Vegetarian Chilaquiles What the hell is it, you ask?
Kinda like a Mexican Lasagna. Easy to make!
Try it, you'll like it ...12 corn tortillas
2 tbsp olive oil
1 heaping cup chopped onions
1 medium bell pepper, finely chopped
1 28 oz can crushed or pureed tomatoes (Pastene is the best,
if you can get them.)
1 8 oz can plain tomato sauce
2 tsp chili powder
(the ordinary kind you get at the market,
not the fires of hell variety I got from the Indian grocery store...)
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp ground cumin
2 cans black beans
1 medium zucchini, grated
(Unless you are Frannie, in which case
substitute yellow summer squash...)
1/4 lb cheddar cheese, shreddedPreheat oven to 350°. Place tortillas on a large baking sheet and bake for 10-15 minutes, until dry and crisp. (You will have to do this in 2 or 3 batches.) When cool enough to handle, crumble into small pieces.
Heat oil in a heavy saucepan. Sauté onions until translucent. Add green pepper and contiue to sauté until it has softeneed and onions are golden.
Stir in tomatoes, tomato sauce, and seasonings and simmer over low heat for 10 minutes.
Oil a shallow roaster pan, or lasagna pan and layer as follows:
half the tortilla pieces
half the tomato sauce
half the black beans
half the zucchini or summer squash
half the cheeseRepeat layers.
Bake for 25-30 minutes, until cheese is bubbly. Let stand for 5-10 minutes, then cut into squares and serve at once.
A nice side dish to go with this is:
Quickie Mexican Rice 1 cup brown or white rice
a generouus blop of purchased salsa
as much grated Monterey Jack cheese as you wish, but be careful not to overdo it
Prepare rice according to directions on box, remembering that brown rice takes about an hour to cook, sometimes longer.
When rice is cooked, pour into a casserole dish, mix with salsa, and sprinkle cheese over the top. Now you can either broil it for a few minutes, bake it for half an hour at the same temp as the Chilaquiles, or toss it in the trusty microwave on high for five minutes. Any of these three procedures will melt the cheese, which is your goal, after all.
Serve alongside the Chilaquiles, preferably on Fiesta Ware.
Oh, all right. Those who lack Fiesta Ware can still prepare this recipe. Nothing bad will happen...I hope...
>evil grin<