Chile Rellenos

Last night I made Chile Rellenos for a couple of friends and they were quite delicious! So I thought I'd share them with you! The recipe is from my pal Diana, who was inspired by Chile Rellenos she had at Bobby Flay's restaurant Mesa Grill. The version I made (below) made 6 rellenos, which I made for 3 people as the main dish. As you can see, the recipe is easy to expand or shrink depending on your crowd, or if you're making them for a side dish instead.

Diana's Fab Chile Rellenos

* Take your chile peppers (I used 6 Anaheim peppers, but poblanos would work too, I'm told) and roast them on the grill or under the broiler untill they are blackened, flipping them to get all sides.
* Remove peppers from oven and place in a paper bag to cool - the steam will help separate the skins from the peppers!
* When peppers are cool, carefully remove skins, then make a slit in each pepper and remove the membrane and seeds from inside.
* Combine 8 oz goat cheese with some cojita or jack cheese (or other cheese of your choice). I think I used about a handful of jack cheese for mine.
* Stuff the peppers with the cheese!
* Make an assemby line with your stuffed peppers, a dish of beaten eggs (D recommends one whole egg plus two egg whites), and a plate with cornmeal. (Season cornmeal to taste with cumin, chili powder, salt, pepper, whatever else sounds good to you.)
* Coat peppers in egg, then dredge in the cornmeal mixture, and arrange in a greased baking dish.
* Bake at 375 degrees 20-30 minutes, or until cheese is melty and heated through.

Stealing another idea from the brilliant Diana, I served my rellenos with a tasty chopped salad of romaine, red onion, black beans, corn, mango and avacado. I whipped up a simple dressing of lime juice, vinegar and olive oil, plus a little salt and pepper and just a splash of lemon juice. It was simple and quite tasty!

So, hooray for good food and terrific friends!