Check out the HFNTV.com video here:

A few tips on the recipe:
Try using all fresh ground pork instead of half ground beef and half ground pork. The flavor is more subtle, somehow not as meaty.
We used Oxxacan cheese in the the video version of the recipe, instead of the crumbled queso cotijo. Either way it’s great!

Chile Poblano Rellenado / Stuffed Chile Poblano
A Cook With Us recipe

A change from bell peppers, poblanos are a little spicier. The red chile sauce is easy to prepare and really pumps up the flavor of this dish.

• 4 large poblano chiles, roasted, peeled, seeded
• ½ lb lean ground beef
• ½ lb. lean ground pork
• 5 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1 jalapeno pepper, diced
• ½ t. cumin, or comino ground in spice mill
• ½ t. black pepper, fresh ground
• 1 tsp. salt
• 4 tortillas
• 4 guajillo chiles
• 1 cup chicken stock
• 1 white onion, quartered
• 1 roma tomato, seeded
• 1 Tbl. achiote paste, crumbled
• 2 Tbl. Olive oil
• 1 c. Mexican cotijo cheese, crumbled (may sub. feta cheese ) *
• ½ cup Mexican crema*

Prepare chiles: blister and blacken the poblanos over an open flame or under a broiler. Place in a plastic bag for 10 min. to steam. Remove from bag and peel off skin with the back of a spoon. Make a slit to remove seeds and make a pocket for the stuffing. Set aside.

Prepare meat filling: heat 1 Tbl. vegetable oil in a sauté pan over low heat; add the garlic and jalapeno and cook gently until softened, about 5 minutes. Combine the ground meats and brown in the same pan until no longer pink. Season meat with cumin, black pepper, and ½ t. salt. Fill the prepared chiles with the meat mixture. Place in a baking casserole.

Prepare chile sauce: rehydrate the gaujillo chiles in a cup of very hot stock or water, (10 min.) save the soaking liquid. In a blender place the softened chiles, tomato, onion, ½ cup soaking liquid and salt. Puree until smooth. Dissolve the achiote paste in the other ½ cup of hot liquid. Set aside. Heat 1 Tbl. of oil over med. high heat. Strain the chile puree into the hot oil. Cook and stir as the mixture darkens and thickens a bit. Add the achiote and continue to simmer over med low heat. Add more water if sauce is too thick, it should be the consistency of a medium thin tomato sauce.

Finish dish: Pour the hot sauce over and around the chiles. Sprinkle the cheese on top and bake covered at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes. Uncover dish for the last five minutes of baking.

Garnish: finish dish with a sprinkling of fresh parsley or cilantro and a drizzle of crema* on each chile.

Mexican crema is available in Mexican grocers or substitute a mixture of half sour cream and half whipping cream.

Serves 4

* Oaxacan string cheese is great in this recipe too, especially if you like the filling cheeeesy. Just add the cheese to the cooked meat and let melt. Proceed to stuffing chiles.

Combine 7 ½ cups of flour, salt and sugar into a bowl. Mix with a wooden spoon and set aside. Dissolve yeast in ¼ c. warm water for 15 minutes.

Char the jalapenos on a hot comal or griddle. Leave most of the blackened skin intact for flavor. When cool enough to handle seed and coarsely chop chiles. Set aside.

Make a well in the center of the flour mixture. Add 1 cup warm water into the well; carefully pour the proofed yeast into the water, add the jalapenos, garlic, and oregano. Break up the achiote paste into the flour mixture. Mix the ingredients thoroughly until dough is pliable, about 5 minutes.

Dust work surface with ½ c. reserved flour. Turn out dough and knead for 10 minutes until dough becomes smooth and elastic. Roll dough into long cylinder and cut into 8 equal pieces. Form each piece into a 14 inch baguette. Place loaves on two cookie sheets sprinkled with cornmeal. Scribe loaves diagonally with a sharp knife, brush lightly with olive oil and sprinkle with sesame seeds. Cover pans with damp dish towel, let rise at room temp. until double in size. Bake 40 minutes at 350 degrees. Brush finished loaves with egg white wash. Let cool on racks. Makes 8 baguettes

Market Spices in Baja Mexico

• 4 cloves garlic, unpeeled
• 1/2 large white onion, cut in chunks
• 4 roma tomatoes
• 6 dried guajillo chiles
• 1 t. sea salt
• 6 C. chicken stock
• 1 T. oil & oil for frying
• 2 spigs epazote
• 3 ripe avocados cut into chunks or slices
• 8 – 10 corn tortillas that are a bit dry or old
• 1/2 C. crumbled queso fresco or feta cheese
• 3 limes halved
• 1/2 C. thick cream ( crema mexicana ) or sour cream

Using a sharp knife or kitchen scissors slice open one side of the guajillo chiles; open up butterfly style to remove seeds. Place opened guajillo’s on a hot skillet or comal and lightly blister each side. Do not burn the chiles as they will taste bitter. Submerge roasted chiles in hot water to rehydrate and soften. Roast the garlic, onion and tomatoes on the same hot pan until browned and softened.

Place tomatoes in blender with the garlic, onion, salt, and rehydrated chiles, puree until thoroughly blended. Heat 1 T. oil in a large saucepan over medium high heat. Place a strainer over the pot; strain the puree into the oil, being careful not to splatter. Cook the puree for a few minutes stirring constantly. Lower heat, continue to stir until mixture thickens and changes color and darkens. Add the remaining chicken stock and epazote. Return to boil, season with salt and pepper and simmer covered for 1/2 hour.

Cut tortillas in half and cut each half into strips. Heat 1/2 inch oil in a skillet. When hot, fry the strips until golden brown and crispy. Drain on paper towels.

Before serving soup add the fried tortilla strips. Garnish each bowl with avocado chunks and cheese. Offer crema and limes for each diner.

Serves six

Makes 3 cups

Join us Sat. February 27th for a hands-on cooking class at the Greenbriar Inn. The focus of the class is “Sopas de Mexico”. Have fun while learning to prepare delicious soups with unique ingredients and traditional techniques. Class includes instruction and the prepared meal. If you would like more info. just e-mail info@cookwithus.com or call.

Cochinita Pibil / Pit Roasted Pork
Pork baked in banana leaves, steamed in a pit (pibil) or cooked in a sealed dish in the oven. Either way it’s prepared, this savory earthy meat is a real treat!

Marinated Onions:
• 3 red onions thinly sliced
• 1 ¼ C. fresh orange juice
• ¾ C. fresh lime juice
• 1 t. dried Mexican oregano
• 1 t. salt
• 1/2 t. pepper
Mix all ingredients in a large bowl. Cover and refrigerate for several hours.

Pork:
• 3 lb. lean boneless pork shoulder or butt roast
• Salt and pepper to season pork
• 3 oz achiote paste
• ½ C. lime juice
• 1 C. orange juice
• 1 t. sea salt
• 8 large garlic cloves, chopped
• 1 t. Mexican oregano, dried
• 1 t. black pepper, freshly ground
• 2 Poblano Chiles, roasted, skinned & seeded
• 2 large banana leaves

PREPARE PORK; Cut the meat into slabs or cut into stew size pieces and place in a large bowl. Rub meat with salt and pepper.

PREPARE MARINADE: Break up the achiote paste into a small sauté pan placed over low heat. Slowly pour in the juices and stir to completely dissolve the paste. Add the salt, pepper and garlic and continue to cook on low heat for about 5 minutes. Pour this liquid over the pork and marinate for at least 1 hour.

PREPARE BANANA LEAVES: Heat oven to 325 degrees. Hold the banana leaves over an open flame on the stove for a few minutes until they soften, or submerge in very hot water, this will clean and make the leaves pliable also. Line a heavy baking dish or Dutch oven with the leaves, placing one the long way and the other in the opposite direction with the leaves overlapping the dish. Place the marinated pork onto the leaves; place slices of poblano chile over the meat, then fold the ends of the leaves back over the meat. Use another leaf to cover again making sure to tuck the leaf over and around the dish, this important step will help retain moisture during cooking. Pour about ¼ cup of water in the pot. Cover with aluminum foil. Bake for two hours or more until very tender.

Serves 6

* Traditionally served with marinated red onions.