While I am a summer person, I also love fall. And I especially love fall in New Mexico. It's about hot air balloons and the smell of green chile roasting in the air. The Hatch (a town in Southern New Mexico known for its chile) crop came in early this year which means we're enjoying it a few weeks earlier than usual but, believe me, no one is complaining.

And if you live away from New Mexico, the state has done a good job promoting green chile and it's now available (not just in a can– that should only be your very last resort because it doesn't taste the same!) in grocery stores around the country. When I moved back to Illinois a few years ago for a short period of time, I found it at Whole Foods but my guess is that it's even more widely available that it used to be.

But to use it for dishes like enchiladas (recipe coming soon), chile rellenos (see last year's directions here), or simply to top on your eggs, you need to spend a little time roasting it. The added benefit is the smell.

Roasting simply means placing the chiles on the grill and burning the skins so that they separate from the meat inside. After watching many men spend too much time flipping things on the grill, I'm more apt to walk away and let things cook without my intervention. I try to turn them only once. Remove them from the grill when the skins are mostly blackened (my photos should help you gauge that).

If you plan to use the chiles right away, you can place them in a towel to continue to separate the skin before running them under water to rub off the skin and the seeds. Then chop them into pieces and add to your dish.

Or if you want to freeze them and save them for later (which is what we do here because we have easy access to the chiles), place them in serving size plastic bags and freeze until you need them. You'll run them under water to remove the skin and seeds then.

As we go through a fall of green chile recipes up next week: breakfast burritos.

Last week I wrote about how to make the prickly pear syrup, however, this week's recipe uses the puree, meaning there is one less step to complete. However, get that syrup ready for the margaritas! We'll make those next week. In the meantime, between the color and taste, this is one of the most unique desserts you'll ever taste. The key is that you always need to combine it with another fruit to complete the flavor. I made enough to serve our fifty guests at our rehearsal dinner party last month, giving them a taste of quintessential desert New Mexico.

The photo above shows the depth of the color of the prickly pear ice cream (it's on the bottom with triple berry on top). And check out the photo at the bottom as I began to stir the prickly pear puree with the half and half and milk.

1 cup prickly pear puree

1/8 cup lemon juice

2 cups sugar

Lemon zest from 1 lemon

2 cups milk

2 cups half and half (or heavy cream for a richer flavor)

In a food processor, combine the sugar and lemon zest. In a separate bowl, combine the lemon juice and prickly pear. Combine the sugar mixture, the prickly pear mixture, the milk, and the half and half. Run in an ice cream maker for 20 minutes and freeze overnight before serving.