High Country Governess in 1987. Mills and Boon were beginning to look for steamier stories and Essie had long wanted to write down her family’s stories. She also wrote an autobiography: The Essie Summers Story which was published in 1974. She went on to publish four more romances between 1993 and 1997. Her last book was Design for Life, published by Severn Books.

Essie’s writing style
Essie bought a typewriter after her first poem was accepted but always did much of her work in long-hand. She would jot down notes and clippings at all times and her children later took great delight in going through her old jumblebooks. She was also a stickler for accuracy and admitted that she was always offended by a mistake that she once made out of sheer carelessness. Essie said she found the first 80 pages the hardest, and that they were often the ones that received the most revision. She worked methodically: setting dates down first, writing the rough and then giving herself a week’s break so that she could come back to it with a fresh perspective. She would give herself a good three month break between writing novels which she used for her jottings and note gathering.

She was always very encouraging to new writers and said that just because only three books in a thousand are accepted new writers shouldn't despair. It took her four years and eight novels until she was really making a living at it - and many years of writing before that.

Essie believed in romance, but she didn't like mushiness. She used humour to lighten her romances. It was her style to leave her heroines at the bedroom door: her novels are not as steamy as more modern romances and they tend to be longer with more characters than is currently the trend. Her heroines usually have careers of some sort, either by choice or necessity, and the stories often involve adventure. It was this combination of romance, adventure, humour and description of New Zealand’s stunning scenery that made Essie Summers the reigning Queen of Romance until her death in 1998."

Judith, I'm interested to know how you came across the New Zealand books in San Antonio! Were they given to you by a New Zealander or by a fellow countryman who had travelled to our shores?

Wow Judith, that is really interesting - you have me fascinated as well as AnneB on how all this came about; please share...

Anne,
The books were given to me by a friend who found them at an estate sale in a box with other things....she knows I love to read, so she gave them to me. they are in very good shape, for older paperpacks, mostly published in the late 60's and 70's. I have enjoyed them so much, not for the romance angle, which is slight, but for the wonderful descriptions of NZ, both the North and South Islands. Your country sounds so beautiful, the flowers, trees, lakes, and mountains. There is also quite a bit of cooking in the stories, as the heroine is often in a situation where she takes care of a family or children. That's how I found this forum, I was curious about NZ cooking and wanted to learn more about it.
were you familiar with Essie Summers books at all?

I have never read her but she is well known and highly regarded, I expect for the reasons that her books appealed to you. There was a flurry of comment about her when she died - I'm not sure how many years ago.

Thanks for your reply Judith. I have to be honest and say I've never heard of Essie Summers and just checked in with my mother who hasn't either!! Yes, New Zealand is a beautiful country - just a shame we are so far away from the rest of the world!

Hi JudithGrace

Welcome to our foodie site.

I was about to message another foodie who has a love of Mexican food (she knows who she is) asking if she had a recipe (which I have been told is sold by McDonalds in Mexico and it consists of rice, black peas (not black eyed peas) and finely diced up capsicums (peppers) onions and a few other bits and pieces.

Now the person who made this dish up also had some kind of dressing (not creamy and I don't know if it is in the "original" recipe or she just liked it added) tossed through it but won't share the recipe.

Do you have any idea what I am talking bout ?


Regards
Sharon


As a parent, it is not what you give your children that builds their character but what you allow them to give you
Author Unknown

Sharon,
I'm not familiar with this recipe, I'll do some research among my friends who travel into Mexico and see if they can come up with anything. If so I'll post it.
Regards, Judith