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Wow, how time flies! It's time again for the May edition of the Daring Cooks Challenge. Our hosts this month, Barbara of Barbara Bakes and Bunnee of Anna+Food have chosen a delicious Stacked Green Chile & Grilled Chicken Enchilada recipe in celebration of Cinco de Mayo! The recipe, featuring a homemade enchilada sauce, was found on www.finecooking.com and written by Robb Walsh.
We thank Barbara and Anna for coming up with an exceedingly DELICIOUS challenge -- but also for allowing us the chance to stretch our culinary muscles a bit. They gave us lots of freedom with this one, and I'm pleased to say that we really took the opportunity to run with it. While we didn't make our own tortillas (which would have been great, if we'd had…
View Full Recipe at BURP! Where Food Happens
,%20and%20we%20didn't%20make%20the%20green%20chile%20sauce%20(since%20we've%20already%20had%20a%20lot%20of%20practice%20making%20our%20own%20roasted%20tomatillo%20sauce,%20that%20would%20have%20been%20akin%20to%20cheating),%20we%20did%20manage%20to%20come%20up%20with%20our%20very%20own%20recipe%20for%20mole%20--%20an%20accomplishment,%20I%20dare%20say,%20that%20we%20wouldn't%20have%20tackled%20had%20it%20not%20been%20for%20the%20inspiration%20the%20challenge%20provided.%3C/p%3E%3Cp%3EI'll%20admit%20that%20we%20approached%20this%20month's%20project%20with%20a%20bit%20of%20trepidation.%20%20It%20wasn't%20so%20much%20that%20we%20were%20frightened%20by%20the%20thought%20of%20making%20our%20own%20enchilada%20sauce.%20%20But,%20we%20were%20pretty%20sure%20that%20we%20wouldn't%20have%20the%20TIME.%20%20Usually%20we%20set%20aside%20an%20entire%20weekend%20to%20devote%20to%20our%20DC%20challenges.%20%20But,%20this%20month,%20we%20didn't%20have%20that%20luxury.%20%20We'd%20have%20to%20complete%20the%20challenge%20on%20a%20weeknight.%20After%20work.%20And%20I%20was%20planning%20to%20make%20homemade%20mole%20--%20that%20Mexican%20sauce%20infamous%20for%20being...%20well,%20a%20bit%20time%20consuming.%3C/p%3E%3Cp%3EBut,%20we're%20not%20the%20sort%20of%20people%20who%20give%20up%20easily.%20%20No%20sirree.%20So,%20we%20decided%20we%20were%20gonna%20tackle%20this%20thing.%20Inspired%20by%20the%20approach%20taken%20by%20my%20good%20friend,%20Rebecca,%20over%20at%20Cakewalk,%20we%20decided%20to%20tackle%20the%20challenge%20in%20parts.%20We'd%20divide%20up%20the%20work%20over%20multiple%20evenings.%20We'd%20set%20aside%20all%20else%20to%20make%20the%20challenge%20happen.%20And%20we'd%20make%20a%20grand%20attempt%20at%20taking%20half-decent%20photos%20at%208:00pm.%20%20We'd%20persist,%20and%20that%20was%20all%20there%20was%20to%20it.%3C/p%3E%3Cp%3EWell,%20we%20managed.%20%20And%20we're%20here%20to%20tell%20about%20it.%3C/p%3E%3Cp%3ESo,%20sit%20right%20down%20and%20we'll%20attempt%20to%20serve%20you%20up%20a%20little%20bit%20of%20mole...%3C/p%3E%3Cp%3EIt%20all%20started%20with%20our%20mise%20en%20place.%20%20I%20decided%20to%20improvise%20on%20the%20ingredient%20list%20--%20putting%20everything%20I%20knew%20about%20mole%20together%20in%20one%20place.%20%20I%20collected%20my%20ancho%20chiles,%20tomatillos,%20a%20few%20cherry%20tomatoes%20(not%20pictured),%20garlic,%20sweet%20onion,%20sesame%20seeds,%20pumpkin%20seeds%20(pepitas),%20raisins,%20and%20a%20bit%20of%20Ibarra%20Mexican%20chocolate.%20%20I%20also%20gathered%20together%20an%20arsenal%20of%20wonderful%20spices%20--%20cracked%20anise%20seeds,%20cinnamon,%20ground%20cloves,%20black%20pepper,%20Mexican%20oregano,%20and%20smoky%20chipotle%20powder.%3C/p%3E%3Cp%3EThere%20were%20quite%20a%20few%20ingredients.%20But,%20that%20didn't%20stop%20us.%20%20We%20got%20right%20to%20business%20--%20%20sauteeing%20and%20roasting.%20%20I%20decided%20to%20roast%20the%20tomatillos%20and%20cherry%20tomatoes%20to%20mellow%20out%20their%20acids%20and%20give%20them%20a%20slighly%20smoky%20flavor.%20%20They%20would%20then%20be%20pureed%20with%20sauteed%20onions,%20garlic,%20and%20spices,%20and%20seared%20in%20a%20hot%20pan%20full%20of%20oil%20to%20bring%20out%20the%20best%20in%20their%20flavors.%3C/p%3E%3Cp%3EJust%20get%20a%20load%20of%20that%20delicious%20looking%20chocolate.%20Mexican%20chocolate%20is%20made%20from%20dark,%20bitter%20chocolate%20mixed%20with%20sugar,%20cinnamon,%20and%20sometimes%20nuts.%20The%20end%20result%20is%20a%20%22grainy%22%20and%20less%20smooth%20product%20than%20the%20chocolate%20to%20which%20we're%20accustomed%20in%20the%20States.%20But,%20if%20you%20ask%20me,%20it's%20just%20as%20delicious%20--%20especially%20for%20mole.%3C/p%3E%3Cp%3EWe%20cooked%20the%20sauce%20for%2030-40%20minutes,%20until%20all%20the%20flavors%20were%20blended.%20%20%20At%20the%20end,%20we%20tasted%20for%20seasonings,%20and%20packed%20the%20sauce%20away%20for%20another%20day.%20%20The%20good%20thing%20about%20that%20is%20that%20it%20gave%20the%20flavors%20a%20chance%20to%20meld%20even%20more%20in%20the%20refrigerator.%3C/p%3E%3Cp%3EThe%20next%20day,%20we%20got%20to%20work%20on%20the%20enchilada%20filling.%20%20We%20combined%20fresh%20soft%20goat%20cheese,%20sauteed%20onions%20&%20garlic,%20raisins,%20grilled%20corn,%20toasted%20pine%20nuts,%20and%20plenty%20of%20cilantro.%3C/p%3E%3Cp%3EWe%20used%20my%20favorite%20technique%20for%20prepping%20the%20sprouted%20corn%20tortillas%20for%20filling.%20%20We%20sprayed%20them%20with%20a%20bit%20of%20coconut%20oil%20and%20placed%20them%20in%20a%20hot%20oven%20for%204-5%20minutes,%20just%20until%20they%20were%20pliable.%20%20And%20then%20we%20stacked%20them%20on%20top%20of%20one%20another%20and%20started%20filling%20the%20enchiladas.%3C/p%3E%3Cp%3EWe%20filled%20each%20tortilla%20with%20about%20a%201/4%20cup%20of%20filling,%20rolled%20them%20in%20the%20traditional%20manner,%20and%20laid%20them%20in%20a%20baking%20dish%20side%20by%20side.%3C/p%3E%3Cp%3EWhen%20all%20of%20the%20enchiladas%20were%20prepared,%20we%20spooned%20over%20a%20bit%20of%20the%20reheated%20mole%20sauce.%3C/p%3E%3Cp%3EAfter%20adding%20a%20bit%20of%20chihuahua%20cheese,%20everything%20was%20ready%20to%20go%20into%20the%20oven.%20%20%20After%20about%2020%20minutes,%20we%20were%20greeted%20by%20a%20pan%20filled%20with%20amazingly%20fragrant%20enchiladas.%3C/p%3E%3Cp%3EYou%20may%20never%20have%20thought%20to%20fill%20an%20enchilada%20with%20goat%20cheese%20and%20corn,%20but%20you'd%20be%20surprised%20what%20a%20delicious%20filling%20it%20makes%20--%20particularly%20when%20paired%20with%20the%20sweet%20and%20smoky%20flavor%20of%20the%20red%20mole.%20%20We%20owe%20this%20idea%20to%20Deborah%20Madison,%20who%20features%20a%20version%20of%20this%20dish%20in%20her%20book,%20Vegetarian%20Cooking%20for%20Everyone.%20%20%20The%20first%20time%20we%20tried%20her%20recipe,%20we%20accomplished%20it%20with%20the%20help%20of%20a%20bit%20of%20mole%20paste%20from%20our%20local%20Mexican%20grocer.%20%20But,%20this%20time%20around,%20the%20flavor%20was%20even%20more%20profound.%20%20The%20fresh%20mole%20--%20while%20turning%20out%20quite%20similar%20to%20other%20moles%20we've%20tried%20--%20was%20definitively%20more%20fresh,%20more%20vibrant.%20%20The%20chocolate%20flavor%20mingled%20with%20the%20smoky%20tang%20of%20the%20ancho%20chiles,%20and%20the%20spices%20muddled%20into%20a%20wonderfully%20sweet%20and%20spicy%20serenade%20of%20flavor%20--%20the%20perfect%20foil%20for%20the%20tangy%20goat%20cheese.%3C/p%3E%3Cp%3EGoat%20Cheese%20Enchiladas%20with%20Homemade%20Red%20Mole%3C/p%3E%3Cp%3E%C2%A9BURP!%20Where%20Food%20Happens%3C/p%3E){kind=link}