Turkey & Black Bean Stacked Tostadas

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South-of-the-border flavors have been a mainstay in my diet since I was in the first grade. I spent a few of my formative years in southern Colorado with my mother, so cooking and eating Mexican food feels like a homecoming for me. The foods of that region had so much flavor and complexity, and the fact that the earliest Mexican foods I ate were homemade means the bar is set pretty high for me.

With Cinco de Mayo coming up this week, I wanted to share a fun meal that is as versatile as it is delicious. Though most of the Mexican food my mom made at home was some version of ground beef tacos, she occasionally dabbled into more involved recipes, and at some point when I visited her as an adult, she made something she called “stacked tostadas.” I loved them! With crunchy tortilla shells, warm ground meat and melty shredded cheese, they satisfied all my texture cravings, and the authentic flavors took me back to my younger years.

This recipe is not quite the same as what my mom made, and I doubt she even worked from a recipe but from whatever she had on hand at the time. A few of the ingredients are necessary, including the corn tortillas and cheese, but the other fillings are subjective. The thing that really makes this dish is the red sauce— it’s bold and flavorful, but not tomato-based. Rather, it is built on ground chile peppers.

For as long as I can remember, one of the staple seasonings in my mother’s arsenal was a pure chile powder that came in a generic looking cellophane packet with a white label and red lettering. It was made by a local, southern Colorado company, which had a whole line of other products as well, but I most remember the“chile molido puro.” Unlike most commerical brands of “chili powder,” which usually include various other seasonings, additives and a ton of salt, this stuff was just pure ground chiles—the exact literal translation of chile molido puro.

I have not seen those cellophane packets in many years (I’m sure they’re only distributed regionally), and until a few days ago, I couldn’t even remember what the brand was called, but it’s amazing what one can find on the internet with only a few keywords in a search bar. Here’s one of the images the web found for me when I asked for “chile seasonings Colorado company:”

This is the REAL deal!

Just seeing the package made my heart giddy! It’s funny that whatever made you fall in love with a particular food becomes the standard, and I guess that’s what comfort food is all about! If you want to try something fun and new for Cinco de Mayo, give this recipe a try, either as I made it with ground turkey, or by substituting whatever sounds delicious to you.

Olé!

I haven’t been able to get my hands on a package of the Fernandez seasoning just yet, so I’ve substituted ground ancho chile powder for my enchilada sauce. Always read the labels to see whether your seasoning includes other ingredients, and if you find that you have one labeled “chili powder,” with cumin, oregano and garlic, that will cover most of the flavors you need. If it also contains salt, adjust your salt and pepper accordingly.

My recipe for the sauce is very similar to what’s offered on the back of the Fernandez label, which recommends making a basic oil and flour paste, with garlic and seasonings for flavor and water to thicken (though I used a low-sodium veggie broth). If you find the flavors of your sauce too intense, you can tame it by adding a few tablespoons or up to a small can of tomato sauce. We crave intensity at our house, so I went the other direction and added a spoonful of pureed chipotle with adobo. We had some in the fridge because my hubby had just made a batch of his awesome smoky guacamole, which was perfect on top of these tostada stacks.

For the filling, I cooked up some ground turkey with onions and red bell peppers, a few shakes of my favorite Mexican spices and some black beans. Want more heat? Swap the red bell pepper for diced jalapeños. My mom always used ground beef, but turkey lightened this up a bit without sacrificing flavor. Ground chicken would also work, or you could skip the meat altogether in favor of additional beans or perhaps roasted sweet potatoes for body and texture. For a little pop of sweetness, I also added a little fire-roasted sweet corn, which we almost always have in the freezer.

Use whatever kind of Mexican melting cheese you like— cheddar, Monterey Jack or pepper jack work nicely, or Colby is good if you want really mild flavor. For best results, buy a block of cheese and shred it yourself. The stuff in the bag is coated with cellulose powder to keep the cheese from sticking, and the melting quality suffers. I promise, it’s worth the extra effort.

Store bought corn tortillas are fine for this, but if you want to go all out for Cinco de Mayo, consider making a batch of easy handmade corn tortillas. Give them a brief dip in hot oil to make them nice and crispy, then start layering! Filling mixture goes on first, then cheese and sauce. Second verse, same as the first.

After a third layer, finish the enchilada stack with a handful of shredded lettuce, a dollop of sour cream and fresh guacamole. And though tostadas are typically a handheld item, the stacked and sauced method here requires that you use a fork.

Turkey & Black Bean Stacked Tostadas

  • Servings: 4
  • Difficulty: Average
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Cinco de Mayo is a great excuse for me to celebrate the flavors that I've loved since early childhood.


It’s best to prepare the chile sauce first, or perhaps even a day ahead so the flavors can mingle overnight in the fridge. The sauce can be rewarmed while you make the turkey-black bean filling.

Ingredients

  • 1 clove fresh garlic, minced
  • 3 Tbsp. olive oil
  • 3 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
  • 2 Tbsp. pure ground chile powder
  • 1/2 tsp. salt
  • 1/2 tsp. ground cumin
  • A pinch of oregano (preferably Mexican)
  • 2 cups low-sodium vegetable (or chicken) broth
  • 1 Tbsp. pureed chipotle with adobo (optional; substitute tomato sauce for milder flavor)

Directions

  1. Heat a small saucepan over medium heat. Swirl in olive oil and saute garlic briefly, just until it begins to bubble.
  2. Add flour and whisk to combine. Let this cook until bubbly, then add seasonings and broth.
  3. Whisk constantly until mixture begins to thicken.
  4. Stir in chipotle with adobo (or tomato sauce) and reduce heat to a simmer while you prepare the tostada filling.

Any other ground meat may be substituted for the ground turkey. If you prefer to keep the tostada stacks meatless, swap the ground turkey for refried beans. Swap other ingredients as desired, but aim to incorporate flavors and textures that will complement each other, such as roasted sweet potatoes and sauteed mushrooms.

Ingredients

  • 1 Tbsp. olive oil
  • 1 medium sweet or yellow onion, chopped
  • 1/2 red bell pepper, chopped
  • 2 cloves fresh garlic, minced
  • 1 pound lean ground turkey
  • 1/2 tsp. Ground Chile powder
  • 1/2 tsp. Ground cumin
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • 1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
  • 1/2 cup fire-roasted sweet corn (frozen is fine)
  • 12 regular size corn tortillas
  • Vegetable oil for frying (peanut or canola oil are good)
  • Shredded lettuce, sour cream and guacamole for topping

Directions

  1. Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add olive oil, then sauté onions and bell peppers until softened. Add garlic and cook until fragrant.
  2. Push the vegetables to the outer edges of the pan and add turkey, half at a time, to the center of the pan. Cook until browned and then add remaining turkey to finish cooking.
  3. Add seasonings, black beans and corn. Stir and cook until heated through. 
  4. Reduce heat to keep mixture warm while you prepare the tortillas.
  5. Place a second skillet over medium heat, and add oil to about 1/2-inch depth. 
  6. Fry tortillas, one at a time, until crispy (about 2 minutes) and blot on paper towels.
  7. Create stacks, beginning with a tortilla base, topped with turkey-black bean mixture, cheese and sauce. Follow with two more layers.
  8. Top finished stack with a handful of shredded lettuce, sour cream and guacamole.

Queso Fundido Potato Skins

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Ah, Spring! It’s difficult to narrow down what’s best about this time of year— is it the warming temperatures and longer days? The cheerful daffodils that are already in full bloom in the beds in front of our house? I am already envisioning donning my garden gloves and putting down soil for this year’s garden. Easter will be here before we know it, and that’s always a sign of a fresh start. It’s all so exhilarating!

But the thing that everyone around these parts is excited about has nothing to do with weather, flowers or new beginnings. Nope— this month, it’s all about March Madness, baby!

Photo by Markus Spiske on Pexels.com

Many years ago, in what seems like a different lifetime, I worked in the main branch of a large, North Carolina-based bank. The “madness” that I witnessed included executives from the bank clearing their calendars so that they could stand in the lobby of the bank, focused on portable TVs that someone had plugged in right there along the teller line (this was all before the internet and smartphones, of course). Customers who came in to do their routine banking would stop for a few minutes, enjoy snacks that the bank staff brought in for a potluck table, and watch some of the games. Someone kept up with the brackets, to report to visitors which teams had advanced to the next rounds. 

Weird, I thought, for all of this to occur in a business setting on a weekday— but I was the newcomer who had not yet learned that North Carolina has five key religions— Southern Baptist, Methodist, NASCAR, pulled pork barbecue and ACC hoops.

Thirty five years later, It no longer seems weird to me to see people interrupt business as usual to watch a basketball game in the middle of their workday. During my years in radio, I even sat courtside for a couple of those games and it is indeed a thrill. We have plenty of that excitement around here this week, too, as the rivalries intensify at the ACC Tournament, happening right now in nearby Greensboro.

If you need a hearty snack for your own March Madness viewing, consider it done with these zesty Mexican-inspired potato skins, with all the flavors of queso dip inside a split-and-scooped baby russet potato. These little guys can be prepped in advance for the most part, then popped into the oven at the last minute so the toppings— chorizo, fire-roasted corn, queso dip and jalapeño—all melt together in a melty, gooey self-contained snack that’s easy to eat while you’re watching the games. These skins would have really wowed the gang at the bank!

The first step in making them, of course, is prepping and baking the russet potatoes. I chose smallish ones for this recipe so the skins would be better suited to game day snacking. My secret trick with any baked potato recipe is the brine. Yes, I soak my scrubbed potatoes in heavily salted water before baking, and it ensures a crunchy, flavorful skin that is just as tasty as the fillings you put in them. The brining step only takes about half an hour, and the outcome is well worth it. I browned up the chorizo in cast iron while the potatoes soaked, and kept the drippings in the skillet.

When the spuds were cool enough to handle, I split them in half and scooped out some of the filling, keeping enough to hold the fillings without leaking. You can do whatever you like with the scooped out part; I added them to the current batch of homemade food for Nilla. To give the skins a bit of extra flavor, I fried them briefly (face-down) in the chorizo drippings, just long enough to get those edges crispy. From there, it was just a matter of filling them up with shredded cheese, queso, corn, chorizo and jalapeno.

A second trip through the oven melted all the tasty fillings together, and I finished them with a quick scatter of sliced scallions.

Queso Fundido Potato Skins

  • Servings: 16 skins
  • Difficulty: Average
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This is a fun game day snack that puts a Mexican queso dip twist on classic potato skins.


Ingredients

  • 8 smallish russet potatoes, scrubbed
  • Hot, but not necessarily boiling, water
  • 1 Tbsp. kosher salt (for brining the potatoes)
  • 6 oz. fresh Mexican chorizo sausage* (see notes)
  • 1 to 2 Tbsp. olive oil, if needed
  • 1/2 container Land o Lakes queso dip*, cold from fridge
  • 1/2 cup fire roasted sweet corn
  • 1/2 cup Monterey jack or pepper jack cheese, shredded
  • 16 pickled jalapeno slices
  • 2 scallions, thinly sliced (white and green parts)
  • 1/2 cup sour cream (optional), for serving

*Notes: This recipe uses the fresh, crumbly style of chorizo, not the hard Spanish variety. Our neighbor turned us on to the Land o Lakes queso dip, and we love it! If you don’t find it in your supermarket, substitute something similar from the fresh dairy case.

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 400°F, with oven rack in center position. Line a large baking sheet with aluminum foil.
  2. Place scrubbed potatoes in a large, heatproof bowl. Sprinkle kosher salt over the potatoes, then fill with enough hot water to cover the potatoes. Swish the water a bit to dissolve the salt. Let them soak for 30 minutes.
  3. Brown the chorizo in a cast iron skillet over medium heat. Scoop the chorizo out into a separate bowl and keep the drippings in the pan.
  4. Dry potatoes with paper towels and arrange on the foil-lined baking sheet. Bake for about 35 minutes, until potatoes are easily pierced with the tip of a sharp knife. When potatoes are cool enough to handle, cut them in half lengthwise and scoop out some of the soft potato, leaving about 1/4-inch around the edges and bottom. Use the excess potato in another recipe.
  5. Place the chorizo skillet back onto medium heat. If the drippings are skimpy in the pan, swirl in a little olive oil. When hot, place the scooped potato skins face down in the pan, to crisp up the exposed edges. Arrange the skins on the foil-lined pan and prepare to fill them.
  6. Divide about half of the shredded cheese among the skins and top each with a teaspoonful of the roasted corn. Transfer the queso cheese into a glass measuring cup and microwave about 20 seconds to loosen it up. Pour the queso over the filling in the skins, up to the edges. Top with chorizo, jalapeno slices and the remaining shredded cheese.
  7. Place skins back into the 400°F oven for about 5 minutes, until cheese is melted and bubbly and skins are heated through. Sprinkle with sliced scallions and serve immediately.

Green Chili Burritos

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This is not a fancy dish by any means, but it is one of the oldest comfort foods from my childhood. My mother began making a ground beef version of this flavorful chili when I was about 6. It’s easy to estimate my age at the time because we moved around a lot, and I can recall where we lived when certain memories were made. My mom was newly remarried and we had moved out west from upstate New York for my stepfather’s job as a truck driver. I loved my stepdad, but he was gone a lot, so it was frequently just my mom and me taking up space in a single-wide mobile home in rural southern Colorado, where Mexican flavors reign supreme.

You could barely see our little box of a house from the main road, which ran a straight line through the tiny town of about 350 people. There was a long, dusty driveway leading from the school bus stop, over some railroad tracks and past the big white propane tank that provided us fuel for heating and cooking. Occasionally, during deer season, I’d see a carcass hung up from a tree near our house, and that meant my new daddy had a good hunting trip and venison would soon be on the menu. Most days after school, our sweet little dog, Ginger, would meet me halfway on my walk from the bus, and on the days that I’d catch a whiff of my mom’s green chili when I opened the door—well, that’s a very happy memory.

A short time after, many things changed in my world. For the second time in my young life, my parents split. We moved again and the relationship with my mom began a sad but steady decline. I shuttled back and forth between parents (and states) until high school graduation, and then made the decision to move away on my own. Visits with my mother became few and far between, and eventually when I visited as an adult and requested the green chili, I learned that her recipe had shifted from the familiar ground beef to cubed pork. It was tasty, but I longed for the texture of the tender ground meat.

What I really wanted was a taste of happy childhood. Isn’t that what comfort food is?

I can taste my childhood in this chili.

The first time I made my own green chili, about 15 years ago, I used a flavorful pork sausage I had discovered at Whole Foods. The sausage was made in-house and was utterly addictive with its mild, smoky green chiles and spicy habanero peppers, and I found it a happy medium to provide the soft meat texture I loved about the first version of green chili I ever had and the rich, savory flavor of pork. When my local Whole Foods stopped making it, I was beyond disappointed. I figured I’d have to settle for plain ground pork going forward.

But recently, necessity being the mother of invention and all, I learned how to make my own spicy sausage and baby, I’m back!

There’s a simple salt-and-wait method for making sausage, and it’s easier than you might expect.

I’m still in the learning stages of sausage production, but my imagination has run pretty wild, considering all the unique flavor possibilities before me. I have delved into a few other flavor combinations already, but I know it won’t be long before this one comes up in rotation again. It’s because the green chili burritos I made from the sausage was just that delicious—even better than any of the versions I made before. Link back to the homemade pork sausage post for the particulars on this sausage, or choose a store-bought sausage that has green chile flavors if you want a shortcut. Heck, maybe your Whole Foods still sells that sausage, and you’ll be in business.

This is my happy place. 🙂

The chili itself is the star of these burritos; the rest is just a tortilla rolled around seasoned beans and cheese. Accompanying the sausage were onions, garlic, flour and masa flour (for thickening), canned green chiles, fresh jalapeno (if you love the heat, as we do), a few simple seasonings, and broth (I used both veggie and chicken). Putting the chili together is easy, and then it settles in for a long, low simmer. If you have an extra day, let it sit in the fridge overnight because the flavors mingle even more for better flavor.

If you like, you can serve the finished chili just as it is—either by the steaming bowlful with a handful of shredded cheese or by ladling it over a burrito—but if it thins out more than you prefer during the cooking, whip up a bit of corn starch slurry and stream it in over medium heat. When it’s thickened and glossy, it’s ready to go.

Initially, my chili was a bit thin.
Equal parts corn starch and cold water makes a slurry for thickening.
The chili is even more comforting when it’s thickened.

At our house, we enjoyed this at dinner, lazily draped over bean and cheese burritos. And we enjoyed it again for a weekend breakfast, stuffing our tortillas with black beans, scrambled eggs and cheese, plus a scatter of fresh chopped tomatoes.

If we get snow this winter, I’ll be making this again!

Green Chili Burritos

  • Servings: About 8
  • Difficulty: Average
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This dish speaks the language of my childhood, with comforting chili made from ground pork and all that beautiful, melty cheese.


Ingredients

  • 1 large yellow onion, chopped
  • 3 or 4 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 Tbsp. EVOO
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 tsp. dried green chile flakes (mine were from Flatiron Pepper Co., available online)
  • 1.5 lbs. green chile pork sausage (store-bought, or my recipe which is included below)
  • 1 whole fresh jalapeno, seeded and chopped (keep some of the seeds if you like it hot)
  • 2 or 3 Tbsp. additional EVOO to provide fat for roux
  • 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
  • 3 Tbsp. masa flour (Maseca)
  • 2 small cans (4 oz.) fire roasted diced green chiles
  • 1 1/2 tsp. ground cumin (from toasted seeds if possible)
  • 4 cups low-sodium veggie or chicken broth (I used 2 cups of each)
  • Corn starch slurry with equal parts corn starch and ice water (About 1/3 cup total)
  • 2 cans refried beans, warmed with oil and onions (for serving burritos)
  • Large flour tortillas (for burritos)
  • 8 oz. block cheddar, colby jack or pepperjack cheese, shredded
  • Fresh tomatoes, chopped (optional)

Directions

  1. Saute onions and garlic in olive oil, season with salt and pepper.
  2. Add sausage, a bit at a time, to brown it without overcrowding the pan.
  3. Add jalapeno and drizzle with olive oil to provide fat for the roux. Stir in ground cumin.
  4. Sprinkle flour and masa all over the meat mixture and toss to coat, adding more oil if needed to make it sticky and evenly coated.
  5. Add veg or chicken broth, half at a time, stirring each to blend and thicken.
  6. Cover the pot, reduce heat and cook at a low simmer for a couple of hours. Aim to keep it below the boiling point so that the thickening doesn’t cook off. If the chili seems “thin” after its simmer, use the corn starch slurry to thicken it back up. Be sure to let it simmer vigorously for a few minutes to cook off the starchy flavor.
  7. To serve the chili over burritos, warm the refried beans in a skillet or deep saucepan with some sautéed onions. Add a generous spoonful of the beans onto the center of a large flour tortilla. Add a small handful of shredded cheese and roll it up, placing it seam side-down on an oven-safe plate. Ladle chili over the burrito, sprinkle on more shredded cheese and just a small amount of extra chili. Place in the hot oven or microwave to melt the cheese.

Below are the ingredients I used in the green chile sausage. Full instruction for making the sausage can be found in my previous post for homemade pork sausage.

Ingredients

  • Pork shoulder cubes (gram weight of pork determines how much seasoning blend to use)
  • 1 tsp. Flatiron Pepper Co. hatch green chile blend (for mild, smoky flavor)
  • 1 tsp. Flatiron Pepper Co. four pepper blend (includes chiles de arbol, ghost and habanero for lots of heat)
  • 2 cloves garlic, grated on a microplane
  • 1 tsp. dried Mexican oregano
  • 1/2 tsp. ground cumin
  • 1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

Leftover Turkey & Black Bean Enchiladas

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There is so much anticipation and planning at our house for Thanksgiving that I can honestly say by the time we get to Friday, I’m over it. After that glorious day of gluttony, and the satisfying knowledge that we managed to pull off another successful Thanksgiving, I find that I’m craving anything but turkey and trimmings. Yes, we always make more than we need for the big meal, because we do enjoy having the leftovers. Of course, I love a perfect turkey sandwich on Saturday complete with cranberry mayo (who doesn’t?) and I look forward to plopping leftover stuffing into the waffle iron for Sunday breakfast, because yum.

What shall we call this…Post-Thanksgiving Benedict, maybe? 🙂

But for many reasons that only my taste buds truly understand, all I want on Friday is something with spice and heat, and that usually means Mexican flavors.

No doubt, I was influenced during the formative years spent with my mother in southern Colorado, where I first learned to love Mexican food in all its forms (especially homemade). My craving could also be caused by palate exhaustion; after the richness of the heavy Thanksgiving Day meal, it needs a reboot and a cleansing with bold, zesty ingredients. Regardless of the reason, a bite of these turkey and black bean enchiladas feels like a homecoming right about now.

You can make these as spicy or mild as you want.

Unsurprisingly, most of the flavors associated with the Mexican foods I love can be traced to Native American culture, so this recipe seems especially appropriate on this day after Thanksgiving. Today is Native American Heritage Day, an opportunity to reflect on the true roots of our land and all its beautiful bounty. To commemorate the occasion, I thought it would be fun to test our knowledge about the history of truly American foods, and to see how well everyone’s brain is working after that heavy dose of tryptophan yesterday.

Ready? Tap on an ingredient below to reveal the answer.

Which ingredients in today’s enchilada recipe were indigenous to the Americas, and did not exist outside these parts until after first contact by European explorers?
Black Beans
Yes! Most varieties of beans originated in South America (Peru, mainly) and they remain an integral source of protein and nutrients in American culture.
Cheese
Nope. Cows were introduced to the Americas by the Europeans, so there was no dairy here. Interestingly, many people of Native American descent are lactose-intolerant. Genetics!
Turkey
Yes, the ubiquitous Thanksgiving bird is a descendant of the wild turkeys that were domesticated by the Aztecs around 2,000 years ago.
Jalapenos & Green Chiles
All chile peppers were native only to the Americas, but today their popularity extends all the way through Europe and Asia.
Tomatoes
Correct, tomatoes were here first. Can you imagine what Italian food would look like if early explorers had not taken tomatoes back to Europe??
Onions
Sorry, but onions are not among the native crops, and were introduced to the Americas later by European explorers who brought some of their foods here.
Corn Tortillas
Absolutely! Corn did not exist outside of the Americas until after explorers “discovered” this land and all its bountiful maize.

There are plenty of resources for information about the native origin of foods, but I found this recent article very interesting, for its discussion how modern Native American chefs and home cooks are taking indigenous foods in new directions.

The article confirms that most of the typical Thanksgiving dishes served up each November really do have their roots in America—not in the same preparation, of course, loaded up with sugar and dumbed down with butter as many of us are accustomed to seeing. I can promise you that the first Thanksgiving did not include marshmallow topping, but the sweet potatoes? Of course.

That point brings me back to my post-Thanksgiving desire for something more natural with less embellishment. These homemade turkey and black bean enchiladas are a particularly good and easy way to knock out two dilemmas at once—my craving for spicy Mexican flavors, and dealing with the mountain of leftover turkey that has taken over the fridge. This recipe uses up all the random loose bits of turkey that won’t work in sandwiches or anything else where presentation matters. Dark meat, white meat, any of it is good here. Just be careful not to include any bones!

Chop up the turkey into small bite-size bits.

To make this deliciousness happen, I bring out a can of black beans, a fresh jalapeno, some onions and cheese, a small can of spicy Rotel tomatoes and my trusty cast-iron press to make a batch of handmade corn tortillas. I shared a few tips and tricks for success making tortillas last year, so check that out if you want to give it a go (I even offer a tip for making them without a press).

If you don’t have the desire to make one more thing from scratch, then of course store-bought corn tortillas will do just fine. Choose a brand with wholesome ingredients and look for larger ones; the tortillas designed for “street tacos” will be too small. I begin by sautéing the onions and jalapeno until they’re soft, then adding the turkey, Rotel and black beans, seasoning it up with a little salt and black pepper. Lay a spoonful of this mixture into a fresh, soft tortilla and top it with some shredded cheese. Roll it up into a cylinder and place it, seam side-down, into a casserole dish. Repeat until the dish is filled. You should have 10 to 12 enchiladas, depending on amount of filling in each.

Next, make a sauce to smother your enchiladas before the bake. You can use a canned enchilada sauce if you wish, but it’s easy to make at home. For this batch, I went with a green chile sauce, which begins with sautéed onions (I used leeks) and some canned green chiles, seasoned with salt and pepper, a bit of cumin and garlic powder. Transfer the mixture to a smoothie blender and whirr it up with some veggie or chicken broth until smooth. Make a simple roux in the sauce pan and pour the pureed green sauce back into the pot, stirring until thickened.

Prefer a red sauce? Pick up a can from the Mexican aisle of the supermarket. Easy and done!

Pour it over the enchiladas, top with more cheese and bake for half an hour, until bubbly. I like to garnish the enchiladas with cilantro for serving, for a little burst of freshness in each comforting bite. Sour cream is optional, but a nice touch for cooling down any spicy bits in your enchiladas.

Leftover Turkey & Black Bean Enchiladas

  • Servings: 4 to 6
  • Difficulty: Average
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These homemade turkey and black bean enchiladas are a particularly good and easy way to knock out two dilemmas at once—my craving for spicy Mexican flavors, and dealing with the mountain of leftover turkey that has taken over the fridge after Thanksgiving.


Ingredients

  • 12 good-sized corn tortillas (homemade or store-bought)
  • 8 oz. medium cheddar cheese (Monterey jack or pepper jack work great, too)
  • 1 large sweet or Spanish onion, chopped (half will be used in the filling and half in the sauce)
  • 1 red or green jalapeno, seeded and minced
  • 1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
  • 1 can Rotel spicy tomatoes, drained
  • 2 cups leftover roasted turkey, chopped (any combo of white or dark meat)
  • 2 cans chopped or diced green chiles
  • 1 cup vegetable or chicken broth
  • 2 Tbsp. salted butter
  • 1 Tbsp. flour
  • Fresh cilantro and sour cream, for serving

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350° F. Shred the cheese and make the tortillas, keeping them covered in a clean kitchen towel so they don’t become dry.
  2. Heat a tablespoon of oil in a skillet over medium heat. Sauté half of the chopped onions and jalapeno just until softened. Add turkey, beans and Rotel tomatoes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
  3. Hold a tortilla in the palm of your hand and add a generous spoonful of the filling. Add a pinch of the shredded cheese. Gently roll the tortilla into a cylinder and place it, seam side-down, into a 9 by 13-inch casserole dish. Repeat with remaining tortillas until the filling is gone and the dish is full.
  4. In a saucepan, sauté remaining onions in a tablespoon of oil. Add the cans of green chiles and season to taste with salt, pepper and ground cumin. Transfer the mixture to a blender container, add vegetable or chicken stock, and then blend until smooth.
  5. In the same saucepan, melt butter and cook the flour until fragrant and foamy. Whisk in the green chile puree and cook until thickened.
  6. Pour the green chile sauce all over the enchiladas. Top with remaining cheese, sprinkle it with salt and pepper and bake about 30 minutes, until hot and bubbly. Serve at once.

Mexican Street Corn Guacamole

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I guess you could say that I have been on a “Kenji kick” lately, channeling my secret inner scientist and learning so much about food that I can hardly keep up. If you’ve been following my posts, you know how inspired I am by J. Kenji López-Alt, the chef who pushes all the boundaries of science and food, and today, I present another example of new tricks I’m learning from Kenji.

I have attached the name “street corn” to this recipe, though it is technically missing a few of the signature street corn ingredients (specifically, mayonnaise and chile sprinkles). But the mouthwatering combination of flavors it does have—lime, cilantro, grilled corn and cotija cheese—gives me such an impression of street corn that I couldn’t help myself.

The corn and cotija were wonderful additions to guacamole!

Besides, I felt an obligation to change the name because I couldn’t quite make the recipe (which comes from the pages of NY Times Cooking) as directed by its author, and that’s because I don’t have the proper tools of a Mexican cocina. Nope, this gringa relies mostly on her countertop electrics for heavy chopping, dicing, mincing and pureeing, and that works fine most of the time. But when it comes to making salsa or guacamole, the better and more authentic method would involve a molcajete, a huge, primitive looking mortar and pestle carved from a chunk of volcanic rock.

The rough interior of a molcajete (pronounced mowl-kuh-HAY-tay) makes the flavors more intense, because as you grind solid ingredients into it, you crush rather than chop, and that releases the essence of seed spices, herbs and onions in a way that modern appliances simply can’t compete. For this recipe, even though I recently spent several hundred dollars on a made-in-France food processor that basically requires a college course to use, I set out instead to find a molcajete, a culinary tool that you have probably seen in Mexican restaurants.

Originally, my plan was to share this scrumptious guacamole recipe in observance of Hispanic Heritage Month, but my research about molcajetes led me to realize that the tool really is primitive, and it is considered “pre-Hispanic” because it was created and used by the Aztecs, long before Spain began to influence the cultures that we recognize today as Hispanic—including Mexico, where most molcajetes are still made to ancient standards.

image credit: https://www.mexicolore.co.uk/aztecs/artefacts/molcajete

My first stop for one of these nifty devices was Amazon, but after scrolling through three pages of “authentic” molcajetes, I wasn’t convinced that they weren’t made in China, and possibly of concrete. Next stop, Williams-Sonoma, because who knows more about authentic Mexican cooking, right? OK, maybe not, though they did have some impressive-looking molcajetes, and (not surprisingly) at really impressive prices.

Finally, I wised up and headed across town to the Mexican supermarket. Les and I love visiting this interesting store, where we find all the spices, dried peppers and other Mexican ingredients we could ever want. They have the largest bin of fresh jalapenos I have ever seen (perfect for Les’s Atomic Buffalo Turds recipe), as well as a few ingredients I can’t pronounce and wouldn’t begin to know how to use (yet). English is not the first language for the workers in this market, nor for most of its customers, and I’m good with that because every visit feels like an adventure.

This was a bit like a treasure hunt!

This is the same store where I found my cast iron press for making handmade corn tortillas, and I knew we would find a traditional molcajete as well—and there it was, conveniently nestled among all sorts other gadgets, right next to the carousel rack of shampoo and rubbing alcohol, of course. As I said, it is an interesting store (remind me to tell you sometime where to find the mayonnaise)!

What I had not realized at the time of my molcajete purchase was the curing, or “seasoning,” that is required. The pores are huge in the volcanic rock, and a great deal of dust and grit is encased in there. First, you must scrub the inside and outside with hot water (no soap) and a stiff-bristled brush to release the surface grit and grime, and tip it sideways to air dry. Then you grind raw, whole rice into the thing, which draws out additional gray, powdery grit.

You rinse and repeat as many times as it takes, until the rice comes out clean. At that point, you’re ready—unless you follow some experts’ instructions to also season the food-touching surfaces with salt and garlic. OK, all of that sounded time consuming, but easy enough!

Or, maybe not.

This is going to take much longer than I expected.

A mere 20 minutes into this process, I had to give up because I already had a blister from gripping the rough surface of the pestle so tightly. Les took a crack at it, too, and we soon realized this was not going to happen in time for us to make Kenji’s gorgeous guacamole, and that’s where the chef’s scientific expertise came to the rescue. As with most of his recipes, Kenji offered a workaround for crushing the ingredients with coarse salt, and it was so simple, we could do it with nothing more than a bowl, a cutting board and a good knife. Here goes!

The aroma of the minced ingredients was intoxicating!

Salting the white onions, jalapeno and cilantro for 15 minutes breaks down the cell walls and makes it easier to extract the flavors than if you started chopping it straightaway. Next, you mince that mixture finely, and then lay the blade of your knife nearly flat against the cutting board, dragging the mixture to a paste-like consistency. Transfer it to a bowl and carry on with the recipe.

Always wash avocados before cutting them, so your knife blade doesn’t pick up contaminants.

We grilled our corn ahead of time and stripped off the kernels, but I imagine in a pinch you could even use (thawed) frozen fire-roasted corn, like the kind we frequently buy at Trader Joe’s. Squeeze lime juice over the avocados to preserve their color, and use a box grater to shred the cotija cheese into coarse crumbles. Blend it all together, mashing the avocado with the back of a fork or potato masher, and reserve some of the corn and cotija for topping your beautiful creation.

I tried using a potato masher, but ended up mashing the avocado with the back of a fork.

Friends, this guacamole was so freaking delicious, the two of us devoured the entire bowlful in less than half an hour!

You can make the guac as spicy as you want it to be by adjusting the jalapeno, or simply by leaving in some of the seeds. Choose the most ripe, ready avocados you can find and, if you don’t have a molcajete, take advantage of the workaround that Kenji shared because it really does make a difference. I readily admit that up to this point, Les and I had merely cut up our guacamole ingredients, but we look forward to applying this fabulously simple technique the next time we make the Smoky Chipotle Guacamole that Les has made famous at our house. And, of course, we will continue to grind away at the molcajete—hopefully, it will be properly seasoned in time for Super Bowl!

Mexican Street Corn Guacamole

  • Servings: About 2 cups
  • Difficulty: Average
  • Print

Even without the proper, authentic tools, I found this Kenji-inspired appetizer very manageable and absolutely delicious! Save yourself some time by grilling an extra ear of corn a day or two ahead, and use avocados that are at peak ripeness!


Ingredients

  • 1/4 cup white onion, rough-chopped
  • 1 jalapeno, seeded and rough-chopped
  • 1 cup loosely packed cilantro leaves and tender stems
  • 1/2 tsp. kosher salt or coarse sea salt
  • 1 ear grilled corn, cooled
  • 2 average size, ripe avocados
  • Juice of 1/2 large lime
  • 2 oz. cotija cheese, shredded on large holes of box grater
  • Additional salt, pepper and lime to taste
  • Tortilla chips for serving

Directions

  1. Combine onions, jalapeno and cilantro in a medium bowl and toss it with the kosher salt. Allow it to rest 15 minutes, to draw out moisture. Finely chop these ingredients together, then lay a chef’s knife nearly flat and drag them across the cutting board to create a mixture similar to paste. Some bits will remain, and that’s OK. Transfer the mixture to a bowl that’s large enough for mixing your guacamole. During the rest time, prep the corn and cotija.
  2. Trim the fat end of the ear of corn, and stand it up on your cutting board to cut down the cob, releasing the kernels. Break apart any large clumps.
  3. Wash the avocados, then cut them in half and discard the pits. Score the flesh into cubes and spoon it out into the bowl with the onion mixture. Squeeze the lime all over the avocado and toss lightly. Use a potato masher or the back of a fork to gently mash the avocado flesh to your desired texture.
  4. Add most of the corn and cotija to the guacamole bowl and fold or mash to combine. Adjust salt, pepper and lime to taste. Transfer guacamole to a serving bowl and sprinkle remaining corn and cotija on as a garnish.
  5. Serve immediately with tortilla chips and watch it disappear!

Pollo Chipotle

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There’s a time and place for the numbered dishes on a Mexican restaurant menu—you know what I mean, the #11 combo platter of one crunchy taco, one burrito and one enchilada, with a side of rice and flavorless refried beans. For me, the time was in my younger years, before I learned to appreciate the Mexican specialty dishes as I do today, and the place was (obviously) an actual restaurant, which I don’t frequent as much as I did in those days because, frankly, we prefer the food we make at home. It has only been recently that I started considering how to make some of our favorite Mexican meals, and those favorites seldom include items from the numbered combo section, and never any crunchy, from-a-box taco shells that I used to associate with Mexican “cuisine.” It’s funny how much has changed.

At one of our favorite local places, called Señor Bravo, the pollo chipotle is the special menu item that always wins over my husband, Les. The chicken (or pollo, if you wish) is tender and bite sized, and it’s drenched in a spicy sauce that has enough smoky chipotle to warrant being part of the dish’s name, but also enough rich cream to soften the edges and give the dish a special flair. I have tried several times to make this dish at home, and on previous attempts found it difficult to replicate the flavor and texture. It seemed something was missing so I fiddled with the cooking process, added ingredients and spices, tried different types of cream—from half and half to heavy cream—and every addition made it less and less like the restaurant dish. Finally, I dialed it all back and kept it simple. Turns out, simplicity was exactly and only what it needed.

Besides being simple and delicious, this dish is also relatively healthy, as I used cream cheese rather than heavy cream to thicken the spicy sauce. This eliminated the need for flour as a thickening agent. And for our at-home pollo chipotle, I jazzed up a simple pot of brown rice with a shake of cumin and a small handful of chopped cilantro and served it alongside a simple salad with fresh tomato and slices of ripe avocado.

Ingredients

1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts

2 Tbsp. expeller-pressed canola oil

1/2 large yellow onion, chopped

2 cloves fresh garlic, smashed and sliced

3/4 tsp. kosher salt

1/4 tsp. sweet Spanish paprika

1/2 tsp. ground cumin

Several twists of freshly ground black pepper

1 or 2 Tbsp. pureed chipotle with adobo sauce* (see recipe notes)

1 cup low-sodium vegetable broth*

A couple of pinches of dried Mexican oregano*

4 Tbsp. cream cheese, room temperature

*Recipe Notes

The chipotle puree is best prepared in advance, and you may want to start with one tablespoon and adjust up to taste. To make the puree, empty the entire contents of a small can of chipotles in adobo sauce into a food processor or blender. If your processor has a small bowl insert, that will be the perfect size. Pulse a few times, then run the machine continuously until the sauce is completely smooth.

You’ve seen cans of chipotles in the Mexican aisle, no doubt. Use a food processor to transform it to puree.
At the end of the post, I’ll share a few other recipes to help you use the rest of it.

I prefer the more complex flavor of vegetable broth in most recipes, but for this dish, you could certainly use chicken broth. I would still recommend a low-sodium version, as this helps with controlling the overall amount of sodium in the dish.

Low-sodium vegetable broth is one of the most versatile ingredients in my pantry. If you prefer, use chicken broth.

Mexican oregano is very different from the easier-to-find Mediterranean oregano you are probably accustomed to using. It’s part of the verbena family, with a citrusy, slightly floral flavor. Search it out in an ethnic supermarket, at Whole Foods or the international spice section of World Market. If you can’t get Mexican oregano, dried marjoram would be a better substitute than regular oregano.

To make the cilantro rice, simply cook a batch of your favorite brown rice according to package instructions. Use vegetable broth rather than water for more flavor. Stir in salt, pepper, a few shakes of ground cumin and a small handful of fresh, chopped cilantro leaves before serving.

Why serve ordinary rice, if you can make it more flavorful with so little effort?

Instructions

  • The seasonings for pollo chipotle are surprisingly simple. As with any recipe, it’s best to get all the prep work done before you start cooking.
  • This recipe uses a quarter of a standard package of cream cheese. Measure it by eye by marking half the brick, then half of that. Cut the cubes in half for 4 tablespoons.
  • Sprinkle the dry seasonings onto the onions and stir to combine them evenly.
  • Freezing the chicken breasts for a few minutes makes them firmer and easier to slice. They should be evenly sliced, about 1/4″ thick.
  • Add the chicken a little at a time, to avoid abruptly dropping the temperature of the skillet.
  • Toss the chicken slices to cook them evenly. Aim to remove the pink color, but don’t brown the chicken.
  • Add a spoonful of the chipotle puree to start, and adjust to taste later if you like it hotter.
  • Add the broth to the skillet and stir gently to evenly distribute the chipotle puree. Let it come to a slight boil, then reduce the heat to simmer.
  • Allow the mixture to simmer for a while before adding the Mexican oregano.
  • When chicken is very tender and the liquid is reduced to half its original volume, add the cream cheese pieces.
  • Swirl in one tablespoon of cream cheese at a time, and watch it emulsify into the sauce.
  • It’s creamy and thickened, but without the use of flour or heavy cream. The slight tang of the cream cheese is a nice touch, too.
  • This is every bit as delicious as the pollo chipotle in our favorite local Mexican restaurant, and easy to make at home for Cinco de Mayo.
Pollo ChipotlePrint it!

Looking for ways to use the rest of the chipotle puree?

Mexican Street Corn Hash and Eggs

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Before we get too carried away into kitchen renovation land, I owe the month of September its due respect. We are now 10 days into National Better Breakfast Month, and given that breakfast is my favorite meal, I should have more breakfast recipes on the blog already. But at our house, weekends are the only time we do anything fun or fancy for breakfast, so my opportunities are somewhat limited (much to my chagrin).

Today’s recipe is not fancy, but it gets high marks in the fun department because of all the flavors and textures. My inspiration for the dish came from a restaurant where my work team had its first face-to-face meeting since the pandemic started. The restaurant, which specializes in breakfast and brunch, had a “specials” board that announced, “Mexican street corn hash,” featuring chorizo, corn, potatoes and a sunny-side egg. It was good, but not particularly spicy, and it was missing a little something for me (smoke). My mind started working to break down the flavors and figure out how to improve it, and the outcome was delicious!

My adjustments made this breakfast spicier and smokier than the restaurant version.

For my version of the dish, I amped up the flavors of a store-bought chorizo, using ordinary spices and a surprise ingredient (keep reading) to boost the texture of the sausage while enhancing the Mexican flavors. I used a combination of red jalapeno peppers and onions to make the potato hash interesting, and I finished the plate with crumbly cotija cheese, avocado cubes and a quick squeeze of fresh lime juice.

As I was discussing with a friend recently, if you have dietary restrictions, you don’t necessarily have to give up all the flavors you love. In this recipe, the yummy Mexican chorizo flavor can be easily adapted to turkey sausage or ground turkey (but be sure to adjust the spices and use a little oil for browning). You will still get the texture and flavors that made this dish delicious, without the ingredients that cause discomfort or health problems.

Ingredients

3 small, skin-on red potatoes, scrubbed and cut into cubes

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/2 lb. fresh chorizo sausage* (see notes)

1/2 tsp. smoked Spanish paprika (or combine with cayenne, if you dare!)

A few shakes ground cumin

A few shakes of dried Mexican oregano*

1 to 2 Tbsp. fine ground corn meal or masa harina*

1/2 medium yellow onion, chopped

1/2 red jalapeno pepper, finely diced* (handle with care!)

1/2 cup frozen fire-roasted corn kernels*

2 large eggs (and a swirl of oil to fry them)

1/2 ripe avocado, cubed

1/4 cup crumbled cotija cheese*

1/2 fresh lime

*Notes

I used 3 fresh chorizo links, similar in size to Italian sausage, with the casings removed. I don’t recommend the hard chorizo sausage that is typical of Spanish cuisine. If you substitute 1/2 lb. ground turkey or turkey sausage, add a bit of garlic powder and adjust the other seasonings to assimilate the flavor of chorizo, and be sure to use a little canola or olive oil in the skillet to make up for the sausage fat.

Mexican oregano, not to be confused with typical Mediterranean oregano, has an earthy flavor with similarities to citrus. This gives a different impression than the oregano you’d use in Greek or Italian recipes, which is a member of the mint family.

Are you wondering about the corn meal? I discovered a few years ago that adding corn meal (or masa harina, the ingredient used to make corn tortillas) gives a distinctly Mexican flavor to taco seasoning, and for this recipe, it adds a bit of the grainy, gritty texture that is so good in chorizo. It also seems to help absorb some of the grease when the chorizo cooks. Try it and see!

If jalapeno is too spicy for your palate, sub in a similar amount of red bell pepper.

I used Trader Joe’s fire-roasted corn, available in the freezer section. Regular sweet corn would work just as well, but I really like the slightly charred, smoky flavor that the roasted corn conveys.

Cotija is a dry, crumbly cheese that lends a salty touch to Mexican dishes. If you cannot find it, crumbled feta would be a good substitute.

Instructions

  • For crispier fried potatoes, add a sprinkle of baking soda to the boiling water. It roughs up the surface of the cut potatoes!
  • The addition of corn meal (or masa harina) will add the gritty texture that makes chorizo such a favorite for me.
  • When you brown the sausage, give it enough time in the skillet to get a pretty crust on all sides.
  • Onions and peppers (hot or not) will add flavor and interest to the hash.
  • When the hash is ready, reduce heat to keep it warm while you prepare the eggs.
  • This is my favorite way to cube avocado; score it with a paring knife right in the skin, then use a big spoon to scoop it out!
  • The cotija cheese is salty and crumbly. If you can’t find it, feta is a good substitute.
  • My new favorite way to fry eggs is over medium-high heat with a good amount of olive oil. The edges get super crispy!
  • A squeeze of lime brightens up all the other ingredients and balances the savory flavor.
  • Definitely suited to better breakfast month!
  1. Bring a medium pot of water to boil. Add the potatoes when the water comes to a boil and stir in the baking soda. This will “rough up” the surface of the potatoes to make them more crispy and more porous to the seasonings in the skillet. When the potatoes are just tender enough to pierce with the tip of a knife (but not mushy), drain and set aside.
  2. Remove any casings from the chorizo and sprinkle the paprika, cumin, oregano and corn meal over it. Using your hands, squeeze to combine the seasonings thoroughly into the sausage.
  3. Heat a cast-iron skillet over medium heat. Crumble the sausage into the skillet and cook until all sides have a nice brown crust on them. Add the onions and jalapenos; continue cooking until the onions are soft.
  4. Move the sausage and onion mixture to the edges of the skillet. Add a quick swirl of oil if the skillet is dry. Add the potatoes to the center of the skillet, cooking them to desired texture. Add the corn and cook until heated through.
  5. In a separate, non-stick skillet, heat 1 Tbsp. oil over medium heat and fry the eggs to desired doneness.
  6. Divide the hash for two servings. Sprinkle each with 2 Tbsp. of the cotija cheese and scatter the avocado cubes around the plate. Squeeze a bit of lime juice over the hash, top with an egg and serve. Any chorizo drippings left in the skillet may be drizzled over the egg if you like. 😊
Mexican Street Corn Hash and EggsWho’s hungry?

Handmade Corn Tortillas

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There are plenty of things I don’t buy pre-made anymore—bread, salad dressing, pizza dough, ice cream, pasta—but corn tortillas are among the simplest, and the flavor is far superior to the ones I find in the supermarket. Even the “authentic” corn tortillas at the grocery are mass-produced with all kinds of processed ingredients, conditioners, preservatives and heaven knows what else. When you make them from scratch, you only need two ingredients—masa harina, which is finely ground corn that has been alkalized with lime (the mineral, not the citrus), and water. The dough rests for a short time, then it is rolled into balls and flattened into discs. Cook them on a hot griddle or cast-iron skillet, and you’ll enjoy tortillas that will make you skip store bought forever.

Flavoring the tortillas is simple, also. I like to put a couple of shakes of onion powder into a basic batch, for a quick little savory “something.” But if you want more noticeable flavor—spinach, for example—simply puree a small amount of cooked spinach with some water and measure it out in the same measurement as water in the recipe. You could do the same with cilantro, pumpkin, garlic, tomato or black beans. If you can imagine it, you can make it. Experimenting in the kitchen has resulted in some of my favorite foods!

I use a tortilla press to create the perfect round shape, but you can also use the flat bottom of a large glass bowl to do this. Once cooked, the tortillas can be used for soft tacos or enchiladas, fried crisp for hard-shell tacos or tostadas (one of my faves), or cut into wedges and fried to become homemade tortilla chips, perfect for dips and salsas.

Making tortillas can be a little challenging at first. The ratio of ingredients is printed on the masa flour bag, but your technique can only be developed with practice. See my tips for success at the end of the instructions. No reason you should go through all the frustrating mistakes I’ve made. One of these days, I’ll make a list of all the cuss words I’ve made up in the kitchen. 😊

Ingredients for Basic Tortillas

1 cup masa harina (I like Maseca brand, white, yellow or blue)

2/3 cup very warm water (or 50/50 mix of water and puree of choice)

A pinch of kosher salt

Instructions

  1. Combine all ingredients in a bowl and stir until liquid is absorbed. Knead the dough ball a few times until mixture is smooth, soft and uniform in texture. Cover the dough ball snugly with plastic wrap and allow it to rest at least 20 minutes.
  2. Preheat a cast-iron skillet or griddle over medium-high heat, about 375° F.
  3. Divide masa dough into 8 equal pieces, then roll each piece into a smooth ball. Keep the dough balls covered to prevent drying out as you shape and press them into flat tortillas.
  4. Place a dough ball between two squares of plastic wrap, or cut apart a zip-top bag. The thicker plastic gives better results. Use the tortilla press to slowly flatten the dough to a disc that is about 5 to 6 inches across. Alternatively, press the flat bottom of a clear glass bowl evenly over the surface of the dough ball until the tortilla is about 5 to 6 inches across.
  5. Carefully peel one side of the plastic away from the tortilla, then turn the tortilla out into your hand and peel away the second piece of plastic. Be prepared to ruin a few, but don’t panic if you do (see Tips below)!
  6. Turn the tortilla onto the preheated griddle and cook the first side 60 to 90 seconds, until the edges look dry and steam is emerging from underneath. Use a spatula to flip the tortilla over and cook the second side about 60 seconds.
  7. Transfer the hot tortilla to a plate lined with a clean kitchen towel and fold the towel over to keep them warm as you finish the remaining tortillas.
  • For basic tortillas, you can embellish the flavor with a slight sprinkling of spice. Here, I’ve used white corn masa, with a few shakes of onion powder and a pinch or two of salt.
  • In my experience, warm water does a better job hydrating the masa. Add all at once, then stir and knead a minute or so, until the dough is smooth.
  • The masa should feel soft but not sticky. If it seems dry, wet your hands and knead a few more times. Too wet? sprinkle with masa and knead again.
  • Cover or wrap the masa dough, and rest 20 minutes for the grain to fully hydrate. This will improve the texture of the dough for pressing into tortillas.
  • This is the easiest way to divide the dough into relatively equal portions, then roll the sections into dough balls. They will be about the size of ping pong balls.
  • A zip top bag is heavier and more effective than regular plastic wrap. Cut the zipper side off completely, and then cut down both sides, leaving only the bottom attached.
  • Keep the dough balls covered to prevent drying as you work through flattening and cooking them. It’s OK if they are not exactly the same size.
  • Have your griddle or cast iron pan heated and ready before you begin. Place a dough ball roughly in the center of the plastic sleeve.
  • Gently close the lid on the tortilla press. I find it works best to have the dough ball slightly off center, closer to the hinge than the front.
  • Easy does it on the pressing. If you go too hard and squish the dough too thin, simply scrape it off with your hands and ball it up again. There is no gluten here, so the tortillas will not get tough when reworked.
  • Check the tortilla. If it seems drastically thinner on one edge, turn the plastic to face the other way and press lightly again to even it out. If it’s paper thin, roll into a ball and start over.
  • Peel the plastic sleeve away from the tortilla, then turn it into your hand to peel away the other side. I find it helpful to keep a tight angle on the plastic. It’s also helpful (for me) to have a glass of wine nearby. 😉
  • Working quickly, turn the tortilla over onto the preheated (dry) griddle or skillet. Don’t try to lay it down, just flip it.
  • Whoa, my hubby was quick with the camera to catch that in mid-air! It doesn’t need to be dramatic, you just want to do it quickly so the tortilla doesn’t stick to your hand.
  • Cook the first side about 60 seconds, up to 90 seconds. Watch for the edges to lift away, and steam to emerge from below.
  • Then, flip it! Again, nice camera work, Babe! 🙂

If you love corn tortillas and want to make them at home more regularly, I recommend investment in a tortilla press because it makes it so simple. I picked mine up in a specialty market that carries a wide array of foods and products for Mexican cuisine, and you can easily find them online, too. But what if you’re jonesing to make them right now? Here’s one easy way to do it, using a flat-bottomed glass dish as your “press.” For this batch, I used the blue corn masa harina, and I demonstrate how to incorporate another ingredient: black beans!

  • To spice up the black bean tortillas, I have added a few shakes of onion powder and ground cumin, plus my pink sea salt.
  • Heating the beans and water together ensures I have enough of both, and the beans will puree more easily. I’ll whip it up in my smoothie blender, then measure the amount of liquid needed for the tortillas.
  • From this point, the recipe is the same as for basic tortillas. Mix the liquid into the masa, knead and rest 20 minutes.
  • You can see little flecks of black bean in the dough, which I love. 🙂
  • Cut equal wedges and roll each into a ball. Keep the extras covered as you shape them.
  • Here’s the fun part! Use a flat-bottomed pot or baking dish to press the tortilla. The masa dough is inside the zip top bag as before. Using a clear dish allows me to see how it’s going.
  • This dish is perfect because the center of the bottom is slightly recessed from the edges. I can press all the way down and still have even thickness.
  • It’s no big deal if you make a mistake, Just scrape it off the plastic and reshape it into a ball.
  • Peel the plastic as before and cook on the dry skillet. Place finished tortillas inside a folded clean towel so they remain soft as you cook the others.
Once you get the hang of it, you’re good to go!
Handmade Corn TortillasDownload

Tips for Success

Follow the same guidelines for measuring the masa harina as I offer for measuring flour—fluff it up, sprinkle over the measuring cup to overflowing, and then level it off. If you dig a measuring cup directly into the masa bag, you’ll end up with too much and the dough will be dry. The masa should be soft and loose in the measuring cup, not packed tight.

Use warm water, not cold, to mix with the masa flour. I’ve found that the warm water is more easily absorbed and helps to create better dough. Knead the dough until it is soft and smooth, which is usually only a minute or two, though longer kneading will not cause any harm.

Don’t skip the rest time after mixing the masa. This gives enough time for the masa to hydrate fully. If you rush this step, you may find the dough crumbly or sticky (or both) during pressing.

When you roll the dough into balls, it should hold together easily without sticking to your hands, and only showing slight cracks. Trust your instinct; if it feels too dry, wet your hands and knead a few more times. If it’s sticky, lightly dust it with additional masa flour, then knead and rest it again.

I have found a modified zip-top bag more useful than plastic wrap for pressing the tortillas. Use a freezer bag if possible, as it is thicker than a sandwich bag. Cut off the zipper top entirely, and cut down the sides, leaving only the bottom of the bag attached.

Shape the sections of dough into balls all at once, and then place one dough ball inside the zip top bag layers. Keep the other dough balls covered with a damp paper towel or plastic wrap so they don’t dry out. When placing the dough ball in the tortilla press, arrange it slightly off center toward the hinge side. Close the press and use the lever to apply gentle pressure. If the tortilla is noticeably thinner on one edge, turn it and gently press again to even it out. Until you get used to this process, it may help to make slightly thicker tortillas. If you are using a flat-bottomed dish to press them, press your hands on it in a rocking motion all the way around until the tortilla is about 5 inches across. It’s helpful to have a clear dish so you can see the progress.

Focus on peeling the plastic away from the dough, not the other way around, and accept that you may find the first few tries unsuccessful. Hold the plastic bag flat in one hand, and use the other hand to peel, keeping the plastic at a sharp angle to the tortilla. Don’t peel straight up or the tortilla will tear. If the tortilla falls apart, just scrape it into a ball and try again. There is no gluten in corn tortillas, so they will not get tough from extra handling. If the dough feels dry after a few failed attempts, wet your hands and knead it a bit.

The initial cooking of the tortillas should be on a dry skillet or pancake griddle. If you want to fry them later to suit a dish you are making, that will be a separate process. Think of it as a form of bread, which must be baked before it can be toasted or grilled.

Give your griddle or cast-iron skillet enough time to pre-heat, and plan to let your first tortilla be a test. It may take some practice to get the right temperature on your stove or griddle. Be ready to flip them when they look “right,” not by the clock, but aim for somewhere between 60 and 90 seconds.

Have a plate ready, lined with a clean kitchen towel. You’ll want to keep the freshly cooked tortillas wrapped as you complete the rest of the batch—for warmth and also for softness.

If you decide to use pureed vegetables to make flavored tortillas, start with a liquid mixture that is at least 50% water. Pureed vegetables such as spinach or pumpkin are wet, but there is also fiber in them that may change the consistency of the masa. I recommend making basic tortillas a few times to get used to it. As you gain experience making them, you will instinctively know what the dough should feel like, and how to best adjust ratios of other ingredients to produce fun colors and flavors. Here are a few of my favorites: spinach, black bean, pumpkin, cilantro, roasted garlic.

Queso Fundido Pizza

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In our early months of getting to know each as slightly more than “just friends,” my husband, Les, and I took a road trip into southern Virginia for an afternoon of antiquing. He had been working on redecorating his living room and was on the search for an interesting accent table or other cool décor item. And mostly, we were both looking for new ways to hang out together.

Along the way, we found this funky table with an adjustable wooden top that screwed down into the base. It was not very practical, given that the three legs are not properly spaced out and it tipped over if you set something on it. But it was fun and different, and with a fresh coat of paint, it livened up his living space. We also stopped at a few roadside stands, browsing through fresh peaches, honey, jams and preserves, along with all varieties of handmade crafts.

The most fun thing about that day, though, was our visit to a Mexican restaurant called Chile Rojo, just inside the N.C. state line. The music and décor were lively, the food was delish and the company of this guy who once seemed so serious to me was just about the best thing going. Les and I met in a pool hall, where we both played in a 9-ball league, and our first impressions of each other (as is often the case with married couples) were not particularly positive. He thought I was flirty (for sure, I was) and a bit on the flighty side. I thought he was intense and without much sense of humor. I couldn’t have been more wrong about that second part, and it was interactions such as this road trip that really helped me see the relaxed, authentic side of this man who would, nearly two years later, become my husband.

It didn’t hurt that we both have a passion for great food and adventurous palates that make us open to trying each other’s favorite things. On this visit to Chile Rojo, his eyes scanned the menu, landing on their choriqueso dip, which he called “queso fundido.” It was a typical Mexican queso dip—creamy, melty and salty—but this one had spicy, crispy bits of chorizo sausage floating around in it, causing a flavor explosion in every bite. Truth be told, I had probably experienced this stuff at some point in my past, and maybe I had just never heard the name of it. But in the heat of that July evening, as Les and I sipped our Mexican lagers and enjoyed dragging our crispy warm tortilla chips through this queso fundido dip, everything seemed new and delicious.

Inspired by the best choriqueso dip ever, we created a pizza that displays all the fiesta-fresh flavors of queso fundido!

That first of many road trips for us as a couple is still on my mind whenever we order queso fundido, and in honor of Cinco de Mayo this week, Les and I decided to put those fabulous flavors onto a pizza. My Real N.Y. Pizza Dough went south of the border for the occasion, as I subbed in a portion of corn flour for the usual amount of whole wheat flour, a subtle nod to the tortilla chips we like so much. Shredded pepperjack cheese provided a base for the toppings. The chorizo sausage was browned up with chopped onions, and accompanied by fire-roasted corn, pickled jalapeno and fresh slices of fresno chiles. The hot oven transformed the dollops of melty queso dip into blistered patches of ooey-gooey deliciousness, and when we pulled the pizza from the hot steel, we topped it with cool cubes of avocado and fresh cilantro leaves. Like all of our adventures, this pizza was awesome.

Oh, and it turns out Les isn’t always so serious. Thank goodness, because neither am I. ❤

Me, being loco in love at Chile Rojo, 2015.

Ingredients

2 chorizo sausage links, casings removed

1/2 medium onion, chopped

1 cup cream, half and half or whole milk* (see notes)

3 oz. white American cheese, cubed*

2 oz. cheddar and pepperjack cheese combination

A few shakes Flatiron Pepper Co. hatch valley green chiles (optional, but wow)

1/2 cup fire-roasted corn (fresh or frozen)

Small handful pickled jalapenos, patted dry on paper towels

1 small Fresno chile pepper, thinly sliced

1 ball My Real N.Y. Pizza Dough (or your favorite dough)*

1 cup shredded pepper jack cheese (or Monterey Jack for less heat)

For serving:

1/2 avocado, cubed

Handful fresh cilantro, washed and chopped

Fresh squeeze of lime

*Notes

Depending on the type of dairy you use (cream, half and half or milk), you may need to adjust the ratio a bit. Cream, of course, has the highest fat content and whole milk has the lowest. I do not recommend 2% or skim milk for queso, as they don’t have the fat content to support the melted cheese. For readers abroad, “half and half” is a popular product in the U.S. that is essentially a 50/50 mix of cream and milk, and it amounts to about 12% milkfat.

I always use American cheese for its incredible meltability. I’m not sure if that is a word, but I think you understand my point! Regular cheddar has great flavor on its own, but without the special enzymes that exist in American cheese, a sauce made with only cheddar will break in the heat of the oven. I purchase American cheese in chunks at the deli counter of my supermarket, rather than the dairy aisle.

Our pizzas are baked on a steel, preheated at 550°F for an hour before baking. If you bake at a lower temperature, you will need to adjust baking time, and consider turning on the broiler for a brief minute at the end, to put a nice blister on the queso topping.

Note also that this pizza is par-baked before the queso dip is added, then returned to the oven for final browning. Do not add the queso at the start of the baking time, as it will burn and may prevent even cooking of the dough.

The queso is beautifully browned and creamy, and the chorizo crisped up a bit in the oven.

Instructions

First, the queso dip, which we love on its own, so we made more than we needed for this pizza. Without question, we will enjoy the rest on homemade nachos or just snacking with tortilla chips. If you make the queso ahead of time, note that it will become solid in the fridge. No worries, just warm on low heat to creamy consistency again, and cool to room temp for topping the pizza.

  • I usually use some amount of American cheese when I make a cheese sauce, because the special enzymes and salts make it super melty.
  • Whisk the American cheese and cream together until it is smooth and silky.
  • For color and added flavor, I tossed in a broken up slice of cheddar and a few chunks of spicy pepperjack, and whisked until this was smooth and melted.
  • And just for kicks, I sprinkled in a few quick shakes of this hatch valley green chile pepper. This company does not compensate me for my recommendation, but as much as we love and use their products, they should!
  • This is the right consistency; thick and creamy, but also smooth enough to ooze off my whisk. It will chill up solid in the fridge, so if you are working ahead, warm it up again before making the pizza.

When you are ready to make the pizza, preheat the oven to 550°F if using a steel, or the recommended temperature for your pizza stone. Your oven rack should be about 8 inches from the top of the oven. If you are using a pizza pan, place the rack in the lower third of the oven to ensure thorough baking of the crust, and plan to adjust your baking time.

And now, the rest of the pizza!

  • Never use a rolling pin on your pizza dough. Try to keep some of the air bubbles in the dough for a lighter, crispier crust texture. See my previous post for N.Y. Pizza Dough for more shaping tips.
  • Spray or brush the crust with oil, then season with salt and pepper before adding a layer of pepperjack down as the base for other toppings.
  • The onions and chorizo are next. You can see how much of the chorizo flavor was cooked into those onions!
  • Add roasted corn, if you wish. Mine was frozen but thawed first.
  • We love spicy stuff at our house, but if you prefer, top the pizza with sliced sweet peppers. We used fresh Fresno chiles and pickled hot jalapenos.
  • Par-bake the pizza for about four minutes, then pull it out to apply dollops of the queso dip. When cooled to room temp, you should expect it to be somewhat clumpy. Then, back into the oven for three more minutes!
  • Queso fundido, indeed-o!
  • The pizza would have been delicious as it was, but we could not resist adding a sprinkle of fresh chopped cilantro and cool cubes of avocado for serving.
  • And a quick squeeze of fresh lime makes this pizza a fiesta on a plate!
  • This was one of our best-ever unconventional pizzas!
Muy bueno!

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Barbacoa

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You have heard of the concept of a “bucket list,” tracking the experiences you want to have during your lifetime? Well, rather than making commitment to go skydiving or backpack through Europe (no thanks to either for me), I’ve narrowed down my bucket list to focus on foods. Cooking is a joyful adventure for me, but I am prone to become overwhelmed with too many new ideas in a way that, ironically, puts me in a cooking rut. What better way, I thought, to expand my culinary knowledge and have the satisfaction of accomplishment, than to put my wish list foods on a schedule? I wrote about this in October, when I finally tackled pierogi, the delicious potato and spinach-filled dumplings that were easier to make than I expected. Today, I’m making good on a promise from that post. I’ve moved barbacoa to the “done” column.

Despite having spent at least half of my growing-up years in southern Colorado, where I lived part-time with my mom, I had never heard of barbacoa until the Chipotle chain of restaurants popped up in my current city. Most of the “Mexican” food I knew was the standard Americanized fare, which is odd, given the demographics in Colorado. Who doesn’t love fajitas and burritos and such? But there are so many more interesting Mexican foods, and this is undeniably one of them. Barbacoa is beef, but it’s not the same as steak, as you might have in fajitas. It is rich and savory, tender and spicy, and super-versatile as a filling for a variety of casual dishes. And you know what I learned this week? It is ridiculously simple to make.

You need a good-size (preferably grass-fed) chuck roast, which is essentially the same thing you would use to make a pot roast. It’s full of marbling, which renders down into the most succulent texture in a slow cooker. Add a few spices or Mexican rub of some sort, onions and garlic, some hot peppers if you’d like, and just enough liquid with some smoky and acidic tones to tenderize and give balance to the meat. Put it in the slow cooker and wait for the magic.

For my husband, Les, and me, this mouthwatering magic could not come at a better time. The Super Bowl is just days away, and in a normal year, that would put our kitchen skills into preparation overdrive for the arrival of guests at our annual big game party. As strange as it was to have only the two of us at the table for Thanksgiving, it will be even weirder to not have a houseful for the Super Bowl. We are making the best of this pandemic reality the same way we did for Thanksgiving—by trying out a few new foods. Les will no doubt make his pimiento cheese and—spoiler alert—his amazing smoky guacamole. I may not be able to resist whipping up at least a half dozen deviled eggs and maybe a batch of hummus to snack on. But our main dish item for this year’s scaled-down celebration is this barbacoa. Delicious. Done.

Ingredients

  • I got lucky and found grass-fed chuck roast. This one weighed in at about 3.5 pounds.
  • This company kept popping up in Les’s Facebook feed, and we couldn’t help ourselves.
  • The other add-ins are pretty simple, including onions, garlic and peppers, plus the liquid seasonings from the fridge.

3-4 lb. beef chuck roast

Kosher salt and black pepper

2 Tbsp. smoky pepper BBQ rub* (see notes)

2 Tbsp. oil (olive, canola or avocado are all good here)

1 medium onion

5 cloves garlic

1/2 fresh poblano pepper*

1/2 red jalapeno*

1 small can mild chopped green chiles

2 Tbsp. Worcestershire

2 Tbsp. brown sugar

2 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar

1 Tbsp. chipotle puree with adobo*

2 tsp. liquid smoke

Juice of 1 lime

About 1/2 cup water or beef broth

2 dried bay leaves

*Notes

An ideal smoky BBQ rub for this dish would include some type of smoked pepper (ancho or chipotle, for example), some garlic, onion and herbs. The main thing I recommend when choosing a pre-made rub is to pay attention to the sodium content. Ingredients are listed in order of their ratio, so if salt is listed early, the blend has a lot of it. Les and I recently ordered some fantastic blends from a company called Flatiron Pepper Company. I respect the fact that they do not include salt in their blends—it means I have more control of the sodium that goes into my dishes, and I’m also not paying a premium for a cheap ingredient. If you want to make your own rub, you might try my “Fire & Brimstone” seasoning, which is detailed in this week’s post for Tex-Mex Stuffed Sweet Potatoes.

We enjoy spicy foods at our house, and I used a couple of fresh peppers that we already had on hand. Poblanos have some mild heat, but primarily a smoky flavor. Red jalapeno is hotter. Use what you’re comfortable with, or leave them out altogether in favor of an extra onion. This is what’s great about cooking at home—you get exactly what you like. 😊

For the chipotle puree, we dump a can of chipotles with adobo directly into the food processor. The result is a thick, smoky sauce that has heat but also some fruitiness and a big dose of smoke. It keeps well in the fridge for several weeks and is a good addition to any type of Mexican dish or chili.

Instructions

As always, I’ll get you started with a visual walk-through of how I made it. You’ll find written instructions below, and keep scrolling for a downloadable PDF for your recipe files.

  • Cut into chunks about the size of baseballs, and keep some of the fat which adds depth and flavor to the meat.
  • Toss the beef chunks in oil and bbq rub until all sides are coated, cover and let it rest at room temperature for about an hour.
  • Our slow cooker has a “brown/saute” feature, so I seared my beef chunks directly in it, fat side down to quick-start the rendering. A cast-iron skillet would well for this also.
  • Turn the meat to get a good sear on every side.
  • The browning on the meat adds a lot of depth to the flavor of barbacoa. When all sides are browned, add the other ingredients and begin the slow cooking.
  • The worcestershire-lime juice-chipotle mixture gets poured in around the meat, Also pour in 1/2 cup water or broth.
  • I use bay leaves for any kind of slow cooking, for another layer of flavor. Tuck them in so they are immersed in the liquid.
  • Night-night, barbacoa! We put the cover on the slow cooker and let it cook on low setting while we slept.
  • Good morning, barbacoa!! We turned the meat pieces over and gave them another hour or so to fully tenderize every bit of the meat.
  • The fat has practically melted during slow cooking, and it’s easy to shred the meat apart by pulling with two forks.
  • Transfer the meat chunks to a separate dish for easier shredding. We couldn’t stop ourselves from nibbling as we worked. It’s so good!
  • Transfer the shredded meat back into the flavorful liquid, and keep warm until ready to serve.
  • If you’re planning to use the meat on a different day, transfer it to a covered dish, along with the juices, and reheat in a saucepan or in the slow cooker again, depending on the amount you’ll use.
  1. Cut the chuck roast into equal, baseball-sized chunks. Sprinkle them all over with kosher salt and black pepper (unless your spice blend already has both).
  2. Combine the BBQ rub and oil in a large bowl. Toss the roast chunks in the oil until all sides are evenly covered. Cover the bowl and rest it at room temperature for at least 30 minutes, or up to an hour.
  3. Chop up the onion, garlic and any fresh peppers you are using, and set them aside, along with the canned green chiles.
  4. In a measuring cup, combine the remaining ingredients and whisk until blended.
  5. Heat a large pot or skillet over medium-high heat. Drizzle a small amount of oil into the pot and add the roast chunks, a few at a time to avoid crowding the pan. Remember that a quick drop in temperature will prevent good searing. Turn the pieces over when the bottom is browned, and continue this until all sides are browned. Our slow cooker has a browning feature, so I was able to do this directly. A cast-iron skillet would be perfect for this, if your slow cooker has a ceramic crock. Transfer the meat chunks to the slow cooker when they are browned all over.
  6. Scatter the onions, garlic, peppers and green chiles over the top of the meat.
  7. Pour the liquid ingredients into the cooker. If you used a separate skillet for browning, you may first want to swirl some of the liquid into it to deglaze and gather up all the tasty browned bits, so that you don’t miss any of that fabulous flavor.
  8. Tuck the bay leaves down into the liquid. Cover and cook on low setting for about 10 hours. We set this up at bedtime and woke up to the most amazing aromas.
  9. When the meat is nice and tender, remove it with tongs to a cutting board or glass baking dish and shred it. We found that undisturbed overnight cooking left the submerged bottom of the meat chunks tender, but the exposed parts were still firm. We simply turned the meat over and gave it another hour or so. To shred the meat, use two forks to pull it apart in opposite directions.
  10. Return the shredded meat to the flavorful liquid and keep it warm until ready to serve. If you plan to serve it later, refrigerate the meat and liquid together, and re-heat the amount for your recipe in a saucepan over low heat, or return it to the slow cooker if you plan to serve the whole amount.
  • There’s so much flavor in the barbacoa, we kept the taco toppings fresh and super simple.
  • What a tasty, colorful handheld dinner. With rice, black beans, bell peppers and guac.

Barbacoa is so good as a filling for street-style tacos, with fresh crunchy radishes and cilantro, plus a squeeze of lime. Or wrap it up in a larger flour tortilla with rice and peppers. Or serve it in a bowl with black beans, rice, lettuce, avocado and pico de gallo or salsa. If you’re like me, you probably won’t be able to resist having “just one more taste” straight from the slow cooker.

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