This easy chile relleno casserole is one I used to make years ago when we had vegetarian friends over for dinner and then when I was vegetarian myself. Now I'm what I call a part-time vegetarian, and this is perfect for my meat-free days. It's good for breakfast, lunch or dinner.
It's also what I call a pantry meal because you can make it from ingredients you likely have on hand any time of year. Sure, you can sometimes buy fresh chiles and roast them yourself--by all means, go right ahead! But you'll get great results with canned chiles. And, if you make this at a time of year when fresh, local tomatoes aren't available, you can even use good canned tomatoes.
I hadn't even thought of this dish in decades until I came across the little notebook I had written it in back when I was really young, possibly even a teenager. It was a real blast from the past for Mr. Delightful!
If you, too, have been married since before the earth cooled, tell me about a dish you made in the early years of your marriage. If not, then tell me about whatever kind of food constitutes a "blast from the past" for you.
If you, too, have been married since before the earth cooled, tell me about a dish you made in the early years of your marriage. If not, then tell me about whatever kind of food constitutes a "blast from the past" for you.
Chile Relleno Casserole
(Makes 4 to 6 servings)
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup chopped onions
2 (or 3) 4-ounce cans mild (or hot!) diced green chiles
4 corn tortillas, cut in strips
1/2 cup chopped onions
2 (or 3) 4-ounce cans mild (or hot!) diced green chiles
4 corn tortillas, cut in strips
6 ounces Monterey jack cheese, shredded
6 ounces cheddar cheese, shredded
1 1/2 cups fresh diced tomato or 1 14.5-ounce can fire roasted petite diced tomatoes, drained
8 large eggs
1/2 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
Paprika
Garnish ideas: avocado, guacamole, salsa, sour cream, cilantro, sliced ripe olives, thinly sliced radish
1 1/2 cups fresh diced tomato or 1 14.5-ounce can fire roasted petite diced tomatoes, drained
8 large eggs
1/2 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
Paprika
Garnish ideas: avocado, guacamole, salsa, sour cream, cilantro, sliced ripe olives, thinly sliced radish
1 Grease 8x8x2-inch baking dish. Heat oil in small skillet and saute chopped onions until soft, about 5 minutes. Place half the onions in the dish. Layer on half the chiles, half the tortilla strips, half of each cheese and half the diced tomatoes. Then layer on the remaining tortilla strips, onions, chiles, tomatoes and cheeses.
Note: Whether using fresh or drained canned tomatoes, give them a bit of a squeeze to get out some of the liquid just before adding them to the dish.
2 In medium bowl (I use a 1-quart glass measure), whisk together eggs, milk and seasonings. Pour over the layered ingredients. Sprinkle with paprika. Let stand at room temperature for about 20 minutes. Preheat oven* to 350F/180C/Gas4.
* During hot weather, I bake this in my Cuisinart convection toaster oven.
* During hot weather, I bake this in my Cuisinart convection toaster oven.
3 Bake, uncovered, for about 40 minutes. Let stand for 10 minutes before cutting. Garnish each serving.
Note: May be made ahead and refrigerated. If so, add 20 minutes to cooking time.
32 comments:
AT LAST!…after years of obscurity and notoriety I’ve finally vaulted into the ranks of fame and polite society, having just learned that I am one of three winners of the ThermoWorks TimerStick! Bless ya and thanks, Jeani for hosting these periodic giveaways. The odds were getting better each time I lost previously. Begone, dwarf hourglass sitting on top of my ‘fridge! And chile relleno will be my celebratory meal (eat your heart out, Taco Bell).
Sully, I love doing giveaways! I guess if a person enters enough of them, they'll eventually win one. Enjoy!
This sounds so delicious!! One of the hard things about moving to Australia is being unable to get mild green chilies or Monterey jack cheese. Hopefully one day, because I miss them terribly. :-)
I'm only what could be described as a very occasional vegetarian in that I often enjoy a meat-free meal but that's as far as it goes. My situation is a bit different than most. The recipes I enjoyed pre-Australia are strong memories and attachment to my American-ness and I haven't changed a thing. I probably should!
How come my casserole has never looked this beautiful and good?? A lovely vegetarian meal, Jean.
Thanks, ramblingtart! That would be a problem. Of course, this wouldn't work for the cheese, but do you have someone from the US who could mail canned mild green chiles to you? Or if you ask around you might find a grocer willing to special order. Or try Amazon?
No, Maureen, don't try to change food attachments! I'm very attached to my food memories, and even if I were full-on vegetarian I'd have had a hard time turning down some of my mother's meals! And I better never develop an allergy to tea because I've been drinking it since I was two and it's a huge part of me.
Angie, thank you, but your food is always gorgeous!
I am definitely going to add this recipe to my breakfast/brunch casserole rotation! My husband has a notebook of recipes he transcribed from his mom's collection before we were marries (35 years ago). Lately we have prepared a few of those gems and were delighted that they have stood the test of time!
Mocadeaux, thank you. I love hearing about the carrying on of recipes in a family! I always think of my mother and grandmothers in the kitchen.
That looks so delicious, and perfect for a fall day.
Thank you, Linda! Hope you're having a beautiful autumn!
There are few dishes from the my long past that I would want to eat again! I didn't really grow up eating the kind of things I like to eat now. One exception though that I was thinking about the other day is something called boiled fruit cake, you don't boil the cake, you cook the fruit first, that was delicious! xx
Amy, yes, that's a good cake! I've been in a fruitcake mood lately!
I'm a huge fan of chile rellenos, when someone else cooks them for me! This is the perfect dish for me to make at home, thanks Jean!
Sue, exactly! If anything has to be deep-fried, let someone else make it for me!
What an interesting dish. It's a bit like our savoury bread pudding, but a bit lighter and possibly a bit tastier ;-)
I've just made jam tarts - possibly for the first time since I was a child.
Choclette, good to hear from you! Yes, it's like a savoury bread pudding that I can serve to all my gluten-free friends. Did you see the savoury bread pudding I posted in September 2014? I think I called it Overnight Breakfast Casserole.
Aah ... jam tarts! Funny, I was just thinking about them this morning. I'm getting ready to post (in a couple weeks) a biscuit that's similar, and in that post I mentioned jam tarts.
Ok, you got me on this one. It's loaded with green chillies and cheese—count me in!!! Actually, chile rellenos are something my family made when I was a kid. From what I remember, we wrapped a whole green chili with a mixture of Monterey Jack and cheddar in a wonton wrapper and lightly fried it. Then covered it in green sauce and more cheese. Yum. I love the idea of a casserole. So easy to clean up. I'll have to double this recipe in order to make leftovers!
I love this recipe Jean. Pinning to try soon. And yup, raising hand, I've ben married for a long time. Back in the 70's it was a lot of cream of soup casseroles. Chicken and pasta were usually involved, a pork chop here and there, and man were they good. :)
Thanks, Richard! Yep, if I can make a casserole instead of fiddly individual things, I'm all for it! And about those leftovers -- it does reheat beautifully.
Lean Ann, I remember those canned "cream of" soups! A friend of mine still makes one of them from back in the 70s, and I have to admit it's really tasty.
What a great idea for dinner! It looks like the perfect comfort food. I already have everything I need to make this too.
Thanks, Ashley. And that's one of the things I like about it -- one nearly always has on hand everything needed to make it!
I had planned green enchiladas for dinner, but this like a better (faster) way to go will all the same ingredients. GREG
Oh, yes, Greg, *much* faster! Let me know how it turns out!
Your relleno looks restaurant-caliber delicious! I'll agree with Lea Ann, I loved to make chicken and rice with cream of mushroom when I first married; it was a staple of my mom's repertoire growing up, and my children enjoy it as well!
PP, thank you so much! My dad did not like casseroles, so I rarely had them growing up. But I love them. And my husband does too.
Looks delicious. Thank you from Tasty Tuesday Creative K Kids. I pinned your post at Pinterest board.
Thanks, Maria! And thanks for the Pin; much appreciated.
Now THIS is total comfort food for me! Unfortunately, it doesn't have boundaries, so it tends to be one of those dangerous foods. LOL Looks absolutely delicious, Jean. When I was first married, the 'dish' I served most often consisted of some sort of macaroni, hamburger, tomatoes, peppers, onions, garlic, and black olives. I remember my young husband asking if I knew how to make anything that didn't contain tomatoes. :-) To this day, many jars of home-canned tomatoes on the shelves give me a strange feeling of security.
Thanks, Judy! Too funny about young Mr C! I have that same secure feeling from lots of canned tomatoes on the shelves. But in my case, they are not home-canned. I haven't grown any, or many, tomatoes these last few years. So I rely on Muir Glen organic.
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