Mexican Dinner Party

In September, we met at Dani's house for a Mexican-themed dinner party.

For appetizers, Lauren made quesadillas.

To make the quesadillas, I (Lauren) used the following recipe: http://www.fitnessmagazine.com/recipe/appetizers-snacks/goat-cheese-caramelized-onion-and-spinach-quesadilla/. I adapted the recipes by using corn tortillas instead of flour, and used Monterey Jack cheese instead of goat (I forogt to bring the goat cheese).
Corn Tortilla Quesadillas

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 cups thinly sliced onion
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 9 ounces baby spinach
• corn tortillas
  
• 4 ounces semisoft goat cheese
• Monterey jack cheese
• 2 medium tomatoes, thinly sliced

Instructions

1. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.
   
2.  Add the onion, sugar and salt; cook, stirring occasionally, until onion is dark golden brown. Remove from pan.
   
3. Add the spinach and 1 tablespoon water to the skillet; cook 2 minutes, or until spinach is just wilted. Remove from skillet and turn off heat.
   
4. Place corn tortilla in dry skillet on medium heat.  Let tortilla become pliable, remove form heat and repeat with second tortilla.  Add goat cheese to tortilla in pan, then layer with veggie mixture, then jack cheese.  Return first tortilla to cover.  Flip tortillas over and cook until jack cheese is melted. Repeat to make additional quesadillas.
   

For the main dishes, Katharina made Chiles Relleno and Dani made two types of enchiladas.  Dani also made two types of horchata and margaritas.

To go with the meal, Rebecca made Sopa de Arroz (Mexican rice) and pickled carrots.

The Sopa de Arroz was adapted from this recipe.

Sopa de Arroz

• 1 large tomato, quartered (about 8 ounces)
• 1/2 cup diced white onion
• 1/4 cup canola oil
• 2 Anaheim chiles
• 1 green bell pepper, cored, seeded and thinly sliced

• 1 clove garlic
• 2 cups long grain brown rice
• 4 cups chicken stock
• 1/2 cup fresh corn kernels
• salt to taste

In a blender, puree the tomato, onions and 1 cup water until smooth. Set aside.In a 4-quart saucepan set over medium heat, add the canola oil and chiles, and then cover with a lid. Sear the chiles until golden brown on all sides, 8 to 10 minutes. Add the bell pepper and garlic, and cook 2 to 3 minutes. Add the rice and cook, stirring occasionally, until the rice is golden brown, 10 to 12 minutes. Then add the tomato puree, chicken stock and corn. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer, covered, until the rice is tender and all of the liquid is absorbed, 35-40 minutes. Serve hot.

 The pickled carrots came from mexicanfood.about.com.

 Spicy Pickled Carrots

• 2 lbs large carrots, peeled and sliced into 1/4 inch thick pieces
• 5 cloves garlic peeled and diced
• 1 1/2 cups vinegar
• 1 1/2 cups water
• 10 bay leaves, whole
• 8 peppercorns
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 6 oz. pickled jalapenos

Heat oil in a large saucepan and saute the garlic. Add in carrots and saute for 2-3 minutes. Carefully add in vinegar, peppercorns, salt, and and bay leaves. Bring to a simmer for 5 minutes and then add water and jalapenos and bring to a simmer again for another 10 minutes.

Let it cool completely and then transfer the carrots and cooking liquid into a covered container and refrigerate overnight. Store the carrots in the liquid and use a slotted spoon to serve them. You may leave the bay leaves in the liquid to add to the flavor, but do not eat them. Always remove the bay leaves before you eat the carrots.

For dessert, Kim made chocolate flan.

Modern Mexican Chocolate Flan with Kahlúa

Flan de Chocolate con Kahlúa

from Rick Bayless's Mexican Kitchen

makes 6 individual flans

1/2 cup plus 1/3 cup sugar

1 cup half-and-half

1 cup milk

4 1/2 ounces (approximately 3/4 cup) chopped Mexican chocolate

1-inch cinnamon stick, preferably Mexican canela

4 large eggs

1 tablespoon Kahlúa or other coffee liqueur

1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon pure almon extract

1. Caramelizing the molds. Set six 5-6oz custard cups into a baking pan deep enough to hold 2 inches of water.

Measure 1/2 cup of the sugar into a small (1 to 1 1/2 quart), heavy saucepan. Dribble in 1/4 cup water and stir several times. Bring to a boil, wash down any sugar crystals clinging to the sides of the pan with a brush dipped in water, then simmer over medium heat without stirring, until the syrup begins to color. Swirl the pan continually over the heat until the syrup is an even, deep amber. Working carefully, immediately divide the caramel among the custard cups, then tilt the cups to distribute the caramel over the bottom and a bit up the sides. (Kim's notes: cook to a little lighter than “deep amber”. My caramel was not pourable at all. I scraped bits of it into the bottom of the ramekins)

2. The custard. Pour the half-and-half and the milk into a medium-size (2 1/2 to 3 quart) saucepan. Pulse the chocolate in a food processor until pulverized. Add to the milk, along with the cinnamon stick and remaining 1/3 cup of sugar. Bring to a simmer over medium heat, stirring occasionally, then cover, remove from the heat and let steep for 20 minutes.

Whisk the eggs, Kahlúa, vanilla and almond extracts in a large mixing bowl until combined, then slowly whisk in the hot-milk mixture. Pour through a fine-mesh strainer into a large measuring cup or pitcher with a spout, then divide the mixture among the molds.

3. Baking the flans. Turn on the oven to 325°. Pour about 2 inches or very hot water into the pan around the filled molds. Lay a sheet of foil over the molds (don't crimp or seal it – too much heat will build up), and bake in the middle level of the oven just until the custard has barely set (a knife inserted halfway between the edge and the center will come out clean), about 25 minutes. Let cool in the water bath, then refrigerate to chill thoroughly.
To unmold, run a nonserrated knife around the edge of each mold, penetrating ot the bottom, then twist the mold back & forth to ensure that the custard will move freely. Invert a serving plate over each mold, then reverse the two and listen for the flan to drop. Scrape out any clinging caramel onto the flans and they're ready to serve.

Flans keep several days refrigerated and covered.