Baked Chili Rellenos

Note: this is not what a the baked chili relleno will look like, it was the only picture I could find quickly and easily.

Chile Rellenos are my favorite Mexican dish, following closely with bean burritos. I have mastered bean burritos and finely mastered the rellenos! You just have to like peppers, that's all there is too it. I do nothing special to change the flavor, I broil them to enhance the flavor. So, if you didn't like rellenos before now, then you more than likely won't want to make this recipe. They are too spicy for my kids but my husband and I wished I would have made 4 peppers instead of 2! Also, make the enchilada sauce ahead of time and freeze what you don't use, it freezes beautifully.

2-6 poblano peppers, roasted (how ever many people you have), recipe for roasting follows

shredded monterey jack

Enchilada Sauce, recipe follows toothpicks

Enchilada Sauce:

3 TBS oil

2 TBS flour

1/4 c. chili powder (yes, you really use that much)

1 TBS cumin

Stir in saucepan on low heat until bubbly, then add:

2 c. beef broth

2 c. tomato sauce

1/2 tsp. oregano

1 clove minced garlic

Simmer on low until ready to use or let cool then refigerate or freeze until ready to use. I used half of the sauce on enchiladas and then froze the rest 6 months ago. I just pulled the other half out for these peppers and I still have a quarter of the sauce left. So 1 batch of sauce would probably cover 2 big batches of enchiladas.

To Roast Peppers:

Preheat broiler in oven. Place peppers on foil lined baking sheet. Rotate the peppers every 5 min, you want the skin to be mostly black. The whole process took me about 15 minutes. Let cool enough to handle. Remove skin, you can keep a few blackened spots for flavor. Can also be roasted on the gas grill or electric grill.

To Make Chili Rellenos

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Cut a slit down the top side of the pepper, from stem to bottom. Be careful not to cut all of the way through. Remove as many seeds as you can without ripping up the pepper. (And if you do rip it up, chop it and freeeze to use in a dish another time) Stuff with a handful of shredded cheese. Insert 1 toothpick at a time into top of pepper, making an "X" with the toothpicks so the pepper stays closed while baking. Coat with enchilada sauce, covering all parts of the pepper. Sprinkle with more cheese. Bake for 20-30 minutes or until cheese is melted and sauce is bubbling. Serve warm. And don't forget to remove the toothpicks before eating (because I would never do that!)