Mexican Made Easy

My manic Monday ended with a 3 mile run, chips & salsa, and an ice cold beer. :)  I think that Mexican will make any day a good one!  

Mexican Baked Cheese Sticks

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

• 1 egg
• 1 1/2 cups panko breadcrumbs
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
• 1 teaspoon salt
• Pinch freshly ground black pepper
• 1 (12-count) package mozzarella string cheese
• Nonstick cooking spray

Directions

Place the flour in a shallow bowl or plate. In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg and 1 tablespoon water. In another shallow bowl or plate, combine the panko, cilantro, salt and pepper.

Begin by coating the mozzarella sticks in batches of 2, first dredging in the flour mixture and shaking off excess. Then dip in the egg mixture, letting any excess drip off. Finish by dredging in the panko crumb mixture and shaking any off excess. Transfer the breaded cheese sticks to a sheet pan greased with nonstick cooking spray. Cover and freeze until frozen, about 4 hours and up to 2 days (this will lessen the oozing of the cheese).

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Lightly spray the cheese sticks with nonstick cooking spray. Bake until the cheese is soft and the sticks are lightly browned, about 12 minutes.

Stuffed Poblano Chiles (AKA Chiles Rellenos)

Sauce:

5 red plum tomatoes, cored and coarsley chopped ( I do canned)

1 garlic clove, minced

1/3 cup chopped whitre onion

1 tablespoon olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

Chiles:

1 1/2 cup Monterrey Jack Cheese

1 tbls dried oregano

6 poblano chiles, charred, seeded, and peeled (place on parchment paper, broil for approximately 10 mins, pull out and place directly into a ziplock bag.  Let sit for 10 mins.  Peel off the skin)

3 egg whites, at room temperature

1 egg yolk, at room temperature

All purpose flour, for dredging

Vegetable oil, for frying

Sauce: Put the tomatoes, garlic and onion in a blender. Blend until smooth. In a medium saute pan, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the sauce and simmer for 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.

Chile rellenos: Mix the cheese and oregano in a small bowl. Cut a slit through 1 side of the charred chiles and fill each chile with 1/4 cup of the cheese mixture. Close with toothpicks to hold the filling in place. In a medium bowl, using an electric hand mixer, beat the egg whites on high speed until soft peaks form. Add the egg yolk and continue to beat for about 1 minute.

In a large heavy-bottomed saucepan, pour in enough oil to fill the pan about a third of the way. Heat over medium heat until a deep-frying thermometer inserted in the oil reaches 375 degrees F. (If you don't have a thermometer a cube of bread will brown in about 3 minutes.) Dredge the filled chiles in flour until fully covered. Shake off any excess flour, then dip the chiles into the egg mixture, until well coated. Fry until golden brown and drain on paper towels.

Arrange the chiles on a serving platter, spoon the sauce on top and serve.

Check out more of these great recipes on Mexican Made Easy on the Food Network!  :)

ENJOY and HAPPY MONDAY....