It’s Chile Season!!  Erin Lobato, you know what I’m talking about!!

“We ship green chile.” – The UPS Store

This week I made a chile-relleno style casserole using Anaheim peppers from the garden.  I was craving tacos at the time so we ate the casserole in corn tortillas.  To add a little tang, I drizzled crema on top.  For garnish I used sliced radishes and garden salsa.

How fresh is this!?  I love the colors on my countertop.. the more colorful the food, the better the food is!!

This is one of my favorite things to do… to forage for ingredients and create new meals in the kitchen.  I only used what I could find in my garden and in the fridge including:  Roasted Chile, tomatoes, jalapenos, radishes and farm eggs.

To begin I laid down a thick layer of chilies.  Then I covered it with about 1 1/2 cups of cheese.

 

Next, I put down a layer of cooked ground beef, the remaining cheese, and then poured an egg mixture over the top.  In the oven it went!

This had to bake for about 45 minutes, so during the baking period I whipped up crema, salsa, and sliced the radishes.

This is really basic salsa.

I diced roughly 1 1/2 cups of garden tomatoes, half an onion and one jalapeno; two jalapenos wouldn’t work.  These guys were mega hot.. and I learned the hard way by biting into one thinking I had pulled them from my “mild” plant.  I was WRONG!

**chugs Pepto-Bismal**

Then I added about a half tablespoon of lemon juice and a couple dashes of cumin and salt.  That’s it.  Super simple and delicious.

I put it in the fridge to chill while the casserole baked. 🙂

Next I sliced radishes for garnish.

For the Crema:  A “Dollop of Daisy” AKA sour cream, a dollop of mayonnaise, and a splash of lemon juice.  Whisked together to create a tangy sauce.

Also stuck in the fridge to chill.

Here comes the quiche looking casserole.

Assembled and ready to eat.

It was so awesome that I even had it for breakfast the next day.  🙂 Enjoy!!

Beef & Green Chile Tacos with Crema and Garden Salsa

• 1 lb.  browned Ground Beef
• 2-7 ounce cans whole Green Chilies (or 10 freshly roasted)
• 2 1/2 cups Shredded Cheese (I used cheddar and jack)
• 4 Eggs
• 1 1/2 cups of Milk
• 3 tablespoons Flour
• 1 teaspoon Baking Powder
• 1/2 teaspoon Salt
• 1/4 teaspoon Pepper
• Salsa for garnish
• Sliced Radishes for garnish
• Warmed Corn Tortillas (optional)

Recipe adaptated from:  https://bellyfull.net/2016/04/11/chili-relleno-casserole/

Preheat the oven to 350* F and grease a large casserole dish.  Lay down one layer (a whole can) of drained green chilies.  Top it with one cup of shredded cheese.  Repeat this step using the second can of chilies and another cup of cheese.  Then lay down the whole pound of browned ground beef.  Top with the remaining 1/2 cup of cheese.

In a medium bowl whisk together eggs, milk, flour, baking powder, salt and pepper.  Evenly pour this mixture over the ground beef.  Bake for 45-50 minutes, or until it’s no longer jiggly in the center.  Let it cool for 5 minutes before serving.  Serves 8.

Eat it by itself or with warmed corn tortillas, salsa and crema.