i've said before that one of my favourite foods is the chile relleno, so much to my luck a couple weeks ago rick bayless' pbs show, mexico one plate at a time, did a whole episode on just that! his main point throughout the episode was that while the most popular application of the dish is the one of which i am so fond, the name itself simply means 'stuffed chile.' he then proceeded to make the classic, as well as an ancho chile stuffed with ripe planitains, onion, garlic, and brown sugar, served with a craime freche, and an anaheim chile stuffed with shrimp and cheese, wrapped in corn husks and grilled. i have frankestensteined the two together, somewhat, with my own additions of wit or necessity.
the end of october also saw my last csa basket, which consisted predominantly of squash. i still have a pumpkin and a spaghetti squash i haven't gotten to yet and they're going soft in places. unfortunately, we have been without an oven for the last month and i have been required to steam what i have, or cram it into the toaster oven.
i have done a couple different varieties of this recipe in the last week or so, with fresh and dried chiles. here is the ancho, a dried poblano, the classic chile of the relleno, because it's different, and i would never have thought to stuff a dried chile. i used:
- 6 ancho chiles
- 1 small-medium acorn squash
- 1 tsp. fresh grated cinnamon
- 3 cloves, pounded fine in a mortar
- 1 tbs. brown sugar
- 1 medium white onion, minced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tbs. butter (optional)
- corn husks for wrapping (optional)
- olive oil as needed
half the acorn squash and scoop out the seeds, reserving them for another use. drizzle the halves with olive oil and season with the cinnamon, cloves, salt, and pepper. cover with foil and roast the squash at 375 degrees f for about 45 min. before removing the foil. allow another 15 min. or so for the squash to finish. it should be fork tender. allow it to cool somewhat before scooping out the flesh.
heat olive oil with the butter in a small pan and sweat the onion and garlic with salt and pepper until translucent. add as much of the squash as is prudent to fill the chiles, reserving any extra. sautee the squash until well combined and season to taste. stuff the mixture into the chiles.
now you could serve that just as is, there is no need to cook anything further, but if you are preparing for later in the day, or your filling is messier or needs to melt or something, the corn husks are a lot of fun. you just soak them in boiling water for about ten minutes, place two end to end to end to give yourself a decent working space, and tear one into ribbons for tying. then you can grill or roast them as you like it, no muss no fuss.
