Chili Rellenos Casserole - Lazy Chili Rellenos

Original Recipe at: http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2009/11/lazy-chiles-rellenos/

Ingredients

• 8 whole Roasted, Peeled, And Seeded Green Chiles
• 1-1/2 cup Monterey Jack Cheese, Grated
• 5 whole Large Eggs
• 2 cups Whole Milk
•  Salt And Black Pepper To Taste
• 1/2 teaspoon Paprika
• 1/4 teaspoon Cayenne Pepper

Preparation Instructions

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
Mix together eggs, milk, salt, pepper, paprika and cayenne.
Cut chilies in half and add a single layer of chilies on the bottom of a 9 x 13-inch baking dish.
Top chilies with half the grated cheese.
Repeat with another layer of chilies and another layer of cheese.
Pour egg mixture all over the top.
Place into a larger baking dish or rimmed baking sheet. Pour in 1/2 inch of water and bake for 35 to 45 minutes, or until completely set.
Cut into squares and serve with warm corn tortillas!

Hot Mama Notes: I roasted my own chilis from the garden.  I thought about making actual rellenos, but it seemed like a lot of work, and I was short on time!  As it is, the kids are complaining about being hungry.  :/  I used a jack/chedder cheese blend.  I used season salt.  I had maybe 10 smaller chilis, mainly poblanos, but there might have been another type in there, too.  

To roast the chilis, I followed these directions (which are from: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/authentic-mexican-chili-rellenos/):

1. Preheat the oven's broiler and set the oven rack at about 6 inches from the heat source. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil. Place peppers onto the prepared baking sheet, and cook under the preheated broiler until the skin of the peppers has blackened and blistered, about 10 minutes. Turn the peppers often to blacken all sides. Place the blackened peppers into a bowl, and tightly seal with plastic wrap. Allow the peppers to steam as they cool, about 15 minutes.
2. Rinse cooled peppers under cold water to peel off the skins, and cut a slit along the long side of each pepper to remove the seeds and core. Rinse the peppers inside and out, and pat dry with paper towels.

The kids didn't really dig this recipe much (well, the older one like it okay, but the younger two wouldn't eat much), but my Hubby and I *loved* it!!!  I guess you can't go wrong with what is essentially an EGG casserole.  YUM.  The fresh roasted fresh chilis were the BOMB.  We will definitely make this recipe again.  We are always looking for recipes to use up the chiles from the garden!  :D

Hot Mama Grade: A! :D

I also liked this link about chilis:

http://mexicanfood.about.com/od/chilerecipes/r/Roasted-Green-Chiles.htm

All chiles start out green, and then as they mature, they change color to yellow, orange, red or purple. Green chiles are picked as soon as they reach their full size, but before they begin to change color. They are usually roasted before using them in recipes to impart a smoky flavor as well as soften them and make the skin easy to remove.

Heat Source
Begin by preparing your heat source. You will need something extremely hot to char the chiles with. An open flame, such as a grill, is best but you can also roast them in a hot pan or under a broiler. Turn up the heat and begin roasting the chiles by turning them frequently over the heat source. Roast them until the skins are blackened and blistering. The skins do not need to be solid black, just blackened in areas and the rest of the skin should appear loosened and browned. 

This should take about 10 minutes over an open flame or in a broiler, and 15-20 minutes if you roast them in a pan.

Steaming the Chiles (optional)
Once the skin is thoroughly charred, remove the chiles from the heat source and into a bowl. Cover the bowl loosely so that the hot roasted chiles create a steam. You can cover the bowl with aluminum foil, a lid, or a dish towel. Let the chiles steam for about 10 minutes. This helps to loosen the skins even more, but this step can be skipped if time is of the essence.

Preparing the Chiles 
When the chiles have cooled enough to where you can touch them, begin peeling of the skin. The skin should peel off easily, but if it is being stubborn, you can run it under warm water while peeling. This will remove some of the chiles flavorful oils and should only be done if the skin is very hard to remove.
If you are using the green chiles for rellenos (stuffed chiles) use a knife to cut a two-inch slit from the stem and down the side and use a spoon to carefully scoop out the seeds.

Roasted chiles tear very easily so go slowly and take your time. If you're using the chiles for anything else, you can cut the stem portion off and then slit the remaining chile down the entire side and open it up. Use a spoon to scrape the seeds off. Discard the seeds and stems and use the roasted green chile in your recipe.


More on How to Roast Chiles:
http://mexicanfood.about.com/od/techniques/ht/roastchiles.htm

You can roast chiles under medium heat on the broiler, on a very hot grill, over open fire or on the stove top. For the stove top method it is helpful to use a metal steaming basket placed over the open flame. Place the chiles into the basket and keep the flame medium.

Difficulty: Easy

Time Required: 10-20 minutes

Here's How:

1. Prepare chiles
   Clean chiles and dry thoroughly.
2. Prepare heat
   Get the heat source ready. Pre-heat broiler or grill, get fire ready or place the metal steamer over the open flame of a stove top

1. Char chiles
   Place cleaned chiles under or over the heat and turn every minute or so until the skin is blackened. The entire chile will not be completely black, but it should be charred about 60%. It should take 5 to 10 minutes.
2. Remove from heat
   Carefully remove the charred chiles from the heat source. Tongs are helpful for this.
3. Sweat chiles
   Carefully place the chiles into a plastic baggie and seal it. This will steam the chiles to continue the cooking and make the skins easier to remove. Let the chiles sweat for 10-15 minutes. Use additional baggies if roasting a large number of chiles.
4. Remove skins
   Remove the chiles from the bag one at a time. As you remove them, rub the chiles to remove the skins. Use a knife to remove any skin that sticks.
5. Use or store
   When the chiles are all peeled, you can use them immediately for best flavor, or freeze them for later use.

Tips:

1. If a baggie is not available, place the chiles in a plastic storage container with a lid. Or on a plate covered with plastic wrap or a towel.

1. 
   What You Need: Be careful of the heat. Always use tongs, pot holders or whatever you need to protect yourself.
2. Remember that the chile does not need to be completely black. As long as the chile is at least 60% charred, it should be fine.
3. Some people remove the skins while holding the chile under running water. The water can remove some of the flavorful oils in the chile so try to remove the skins with just your fingers.

• Fresh, whole chiles
• Heat source- broiler, grill, open fire, stove top with a metal steam basket
• Tongs
• Plastic baggie or plastic wrap