Yesterday I spent some time going through my pile of magazines that had shown up while I had the flu. I looked at them as they came in, but since I wasn’t feeling well, nothing jumped out at me, and the magazines were quickly set aside. So imagine my surprise as I’m going through these magazines and finding all sorts of things jumping out at me! And as yesterday ended up being a dreary, drizzly day, something warming and comforting was called for.
I turned to the new issue of Vegetarian Times and a recipe for Black Bean and Corn Chilaquiles with Roasted Tomato and Chipotle Sauce. The list of ingredients was fairly short, the photo of it in the magazine was appealing, and I had most everything on hand that I needed. What I was missing was the roma tomatoes and lime juice, so Zander and I trekked to the store to pick up a few things. Upon our arrival, we found the tomato selection to be seriously lacking, and I contemplated not making this dish for supper. But seeing that whole canned tomatoes were on sale, I decided that cut in half and roasted, they would fit the bill nicely- plus they would save me the step of peeling the tomatoes. The limes were the same story. $1.38 for one hard little lime? And since bottled lime juice just isn’t the same, I opted to serve up our sour cream as sour cream. It would still be tasty.
I started prepping the ingredients that needed to be roasted. The tomatoes cut in half easily, and I added an onion and some garlic to the roasting pan. Those went in the oven, and then I cut my tortillas into strips and got those in the oven as well. Then Abigail walked into the kitchen and asked if she could help. I wasn’t sure if she was going to like dinner tonight, so my sneaky mom brain decided that if she actually was responsible for making dinner, she’d be more likely to eat it. So Abigail had the task of assembling the chilaquiles for baking.
After the roasted vegetables had cooled, I popped them in the food processor and Abigail gave them a whirl. I thought it looked pretty thick, so I added the reserved tomato juice from my canned tomatoes. (Which, by the way, were genius to use- the canned tomatoes roasted beautifully and I didn’t have to peel them.) I only added one chipotle, as they seemed really large to me, and I didn’t want to overwhelm my kids with heat. In addition, I decided to add about 1/2 cup of chopped roasted red bell pepper to the black beans in the filling. Abigail patiently layered each aspect of the dish, and was quite proud to see it go into the oven.
When the chilaquiles came out of the oven, I confess that I was underwhelmed with it’s appearance. It looked kind of dried out, and wasn’t all bubbly and gooey like I’d pictured in my head. Still…we sat down to dinner, and first of all, I was surprised with the heat from the one chipotle I’d used. If I’d used three, it would have been inedible- even for me. Secondly, I thought it needed more sauce to it. The sour cream was fine by itself, and I’m sure the lime juice version is fantastic, but it wasn’t enough sauciness for my taste. Overall though, I liked the flavor of the dish, and I found it to be hearty and filling. Andy had two helpings, and despite the heat, Abigail attempted to clear her plate. (Zander, not so much.) I’m going to be playing with this dish a little bit, because I really enjoyed it, and am looking forward to leftovers for lunch. I think adding a can of tomato sauce to the filling would probably fix the moisture problem. I’ll apologize now for the photo- but you can see what I mean by not being bubbly and gooey. Maybe next time I’ll sprinkle a little extra cheese on the very top for the last few minutes of baking. Overall a keeper, just needs a but of tweaking.
Black Bean and corn Chilaquiles with Roasted Tomato and Chipotle Sauce
serves 8
from Vegetarian Times, April 2008
1. Preheat oven to 400ºF. Place white onion, tomatoes, and garlic in single layer on baking sheet. Roast 25 minutes, or until onions begin to brown and tomato skins wrinkle. meanwhile, toss tortilla strips with oil and spread on a separate baking sheet. Bake 15 minutes. Sprinkle with salt. Cool tortillas and vegetables for 20 minutes.
2. Peel tomatoes and place in food processor with onions and garlic. Add chipotles and reserved adobo sauce; puree until smooth, and season with salt and pepper.
3. Spread thin layer of tomato sauce in bottom of 1 1/2 quart baking dish. Add tortillas in a single layer. Top with black beans, corn, red onion, and cheese. Cover with remaining sauce, and bake 25 to 30 minutes, or until bubbly.
4. Whisk together sour cream and lime juice, drizzle of chilaquiles.
**Notes: My sauce ended up not being very saucy. Roasting the tomatoes adds great flavor, but reduces the liquid. I would suggest adding a small can of tomato sauce as well to the tomato puree. I also added about 1/2 cup chopped roasted red peppers to the black bean filling, and would do so again.