Bringing On The Heat In A Summer Stew

Eden Lee Murray moved here from New York in 1992, and has since been a leader in the local arts and entertainment scene in acting, directing and educating, with 11 Pookela Awards under her belt.

Eden Lee has been director of education at Hawaii Theatre since 2009, where she currently manages four theatre training programs: the HTC Junior Ensemble for middle school children, the Intermediate Ensemble, the Hawaii Theatre Young Actors Ensemble and the HTC Technical Theatre Apprenticeship program. She says, “Performance skills are thinly veiled life skills. Kids who learn to trust themselves and others under performance pressure, and can deliver when the chips are down will find these skills invaluable under any circumstances. Being able to think on one’s feet, improvise with confidence, and solve problems creatively comes in handy no matter what challenge one faces.”

The next four productions over the course of the school year will be starring members of the Hawaii Theatre Young Actors Ensemble.

Eden Lee would love to see as many kids as possible turn out for the HTYAE auditions this summer to be held on stage at the Hawaii Theatre July 20 and August 10.

Those who wish to audition need to contact her ahead of time to register, email eden- leemurray@hawaiitheatre.com or call 791-1323.

Her husband Roger Jellinek is the founder and Executive Director of the Hawaii Book and Music Festival, and she is proud that her son Everett, just graduated at the top of the largest class of engineers the University of Hawaii-Manoa has ever had

This hearty stew packs a spicy punch to your palate. If you like it milder, omit the chili peppers, or use less.

I like to serve this with brown rice and a Romaine lettuce salad to cool down your mouth.

Capsaicin is the substance that makes a chili hot. Capsaicin is found in its highest concentrations in the ribs of the pepper; the seeds are also highly concentrated, so removing the ribs and seeds will reduce the heat of the chili pepper.

Capsaicin also is distributed in smaller amounts throughout the flesh of the chili pepper, and because of the uneven distribution, it’s common for some areas of a pepper to be hotter than others.

When selecting peppers for heat, the rule of thumb is the smaller the pepper, the hotter it will be.

HOT AND SPICY CHICKEN STEW

• 8 medium potatoes, peeled and cut into small pieces
• 3 carrots, peeled and sliced
• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 8 boneless chicken breast halves, skinned and cut into pieces (note, you may use frozen chicken breasts, just defrost and cut into bitesize pieces)
• 1 large Maui onion, chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 1 tablespoon cumin salt and pepper, to taste
• 1 (28-ounce) can stewed tomatoes (low or no salt if
watching sodium)
• 3 green chili peppers, chopped
• 4 cups low-sodium vegetable broth, no MSG added

Put potatoes and carrots in pan with water to cover. Bring to a boil, turn down heat and simmer until fork-tender. Strain in colander and set aside. Heat olive oil in a large covered stew pot, spreading the oil out to coat bottom, and add chicken. cook chicken until browned on both sides, and add onion and garlic. Cook until tender. Sprinkle with chili powder, cumin, salt and pepper. Mix in the potatoes and carrots, and cook for a few minutes, stirring until combined. Add in stewed tomatoes, chili peppers and broth. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for about 40 minutes.

MAKE EIGHT SERVINGS.
Approximate Nutrition Information Per Serving:
Calories: 250
Fat: 6 grams
Cholesterol: 80 milligrams
Sodium: 300 milligrams depending on salt added and tomatoes used.