Chile Rellenos

I love Mexican food... among many foods. :) It's quick, tasty, and fairly inexpensive. One of my favorite dishes when we go out is chile rellenos. Well, Jeremy and I are cleaning out the fridge in preparation for Christmas and I needed to use up some poblanos. So I decided to try to make chile rellenos myself.

I had a guiding recipe but ended up changing things around because I wanted a more substantial batter, didn't want to deep fry them, and wanted to cover them in chili like my favorite Mexican restaurant does. These turned out fantastically. Next time, I will make sure I have toothpicks to 'sew' the chiles closed (I included this in the recipe as the cheese melted out a little without doing this). I will also make sure I have more poblanos on hand as Jeremy's only complaint was that there weren't enough.

Recipe:

Chiles
2 poblano chiles
3 ounces monterey jack cheese, shredded
3 ounces mozzarella, shredded
1 egg
1/4 c. flour, plus a couple tablespoons for dredging
1/3 c. cornmeal
1/4 c. water (approximate)
Salt and pepper to taste

Vegetarian Chili
1 large bell pepper, diced
2 chipotle chiles in adobo sauce, minced
1 tsp. minced garlic
1 (15 oz) can tomato sauce
1 (15 oz) can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
1 tbs. chili powder
1 1/2 tbs. onion powder
1 tbs. garlic powder
1 tbs. ground cumin
1 tbs. dried parsley
1/2 tbs. dried oregano
1/2 tsp. paprika
Salt and pepper to taste

1. Heat medium-sized pot over medium heat. Add bell peppers and saute until slightly softened. Add chipotles and garlic and saute for 2 minutes. Add the rest of the ingredients and lower heat to maintain a simmer.
2. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Place poblanos on a sheet tray and roast, turning frequently, until blistered all over.
3. Place poblanos in a bowl and cover with plastic wrap to steam for 20 minutes.
4. Slice poblanos down one side and rinse under water to remove skin, seeds, and ribs.
5. Mix cheeses and stuff into the peppers. Sew peppers shut with long toothpicks. Return to sheet tray and freeze while making the batter, 5-10 minutes.
6. Beat egg in large glass bowl (large enough to dip the chiles in) until foamy. Add flour and cornmeal. Add water while mixing until a batter forms (it should resemble pancake batter). Salt and pepper to taste.
7. Heat a frying pan on medium heat, cover bottom with vegetable oil.
8. Place dredging flour on a plate, remove chiles from freezer. Roll the chiles in flour, then dip in the batter.
9. Fry chiles, turning until golden brown on all sides. Remove to a paper towel to drain.
10. Serve chiles covered with chili.

(I also served this with some simple steamed rice. It served as a nice palate cleanser and helped to balance the heat from the chili.)