Chipotle salsa

Nothing like spending a sultry summer evening in the kitchen with several large pots boiling on the stove!  To make use of the pile of tomatoes we got this week, we decided to can some salsa. Virtually all of the ingredients came from the farm share: tomatoes, jalapenos, cilantro, garlic, and onions (not pictured).  All we needed to add was chipotles and vinegar.  I think it worked out well!  We canned four pints and had a fifth for the fridge.

Chipotle Salsa 

6 lbs. tomatoes (about 12 large)
4 dried chipotle peppers
3 cups diced onion
1½ chopped cilantro, tightly packed
15 cloves garlic, minced
4 large jalapeno peppers, seeded and diced
1 tbl. salt
¾ cup red wine vinegar 

Wash tomatoes; drain. Peel, seed and dice tomatoes into ¼ inch pieces. Remove seeds from dried chipotle peppers; place chili peppers in a small bowl. Pour boiling water over chipotles just to cover. Secure plastic wrap over bowl and allow to steep for 15 minutes. Drain half the water. Puree chipotles and remaining water in a food processor for 1 minute until smooth. Combine all ingredients in a large saucepot. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 10 minutes or until mixture thickens. Ladle hot salsa into jars, leaving ¼ inch headspace. Adjust two-piece caps. Process 15 minutes in a boiling water canner.

Based on "Spicy Tomato Salsa" from the Ball Blue Book of Preserving

Fish Tacos

I don't deep fry often, but this is one that is worth the mess.  Helps to satisfy those occasional California cravings.

Fish Tacos

¼ cup mayonnaise
⅓ cup sour cream
½ teaspoon ground cumin
2 teaspoons chipotle salsa, or more to taste
½ cup shredded red cabbage or lettuce
2 ripe tomatoes, coarsely chopped
¼ cup finely sliced red onion
1 jalapeño pepper, seeded and minced
1 clove garlic, peeled and minced
¼ cup chopped cilantro
1 cup flour
⅓ cup cornmeal
1 teaspoon coarse kosher salt, or more to taste
1 cup beer
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
12 6-inch soft, white corn tortillas
Peanut oil, for frying

1 pound fluke, cod or any firm white-fleshed fish, cut into slivers ¼ inch wide and 2 to 3 inches long

2 limes, cut into wedges.


1. In a small bowl, whisk together the mayonnaise, sour cream, cumin and 2 teaspoons chipotle salsa. (Add more salsa if you like; chipotle salsas vary in heat.) In a large bowl, toss together the cabbage, tomatoes, red onion, jalapeño, garlic and cilantro.

2. In a large bowl, make a beer batter: Whisk together ⅔ cup of the flour and the cornmeal, kosher salt and beer. Near the stove, arrange a bowl of the remaining ⅓ cup flour, a bowl of the beaten eggs and the bowl of beer batter.

3. Preheat the oven to warm, or its lowest setting. Spread the tortillas on a baking sheet. Cover with a damp tea towel and place in the oven -- but don't forget about them!

4. Pour 1 inch of peanut oil into a deep saucepan and place over medium-high heat. When it is hot enough to brown a bread crumb, begin coating the fish. Dust 3 to 4 pieces with flour, then dip them in the egg, followed by the batter. Add the pieces, 1 by 1, to the hot oil. Fry until golden brown and cooked through, about 3 minutes. Adjust heat as needed. Drain on a plate lined with paper towels; repeat with the remaining fish.

5. Fill each warm tortilla with 2 to 3 pieces of fish, a generous spoonful of the chipotle sauce and a large pinch of the cabbage mixture. Squeeze a wedge of lime and sprinkle a little salt over the filled tortilla. Fold in half and serve.

source: New York Times Magazine

¡Tamalada!

We decided to have a tamale-making SuperBowl party yesterday, which was a lot of fun. Making tamales is a lot of work, and it's best to have help, and split it up over time. I cooked up two kinds of meat, red chile pork and chicken molé, ahead of time. The basic recipe and pork filling were from Rick Bayless' Mexico: One Plate at a Time.

Red chile pork filling

6 ounces dried guajillo chiles, stemmed, seeded and each torn into several pieces
6 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
¾ teaspoon black pepper, preferably freshly ground
½ teaspoon cumin, preferably freshly ground
4 pounds lean boneless pork (preferably from the shoulder), cut into ½-inch cubes
Salt

In a large blender or food processor (or working in batches), combine the chiles, garlic, pepper and cumin. Add 4 cups water, cover and blend to a smooth puree. Strain the mixture through a medium-mesh strainer into a medium-size (3-quart) saucepan.

Add the meat, 4 cups water and 1 teaspoon salt. Simmer, uncovered, over medium heat, stirring regularly, until the pork is fork-tender and the liquid is reduced to the consistency of a thick sauce, about 1 hour. Use a fork to break the pork into small pieces. Taste and season with additional salt if necessary. Let cool to room temperature.

Chicken molé filling

Mix one 8.25-oz.jar of Doña Maria Mole sauce with 2 cups chicken broth. Heat and whisk until smooth, and add the shredded meat from a 5 lb. boiled chicken.

Cheese filling

Mix shredded monterey jack cheese with pureed canned chipotle peppers to taste.

Batter
10 ounces (1⅓ cups) rich-tasting pork lard (or vegetable shortening if you wish), slightly softened but not at all runny
1½ teaspoons baking powder
3½ cups dried masa harina for tamales mixed with 2¼ cups hot water
1 cup chicken broth

With an electric mixer on medium-high speed, beat the lard or shortening with 2 teaspoons salt and the baking powder until light in texture, about 1 minute. Continue beating as you add the masa (fresh or reconstituted) in three additions. Reduce the speed to medium-low and add 1 cup of the broth. Continue beating for another minute or so, until a ½-teaspoon dollop of the batter floats in a cup of cold water (if it floats you can be sure the tamales will be tender and light).

Beat in enough additional broth to give the mixture the consistency of soft (not runny) cake batter; it should hold its shape in a spoon. Taste the batter and season with additional salt if you think necessary.

We used 3 batches of the batter recipe. For the first batch, I had a ½ cup of lard rendered from the pork roast, the rest was all commercial hydrogenated lard, which isn't much different from shortening. Some people are really particular about their lard. We had lots of people to shape tamales and roll them into corn husks. They steamed for about 70 minutes, standing up vertically in a pasta strainer pot. They were all different shapes and thicknesses, but they were good! Served with jicama salad, rice and beans.

Chili Relleno Casserole

1 sweet onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
8 eggs
½ cup milk
2 T. all purpose flour
½ tsp. pepper
½ tsp. salt
½ tsp. ground cumin
3 7-ounce cans whole green chilies, split open and cut into strips
5 corn tortillas, torn into strips
1 pound shredded Monterey Jack cheese
paprika

Lightly grease 9x9-inch glass baking dish. Heat a small amount of oil in a skillet on medium, and saute onions and garlic until onions are lightly browned. Remove from heat and set aside. Beat eggs with milk, flour, pepper, salt, and cumin in a medium bowl to blend. Arrange chilies from 1 can in prepared dish, covering bottom completely. Cover with strips of tortilla, then sauteed onion mixture. Sprinkle with approximately ⅓ of the cheese. Repeat layering twice. Pour egg mixture over the top. Sprinkle with paprika. Let stand 30 minutes. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate.)

Preheat oven to 350°F. Bake until casserole is mostly set, slightly puffed in center and golden brown on edges, about 45 minutes. Cool 10 minutes and serve.

Modified from this epicurious post, incorporating various comments and updates.

Leftover Turkey Enchiladas

Finished off the last of the turkey with the great after-Thanksgiving turkey enchiladas. I like jazzing up a canned sauce, which makes it much better but faster than starting from scratch.

I used green enchilada sauce, pepper jack cheese, and didn't bother deep frying the corn tortillas or saving sauce in a gravy boat. It was very good.

The Great After-Thanksgiving Turkey Enchiladas

Bon Appétit | November 1998

Serves 6. ingredients 3 tablespoons plus ½ cup vegetable oil 1¾ cups finely chopped onions 1 28-ounce can enchilada sauce 5 plum tomatoes, finely chopped 1½ teaspoons finely chopped canned chipotle chilies* 1 cup chopped fresh cilantro 3 cups coarsely shredded cooked turkey 2 cups grated Monterey Jack cheese ¾ cup sour cream 12 5- to 6-inch corn tortillas *Chipotle chilies canned in a spicy tomato sauce are sold at Latin American markets, at specialty foods stores and at some supermarkets. preparation Heat 3 tablespoons oil in large saucepan over medium heat. Add 1½ cups onions and sauté until tender, about 5 minutes. Add enchilada sauce, tomatoes and chipotles. Cover; simmer 20 minutes, stirring often. Remove from heat. Stir in ½ cup cilantro. Season sauce with salt and pepper. Mix turkey, 1½ cups cheese, sour cream, ¼ cup onions and ½ cup cilantro in bowl. Season with salt and pepper. Preheat oven to 350°F.

Heat 1/2 cup vegetable oil in medium skillet over medium heat. Cook 1 tortilla until pliable, about 20 seconds per side. Drain on paper towels. Repeat with remaining tortillas.

Spread 1/2 cup sauce in 13 x 9 x 2-inch glass baking dish.

Spoon 1/4 cup turkey mixture in center of each tortilla. Roll up tortillas. Arrange seam side down in dish. Spoon 2 1/2 cups sauce over enchiladas. Sprinkle with 1/2 cup cheese. Bake enchiladas until heated through, about 30 minutes.

Rewarm remaining sauce in saucepan over medium-low heat.

Transfer to sauceboat. Serve enchiladas, passing sauce separately.

Heat ½ cup vegetable oil in medium skillet over medium heat. Cook 1 tortilla until pliable, about 20 seconds per side. Drain on paper towels. Repeat with remaining tortillas.

Spread ½ cup sauce in 13 × 9 × 2-inch glass baking dish.

Spoon ¼ cup turkey mixture in center of each tortilla. Roll up tortillas. Arrange seam side down in dish. Spoon 2½ cups sauce over enchiladas. Sprinkle with ½ cup cheese. Bake enchiladas until heated through, about 30 minutes.

Rewarm remaining sauce in saucepan over medium-low heat.

Transfer to sauceboat. Serve enchiladas, passing sauce separately.