Hot Tamales

They say that food is the way to a man's heart.  I'm not sure I completely agree with that statement since my husband will eat about anything and think it is delicious, but sometimes when I want to be nice I cook his favorite foods.  He loves Tamales.  I've never made them before and honestly it is a fairly labor intensive process, but the results were worth it.  Oh, and they tasted good too.

Tamales (the flowers were nice too)Tamales consist of a cornmeal exterior and a savory filling that is steamed in a corn husk or a plantain (banana) leaf.  Having never made them before I searched the vast expanses of the world wide web.  I used two recipes.  I based the filling on a recipe from Emeril, however instead of raisins I used prunes.  I didn't have any celery in the house, so I just omitted it.  The filling was delicious.  If you didn't want to make the tamale you could serve it over rice or pasta.  I also butterflied the chicken instead of quartering it, so I braised rather than stewed the chicken.  I thought that the ratio of lard to flour was too high in Emeril's recipe, so I used one from Alton Brown instead.  The tamales were delicious and I froze the leftovers for an easy meal when I only feel like boiling water.  See my instructions on how to tie a tamale.

On that note, I better go make dinner!  Tonight's experiment is quail eggs...