My Favorite Time of Year

The month of August I can count on good green chili, ripe Palisade peaches, Rocky Ford Cantaloupe and fresh tomatoes from a local garden. For years I have shopped at Heinie's Market on 44th Avenue in Wheat Ridge, Colorado. As I step out of my car I smell the roasting chilies as they roll around a large metal drum. Sometimes, the homey smell of kettle corn popping is also wafting in the air.
I usually buy three bags (roasted and ready to freeze) of hot Anaheim Big Jim chilies, peaches, tomatoes, and Rocky Ford cantaloupes.

When I arrive home the first thing I do is to peel six chilies, slice some cheddar cheese and place them on a tortilla and turn on the microwave.  The cheese melts into the chili and my first bite is so delicious it brings back memories of me arriving home from school.  I would hear a thump-thump as my Mother would be rolling out tortillas . The kitchen would be steamy with the smell of roasted green chili and I would wash my hands, slice some cheese, get a freshly made warm tortilla and a chili pepper and make me a tasty sandwich (taco).  That combination is still one of my favorites. One is never enough so I end up eating about three of those mouth watering cheese, chili and tortilla goodies.



Green chili with melted cheese on a warm tortilla!









Finished product and so yummy!

Some Spanish priests during the 19th Century were said to be wary of the passion inspired by chili peppers, assuming they were aphrodisiacs.  A few preached sermons against indulgence in a food which they said was almost as "hot as hell's brimstone." "Soup of the devil," one called it.  The priests' warnings contributed to the dish's popularity! From Chili Quotes and Trivia

Whether the above is true or not, it does not diminish my love for my taquito!

For dessert I eat a juicy Colorado peach.  I eat it slowly and savor the sweetness.  I hang over the sink because sometimes, the juice dribbles down my chin but I don't care. When the peach is finished, I suck on the pit because even that tastes good! What I have eaten and enjoyed should hold me until my next meal but somehow I find myself thinking of another green chili taquito and another sweet peach! Even though I have frozen green chili in my freezer I know it will not taste the same as just roasted.  The peaches will be around for a few more weeks and then the season will  be over and I will have to wait until next year for those wonderful peaches!

Just another note I find interesting.  We find ourselves complaining that everything seems to be made in China, in the Olympics we battled with China for more gold metals and I just found out that the peach originated in China!



Colorado Peaches