Chile Rellenos

I grew up in New Hampshire. New Hampshire is known for many great things, but authentic Mexican food is not one of them. Growing up, I never tasted, or even heard of, Chile Rellenos. But now that I live out West, I have access to many a different and delicious Chile Relleno. Its somewhat spicy, very cheesy, and fried. What's not to love?

My Rellenos did not turn out as well as the kind in  a restaurant (no surprise there) but were still pretty delicious. So without further ado: 

First you need the roast the chilies. I used poblano, which the right kind if you're going for authenticity, but you could really use whatever pepper you like. Jalepenos would make a nice small and very spicy relleno. Any big, mild pepper like anaheim or hatch would work well, too. 

To roast them, place them in the broiler, close to the flame, for about 15 minutes. Keep an eye on them and turn them every so often so all the sides get roasted. You want the skin to get black and blistery and start to come away from the pepper, but you don't want to burn the flesh of the pepper. Once they are roasted, place the chilis in a bowl with saran wrap over it. This will steam the chilies and help loosen the skin.

Meanwhile, blend together onions, garlic and tomatoes until there are no chunks left. Heat 1-2 tsbp. oil in a pan. Run the tomato mixture through a strainer, and into the pan. Add broth and lightly simmer this while you are prepping the chilies, and it will become your sauce. 

Its a good idea to wear gloves when handling peppers, so you don't take out your contacts later and burn your eyeballs (like I keep doing). Let the chilies steam about 10 minutes, then take them out and peel off the skin. It may not all come off super easy, but try to get all the skin off if you can, because it will taste bitter.

Once the chilies are roasted and peeled, make a slit along one side and remove the seeds. Rinse the chilies and now they are ready to be stuffed!

You can stuff them with whatever you like, but the kind that is most common out here is stuffed with cheese. I used a type of cheese called Queso Fresco Casero (I think, I can't actually remember and I threw the packaging away). Anyways, it didn't melt very well. Oaxaca queso would probably work better, or you could even use something like Colby or Jack cheese. 

Once you stuff the peppers, you want to roll them in flour to coat all sides. Then you dip them in an egg batter.

The egg batter is made with egg whites only. Make sure you don't get any yolk in the whites when you are separating them, or they won't whip up correctly. Beat the eggs until they form stiff peaks. (This is where an electric mixer comes in handy).

Meanwhile, heat oil in your pan. You want at least 1/2 inch of oil. Make sure to get it nice and hot. When oil is between 365 and 375 degrees, it will cook the food without getting the food greasy. If the temp is too low, the oil will soak into the food, making it bad for your health and also bad to taste. If the oil is too hot, it will burn the food. A thermometer is a wonderful tool. 

Once the oil is hot. dip your floured, stuffed pepper into the egg white batter, and place immediately in the pan. Don't overcrowd the pan. Fry each pepper until the batter is golden brown (and hopefully the cheese is melted!). Once they are done, top with the tomato sauce, serve and enjoy!

These rellenos looks a hot tasty mess.

Chile Rellenos

6 poblano peppers

Cheese of your choice

1/3 c. flour

4 egg whites

6 tomatoes

1/4 onion

2 cloves garlic

1/4 cup broth (chicken or veg)

1/2-1 c. vegetable oil

Roast, deseed and peel the peppers

Stuff with cheese, etc.

Roll in flour, then dip in egg batter and fry immediately

For the sauce:

blend tomatoes, garlic and onions

strain mixture

Add 2 tbsp. oil and tomato mixture to pan

add broth

simmer until it turns dark red

Chicken Pot Pie

NOTE: I have not been very good at posting each week. To make up for it, I will post another recipe before this week is over!

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I love chicken pot pie. Its not very healthy, but it is very delicious. And although it is normally considered a blustery-wintery-day kind of food, I'll eat it anytime. Surprisingly, I have never actually made it from scratch. So here is my something new this week, a (mostly) traditional chicken pot pie.

I based this recipe on the Pioneer Woman's pot pie, with a few substitutions.

I started by making the crust. You could do a double crust for this, but I opted for just a top crust. I made the crust from scratch, which is easier than it sounds. You could easily use a frozen crust for this. 

Then I cooked the chicken breast. I think using dark meat in addition (or instead of) white meat would result in a richer, tastier pie, but I didn't have any on hand. I haven't mentioned it yet, but I live out in the desert, about 75 miles from the nearest grocery store. I find that I often don't have the right ingredients on hand and have to get creative. I was looking back on my last two posts and realized that "I didn't have [insert ingredient here]" is probably going to be a popular refrain in this blog.

So cook up your chicken, however you like (I boiled mine because its very quick). Set cooked chicken aside.

Dice up your carots, celery, onions, and whatever other veggies you like. I used cauliflower, and I think peas, corn, even green beans would be good.Throw those in a pot with some butter, and let that cook until the onions are translucent. 

Sprinkle the flour over the cooked veggies, then add in the broth and stir it well. Let that cook until it thickens up. If you want to add more flour, get some of the broth in a cup and whisk the flour in that. That way, when you pour the mixture into the pot, the flour won't clump up. 

Meanwhile, shred up the cooked chicken. Add the shredded chicken to the thickened broth/veggie mixture. Splash a little cream in there to make it...creamy. (This is optional if you like dairy free). Add spices.

Pour that into a buttered (or crusted) pan. Roll out your crust on top.

You could end here, or you could add an egg wash to the crust. Egg washes are very easy to make: beat one egg, add a little water, and voila! You've got an egg wash. 

Brush that over your crust, pop that baby in the oven at 375 degrees for about 25-30 minutes. Its a good idea to loosely cover the pie with foil for the first 15 mins of cooking so the crust doesn't burn.

Once the crust is browned and the filling is bubbly, take it out of the oven, serve and enjoy!

Chicken Pot Pie

4 tbsp butter

3 stalks celery, diced

1/2 onion, diced

3 carrots, diced

any other veggies you think are delicious, diced

3 c. shredded cooked chicken

1/4 c. flour

3 c. chicken broth

1/4 tsp. turmeric

salt and pepper, thyme, to taste

1/4 cup or less cream

pie crust

1 egg

splash water

Preheat oven to 375.

Add butter and diced veggies to sauce pan, saute until onions are translucent.

Sprinkle flour over veggies, stir in broth. Let it cook down and reduce until you have achieved your personal desired thickness.

Add in cooked chicken, cream and spices.

Pour mixture into crusted or buttered pan. Top with crust.

Egg wash optional: mix egg with water, brush on crust.

Cook 25 to 30 minutes.

PS. With a recipe like this, its a good idea to add a pinch of salt every time you add a new ingredient to the pot. This will bring out all the flavors. Taste constantly, too!