Recipe(tried): Rellenos for Michelle.

RELLENOS

Michelle: the Rellenos that you are mentioning are the Rellenos de Papa. Relleno in Spanish means stuffed. You can do the rellenos with boiled potatoes, with boiled and mashed breadfruit, with boiled and mashed cassava, or with a mixture of boiled plantains and yaut a o ame (boiled root vegetables available in Spanish markets). The rellenos can be prepared in two sizes; the small balls are excellent as appetizers. The big ones, with salad and a vegetable or with rice and beans are enough for a heavy lunch or dinner. They are somewhat complicated, as all the Puertorican cooking is, but after you get acquainted with the procedure they are quite easy, and are worth the effort. Like the Croquetas in Spain, they freeze well and can be fried and served later. Keep the Recipe for next week end and surprise your mother with some Rellenos.

Buen Provecho!

PICADILLO FOR THE FILLING:

1 pound ground beef
1/2 pound ground pork
1 cup chopped ham
1 chopped red pepper
1 chopped tomato
1 chopped onion
6 stuffed green olives, chopped
2 tb drained cocktail capers
2 garlic cloves, crushed in the mortar
1 bay leaf
1/2 cup chopped cilantrillo (Chinese parsley)
2 tb olive oil
1/2 cup or less tomato sauce
1 tsp Bijol (ground Annato)
Salt and Pepper to taste
1 tb brown sugar
1/2 cup white wine or sherry

Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan. Add the chopped ham, red pepper, tomato, onion, stuffed green olives, capers, crushed garlic, bay leaf and cilantrillo. Saut for a few minutes. Add the ground beef, pork and chopped ham, the tomato sauce, Bijol, brown sugar, salt and pepper and the wine or sherry. Cook, uncovered at medium low until cooked, about 20 minutes, and most of the liquid is reduced. This typical Picadillo can be used for many dishes, or by itself, with white rice and fried green plantains. To use in the Rellenos, it must not have much Sauce.

RELLENO DE PAPAS

1 1/2 pounds potatoes, boiled with salt and mashed
Additional salt to taste
4 tb all purpose flour
2 cups Picadillo (Recipe above)
1 egg beaten

Add salt and pepper to taste, beaten egg and flour, mix thoroughly. Flour a work surface and divide the mixture into balls, which might be of about one tb or bigger, according to the preferred size. With the back of a spoon, make an indentation in the ball, and add 1 tb Picadillo. Cover the indentation with more potato mixture, if necessary. Roll this mixture lightly in more flour, without loosing the form of a ball. Fry in at least 1 inch of oil until golden. The Rellenos might be kept warm in a 200 F oven for up to 30 minutes, but are best eaten immediately.