Flautas de Rajas con Queso with Salsa de Aguacate

As soon as I opened my review copy of Chicano Eats: Recipes from My Mexican-American Kitchen by Esteban Castillo, I knew I was going to have fun cooking from this book. This is a collection of Mexican food and flavors transformed by time and place. Castillo has been inspired by the cooking of his mother while growing up in California and by his grandparents whom he visited as often as he could in Colima, Mexico. And now, he puts his own stamp on family favorite recipes and creates new takes of his own. First, the book has a joyful feel to it from the layout and use of color to the many, richly saturated photos. The recipes start with basics like salsas, beans, rice, and sauces and move on to everything from appetizers to desserts and drinks. There are so many things I want to try; this book will be at my side in the kitchen for the foreseeable future. I fell for the book when I flipped it open to the page with a torta filled with delicata squash seasoned with a spice mix based on chorizo flavors. A few pages later, there’s a Rigatoni with Cilantro Pesto and Sauteed Oyster Mushrooms and then the Shrimp Ceviche Tostadas. Of course, I was hooked. There are a few versions of pozole, lots of options for tacos, and delicious drinks with and without alcohol. In the head note for the BBQ sauces, there’s a mention of grilling quail which I think would be fantastic with the Hibiscus BBQ Sauce. That sauce is also used to marinate the Tequila BBQ Chicken Skewers. I’ll have to try both. I also predict I’ll be trying several options in the Drinks chapter. I’ve never made homemade horchata, but I want to try it. There are three versions here: classic, matcha, and coconut, and all can easily be made dairy-free. And, the aguas frescas all look incredibly refreshing especially the Cherry Lime Chia Agua Fresca and the Strawberry-Jamaica Agua Fresca. The Desserts chapter reminded me that I’ve been meaning try a chocoflan for ages. It’s a layered dessert that’s made with chocolate cake batter topped with flan custard. As it bakes, the layers switch places, and the flan moves to the bottom of the pan. It sounds like magic, and I want to see it happen. To get started cooking, the Flautas de Rajas con Queso looked like a surefire hit, and I had a craving for the accompanying Salsa de Aguacate. 

I don’t know why I had never made avocado salsa before. It’s a perfect mix of guacamole and salsa verde. The day I made it, I declared it was my favorite thing I’d made lately. I keep making it now so it’s always in supply in my refrigerator. It’s a simple puree of avocados, garlic, green onion, tomatillo, cilantro leaves, serrano, lime juice, and salt. It couldn’t be easier. For the flautas, I had some locally-grown poblanos on hand, and they were seeded, sliced, and cooked with chopped crimini mushrooms, and minced onion. Garlic was added, and the mixture was seasoned with salt, pepper, ground coriander, and ground cumin. Then, I strayed from the recipe just a bit. Strips of panela cheese were suggested. With a strip of cheese, you could just add one piece to each tortilla before rolling it up with the filling. I opted for an aged goat cheese that I shredded. Corn tortillas were filled with the rajas and mushroom mixture and some shredded cheese, and my tip is to use a toothpick to hold the rolled tortillas closed. Once they were all filled, they were fried, seam side down with the toothpicks removed, until golden and crispy. I topped them with cilantro leaves, sliced jalapeno, and that delicious salsa. 

I always love bright, spicy, bold flavors like what’s found throughout this book, and the flautas and salsa were two great examples of them. And, I was right. This book is a lot of fun with its mix of traditional and creative approaches. I need to get back to the kitchen. I have lots more cooking to do.

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Jackfruit Carnitas Tacos

Cooking vegetarian has always been easy for me. I eat some fish and fowl, but don’t really miss those flavors when meals are meatless. Dabbling in entirely plant-based cooking, however, sometimes feels like new and different territory. Arriving at creamy textures without cream or milk or butter, using substitutes for eggs, and giving dishes good savory, umami flavor without cheese has been a fun learning process. One of my favorite, recent, vegan experiments was revisiting the carrot dog fad as pigs in a blanket. So, I was delighted to practice more plant-based cooking with the new book The Wicked Healthy Cookbook: Free. From. Animals. Chad and Derek Sarno are self-proclaimed plant pushers. I like that, and I might be a bit of a plant pusher myself. They encourage readers to eat 80% healthy and 20% wicked, and they offer lots of big-flavor ways to achieve that with the recipes. The beginning of the book lays out good lists for kitchen equipment and pantry ingredients as well as tips for cooking success. There are also charts for healthy alternatives to sugar, salt, and extracted fats. The recipes take you from appetizers to bowls to comfort food, desserts, drinks, and more. The King Satay with Spicy Peanut-Ginger Sauce involves searing the king oyster mushroom stems before skewering them for the satay. The Cashew au Poivre Torte with Basil Parsley Pesto is a nut-based cultured cheese that’s topped with crushed pink peppercorns and a white balsamic reduction. There’s an introduction to sourdough starter, which I loved seeing, that’s followed by a recipe for sourdough pizza dough with a few topping suggestions. I was also intrigued by the pasta dough made with silken tofu rather than eggs. There’s a lot to enjoy here whether you’re in the mood for Kale and Avocado Salad with Wild Rice, Grapes, and Toasted Seeds or a Mac and Cheese (made with a plant-based sauce) Bar with several toppings. I was previously familiar with how meringue can be made with aquafaba or the liquid from a can of chickpeas. I haven’t tried it yet, but I want to. And, I had heard good things about using jackfruit to achieve a texture similar to shredded meat. After reading the pages about homemade tortillas and then seeing the Jackfruit Carnitas Tacos recipes, I knew where I wanted to start cooking from this book. 

Green, unripe jackfruit has a mild flavor. Here in Austin, it is available fresh and pre-cut into chunks. A whole jackfruit is large, and buying chunks is more convenient. But, the chunks I found would need to be peeled and seeded. It’s also available peeled and chopped in pouches in the refrigerated section of the grocery store. However, the pouches I found contained flavored jackfruit, and I wanted to flavor it myself. I opted for canned, peeled, and chopped jackfruit. It comes in a brine and needs to be rinsed and drained. Then, seeds were removed, and it was chopped a little smaller. The spice rub from the book included minced garlic, paprika, granulated onion powder, chipotle powder, ground coriander, and salt. The spice rub was added to the drained jackfruit and mixed by hand while breaking up the pieces a bit more. It was left to marinate in the refrigerator for an hour. Next, minced onion was sauteed in a Dutch oven, and the marinated jackfruit was added. Vegetable stock was added next with orange juice, lime juice, oregano, bay leaves, and chipotles in adobo. It was brought to a simmer and then left to cook over low heat for about 25 minutes. Meanwhile, I made some fresh tortillas. I loved the idea of the cilantro tortillas in the book made with pureed cilantro leaves and jalapeno, and I added some arugula leaves as well. The puree went into the masa mixture, and tortillas were pressed and cooked on a griddle. The taco toppings included shredded cabbage, tomato, jalapeno, and fresh salsa. 

The jackfruit took on great flavor from the spice rub and cooking liquid mixture and was a good texture for a taco filling. I’m so glad to have gotten to know this ingredient. I don’t know yet what direction my plant-based cooking experiments will lead next, but the Cauliflower Mornay Sauce for pasta is a contender. This book will give me lots of ideas and inspiration.

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Tacos with Roasted Vegetables in Cascabel Chile Oil with Homemade Queso Fresco, Guajillo Tortillas, and Salsa de Arbol

I do not ever get tired of tacos. It’s not possible. There are infinite combinations when you consider types of tortillas, fillings, cheese or no cheese, and the choice of a salsa or two. I had tacos for breakfast yesterday and will have tacos for dinner tonight. But, the tacos shown here today are special. The tortillas were homemade, the cheese was homemade, the vegetables were roasted in homemade cascabel chile oil, and they were the most delicious tacos I’ve had all year. The recipes are from Nopalito: A Mexican Kitchen , and I received a review copy. I should be clear that this book is so much more than just tacos. It’s a collection of favorite authentic Mexican dishes from Gonzalo Guzman, the chef of Nopalito restaurants in San Francisco. The recipes are true to their origin with inspiration from seasonal, local ingredients in California. Because of Guzman’s upbringing in southern Mexico in Veracruz, corn was “the king of Mexican ingredients.” And, freshly made corn tortillas are key to several dishes. The Basics chapter includes information about nixtamalization, making your own masa, and turning that into fresh tortillas. There’s also a recipe for wheat flour tortillas even though corn is preferred. Then, the chapters take you through small plates, big plates, drinks and desserts, and salsas. The Ensalada de Pepinos y Verdolagas caught my eye because it’s made with purslane and cucumbers and both are in season right now. Also, the dressing is an interesting vinaigrette thickened with pureed pepitas. There are quesadillas, tacos, and tamales with meat, fish, and vegetable fillings. And, there's a lovely looking Huarache de Huitlacoche y Hongos. I’ve never found huitlacoche available locally, but I’d love to try this with all mushrooms instead. The braised meat dishes, adobo-rubbed trout, and enchiladas would all be inviting for parties. And, I have to try the Smashed Shrimp with Eggs and Salsa served with tortillas and refried black beans and the Breaded Chicken Sandwiches on homemade cemitas or sesame rolls. The fresh, bright, and spicy flavors are evident, and I couldn’t wait to jump in and try several things. 

First, I made the Queso Fresco which is similar to making fresh ricotta except the curds are pressed to form a firmer cheese. There is a typo in this recipe, though, as the amount of vinegar listed is too much for the quantity of milk. The milk will over-acidify, separate, and not curdle. Rather than using the amount of vinegar listed, once the milk comes up to about 170 degrees F, turn off the heat and just dribble in a tablespoon of vinegar at a time while stirring until the milk begins to form curds. I used less than one-quarter cup of vinegar for a half gallon of milk. After curdling, the milk was left to sit for 20 minutes before the curds were drained in a cheesecloth-lined strainer. The liquid was squeezed from the cheesecloth, salt was added, and the cheese was weighted down with a bowl to press more liquid from it. It was placed in the refrigerator for eight hours. Next, I made tortillas. I used store-bought masa harina rather than making homemade masa, but I took inspiration from the book for adding pureed, reconstituted dried chiles to the dough. I used guajillos, and they gave the masa a pretty, orange color. Rolling balls of dough and flattening them in a tortilla press is one of the funnest things to do in the kitchen. Just be sure to line the tortilla press with pieces of plastic cut from a storage bag to prevent sticking. The pressed tortillas were cooked for a few minutes per side on a griddle and kept warm wrapped in a kitchen towel. Meanwhile, I also reconstituted some cascabel chiles that were combined with another guajillo and pureed with a clove of garlic and olive oil. That oil was used for roasting vegetables. In the book, the roasted vegetable recipe includes winter vegetables like broccoli and butternut squash, but I used the technique for summer squash, eggplant, sweet peppers, and potato. Chunks of vegetables were coated in the chile oil and seasoned with salt and pepper before roasting in a 400 degree F oven until tender and browned. One last item was the Salsa de Arbol. Dried arbol chiles were heated in a tablespoon of olive oil and then pureed in the blender with canned tomatoes, a chopped tomatillo, a clove of garlic, and some salt. All of these components came together for the freshest, most flavorful tacos. 

The texture and flavor of the homemade queso fresco was on another level in comparison to the store-bought variety. And, the farm-fresh vegetables roasted with chile oil were addictive all by themselves. But, wrapped in the warm, chile-flecked tortillas with the bright, tangy, and not-too-spicy salsa de arbol and dotted with chunks of queso fresco, they were divine. I’m not sure if I’ll be baking cemitas next or gathering everything for a mole sauce, but I’ll be cooking more things from this book. 

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Tortilla Soup

I didn’t know about tortilla soup before I moved to Austin, but I quickly became a big fan. It’s one of those things, like chili, that everyone makes in his or her own way. Several local restaurants serve different versions of it. Sometimes, it’s a brothy soup with chunks of tomatoes, chiles, and chicken that gets topped with crispy tortilla strips, shredded cheese, and chopped avocado. Other times, the soup is thickened with tortillas cooked in the broth. And, one version that I like a lot is made thick with a puree of softened, dried chiles that sends it in the direction of mole sauce as soup. What I’d never tried, however, was a silky, pureed tortilla soup with the addition of butter. It’s a recipe from Chef Rene Ortiz of Austin, and it appeared in Food and Wine magazine last May. This was so different from other tortilla soups that I followed the instructions for the toppings to the letter. Since the soup is nicely rich with butter, it doesn’t need the usual, gooey, melted, shredded cheese. Instead, this was topped with avocado, cilantro leaves, sliced jalapeno, tortilla strips, and just a few crumbles of queso fresco. 

The soup is started by sauteing white onion and garlic. Next, tomatoes are added, and since it’s not tomato season, I used canned. Chipotles in adobo were added as well, and you might want to start with two and decide if you’d like more or not. The recipe suggests four which make the soup nicely spicy with a layer of smokiness. Chicken stock is added with the tomatoes and chipotles, and good soup results from good stock. I made a stock with chicken legs, lots of vegetables, and a few dried chiles I had in the pantry. As the soup simmers, you can fry tortilla strips for garnish. Any shape will work from strips to shoestrings to little squares. After the soup has cooked away for 30 minutes or so, it’s then pureed in batches in a blender with butter. One stick of butter was cut into pieces, and a few were added to each batch to be pureed. Either let the soup cool before pureeing, or blend in small batches that only fill the blender pitcher about one-third to one-half of the way. Then, if the soup is hot, remove the plastic inner piece of the pitcher lid, and hold a towel over the opening as you pulse the blender on and off. That way, steam can escape, and the pitcher lid won’t shoot off the top when you start the motor. Once all the soup is pureed, it’s ready to be re-warmed and then served with toppings including shredded chicken, crispy tortilla strips, avocado chunks, sliced jalapeno, cilantro leaves, and crumbled queso fresco. 

The smoke and chile heat from the chipotles were lovely. And, lots of crunchy, corn tortilla strips are a great contrast to the silky texture of the soup. I don’t think I could choose an all-time favorite version of tortilla soup since I like them all so much, but I have found yet another unique, delicious, and easy-to-make approach to add to my list of options. 

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Enchiladas with Pumpkin Sauce

I seem to be on a savory pumpkin and cheddar kick. I still like pumpkin in sweet things too, I just happened to have a lot of it on hand after roasting one a couple of weeks ago. And, since the flavor of pumpkin, and winter squash and sweet potato, goes so well with Southwestern spices and chiles, I was excited to try these enchiladas. I found this idea in the Everyday Food: Great Food Fast book. The enchiladas are filled with shredded chicken mixed with some green onions, the sauce is a puree of pumpkin with chile powder and jalapenos, and the enchiladas are topped with grated cheddar cheese. As usual, I took the long way around in making this, but it could be put together very quickly. I had already roasted and mashed some pumpkin, but canned would be fine. Then, I roasted a couple of chicken breasts to use in the filling, but bringing home a rotisserie or smoked chicken would have saved that step.

So, with pumpkin puree and cooked chicken at the ready, you start by combining shredded chicken with sliced green onions and seasoning the mixture with salt and pepper. Then, the sauce is made in a blender by pureeing pumpkin, garlic, jalapeno, chile powder, water, and salt and pepper. Next, some of the sauce is poured into a baking dish, corn tortillas are filled with the chicken mixture and a little grated cheddar and set on top of the sauce, and the remaining sauce is poured over the enchiladas. Grated cheddar is sprinkled over the sauce, and the enchiladas are baked for about 30 minutes. I garnished with sliced jalapenos, cilantro, and pepitas.

Pumpkin with spicy chiles is a yes, and pumpkin with cheddar is another yes. There was no way these enchiladas could be anything but good. Actually, they were great. The baking dish was empty in record time, and I'm hoping I still have enough cooked pumpkin in the freezer to make this again soon.

Have you seen mentions of the Fairy Hobmother lately? I can tell you she's real. She's from Appliances Online, and she visited me recently and sent a lovely gift. If you leave a comment here with a wish for her, she may visit you too.

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Black Bean Tortilla Casserole

I found this recipe in my files, and apparently, I put it there back in 2006. It’s from Living magazine, and it’s similar to other tortilla and bean layered casseroles I’ve made. It’s a versatile dish in that you can easily substitute ingredients here and there, but it is important to keep the moisture content as intended so the casserole doesn’t become soggy and so the cut pieces will hold their shape. I wasn’t able to find this exact recipe on the web site, so I’ll list it below, but there is a similar dish in the Everyday Food cookbook. In that book, it’s called tortilla and black bean pie, and it's a little different from this one. For this version from the magazine, you make a salsa verde which is layered with roasted poblanos, toasted tortillas, black beans, spinach, and cheese. You could save some time by purchasing pre-made salsa, but I had some green tomatoes and chiles to use from my CSA. The suggested method in the recipe involves sauteing onion, garlic, and tomatillos before adding chiles, but I prefer to place all those things with green tomatoes on a baking sheet and brown them under the broiler. Once browned on all sides, everything is pureed in a food processor with lime juice and cilantro.

For the casserole, corn tortillas were cut in half, brushed with oil, and toasted in the oven. They’re removed before they become crunchy, but they do become sturdier. Spinach leaves were cooked and drained, onion was sauteed with chopped roasted poblanos, and the black beans were cooked with garlic. I used a spring-form pan, and the first layer was 12 halves of tortillas which were overlapped in the bottom of the pan. Next, the poblano and onion mixture was added followed by half of the black bean mixture. That was topped with sour cream, since I forgot to buy Mexican crema, and then some salsa was added. Shredded monterey jack cheese was added, and then the layering was repeated with spinach instead of poblanos. Last, the casserole was topped with the remaining tortilla halves, salsa, and cheese.

I was surprised at how easily the spring-form ring was removed, and how easily the casserole was cut. It’s a dry enough mixture that there’s no danger of the layers sliding apart as each piece is plated. Now that I’ve looked at the other casserole in the Everyday Food book, I see it includes corn and green onions. Not that the version I made seemed lacking at all, but those will be great additions when I make this again.

Tortilla Casserole
Living Magazine March 2006
4 fresh poblano chiles, roasted, peeled, seeded and chopped
18 six inch corn tortillas, halved
Vegetable oil
10 ounces baby spinach leaves
1 small white onion, minced
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 15 ounce cans black beans, rinsed and drained
1 c sour cream or Mexican crema
2 1/4 c salsa verde
1 1/2 c shredded monterey jack cheese
Salt and pepper to taste

-Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Brush cut tortillas on both sides with vegetable oil and place on two large baking sheets overlapping as needed. Bake for six minutes and rotate pans after three minutes. Set aside.
-Wash spinach and drain. Heat a large skillet over medium heat and cook spinach briefly just until wilted. Season with salt and pepper and transfer to a colander to drain. Heat two tablespoons oil in skillet, add onion and saute until translucent. Add chopped poblanos, cook until heated through, and transfer to a bowl. Heat another two tablespoons oil in skillet and add garlic. Cook for 30 seconds and add black beans. Season to taste with salt and pepper and cook until heated through.
-Line bottom of a 10-inch spring-form pan with 12 overlapping tortilla halves. Add poblano mixture, top with half the bean mixture, add one half cup of sour cream, and pour 3/4 c salsa on top. Spread 1/2 c shredded cheese on salsa. Repeat layers a second time using spinach instead of poblanos. Top casserole with remaining tortilla halves, salsa, and shredded cheese.
-Place spring-form pan on a baking sheet and bake until heated through, about 45 minutes to one hour. Let stand for 15 minutes before removing spring-form ring and serving. Serve with additional salsa.




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