menu suggestion and what to do with dried ancho chili

[Wendy Lai]

I'm hosting our next bookclub meeting dinner. Ususally food is paired with the theme of the book. The book is called Daughter's Keeper. Most of it takes place in Berkeley and parts of Mexico.
I was thinking of doing Mexican food but so far everything sounds too boring. I don't want to do the fajitas, burrito, enchillida thing. I'm hoping for something that can be made ahead and reheated since the bookclub is Monday night and I have to work. Oh, there will be some vegetarians there too.

Any suggestions?

Also, bought a bag of dried ancho chilies thinking I can incorporate that. What should I do with them?

[foodfirst]

This deliciously homey Rick Bayless recipe is vegetarian-friendly AND will use your anchos. The seasoning paste can be made ahead and kept in the fridge for 2 wks. The whole thing can be baked and reheated, or assembled a couple hours in advance.

Chile-Glazed Sweet Potatoes

First make the sweet-and-spicy ancho seasoning paste: On ungreased heavy skillet or griddle, roast 6 unpeeled garlic cloves on one side and at the same time toast abt 3 ounces stemmed and seeded dried anchos on the other. Toast the anchos by opening them flat, and pressing down on the skillet with a spatula, they crackle after a few seconds; flip them and repeat. Don't burn them! Put anchos in bowl, cover with hot water for 30 mins, then drain and throw out the water. The garlic is done when it's soft and blackened in spots -- leave it aside till cool then peel.

In blender or food processor, combine the soaked chiles, peeled garlic, and 1/2 c. chicken broth or water with 1 tsp dried Mexican oregano, 1/2 tsp cinammon, fresh ground black pep, generous 1/8 tsp cloves. Process till smooth, add little more liquid if necessary. At this point you can press through a strainer to get a smoother puree; I just leave it as is bec. I don't mind the ancho pieces.

Make the casserole: Slice 3 pounds sweet potatoes lengthwise into 4 slices. Butter or oil 13x9 baking dish, lay potatoes in 1 layre. Combine seasoning paste with 1 Tbsp finely chopped orange zest, 1/2 c fresh orange juice, 2 Tbsp honey, and season with salt if you like. Spoon over sweet potatoes.

Oven at 350. (Optional: drizzle spuds with 2 Tbsp melted butter.) Cover with foil, bake 45 mins or till tender.
Oven up to 425. Uncover and baste spuds, bake till glazed and sauce of medium thickness, maybe 10 mins more.
Serve sprinkled with cilantro, and (for those who take dairy) drizzled with creme fraiche or sprinkled with queso fresco.

I would serve this with some steamed good quality corn tortillas and salsa/guacamole, and a bright picante slaw of cabbage, red radish, LOTS of chopped coriander, and an olive oil/black pepper/white vinegar dressing.

BTW the seasoning paste is excellent stirred into thick Greek-style yogurt as a dip, or added to pinto beans or rice. Yum!

[Clarissa]

I make black bean ancho chili from an old Gourmet magazine. It's really good, can be made ahead and is healthy. Served with a nice avocado salsa and some cornbread, it makes a nice meal. I have the magazine around here somewhere, but it would be easy to go to Epicurious and see for yourself. Do a search under "Black Bean Ancho Chili." It's from December, 1992. It calls for chicken stock, but I use vegetable stock.

I'm making something using dried ancho chilis tomorrow -- it's wild mushroom enchiladas in an ancho chili cream sauce. I can't recommend it yet, since I haven't made it before.

Good luck.

[Eric Archer]

"wild mushroom enchiladas in an ancho chili cream sauce."

That sounds phenomenal, Clarissa.

Please report back on your results. If it's not too much trouble (and, of course, IF they turn out good), would it be possible to supply a source for or share your recipe?

[Margaret]

It may not be the same, but I found a couple of identical recipes for this on the web. Here is one such site:
http://www.recipecottage.com/vegetari...

[Clarissa]

It's also from Epicurious. I'm making it right now, as we speak -- can you smell the cilantro? I really should remember to rinse off before I dash over to this keyboard. I'd better run. I think my reconstituted chilies are ready for chopping.

I'll report in after we eat them.

[Clarissa]

Well, the enchiladas were very nice. Turns out the recipe came from a Bon Appetit from 1997 and was from a Dallas restaurant. It's identical to the recipe in the link Margaret found, by the way.

It was very good. I did some tinkering, and was pleased with the outcome. Check out the recipe on Epicurious if you're interested.

[N Tocus]

I no longer use chili powder but make a paste from dried ancho chiles. Wash them under running water and remove stems and seeds. Break up the pieces somewhat, put them in a small dish, and add enough water to cover. Cover with saran and microwave for 2 minutes. Process this in Cuisinart (or blender would do) with an 8-oz can of tomato sauce, a small onion, garlic to taste, salt to taste, a spoonful of oil, a bit of ground cumin, and a bit of dried flaked hot chili (anchos are not very hot). I freeze this in 8-oz plastic tubs left over from Brummel & Brown yogurt spread (if you start with a big bag of chilis from a Mexican store you will get a nice yield of chili paste for future use). Use a few soupspoonsful as you would chili powder---it's more full-bodied than the commercial powder and has the advantage that you can customize amount of heat, garlic, and cumin. Can be used not only in chili con carne (or sin carne) but in various combos of corn tortillas and other stuff.

[Karl S.]

Perhaps add to some chocolate-focused recipe?

[Gypsy Boy]

Somewhat like N Tocus, below, I buy chilis in large bunches but I make powder instead of paste (dry roast and grind). At any given time I have about five or six different kinds of powder living in the freezer. (My "standards" include ancho, guajillo, cascabel, pequin/tepin, chipotle, and Hatch.) I use them for sauces, chili con carne, and anything else that might remotely be improved by their addition (such as brownies or any recipe for any cuisine calling for cayenne or "chili powder"). The variety of flavors and sweetnesses available makes it a delectable challenge.
Experiment and have fun!
Gypsy Boy

[rudeboy]

How bout some pie? There's a restaraunt here in Austin that makes Ancho Chile Fudge Pie. It's wonderful. This isn't their recipe, however:

http://www.gourmetsleuth.com/anchochilefudgepie.htm

http://www.pepperfool.com/recipes/des...

[LisaPizza]

My husband makes a mean ancho chili chocolate cake. I'll post the recipe if you like; have to find it first.

[Caitlin McGrath]

I'd like that recipe!

[LisaPizza]

I hope everything is accurate; he developed this recipe when he was a pastry chef, and sometimes left out details that were in his head.

Rudy's Ancho Chile Chocolate Cake

1 1/2 c. cake flour
1 t. baking soda
1/4 t. baking powder
1/2 t. salt
1/2 c. cocoa
3 T. ancho chile powder
1/4 t. cayenne pepper
5 oz. butter
1 1/2 c. sugar
3 large eggs
1/2 c. buttermilk
1/2 c. hot coffee
1 t. vanilla

Sift first seven ingredients onto parchment. Cream butter and sugar and add eggs, one at a time. Fold one third of the flour mixture into the butter/egg mixture. Add half the buttermilk and half the coffee and combine well. Repeat with dry and liquid ingredients, add vanilla. Finish by folding in remaining 1/3 dry ingredients. Fill muffin tins or pans lined with parchment half full and bake 18-20 minutes at 375 or until toothpick comes out clean.

Makes one 8" round. Doubled recipe makes one 10" round.

[Caitlin McGrath]

Thank you! This looks great, and I'll definitely be trying it. The recipe looks complete to me, and I've done plenty of baking.

[LisaPizza]

I thought you'd be able to figure it out. :-) I hope you like it!