Vegetable Enchiladas

I made these vegetable enchiladas last week, something that I wanted to try out for the longest time. I was inspired by the enchiladas, that I had at this small mexican eatery in Palo Alto called Sanchos. Delicious mexican food, and just the perfect seasoning and perfect condiments. Could not ask for anything more or less! Even my 2 yr old loved the enchiladas at this place! I was determined to replicate them at home, and so I did :)

next on my to do list is the perfect the black beans and salsa!

Ingredients:

4 corn tortillas
1 small zuchinni thinly sliced
1 small red bell pepper thinly sliced
1 small onion thinly sliced
2 garlic cloves minced finely
1-2 tablespoon olive oil
About 2 cups red enchilada sauce(recipe to follow)
2 cups grated cheddar cheese + monterey jack cheese
1/4 cup chopped green onions for garnish
1/2 teaspoon paprika powder
1/2 teaspoon cumin powder
salt and pepper to taste

Method:

In a saute pan, pour in the olive oil, and add in all the vegetables, along with paprika, cumin and salt and pepper to taste. Saute the veggies on high heat to char them a bit to get the grilled flavor. Put the veggies aside.

In a plate, pour one cup of the red enchilada sauce, and keep it aside. In the same saute pan, grill a corn tortilla for a couple of minutes. Then add it to the plate with the red sauce, and coat both sides with the sauce. Add 1/4 of the veggie mixture in the center, with about 1/4 cup of the cheese mixture, and roll it up and add it to a ceramic baking pan. Do the same for the remaining 3 tortillas, until the baking pan is filled with the enchiladas.

Now cover the entire baking pan with the remaining enchilada sauce, add in the remaining 1 cup cheese on top, and bake it in the oven for 10 minutes at 350 degrees until cheese melted. Garnish with the green onions! its ready to eat with some guacamole, black beans and salsa! yummm! dont forget the hot sauce ;)

Grilled Squash Quesadillas with Charred Tomato Salsa

I saw this recipe on Cooking Channel TV blogsite and loved the sound of it. It looked so enticing that I had to try it out. As usual I made my own variations and it turned out fantastic!! We had the quesadillas with the tomato salsa, sliced avocado and light sour cream on the sides. This combination was so good, that we wanted to eat the same dinenr 2 nights in a row which does not happen ever in our home! yum yum yum :)

Ingredients:

Makes 8 quesadillas

1 zucchini or summer squash, sliced lengthwise 1/4-inch thick

1 red bell pepper thinly sliced

1/2 onion thinly sliced

About 3 tablespoons olive oil or melted butter or a combination
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
8 white corn tortillas
1/4 to 1/2 cup Ancho Chile Paste, recipe follows, or store-bought
8 ounces thinly sliced or shredded Manchego cheese
2 scallions, white and green parts, very thinly sliced

Charred Tomato Salsa, recipe follows, or your favorite green or red salsa

1 avocado cubed or sliced

1/2 cup light sour cream

Ancho Chile Paste:
6 dried ancho or pasilla chiles or a mixture
1 teaspoon Kosher salt

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

Charred Tomato Salsa:
4 ripe medium tomatoes (about 1 pound)
1 jalapeno
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced
1 scallion, white and green parts chopped
1/2 cup fresh cilantro leaves
Kosher salt


Method:

Heat a grill or grill pan over medium-high heat. Add in the olive oil. Put in the zucchini, bell pepper and onions onto the grill pan. Add salt and pepper and saute it till charred well enough. Heat a skillet over medium heat and add about 1 tablespoon of the oil or butter. Lay a tortilla in the skillet and paint a light covering (more or less depending on your taste) of the Ancho Chile Paste over the tortilla. Scatter or lay a slice of cheese just big enough to cover half the tortilla (about 1/2 ounce). Then the sauted veggies and some scallion slices and cover with another layer of cheese. Cook until the tortilla softens, about 1 minute. Fold the tortilla over into a half moon. Flip and cook on each side until golden brown and crisp and the cheese melts, adding more oil or butter if the pan gets dry, 2 to 3 minutes per side. Repeat with the remaining ingredients.

Cut the quesadillas into wedges and serve with the Charred Tomato Salsa, avocado and sour cream! yum yum yum!

Ancho Chile Paste:
Stem, seed and pull the chiles in half. Toast the pieces in a dry skillet over medium heat, turning until fragrant and blistered but not charred, about 1 minute. Transfer to a bowl of boiling water and set aside to soften, 30 to 40 minutes.
Put the chiles in a blender with the salt (not a food processor, it won’t be fine enough) and puree until very smooth. Add some of the soaking water, about 1/2 cup, if needed to engage the blender. Strain if desired.

Heat the olive oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add the paste and fry, stirring with a wooden spoon, until the mixture is thick, 3 to 5 minutes. Cool and store in the refrigerator for up to 1 month. Makes 1 1/2 cups.

Charred Tomato Salsa:
Position rack in the upper part of the oven and preheat the broiler. Line a small broiler pan with foil.
Place the tomatoes and jalapeno in the pan and broil, turning them as needed, until the skins blacken and split, 15 to 20 minutes. Wrap completely in aluminum foil and cool.
Core the tomatoes and stem the jalapeno (remove the seeds if you want to temper the heat). Puree the tomatoes, skins and all, with the jalapeno, oil, garlic and scallions and in a blender to make a smooth sauce. Pulse in the cilantro. Transfer the sauce to a bowl and stir in 1/2 teaspoon salt. (The salsa thickens a bit if prepared ahead and chilled; stir to loosen it up before serving.) Makes about 1 1/2 to 2 cups.

Huevos Rancheros

One of my favorite Mexican dishes! We had this delicious breakfast when we went to Cancun and its been my favorite ever since! I tried it out last Sunday, including making the rachero sauce from scratch and it turned out DELISH!! :) I cant believe how good it tasted! Raj loved it too!

Here is the recipe!

Ingredients:

2 whole wheat tortillas
oil OR cooking spray to cook the tortillas
2 eggs
1/2 can of black beans
1 tablespoon spring onions
1 teaspoon of cilantro
3/4 cup grated pepper jack cheese

Ranchero sauce recipe:
1 tablespoon oil
1/2 onion finely chopped
3-4 finely chopped garlic
5 tomatoes finely chopped
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
salt and pepper to taste
3 chipotle peppers in adobe sauce
1 tablespoon sour cream


Method:

In a medium saucepan, at medium heat,add in the oil. Add in the onions and garlic and saute it till golden brown. Add in the tomatoes and let it cook at medium low heat for 5-7 minutes. Add in the salt,pepper, and cayenne pepper, saute it. Add in the chipotle peppers. Cook for 5 more minutes till you see that the mixture is mushy enough.

Put this mixture in the food processor and blend it till smooth! Remove it in a bowl, and stir in the sour cream till the sauce looks smooth and creamy.

Now, in a small saucepan, add in the black beans, cilantro and spring onions. Add in salt to taste. Cook on medium heat for 5 minutes till hot.

In a pan, cook the tortilla one at a time with cooking spray or oil on both sides until light brown and a wee bit crisp. Remove it on a plate.

Now, on a plate, assemble the tortilla, and add half of the cooked black beans. Now cook the egg in a pan, in a fried egg style with cooking spray or little oil. Let it cook for a couple of minutes. Now add half of the cheese on the egg and cover the pan until the cheese melts. The egg is done! Now slip out the egg onto the black beans. Top it with the drizzles of ranchero sauce. Garnish with chopped spring onions!

Disfrutar!! (Enjoy in spanish!! )

Mango Salsa

Dinner today was veggie fajitas! Recipe follows, but I made mango salsa to go with it, and that was delish!!! :) I ate the remaining salsa all by itself, was so refreshing! :)

Ingredients:

1 mango diced small
1/2 cup finely diced cucumber
1/4 cup finely diced red bell pepper
1 jalapeno finely chopped(unseeded else it is too hot)
1/4 cup finely chopped red onion
2 tablespoon finely chopped cilantro
1 lime
salt and pepper to taste


Method:

In a medium bowl, mix all the ingredients together. Mango salsa is ready to eat!

Tex-Mex Salad

A delicious salad, light and refreshing for the summer! :)

Ingredients:
1 bunch romaine lettuce roughly chopped
1 avocado chopped into bite size chunks
1 tomato chopped into bite size chunks
2 corn ears
1/8 cup finely chopped cilantro
1/8 cup finely chopped spring onions
1 cup fried bite size tortilla strips
1 lemon juice
double the lemon juice quantity of extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon good honey
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 - 3/4 tsp tabasco sauce
1/3 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Method:

Char the corn ears on the gas until well done. Let it cool slightly and remove the corn off the ear in a bowl.

Put the romaine lettuce, tomatoes, avocado, onions, cilantro all in the same bowl.

For the dressing, mix the lemon juice, honey, extra virgin olive oil, salt, pepper and tabasco sauce in another bowl and mix it well until blended.

Pour the dressing into the salad bowl and toss it lightly to coat all salad ingredients with dressing.

Plate it and top it with tortilla chips and cheddar cheese! YUM!! :D

Guacamole

Excellent dip!! Also, very healthy, contains no oil and avocado has all the good fat! :)

Ingredients:

2 ripe Haas avocados
1 roma tomato diced into small pieces
1/2 red or white onion finely chopped
1 lemon or 2 small limes
1-2 tbsp finely chopped cilantro
1 jalapeno finely chopped(remove the seeds, else it will be very hot!)
salt and pepper to taste


Method:

Cut the avocado length wise, all around with the seed in the middle. Twist the avacodo with both hands, one going clockwise and the other hand going anti-clockwise. Remove the seed. Scoop out all the ripe avocado with a spoon into a big bowl.

With a fork, start breaking the avocado into smaller pieces but NOT smashing it. It should look chunky. Squeeze the lemon or lime over the avocado. Put in the diced onions, tomatoes, cilantro, salt and pepper and fold it in gently in such a way that the avocado does NOT break further. Fold it till well blended.

Its ready to be eaten with tortilla chips or even pita chips! ( baked pita chips recipe next!)

Mexican Lasagna

An Italian classic, gets a south of the border twist! My husband Raj loves mexican food, he likes the spiciness of it, but you can only have tacos or enchiladas, but after a while that becomes boring. So I combined one of my favorite foods Lasagna, with the flavors and ingredients that my husband loves so much!

Ingredients:

3 corn tortillas ( available at Trader Joes )
1/2 can of black beans
1/2 small can of sweet corn kernels
1 small roma tomato finely chopped
1/2 onion thinly sliced
1/2 large red/yellow bell pepper
1/2 tbsp of chopped cilantro
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 tsp tabasco sauce ( or less depending on how spicy you like it! )
3/4 cup mexican cheese blend ( available at Trader Joes )
1/3 cup salsa sauce
1 tsp cumin seeds
4 tsp vegetable oil
1/2 tsp cumin powder


Method:

In a small saucepan, put in about 2 tsp vegetable oil and let it heat up at medium heat. Put in the cumin seeds and let them crackle. Put in the 1/2 can of black beans and 1/2 can of corn kernels and stir it till blended. Put in the tomatoes and cilantro, salt, pepper, tabasco sauce and cumin powder. Mix it all well, and leave it for about 5 minutes at reduced heat. This mixture is ready.

In another flat pan, pour the remaining 2 tsp of vegetable oil, heat it at little more than medium heat. Add the thinly sliced bell pepper and onions and saute it for about 5-7 minutes until the onions are browned and the bell pepper has specks of black on it. This mixture is ready.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

To assemble, put about a tbsp of salsa sauce and spread it at the bottom of a square baking pan. Put a corn tortilla on the top. Put half of the vegetable mixture, and spread it evenly on the corn tortilla to cover it properly. Put half of the black bean mixture and spread it evenly and thinly. Put half of the remaining salsa sauce, and spread it evenly. Put 1/3 of the mexican cheese blend and spread it evenly.

Cover this with another corn tortilla and repeat the above assembling procedure. Top it off with the last corn tortilla and spread the remaining 1/3 of the cheese on top. Cover the baking pan with an aluminum foil and put it in the oven to bake. Keep it in for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, remove the aluminum foil and keep it on broil for 2 minutes for the cheese on the top to brown and melt really well.

Cool it for 2 minutes after removing it from the oven and its READY!!! Cut it into 4 pieces and eat away this delicious Mexican Lasagna with guacamole and salsa and Doritos!!!! :)