14 Fir Street: Chile Rellenos Casserole

I LOVE chile rellenos but I hardly order it when I go out and it is a treat when I make it here. It normally is a fried dish and I am not a fan of frying so I don't make it to often but I do love it. I came across a few casserole recipes over the year but never made any as my husband says he hates casseroles (he really doesn't though). But I do understand he and I like our food to be recognizable not mushed and melted together in one pan. However my longing for it won and I saw a recipes that looked good so I gave it a try and it was delicious! It was a cheese bomb and pretty greasy but it was so very good served right out of the oven. It did not reheat to the same quality.

Gather the ingredients and your helper.

She is holding a baby Jaguar cake topper. You will not need that but I suppose you could stick it on top too.

Ingredients

6 poblano peppers
3/4 pound cheddar cheese, grated
3/4 pound Monterrey Jack cheese, grated
4 eggs
1 13-oz. can evaporated milk
3 tablespoons flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 6-oz. can tomato paste

Directions

Roast the poblano peppers on the grill or in the oven under broil until they are chard on all sides. Once done place them in a bowl and quickly cover. Let sit for a few minutes so that it steams and the skin can be easily be peeled off. The peel it off. Remove the seeds. Don't be afraid of poblano peppers they are not hot. My tiny team eats them with no problem. They are a notch above bell peppers and have such a nice flavor.

Poblano

Characteristics: Somewhat large about the size of your hand, and heart-shaped, the mildly hot poblano is common in Mexican dishes such as chiles rellenos. At maturity, the poblano turns dark red-brown and can be dried, at which point it's referred to as an ancho or mulato. If smoked and dried, it becomes a chipotle, which is often used in mole sauces. Scoville heat units: 1,000 to 2,000

Layer half of the chilies in a 9x9 baking pan. Next put all but a 1/3 of the cheddar cheese on top and then the remaining chilies.

Next dump all but a third of the Monterrey Jack cheese over top of the peppers.

Reserve 1/2 cup of each of the two cheeses, mixing them together in a small bowl.

Separate the eggs.

Beat the yolks and add the evaporated milk, (I did not have any evaporated milk on hand so I had to make some. It is not hard to do you simply simmer your regular milk down to to what you need. I had 2% so simmered 2 and a half cups down to 13 oz. It does take a little bit of time and was fluffy if that is a good descriptive word but it worked and the end result tasted great. So it is good to know in a pinch but next time I will just keep some evaporated milk in the pantry.)

flour and salt, beating until frothy. If you like a little more heat you can and some spice of your choosing I chose Ancho Chile Pepper. Beat the whites separately for about a minute.

Combine the two egg mixtures and beat for a few seconds longer so that they are well-mixed. Pour the egg mixture over the chiles and cheese. Bake at 300 for 1 hour.