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½ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon pepper

2 cups beef stock

One 8-ounce can chickpeas, drained

2 medium carrots, peeled and cut into large dice

2 sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into large dice

½ pound pumpkin meat, cut into large dice

1 cup frozen corn

All Day and All Night Corn Bread

Dust the brisket and short ribs with the flour.

Heat the oil in a large skillet. Add the short ribs and brisket and brown.

In a large saucepan, combine the sausage, salt pork, garlic, basil, cumin, thyme, rosemary, celery, onion, salt, and pepper. Add enough beef stock to cover all the ingredients.

Boil for 20 minutes, skimming any fat from the top.

Preheat the oven to 375°F.

Add the chickpeas to the saucepan.

Remove all the ingredients from the saucepan and place in a large casserole dish with the short ribs and the brisket. Bake for 1 hour and 45 minutes.

Put the carrots, sweet potatoes, pumpkin, and corn in the saucepan and cook slowly until tender, about 20 minutes.

Remove the casserole from the oven, skim any fat from the top, and adjust the seasonings as desired. Add the contents of the saucepan.

Serve over squares of corn bread.

SERVES 10. Serving size: 1 small slice of brisket plus 1 short rib plus 1 slice of sausage over a 2-inch square of corn bread.

Though the meat and chickpea stew known as puchero is widely popular in Spain’s Andalusia region and across Spanish-speaking South America, my particular version is inspired by the flavors in the rich Brazilian dish feijoada, a pork and black bean soup whose origins can be traced back to the arrival of African slaves on South American shores.

This dish is labor intensive and demands constant attention. However, few dishes will please a crowd more than Puchero and Corn Bread. This stew will serve 10 or more people. If you have more guests, simply add more ingredients—1 more pound of brisket and 1 more pound of frozen corn kernels and 4 more carrots.

Pinto Beans

1 pound dried pinto beans

1 large ham hock

2 garlic cloves, minced

½ medium onion, diced

2 bay leaves

½ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon freshly ground pepper

Examine the beans, removing any debris, then wash thoroughly. Soak overnight in water to cover.

Boil the ham hock for 1½ hours or until tender.

Drain the beans.

Put the beans, ham hock, and the remaining ingredients in a large saucepan. Bring to a boil.

Reduce the heat and simmer about 1 hour. Remove bay leaves.

Remove 1½ cups of cooked beans to a large bowl. Mash them with a potato masher until creamy and return to the saucepan. Simmer for another 5 minutes.

Serve alone, or with a cup of rice or a square of corn bread.

SERVES 4 TO 6. Serving size: 1 cup.

Even the most eager meat-eater can have a day when she wants vegetables. I had such a day many years ago. I may have had a surfeit of steaks, chops, sausage, and even jerky. I longed for a plate of greens and a bowl of white rice, or I would have been satisfied with a baked potato and a green salad.

I was living in Los Angeles—where the climate is friendly to new trends—and the vegetarian population flourished. One morning, with my appetite calling for steamed rice and broccoli, I found a vegetarian restaurant called Ye Olde Health Food Diner. Once I had settled in, I gave the waitress my order. “Rice and veggies, please.”

At the time I was a smoker, and while I am not proud of that statement, I am happy to report that I have been free of nicotine for over twenty years. But I was a smoker when I entered the restaurant on the day in point. After the waitress took my order, I reached into my purse and took out an unopened pack of cigarettes. I don’t know if the rustling of the cigarette paper alerted her or if she had a natural alarm for tobacco, but in seconds she turned and raced back to my table. She bent low and brought her face uncomfortably close to mine. She hissed, “Don’t you dare. That is a nasty habit.” She added, “Filthy, filthy, filthy.” I backed up as far as I could in the booth. Her frown would have frightened a dragon. She said, “You have endangered everybody in