Recipe(tried): Charred Chili Relleno with Green Rice, and Guacamole Salad

DH and I were hungry for something with Mexican flavors, but something new that we had never had. The weather forecast for Western Massachusetts was for mixed precipitation so I decided to make these recipes before the lousy weather set in and, while I could still grill outside. I used Trader Joe's fire roasted corn that I had in the freezer rather than the corn called for in the recipe. I can't find any Mexican cheese here but have found that I like the flavor of Manchego in such recipes. I also decided to grill a boneless skinless chicken breast while I roasted the peppers on the grill, then added it to the corn mixture.

CHARRED CHILI RELLENO WITH GREEN RICE
Recipe courtesy Rachael Ray
Yield: 4 servings

4 cups chicken or vegetable stock, divided
1 bay leaf
2 cups white rice
4 large poblano peppers
6 ears corn on the cob or 3 cups frozen corn kernels
3 tablespoons corn, peanut or vegetable oil, divided
1 red onion, chopped
1 jalapeno, seeded and chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 (15-ounce) can fire roasted diced tomatoes, drained well
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin, 1/2 palm full
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano, eyeball it in your palm
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup fresh cilantro leaves
1/2 pound spinach leaves, deveined and coarsely chopped
4 scallions, coarsely chopped
2 limes, zested, juiced
1 cup shredded Chihuahua cheese, Asadero or Monterey Jack
1 boneless, skinless chicken breast (Actually half of a whole breast - my addition, not in the original recipe) - optional

Preheat broiler or grill pan to high.

Heat about 3 1/2 cups stock in a sauce pot with a bay leaf to boiling. Add rice, cover pot reduce heat to low and simmer 18 minutes until tender.

Rinse the chicken breast and pat dry with a paper towel. Salt and pepper both sides of the chicken, then rub with olive oil. Grill for 6 minutes per side on medium high heat. Let cool, then cut, or shred into bite sized pieces. Place poblanos under broiler or on hot grill and char evenly all over, 15 minutes. (Usually, a recipe says to put the peppers in a plastic bag for 10 minutes, then peel them. Even though the recipe doesn't say to do so, I did.)

While peppers and rice are working, scrape the corn off the cobs or defrost frozen corn and dry by spreading out on clean kitchen towel. Heat 2 tablespoons light oil in a skillet over high heat. When the oil smokes or ripples add corn, onion, jalapenos and toss until the vegetables char at edges and onions are tender, 4 to 5 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-high and add in garlic, (and chicken, if using), fire roasted tomatoes and season with cumin, oregano, salt and pepper. Cook another minute or 2 then turn pan off.

Place the cilantro, spinach, scallions, lime zest, half a cup of stock and a tablespoon of oil in food processor and process into coarse green paste. Stir into your rice pot in the last 3 to 4 minutes of its cooking time.

Sprinkle the lime juice over the corn mixture.

Split the charred peppers open but not in half with small sharp knife then scoop out the seeds with a small spoon. Place peppers in a shallow baking dish and stuff each split pepper with lots of the corn mix, top each pepper with 1/4 cup cheese and place back under broiler to melt and char the cheese. (I put the peppers in a 350 degree F oven for about 20 minutes, topping with the cheese the last 5 minutes.)

Serve peppers on beds of green rice.

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GUACAMOLE SALAD
Copyright 2006, Barefoot Contessa at Home
Yield: 6 servings

1 pint grape tomatoes, halved
1 yellow bell pepper, seeded and 1/2-inch diced
1 (15-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 cup small diced red onion
2 tablespoons minced jalapeno peppers, seeded (2 peppers)
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated lime zest
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lime juice (2 limes)
1/4 cup good olive oil
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
2 ripe Hass avocados, seeded, peeled, and 1/2-inch diced

Place the tomatoes, yellow pepper, black beans, red onion, jalapeno peppers, and lime zest in a large bowl. Whisk together the lime juice, olive oil, salt, black pepper, garlic, and cayenne pepper and pour over the vegetables. Toss well.

Just before you're ready to serve the salad, fold the avocados into the salad. Check the seasoning and serve at room temperature.