I was inspired to make chilaquiles for Easter brunch after learning about them at FnB, a fabulous new restaurant in downtown Scottsdale, (click here for link) where Chef Charleen Badman traditionally makes them on weekends for the late-night crowd.

Chilaquiles are a traditional Mexican dish. Typically, corn tortillas cut in quarters and lightly fried are the basis of the dish. Red or green sauce is poured over the tortilla triangles, called “totopos.” Scrambled eggs and/or shredded chicken are sometimes added. The dish is topped with queso fresco and crèma.  Usually, chilaquiles are eaten at breakfast or brunch. This makes them a popular recipe to use leftover or stale tortillas.

I’ll be using two of my favorite “convenience” items – 3 garlic cubes (purchased at Trader Joe’s) and 4 chipotle cubes(homemade using empty garlic cube trays – see this previous post on how to do so).  You can too, or just follow the recipe for the “traditional” method of peeling and mincing.

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Today I am sharing another southwestern inspired recipe from my friend and mentor, Barbara Fenzl of Les Gourmettes Cooking School. I helped Barb teach a couples’ class earlier in the week and this was just one of the six delectable dishes the class made. If you’re looking for something special for you and your sweetheart on Valentine’s Day, these quesadillas will fit the bill. Enjoy them before you head out to a romantic dinner, or make them together and then sit down, relax, and enjoy with champagne. Avec amour (with love) xoxo

Here is a picture of the roasting of the two peppers used. A poblano has a much thinner skin than a bell pepper, so watch it more closely and turn it more often, it will roast more than twice as fast of the bell. These two peppers began roasting at the exact same time, but as you can clearly see, the poblano is ready to be covered with plastic wrap to steam and the bell still as a ways to go.

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The best thing about this breakfast or brunch dish is that it can be prepped the night before. In the morning, just fill the cups and pop in the oven while you leisurely make the coffee and read the newspaper. Plus it may easily be doubled or tripled. Add a layer of cooked chorizo, mix in roasted poblano or red bell peppers, green onions, or whatever floats your boat!

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Say the word “casserole” and you will generally get one of two typical responses… a huge smile filled with excitment from the person who knows that something hearty, filling, and tasty is about to come their way… or a turned up nose and rolling eyes from the person who envisions a sticky, gooey, mess of food about to be forced upon them.

Because of that second reaction, I was tempted to call this dish a “Bake” instead of a “Casserole”.  I even searched through online thesauruses looking for an alternate name, but call it what you may, it’s a casserole.  And exactly what is that?  A casserole is an ovenproof dish sometimes with a tightly fitting lid, made from earthenware, glass or metal. The word ‘casserole’ also refers to the mixture of food itself which is prepared in the oven in this dish. The word is derived from the Old French word casse and the Latin word cattia meaning a “frying pan or saucepan.” As often happens, the name of the cooking utensil was used for the name of the dish.

So, if the word if derived from a French word, then how does it end up sounding so pedestrian? Maybe it is because, when some of us were growing up, the contents in the casserole dish were often called “surprise”, as in Turkey Surprise, or even worse, Spam Surprise; almost a guarantee that this would not be a happy or delicious “surprise” at all!

As with many casseroles, this one is made using leftover meat, pork from Christmas dinner, to be exact. Feel free to use another leftover meat, such as chicken or beef in place of the pork. Additional vegetables can be used as well; bell peppers, green beans, kidney beans, or whatever you have on hand or dream up. I used a mix of three different “green” salsas to get my 3 cups needed, do the same if you have a mix of jars in your refrigerator.  I hope the only surprise you receive upon making and tasting this casserole, is that it makes your taste-buds sing!
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Another December birthday for another important person in my life. Today is Cyndi Greening’s birthday. Cyndi is a filmmaker, teacher, writer, webmast, and my dear friend!  I first met here when we worked on a fundraiser for Phoenix Children’s Hospital called the Beach Ball, some Without Cydni, there would be no Les Petites Gourmettes blog! I’d had my website for about 10 years and was itching to turn it into a blog. Thanks to Cydni, that became a reality and 125 posts and nearly 4 months later, here we are. Cyndi, thank you, and Happy Birthday! xoxo

Love this picture of Cyndi as a kid - she's in the kitchen! So cute!

Way back on September 16, Cyndi made a comment about a mango and chicken recipe she had gotten from me years ago. I’m not quite sure if this is the recipe she was talking about, but it’s a great appetizer and can be either passed or be used as part of a buffet at a Christmas or New Year’s Party. It is also perfect alongside a salad for a light lunch or dinner. So in honor of Cydni, I shall share it here today.

For the chicken meat, I purchase a rotisserie chicken and use the breast meat for this and the dark meat for something else, maybe chicken salad sandwiches or stir-fry.
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This evening I was helping set up for the Key To The Cure event that is tomorrow morning. My friend and neighbor, Ronnie, and I rode together and afterward stopped for a little something to eat and drink on the way home.  We went to Blanco, a fun “taco & tequila” restaurant, here in Scottsdale, which is another in the wonderful line of Fox Restaurant Concepts, YUM!

I brought home a “doggie-bag” with a couple wedges of leftover cheese crisp and made it into a dinner for Dave by topping with two fried eggs.  I love cheese crisps, as you can see here, they are so easy and versatile. Honestly, they can be breakfast, lunch, snack, or even dinner!  And they can be as simple as a tortilla topped with good old cheddar cheese or dressed up as this one is with fun Mexican and Spanish cheeses and a variety of toppings.  All these cheeses are white and I think it makes for a prettier and more interesting crisp!
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