We’re in the process of teaching girlchild how to cook (because what kind of parents would we be if we sent her off into the big bad world in a few years without the ability to cook for herself?), and we decided to start with good old Puerto Rican comfort food. You just plain old can’t get Puerto Rican food in Columbus. Mexican, sure. Spanish and Brazilian? You bet. We’ve even got a Venezuelan restaurant. But not a Puerto Rican joint to be found anywhere within a couple hundred miles. I’m still convinced I’d make a killing if I opened up a Puerto Rican takeout place in town.
So here’s what we made - chicken leg quarters seasoned with Adobo and Sazon and fried, arroz con gandules (rice with pigeon peas), fried plantains and picadillo (ground beef) filled empenadas.
Not pictured: the tres leches cake still in process, which we started today, but should have started yesterday because it needs to soak overnight.
Delicious. I don’t quite miss Vineland (New Jersey) as much after eating dinner. There’s a killer Puerto Rican takeout place in Vineland on the Blvd somewhere near Axtell Ave. I’ve been craving that food for months. This is almost as good. Girlchild is nursing a burn, but at least now she knows how to make this stuff.