Rrrrrapid Hhhhuevos Rrrrancheros!

The other morning I woke up with a hankering for huevos rancheros. And aside from the ranchero sauce,  I had everything else needed.

Here's what I used:

1 can of black beans
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp chilli powder
1/2 tsp smoked paprika
1/2 tsp dried oregano
Pinch (or two) of sea salt
2 eggs (I scrambled them, but your choice)
1/2 a pat of butter for cooking the eggs
2 small corn tortillas
Sprinkle of cheddar cheese
Salsa Verde
Red Salsa
Fresh cilantro

I began by cooking the beans (after rinsing them well--I always do this for all canned beans, even those canned without salt) with the spices (cumin through salt) on medium for about 10 minutes. While those were cooking, I scrambled the eggs and poured them in a nonstick pan with the butter melted.

Since eggs have a tendency to burn if I walk away from them, I finished cooking them and then moved on to heating up tortillas in a small frying pan. To save a step, I probably could have just zapped the tortillas in the microwave, but I find that they fall apart when I go to eat them any time I use the microwave... maybe it's just me.

Since the eggs were warm I decided to sprinkle some cheddar cheese on them and put the cover back on--letting the cheese melt while I got the tortillas ready. 

I put a large spoonful of the beans on each tortilla and then sprinkled some fresh cilantro on top of those.

Then I split the scrambled eggs up on each tortilla and dressed one with salsa verde (my new favorite is from Trader Joe's) and the other with Green Mountain Gringo salsa. And as you can see from the first photo, I garnished the plate with red grapes and carrots.

I realize this dish was hardly from scratch (and that my attempt at a Spanish sounding title could really use some work), but I think this quick huevos rancheros was quite tasty. Now, I could have gone ahead and made an actual ranchero sauce, and if I did, I'd likely make this one (though, i would substitute the green bell pepper for yellow or red since green bells don't agree with me).  However, in the interest of time, I decide to forgo the real deal and use two different kinds of salsa. For shame? I don't think so. I love both of those salsas and I'm willing to bet I still put more steps in the process of making theses than a certain food network star who thinks adding fresh cilantro to jarred sauce makes it "semi-homemade." Just saying...

Meatless (and Mexican) Mondays

I am a meat eater, but I mostly eat vegetarian--mainly because it's cheaper and tends to be easier to do so as a cook (i.e., it's a lot easier to mess up a piece of meat than a pot of pasta). Nowadays though, I try to make it a point to be meat free on Mondays--mainly for health reasons, but also for budget purposes. So I've been experimenting with more exciting vegetarian meals, and though I'm not a fan of green bell peppers (and they don't like me, either), I've always found that when a poblano is cooked, the flavor is mild and tasty. So last week I picked up some poblanos, which I decided to grill and stuff with beans, rice and corn.

Grilled and Stuffed Poblano Peppers

Ingredients
4 Poblano peppers
3/4 cup cooked brown rice
1/2 cup of black beans (I used refried)
1/4 cup of sweet corn kernels (canned or frozen)
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon Mexican oregano
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
a few grape tomatoes sliced (for garnish)
Oil for grill pan

Serves 4

I cut each of the poblano peppers in half (lengthwise), removed the seeds and washed them. Then I popped them onto a lightly oil grill pan. I left them on the pan (on a medium flame) until they had some nice grill marks and were softened.

In the meantime I made the "stuffing" by combining the rice, corn, beans and all the seasonings (chopped cilantro through garlic powder) so that everything seemed well mixed.

Once the peppers were ready, I let them cool for a few minutes and then stuffed each with about a half cup of the filling and placed them in a roasting pan. Then I sprinkled the cheese on top of each and garnished with slices of grape tomatoes.

I popped the peppers in the oven for approximately 35 minutes on 350° just so the peppers would be nicely warmed through and until the cheese was melted well (see top photo).

I decided to use a jarred mole sauce to top the peppers, but the sauce itself, which isn't bad, seemed like it needed something extra, so I doctored it up with some  raisins and smoked paprika. Any tasty Mexican sauce (salsa verde, enchilada sauce, etc.) would probably go well with these, but I did enjoy the rich flavor of the mole.

I served the peppers with chopped romaine lettuce and pea shoots and the mole sauce, and it was a lovely meal. I definitely think I'll add this into my rotation. I've even considered adding chopped spinach to the stuffing, just for a little more greens.