The first time I ate chorizo, I was staying with a host family in a tiny town in Spain. Every night after work (and before they ate dinner at about 10:30 PM), they put out bread, manchego (and other similar cheeses) and chorizo. I instantly fell in love with the salty, spicy cured sausage and was really bummed to discover how hard it was to find at home. I wanted to make paella for my family the way I learned how to in Spain, but all I could find was Mexican chorizo, which isn’t the same at all. Although I was not a fan of it at first, I came to love it even more than the Spanish variety.

When I gave up meat a few months ago, I wanted to steer clear of imitation meat products (like soy nuggets and fake lunch meat), but when I saw Soy Chorizo at Trader Joe’s, I had to give it a try. I don’t plan on eating it often, but I LOVE the stuff, and it really does look and taste a lot like the real thing (but without a bunch of random pig parts). I recently bought a package to put in breakfast scrambles, but I wanted to use some in a real recipe. Black bean soup isn’t normally my favorite, but with chorizo, it takes on a whole new flavor that’s totally irresistible. I love how easy this is to put together, and with a salad it’s a nice, light meal.

Recipe:
1 tbsp olive oil
1/2 lg onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 yellow bell pepper, diced
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cumin
6 ounces Soy Chorizo (or regular…your call)
3 cups black beans, rinsed and drained (about 2 cans)
2-3 cups vegetable broth
lime wedges and fresh chopped cilantro, for serving

Heat the oil in a large, heavy saucepan over medium high heat. Add the onion, garlic, and bell pepper and saute until soft (about 4 minutes). Add the chorizo, salt, and cumin and cook, stirring, another 5-6 minutes.
Stir in the beans and 2 cups of broth and simmer for about 15 minutes. Using an immersion blender, pulse a few times (so it’s partly but not completely pureed). Salt to taste, and add more broth if you’d like your soup a little thinner.
Serve with lime wedges and fresh cilantro.

Kale may not be the first thing that comes to mind when you’re making Mexican food, but trust me, it should be. Whether or not kale actually grows in Mexico, I’m not sure, but it goes really nicely with tortillas and is much healthier than say, carne asada, so I’ll stick with it

After loving the kale enchiladas I made a few months ago, I knew it was only a matter of time before kale tacos would make an appearance on the dinner table. Since our favorite farmers market vendor loves to give us about twice as much as we pay for whenever we buy vegetables, the refrigerator was recently overflowing with two different varieties of kale. I used the curly kale to make kale chips (toss with olive oil and salt and bake until crispy – better than Lays. Seriously), but saved the Tuscan kale, which I’d never used before, for these tacos.

Because there’s not a lot of protein going on here, I served these with black beans, and next time I think I might just mix black beans in with the filling. And if the idea of kale tacos doesn’t excite you, at least try the salsa. It’s seriously some of the best salsa I’ve ever made. Rick Bayless, you are truly amazing.

Recipe:
(adapted from Mexican Everyday by Rick Bayless)

Tacos:
1 bunch Tuscan kale (tough stems removed), cut into strips
1 tbsp vegetable oil
1 red onion, thinly sliced
3 finely chopped garlic cloves
pinch red pepper flakes
salt
8 corn tortillas
4 ounces queso fresco, crumbled

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add the onion and cook until browned and soft, about 10 minutes. Add the garlic and red pepper flakes and stir a few times, then add the kale. Cook, stirring, until the kale is soft (about 7 minutes), adding water if it gets too dry and the pan begins to scorch. Add salt to taste, then remove from heat.

Heat the tortillas in a warm oven, or directly over the flame of a gas range for a few seconds on each side. Put a little filling in each tortilla, top with salsa (recipe below) and crumbled cheese.

Salsa:
1 tbsp vegetable oil
2 quajillo chiles, stems and seeds removed
3 cloves of garlic, peeled
4 medium tomatillos, husks removed, sliced in half horizontally
1/3 cup water

Put the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Place the chiles in the hot oil and turn every few seconds until very fragrant (about 30 seconds total). Remove with tongs and let as much oil drip off as possible.
Pour out the oil and wipe the skillet with a paper towell. Heat the garlic and tomatillos (seed side down) until browned on the bottom, then flip them over. They will cook for about 3 minutes on each side. Remove from the heat, and put the garlic and tomatillos into the blender with the chiles and 1/3 cup water. Blend until almost smooth, then add salt to taste. Pour into a bowl to cool.

This dinner was all Mike’s idea, and it’s one of the best meals we’ve had in ages (although I seem to be saying that a lot lately… I have always had a problem with overuse of hyperbole.)

ANYWAY. We’d both been talking about chiles rellenos, and how they’re pretty much the best Mexican food ever. I decided to put them on the menu for the week, and he suggested baking them in muffin tins so they weren’t so fragile (and could be baked, not fried). Of course I thought the idea was brilliant, and it ended up working perfectly. I put corn, mushrooms, and tomatoes inside, topped that with some jack cheese, and covered that with a fluffy egg mixture. HEAVEN. And they’re so cute and convenient!

The only thing you might need to be careful with is the heat factor of the peppers. I used fresh pasillas and half of them were pretty spicy (the other half weren’t at all). I don’t really have any suggestions about how to deal with this issue, I just thought I should give a heads up.

Recipe:
8 fresh pasilla chiles
1 tbsp vegetable oil
8 ounces white mushrooms, sliced
2 Roma tomatoes, diced
kernels cut from 2 ears of fresh corn
1/4 white onion, diced
pinch cinnamon
salt and pepper
16 thin slices of jack cheese
4 egg whites
2 egg yolks

Put the chiles under a hot broiler and cook until the skin is blackened and blistered, turning every few minutes. Transfer to a bowl and cover with a dish towel for 15 minutes or until cool enough to handle.

Scrape off the skin, remove the stem and seeds, and cut each chile in half lengthwise. Press each half chile into a muiffin tin cup and set aside.

Preheat the oven to 375.

Heat the oil in a wide skillet over medium high. Add the onions and cook, stirring, until softened, about 2 minutes. Add the mushrooms and cook another 5 minutes, then stir in the tomatoes, corn, cinnamon, salt, and pepper and cook for about 10 minutes or until the corn is tender.

Set the corn mixture aside to cool slightly. Whip the egg whites until they hold soft peaks. Gently beat the egg yoks, then fold into the whites then spoon into the
Stir half the egg mixture into the corn and mushroom filling.
Spoon the filling into the chile-lined muffin tins, then top with a piece of cheese (torn into pieces to fit, if necessary).

Put a dollop of egg mixture on top of the cheese, then bake for about 15 minutes or until egg is cooked. Carefully remove from muffin tins to serve.

A new development since we returned from Asia is Mike coming grocery shopping with me every week. I definitely don’t mind it, I just had to get used to walking every aisle no matter what was on the list, and random surprises ending up in the cart. Like a 6 pound can of hominy (but that’s okay because it was on sale for $2.18) So what does one do with a 6 pound can of hominy? Make posole of course!

Posole traditionally starts with a whole lot of pork, which obviously wasn’t going to happen here. But that doesn’t mean meat-eaters should feel left out, because you can easily serve shredded chicken or pork for them to stir into their soup. The garnishes are pretty essential to an awesome posole experience. I didn’t have any fresh radishes and didn’t want to go to the store just for them, but they are typically included on the plate of garnishes, so I listed them in the recipe.

Recipe:
(adapted from A Little Bit of Spain in Iowa)

1 1/2 cups boiling water
2 dried ancho chiles, stem and seeds removed
1 dried guajillo chile, stem and seeds removed
2 tbsp olive oil
1 large onion, diced
1 fresh poblano pepper, chopped
5 cloves garlic, minced
2 roma tomatoes, diced
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp ground cumin
4 cups vegetable broth
4 cups hominy (drained)
salt (to taste)
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

Garnishes:
shredded Jack cheese
diced white onion
thinly sliced cabbage
diced radishes
wedges of lime

Before you begin, place the dried chilis and boiling water in a small bowl and cover for 20 minutes to soften them. The puree them with their soaking liquid and set aside.

Heat the oil in a dutch oven over medium-high. Add the onion and garlic and cook, stirring until softened about 5 minutes. Add the tomatoes and poblano and cook another 5 minutes.

Stir in the cumin, oregano, vegetable broth, hominy, and pureed chiles. Simmer partially covered for 20-30 minutes. Salt to taste, then stir in the fresh cilantro and cook another 3-4 minutes (at a simmer).

Ladle into bowls and serve with garnishes.

I’ve cooked almost every recipe in Mexico One Plate at a Time since I got it in high school, but this and the guacamole are two I make the most. For a long time I was completely intimidated by cooking dried beans, but this recipe helped me get over that. If you want to simplify your life a lot, you can even use a slow cooker for the beans a day or two before you plan to make this.

I had this recipe in mind when I threw these black beans with spinach, mushrooms, and pasilla chiles together while we were living in Korea. If I could have gotten my hands on some chipotles and masa, I would have made this instead, over and over. I don’t know what it is about the smoky flavor that is so addicting, but that combined with cute little masa dumplings and the spinach just have me hooked!

Recipe:
(adapted from Mexico One Plate at a Time by Rick Bayless)

1 pound dried black beans
10 cups water
1 large onion, chopped
6 cloves garlic, chopped
4 roma tomatoes
4 canned chipotle chiles en adobo, chopped
salt
1 cup dried masa mixed with 1/2 cup plus 2 tbsp hot water
1/8 tsp baking powder
1 bunch spinach, roughly chopped (stems removed)

Put the beans, water, onion, and garlic in a slow cooker and cook on low for 4-6 hours or until the beans are tender. (If you don’t have a slow cooker, simmer them on the stove, uncovered, for about 2 hours.
Roast the tomatoes under a hot broiler for a few minutes on each side until the skin is blistered and black. Let cool, then remove the skins and transfer the tomatoes to a food processor or blender. Add the chipotles and puree until smooth.
Stir the tomato mixture into the beans and season with salt to taste. At this point you can refrigerate the beans for a day or two, or just keep cooking.
To make the dumplings, mix the masa, water, and baking powder to make a smooth dough. Bring a large pot of salted water to a simmer. Roll small pieces of dough into marble-sized dumplings between your palms, then gently press your finger into the center to form a dimple.
Cook the dumplings in two batches, removing them with a slotted spoon once they rise to the surface. Cover with plastic wrap until you’re ready to add them to the beans.
Stir the spinach into the beans and stir occasionally until it is wilted. Add the dumplings, stir carefully so you don’t break them, and serve.

I kind of group tamales with cupcakes in my own personal Food Taxonomy. They’re both a little time consuming because each one needs individual attention, but when you’ve turned out a batch or two, your mind fills with possibilities and you know you’ll be making dozens more.

The first time I made tamales was for a project for my high school Spanish class. I had to cook a Mexican recipe on video, narrating the whole process in Spanish. I’m not sure why I chose to make tamales, because they are pretty labor intensive and require all kinds of verbs you don’t use in every day conversation, but it all worked out, I got an A, and my Spanish teacher said they were as good as her grandmother’s. That definitely boosted my confidence in both my culinary and Spanish-speaking abilities!

Although they do take some time, these are actually fairly simple; you just have to plan ahead. I cook the beans and put the corn husks in a bowl of water to soak the night before, then set aside a few hours during the day for preparing the masa (I just use masa harina because it’s easy), making the tomatillo sauce, and assembling the tamales. They only steam for about 15 minutes, so once they’re all prepared, you don’t have to wait long to eat. They freeze beautifully, too.

This batch happens to be made with black beans and jack cheese. Perfect for vegetarians, but hearty enough for meat-eaters too. Mike made some awesome-looking chicken tamales, so I’ll try and get him to post his recipe sometime soon!

Recipe:

1 8 ounce package of corn husks

Filling:
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 onion, chopped
1/2 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp chile powder
1 cup dried black beans
1/2 tsp salt
3 cups water
1/2 cup diced or shredded jack cheese (cut into 1/4″ cubes)

Tomatillo Sauce:
4 large tomatillos
2 cloves garlic
1 poblano pepper
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1/2 tsp salt

Masa:
3 1/2 cups masa harina
3 cups vegetable broth
1/2 cup shortening
1 tsp salt
1 tsp chile powder

Completely submerge the corn husks in water and soak for 12 hours (you can reduce the soaking time to 3-4 hours by starting with boiling water).

Combine the garlic, onion, oregano, chile powder, black beans, salt, and water in a slow cooker and cook on low for 8 hours, or until the beans are tender (you may need to add a little extra water if they begin to look too dry). Alternatively, drain a can of black beans and saute it with the onion, garlic, chile powder, black beans, and salt. When the beans are cooked, transfer them to a bowl to cool, then stir in the cheese.

To make the tomatillo sauce, spray a shallow broiler-safe pan with nonstick spray. Remove the husks from the tomatillos, and place them in the pan with the peeled garlic and poblano. Cook under the broiler, turning occasionally, until the poblano is blackened and blistered and the tomatillos are soft. Set the pan aside with a clean kitchen towel over it for about 10 minutes, then scrape the skin off the poblano, remove the seeds, and transfer everything to the food processor, along with cilantro and some salt. Puree, taste and add more salt if needed, then stir 1 cup of tomatillo sauce into the beans. Keep the remaining sauce for spooning over the finished tamales.

To make the masa: Combine the masa harina, shortening, 2 cups of broth, chile powder and salt and mix well. Add more broth a few tablespoons at a time as needed. You want the masa to have the consistency of soft play-dough, so if it’s too crumbly, add warm water a few tablespoons at a time until you have a soft, but not overly sticky dough.

To prepare the tamales: Tear a few corn husks into thin strips. Remove one of the large, intact corn husks from the soaking bowl, rinse it under the tap, and pat dry. Put it on your work surface with the narrow end towards you. Pat 1/4 cup tablespoons of masa into a 3-4″ square in the center of the corn husk. Spoon 1-2 tbsp of bean mixture in a line down the middle of the square. Fold the sides of the husk in, then fold the bottom up and secure with one of the thin strips.

When you’re ready to steam the tamales, open a steamer basket and place it in a large pot over an inch or so of water. Bring the water to a boil, then stand the tamales up vertically on the steamer basket. Cover the pan with a lid and steam for 15-20 minutes, or until the masa no longer feels sticky. Make sure you have extra simmering water handy to add to the pot if it gets dry before the tamales are done. Serve with sour cream and the remaining tomatillo sauce.

Sometimes I like making dinner so much I get to do it twice in one night. Or, more realistically, Mike is a whole lot more excited about chicken than he is about tempeh, so I end up figuring out how to make a recipe two ways. (Although he did end up admitting that the tempeh was really good!)

If you’re looking over the recipe thinking that soy sauce seems out of place in a marinade for tacos, I can relate. I had the same thought, but forged ahead anyway and the results were delicious. Of course you don’t have to make this salsa to go with these, but I think fresh homemade salsa is so much better than store bought that I always make it from scratch.

Tacos
1 8 ounce package tempeh, cut in 1/2″ thick slices OR 2 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs

Marinade:
1 tsp chili powder
1/4 tsp cayenne
1 clove garlic, finely minced
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tbsp soy sauce
juice of 1/2 lemon

nonstick spray
corn tortillas
lettuce
sour cream
shredded cheese or crumbled queso fresco
habanero salsa (below)

To make the marinade, mix all ingredients except tempeh or chicken.
If using tempeh: Put the slices in boiling water and boil for 10 minutes, then drain and toss with the marinade. Put in a ziploc bag in the fridge for at least 2 hours.
Heat a skillet and spary with nonstick spray. Cook the tempeh for a few minutes on each side, or until slightly browned.

If using chicken, just put the chicken in a bag, pour in the marinade, and chill at least 2 hours.
Bake the chicken in a foil packet in a 375 degree oven for 30-40 minutes, or until done.
Let cool slightly, then shred with a fork.

Heat the corn tortillas in a 300 degree oven (I just put them directly on the rack) for a few minutes, or until warm and pliable. Assemble tacos with desired accoutrements.

Salsa
3 large, ripe Roma tomatoes
1 habanero pepper
juice of half a lime
a few pinches salt
2 tbsp chopped fresh cilantro
1/4 white onion, chopped

Soak the chopped onion in a bowl of cold water for about 15 minutes, then drain in a mesh strainer.
Stir all ingredients together and adjust salt and lime juice to taste. I don’t bother peeling or seeding the tomatoes, I just cut the little area around the stem out and go to town!
I like to let the flavors mellow in the fridge for about an hour before I eat this, but that part is optional.

NOTE: Habaneros are pretty spicy. If you’re not up for that, this salsa can be made milder with half a diced jalapeno, seeds removed.

If you’re thinking that those don’t really look like black beans, you’re right. I actually have no idea what kind of beans they are, but Mike buys them by the kilo from an adorable old lady who speaks no English and always gives him a few extra scoops for free. They look black when they’re dry, but turn deep red when I soak and cook them. I would prefer black beans for sure, so if you’re lucky enough to have some around, please use them! I’ll live vicariously through you.

Periodically the other foreign teachers at work get care packages from home. They usually include cookies, Chee-tos, and other treats that are hard to find in Korea. When my first care package came, fun snacks were nowhere to be found. No, I got a bag of pasilla-ancho chiles (which is confusing, because they’re different), some yeast, old fashioned oats, garam masala, and a whole bunch of other ingredients I couldn’t wait to use.

Over the past couple months, I’ve worked my way through most of them, but never got around to using the pasillas (or anchos, or whatever they are). Yesterday, when I was reorganizing my cupboard, I spotted them and realized I needed to use them immediately if not sooner, and as luck would have it, I had a freshly cooked pot of beans at my disposal. I added some spinach and mushrooms, and served it over millet, but I think any grain would work (or you could just eat the beans plain, but why not go for the complete protein?)

Recipe:
3 pasilla or ancho chiles, stems and seeds removed, torn into pieces
1/2 cup boiling water
1 tbsp olive oil
1 yellow onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
about 20 button mushrooms, quartered
1 tsp cumin seeds
2 1/2 cups cooked black beans, drained
3 cups roughly chopped spinach
1/2 cup water
2 cups cooked millet (or other grain)

Put the chiles in a small bowl and pour the boiling water over them. Let stand, covered, at least 30 minutes so they get nice and soft. I like to put a small plate on top of the bowl to keep the steam in. Plastic wrap or foil would be fine too.

Heat the oil in a large skillet and add the onions. Cook until translucent, then add the garlic and mushrooms, and cumin seeds. Turn the heat down to medium low and cook, stirring occasionally, for about 10 minutes (so the mushrooms get nice and flavorful).

Remove the chiles from their soaking liquid, chop them finely, and add them to the vegetables. Add the beans and cook, stirring, for a few minutes (until heated through). Season with salt, then add the spinach and water and simmer for a minute or two. Either mix in the millet, or put some on a plate and spoon the bean mixture over it.

1 envelops active dry yeast
1/2 cup warm water
1/2 cup evaporated milk
3/8 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup butter, melted
1 egg
4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

2/3 cup white sugar
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
4 or 5 drops red food coloring

In a large bowl, stir together the yeast and warm water. Mix in the milk, 3/8 cup sugar, 1/3 cup melted butter, salt, egg and half of the flour. Gradually mix in the remaining flour, and 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon.
Turn the dough out onto a floured counter to knead as soon as it pulls together enough.
Knead for 6 to 8 minutes, until smooth and elastic.
Place in a large greased bowl, and turn the dough to coat.
Cover, and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour.
Make the topping while the dough rises.
In a medium bowl, beat 2/3 cup sugar and 1/2 cup butter until light and fluffy.
Stir in the flour until the mixture is the consistency of thick paste, then stir in the vanilla and food coloring.
When the dough is done rising, cut into 12 even-sized pieces.
Shape into balls, and place on a greased cookie sheet, spacing about 3 inches apart.
Divide the topping into 12 balls, and pat them flat. Place circles of topping on top of the dough balls patting down lightly.
Use a knife dipped in warm water (to prevent sticking) to cut grooves in the topping like a clam shell.
Cover and let rise until doubled, about 45 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Bake for about 16 minutes, or until lightly golden brown.