“Lazy” Chiles Rellenos
Cooking with other people is one of the great joys of my life, and one that happens all too infrequently here in Minneapolis, what with grad school schedules and budgets and kitchen sizes. While I adore my apartment, it has a narrow, narrow kitchen — perfect for one, less perfect for anymore than one. And so, here, I typically cook for others, which is nice, too, but lacking a little of the love that is sitting around a table chopping and grating and chatting while things bubble.
These “chiles rellenos” were one of the rare occasions in which a couple hours were taken, a grocery adventure was made, chatting was chatted, and beer drinking was commenced, all with the company of wonderful friends and cooks. I had thought about proposing for real chiles rellenos — the kind that you roast, then stuff, then bread, then fry — but that seemed a bit excessive for a first communal cooking effort. This chiles rellenos casserole — “lazy chiles rellenos,” according to the Pioneer Woman (whose recipe this is) — fit the bill: a low-stress recipe, which means that more time could be spent on the chatting and beer-drinking and less on the chopping and stirring.
“Lazy” Chiles Rellenos
Adapted from The Pioneer Woman Cooks
Serves 6
Ingredients
- 8 whole roasted, peeled, and seeded green chiles (we used poblanos)
- 1-½ cup Monterey Jack cheese, grated
- 5 whole large eggs
- 2 cups whole milk
- salt and black pepper to taste
- ½ teaspoons paprika
- ¼ teaspoons cayenne pepper
1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
2. Mix together eggs, milk, salt, pepper, paprika and cayenne.
3. Cut chilies in half and add a single layer of chilies on the bottom of a 9 x 13-inch baking dish. Top chilies with half the grated cheese. Repeat with another layer of chilies and another layer of cheese. Pour egg mixture all over the top.
4. Place into a larger baking dish or rimmed baking sheet. Pour in 1/2 inch of water and bake for 35 to 45 minutes, or until completely set.
5. Cut into squares and serve with warm tortillas, black beans, salsa, guacamole, so on and so forth.
looks great!