Vegetable Tamale Pies take 2 {Annah}

If you remember Colleen posted this recipe for Vegetable Tamale Pies a few months ago. After planning to make this for a couple months and throwing away about 3 bunches of cilantro I finally made the dish! Sadly I think this was the first and last time I will be make this recipe.

If planned ahead and done in multiple steps this might not have been so horrible. Lets start with the beans. I took Colleen's suggestion and I bought dried pinto beans. I have cooked dried garbanzo beans, and they were simple and cooked easily. I must have been off my game because after 3 hours of simmering on the stove the pinto beans were still not cooked! Needless to say I pulled the beans off the stove too soon (it was 9 pm at this point), and beans had a crunch to them.

Next was the making of the polenta. Now this was not a hard task boil water and put corn meal in it. I forgot about the water boiling, so when I remembered it was at a rolling boil. I whisked in the corn meal and within a minute it started to bubble and burp all over the place. It was all over the stove which was bad, but then the scolding hot mess was getting on my hands. Let me tell you boiling corn meal burns bad when it touches the skin. Now you might be thinking why did she not turn the stove down, well I did, but it was so hot that even at a simmer it was burping enough to get on my hands. For the next 20 minutes I wore an oven mitt on my hand while I whisked the stupid polenta!

I assembled and was so mad at the recipe that I did not cook it in the oven for about 6 days. Once it was baked up and we tried it we were not impressed. Yes it was a change from enchiladas that I make, but the flavors were not causing fireworks in my mouth. I will admit I was holding a grudge so this had to be melt in your mouth good for me to forget the 4 hours of prep time.

I challenge all of you to make this recipe and prove me wrong and side with Colleen, because it sounds like her family absolutely loves this dish. I did say I am looking for guest post. Be gutsy enough to make this recipe so we can do our first ever "Take 3"!

I am going to add the directions for making the polenta to this post so you do not have to go looking for it.

 

Basic Polenta
 
Inspired by Jack Bishop in The Complete 
Italian Vegetarian Cookbook
About 4 servings

What You Need

One cup corn meal
1 to 2 tablespoons butter
Salt and pepper

1  Bring four cups water to boil in a medium sauce pan. When the water boils, whisk in the one cup corn meal in a slow steady stream, whisking constantly to prevent lumps. Continue whisking until the polenta begins to thicken (around 1 to 2 minutes). Add around 1 tsp salt.
2  Reduce the heat so that the polenta bubbles slowly. Continue to cook, stirring occasionally, for about 20 minutes until the cornmeal loses its raw flavor (taste every so often to check).
3  When the polenta is complete, turn off the heat and add 1 to 2 tbsp butter and more salt and pepper. You can cover it to keep it warm before serving. If the polenta becomes too thick, you can stir in a bit of milk or water to loosen it up.

*Alternative: For even more flavor, you can stir in some cheese with the butter in Step 3. For example, add 1/2 cup grated Parmesan, or both 1/2 cup Parmesan and 1/2 cup ricotta.

Cafeteria Style Macaroni and Cheese {Annah}

   This is a recipe that I make about every two months. The reason I do not make it more often is because it makes a lot and the dish is pretty heavy. I tried to make it a little less unhealthy by using one can of fat free evaporated milk. It seemed a little more jiggly then the more solid form I get when I use two cans of full fat milk. Also the inside of the dish seemed more of a scrambled egg texture then I have had in the past. Another addition that I made to the recipe this time was I used Panko bread crumbs rather then plain. I enjoyed the crunchier texture that it gave the top. 

  This recipe is easy to make, it just requires dirtying about 2-3 bowls. A little more clean-up then what I like, but I Love that you do not have to cook the pasta first.

  If you are looking for a side dish to take to a pot luck, need to feed a large family, or like having a lot of left overs give this recipe a try. It is cheesy and filling and wont disappoint.

Cafeteria Style Macaroni and cheese                      

 12 servings

 

Non stick cooking spray

1 lb elbow macaroni

5 tbs melted butter

1 lb American cheese grated

2 12oz cans evaporated milk (I used one can fat free)

2 cups water

4 eggs beaten

2 ½ tsp ground mustard

1 tsp salt

2 tsp Worcestershire sauce

¼ tsp hot sauce (Tabasco)

1 cup bread crumbs (I used Panko bread crumbs)

1 tsp paprika

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly coat 9x13 dish with spray

In large bowl toss uncooked macaroni with 3 tbs melted butter to coat. Add cheese and combine thoroughly. Transfer to prepared baking dish

In a medium bowl, whisk together evaporated milk, water, eggs, ground mustard, salt, Worcestershire sauce, and Tabasco. Pour over macaroni mixture. Bake in oven 55-60 minutes

Combine bread crumbs, paprika and 2 tbs butter. Sprinkle over baked macaroni and cheese. Return to oven and place on top rack position under broiler. Broil 1-2 minutes or until brown.

Quesadilla Casserole

Colleen: "One of my girlfriends is having a baby in a few weeks so I decided to make her a casserole that would freeze well so she can thaw it out and eat whenever after those extremely exhausting days when they are adjusting to new baby. I made a few extra for my family too, I enjoyed this recipe. It's no secret that I love black beans & mexican flavors, but I think this recipe would be wonderful with ground turkey or no meat a all. I omitted the red pepper flakes & used minced fresh garlic instead of dried (because I couldn't find it). Hope you try this one out!"

Quesadilla Casserole

1 lb ground beef

1/2 cup chopped onion

2 tsp chili powder

1 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp dried minced garlic

1/2 tsp oregano

1/2 tsp crushed red pepper (optional)

16 oz tomato sauce

1 can (15 oz) black beans, drained and rinsed

1 can (8 3/4 oz) whole kernel corn, undrained

1 can (4 1/2 oz) green chilies, undrained

6 flour tortillas (8 inch size)

2 cups shredded Cheddar Cheese

1. Brown beef and onion in a large skillet on medium-high. Add tomato sauce, beans, corn and green chilies. Mix well. Stir in all of the spices except the red pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce heat low and simmer 5 minutes. Add red pepper to taste if desired.

2. Spread 1/2 cup of the beef mixture on bottom of 9X13 pan (sprayed with pam). I like to use the foil pans for freezer meals. Top with 3 of the tortillas, overlapping as needed. Layer with 1/2 of the remaining beef mixture and 1/2 of the cheese. Repeat with remaining tortillas, beef and cheese.

3. Double wrap with heavy duty foil and label. 

Cooking Instructions: Thaw and bake uncovered at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes or until heated through. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

Recipe sourced from Joyful Momma's Kitchen Blog

Pastel Azteca "Tortilla Casserole" {Annah}

Sorry I have been MIA, I did not cook basically the week of my birthday, and then I was in Texas visiting family.I am back now though and ready to cook!

I saw this recipe on the Today show from MarcellaValladoild, she has her own show on Food Network that I used to love to watch when we had cable. I did not have all the ingredients for this recipe and I wanted a little more spice so I tailored the recipe slightly.

Overall Tyler and I really enjoyed the recipe. It is pretty healthy and of course vegetarian. It did not have a lot of steps, although you do have to use three large saute pans. However, I was able to clean up the pans while the casserole was in the oven. Tyler thought that chicken would have tasted good in this, and I think that black beans would also taste good with the other ingredients. The thing that stood out the most for me was the sweet corn with the spiciness of the tomato mixture. I didn't have time to boil tomatoes or char poblano chiles, you will see my changes to the right of the recipe. I will be making this again probably with black beans, and if Tyler is lucky I will let him add chicken to his side!

Ingredients

• 12 corn tortillas
• Vegetable oil for frying
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 3 chopped garlic cloves
• 1 chopped small onion (used 1/2)
• 2 cups roma tomato, boiled 30 seconds, peeled, and pureed (Used a10 oz can of enchilada sauce, 8 oz can of tomatoes, and 2 left over tomato sauce packets from a taco kit) 
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 4 1/2 cups chopped zucchini
• 1 1/2 cup fresh corn off the cob or 3 fresh corns (one can of sweet corn)
• 3 poblano chiles charred, seeded, deviened, and cut in strips. (4.25 oz  can chopped green chiles)
• Salt and pepper to taste (Skipped this who needs more salt!)
• Non stick cooking spray
• 3/4 cup mexican crema (sour cream)
• 3 cups shredded Oaxaca cheese (cheddar cheese and a little mozzarella)

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large heavy saute pan, add enough oil to fry 12 tortillas. Heat oil on medium-high heat. When hot, working in batches, quickly fry tortillas. Simply fry for 10 seconds on each side. Remove tortillas from heat and drain in paper towel.

In a medium saute pan on medium heat, heat oil and add garlic and onion. Saute for about 3 minutes, or until onion is translucent. Add tomato puree. Cook for 10 minutes and turn heat off.

In a separate large saute pan on medium heat, melt butter. Add zucchini and corn. Cook for 2 minutes and add the poblano. Add 1/2 cup of water to mixture and cook for 4 more minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Spray a 9x13 baking dish with non stick cooking spray. Cover the bottom with tortillas, about 4 tortillas. Add 1/2 cup of tomato mixture on top of tortillas. Top with 1 1/2 cups of zucchini mixture. Add 1 cup of cheese. Drizzle with 1/4 cup of mexican crema. Season the first layer with salt and pepper. Start on the second layer with tortillas, then tomato, zucchini, cheese, and with mexican crema. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Do it again for a third time, to finish off with a third layer, making sure to season with salt and pepper.

Bake uncovered until cheese begins to melt, about 10 to 15 minutes.

Makes 8 servings

Pea Risotto with Squashy Soufflé

• 1 stick  (4 oz.) butter
• 2 1/2 cups of chicken or vegetable stock
• 1 large shallot, finely chopped
• 1 1/4 cups arborio rice
• 1 lemon, finely zested
• 2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme
• 2 1/2 cups frated parmesan
• 1 cup frozen petite peas, thawed
• Salt and pepper
• 1/2 cup flour
• 1 1/4 cups whole milk
• 2 packages  (10 oz. each) frozen pureed winter squash, thawed
• 4 eggs, separated

Directions

1. In a medium saucepan, bring the broth and 2 1/2 cups water to a low simmer; cover.
2. Grease a 9-inch square baking dish. In a saucepan, melt 2 tbsp. butter over medium heat. Add the shallot and cook until softened, 3 minutes Stir in the rice and 1/2 cup of the broth mixture, stirring constantly until the liquid is mostly absorbed. Continue adding the broth in 1/2-cup increments, stirring until nearly absorbed before adding more, and adjusting the heat to maintain a simmer, for about 20 minutes total. Stir in the lemon zest and 1 tsp. thyme. If the rice is still firm, stir in more broth and cook longer.
3. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in 2 tbsp. butter, 1/2 cup cheese and the peas; season with salt and pepper. Spread the mixture evenly into the prepared baking dish, then refrigerate until cold (up to 1 day).
4. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees . In a medium saucepan, melt the remaining 4 tbsp. butter over medium-low heat. Whisk in the flour for 2 minutes. Whisk in half of the milk until smooth, then gradually whisk in the rest to make a thick sauce; cook, stirring, for 1 minutes. Whisk in half of the squash puree and remove from the heat.
5. Whisk the egg yolks into the remaining squash puree, then stir into the sauce with the remaining 1 tsp. thyme, 2 cups cheese and 1/4 tsp. each salt and pepper.
6. Using an electric mixer, beat the egg whites with a pinch of salt just until soft peaks form. Gently fold the whites into the squash mixture until no white streaks remain; spread evenly onto the cold risotto. Bake until the top is golden-brown and the souffle is cooked through, 45 minutes. Let sit loosely covered with foil for 15 minutes before serving.

Annah's Take: "There were a lot of first with this recipe.It was my first time for making risotto and a souffle. I was really excited that I was actually able to make these two dishes without them being really disgusting. I would say this recipe is for an intermediate cook and someone that has time to be in the kitchen for two days. I was tasting the recipe as I went and I would say that the risotto right off the stove was delicious. The first day I made the risotto and it sat in the fridge overnight as the recipe called for, and the next day I made the souffle and assembled the dish. The souffle puffed up a little, but not as much as it should have. The first night we had it the recipe was very strong in lemon flavor. So much so the husband said, "I feel like I am eating lemon meringue pie with rice". Needless to say he did not like it and has refused to eat anymore of it. I would say that I have enjoyed it more after it has sat in the fridge for a couple of days. The lemon flavor is not as over powering and I like the creaminess of the souffle on top of the risotto. This won't be added to my monthly recipes, but I might try it again with a little less lemon and when I am having company over. After having the chance to make this risotto it has made me not so scared of the dish and I think I will try more in the future."

Colleen's Take: "It might be the mood I am in lately, but this recipe really pissed me off. First off I couldn't find the squash, I went to 3 different stores talked to the frozen produce employees who all informed me that they, 'no longer sell that product'. I ended up buying a butternut squash and microwaving it for 20 minutes until it was soft & then I tupperwared it until it was time to make. I was also incredibly annoyed that it took two days to cook. I don't have two days to cook one meal. 

this picture was obviously take before I ate it.. 

On that note this was also my first time cooking with risotto and it's not as 'easy' as the tv chefs always make it sound. It was very time consuming and with my infant on the ground growling at me didn'thelp much. BUT the only redeeming quality to this meal was the risotto, it was delish. UNTIL it got covered in that squashy mess that 'had' to go on top. I give this recipe two big thumbs down!"

 (now what do I do with all the leftovers?)

Turkey Suizas Casserole- Rachael Ray

Colleen's Take: "I pulled this out of the Thanksgiving issue of the Rachel Ray Magazine waiting for a time that I would get to use it. Since it calls for an over abundance of Turkey I figured it would be one day.. and one day it is! Everything in this recipe called to me, from the poblanos, to the tomatillos, ingredients that I don't often get to use but jump at the chance when available. I enjoyed making and eating this one. So did the rest of my family. Definitely a KEEPER!" 

Ingredients

• 2 poblano chile peppers peppers
• 3 tablespoons EVOO
• 8 tomatillos, chopped
• 1 onion, chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 bay leaf
• Salt and pepper
• 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin (about 1/3 palmful)
• 1 tablespoon honey or agave syrup
• 1 lime, juiced
• 1 - 1 1/2 cups chicken stock
• 1 pound chopped or pulled cooked turkey
• 1 cup mexican crema or sour cream
• 1 1/2 cups grated swiss cheese
• 1 cup grated monterey jack cheese
• 12 corn or 8 flour tortillas, warmed
• Sliced red onions, for garnish

Directions

1. Char the poblanos over burners or under a hot broiler until blackened all over. Place in a bowl, cover and let sit until cool enough to handle. Peel, seed and chop the poblanos.
2. Preheat the broiler. Meanwhile, in a large skillet, heat the EVOO, 3 turns of the pan. Add the tomatillos, onion, garlic and bay leaf; season with salt, pepper, the cilantro and cumin. Cook until tender, about 10 minutes. Discard the bay leaf. Add the tomatillo mixture, poblanos, honey (or agave) and lime juice to a food processor and puree.
3. In the same skillet, heat the chicken stock over high heat. Stir in the turkey to reheat, then stir in the tomatillo sauce.
4. In a medium casserole, layer in half of the turkey mixture and dot with the crema (or sour cream). Top with half each of the swiss and monterey jack and half of the tortillas. Spread the rest of the turkey on top and layer with the remaining tortillas and cheese. Broil until the cheese is melted. Top with the red onions.