Unrepeatable

     I probably won't be able to repeat it, but I certainly will if the chance occurs.

     For Christmas dinner, I made a ham -- steamed it, in fact, which came out much better than it had any right to.  It was a big ham; Tam and I had a nice meal and I froze the leftovers in three batches.

     The corner grocery store always has "fresh" (rehydrated) blackeyed peas for New Year's, and I made a nice pot of Hoppin' John for New Year's Eve, using one of the bags of frozen ham, with onions, peppers, canned chilis and both fresh and canned tomatoes.  Good stuff, and there I was, with a couple of bags of leftovers.*

     New Year's Day, we had corned beef and cabbage (and potatoes, carrots, celery and onions), slow-roasted in a covered pan on the closed grill.  The corned beef was tender and flavorful, and there was enough left to freeze for later.

     Friday, I picked up a chorizo sausage, and Saturday, I squeezed it out of the casing, cooked it and drained it before pushing it to the sides of the big stewpot and sautéing a little red onion and mixed peppers.  I took several thickish slices of corned beef, diced them and mixed them in.  Then I added most of a can of some wild stuff: Heyday Canning Company's Enchilda Black Beans, plus a small can of tomato sauce.  I'd been thawing a freezer bag of the Hoppin' John, and I stirred it in, covered the pot and let it simmer with a bay leaf. (Heyday offers an interesting variety of canned soups and spiced beans.)

     That's three kinds of meat, two kinds of beans, red and white onion, chilis, multicolored peppers, tomatoes and seasonings.  Chorizo, honey ham and corned beef; without leftovers, this would take hours and you'd end up with enough for an army, or at least an Elks Lodge.  It was a thick stew, savory and complex, exactly right for a cold evening.

     It's so much different stuff that I can't really say "try this," but if you get the chance, you should, or whatever similar thing appeals to you.
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* Gallon-size freezer bags make this appealing: stand them up, fill them about one-third full or a little more, squeeze out the air and close them up before laying them flat and letting the contents spread out in a thin layer that will freeze quickly and reheat easily.  If you're feeding more people, use bigger bags; they make them up to at least two and a half gallons!