Nothing says American like American home cooking. From a steaming bowl of New England Clam Chowder, to Tucson Chimichangas, to Door County Sour Cherry Pie, these are the dishes that form the soul of our collective culinary heritage. And these are the recipes that bestselling, award-winning authors Cheryl and Bill Jamison serve up right here--inAmerican Home Cooking. In a lively and lucid style that appeals to both novice and experienced cooks, the Jamisons invite you to sample a coast-to-coast feast of more than 300 recipes straight from the heart of America's own home cooking tradition. To the degree that we are what we eat, the dishes are us, a vibrant expression of our national spirit that's as full of robust flavor as the food of any land. Cheryl and Bill speak with authoritative passion on the home-grown culinary tradition. They visited family cheese crafters in Wisconsin, over-nighted with Pennsylvania Dutch farmers between market days, and picked up techniques for frying catfish from the first African American catfish farmer in Mississippi. They talked with a vendor of live poultry in Providence's Little Italy over the din of squawking chickens and quacking ducks and barbecued a whole hog one night and day with a jolly and generous gang of rice farmers from Arkansas. They ate warm fig cake on Okracoke Island and chilled Dungeness crab freshly pulled from Oregon waters. American Home Cookingfeatures the best home cooking the Jamisons found, with outstanding recipes for classic favorites like meat loaf, scalloped potatoes, iceberg lettuce with blue cheese dressing, sticky buns, angel food cake, and lemon meringue pie. Regional dishes with coast-to-coast appeal include Tidewater Peanut Soup, Kansas City Sugar-and-Spice Spareribs, Pennsylvania Dutch Noodles with Corn and Tomatoes, Maui Mango Bread, and Catahoula Sweet Dough Pies. You'll also relish recipes for intriguing local treasures like Louisville Benedictine, Iowa Skinny, and Miles Standish--all sandwiches. Exquisite color photographs illustrate the dishes, and sidebars celebrate our nation's food fancies, from peanut butter to po'boys, and memorable cooks, from Lydia Marie Child to Julia Child. Destined to become a culinary classic, this sweeping collection offers delicious ideas for every meal and occasion, every day of the year. Bring the best of America's home cooking tradition into your home withAmerican Home Cooking.

Cheryl Alters Jamison and Bill Jamison are the authors of numerous travel guides and cookbooks, including the 1996 James Beard Award winner, <b>The Border Cookbook</b>, and the 1995 James Beard Award winner, <b>Smoke and Spice</b>.  Prolific journalists who write for an array of food and travel magazines, the Jamisons live near Santa Fe, New Mexico.

Onion and Olive Enchiladas

Jacqueline Higuera McMahan, a descendant of the original Spanish settlers in California, grew up eating these unusual enchiladas at family barbecues and breakfasts alike.  She recalls them in California Rancho Cooking (1988) as "a favorite of las comidas del pais (the native foods)," and a single serving will show you why.

ENCHILADA SAUCE
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 tablespoons fine dried bread crumbs or unbleached all-purpose flour
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon dried oregano, preferably Mexican
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons ground dried mild red chiles, such as ancho or New Mexican
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
1 teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons olive oil
4 cups diced onions
12 large thin flour tortillas
3/4 pound medium to sharp Cheddar cheese, grated (about 3 cups)
3/4 cup sliced pitted water-packed black olives

Prepare the sauce, first warming the oil in a large heavy saucepan over medium heat.  Sprinkle in the bread crumbs and brown briefly.  Add the garlic, oregano, and chiles.  Slowly pour in 4 cups of water, stirring to avoid lumps, and then add the vinegar and salt.  Bring the sauce to a boil, reduce the heat to a simmer and cook until somewhat thickened and reduced, 20 to 25 minutes.  (The sauce can be made up to several days in advance and refrigerated, covered, or frozen for up to several months.  Reheat before proceeding.)

Preheat the oven to 350°F.  Oil a large baking dish, one that is at least as wide as your tortillas.

Warm the olive oil in a large heavy skillet over medium-low heat.  Add the onions and sauté for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.  The onions should become translucent and very soft, but not brown.  Reduce the heat if needed.

Dip a tortilla into the chile sauce and place it on a plate. Sprinkle about 3 tablespoons of the cheese and 2 tablespoons of the onions down the center of the tortilla.  Scatter a couple of teaspoons of olive slices over the onions.  Instead of rolling up the tortilla, just fold the tortilla in half.  With a spatula, transfer the enchiladas to the baking dish.  Repeat with the remaining tortillas and filling ingredients, placing each enchilada so that it overlaps the previous one.  Spoon the remaining sauce over the top of the enchiladas.  Sprinkle with any remaining cheese or olives.

Bake the enchiladas for 20 minutes until the cheese is melted and bubbly.  (Some tortillas may balloon up a bit as they cook.)  Serve immediately.

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Excerpted from American Home Cooking: 400 Spirited Recipes Celebrating Our Rich Traditions of Home Cooking by Cheryl Alters Jamison, Bill Jamison
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