Enchilada Lasagna

For approx. 6 -- 13-by-9 baking dish or two smaller dishes.

Sauce:
2 dried chipotles, stems and seeds removed, diced (or two fresh jalapenos)
3 large cloves garlic, minced
2½ tsp chili powder
1½ tsp cumin seeds, toasted and ground (or use ground cumin)
2 cups chicken broth
3 cups tomato sauce
pinch salt
¼ tsp ground black pepper

Filling:
1 pound boneless chicken, cubed
1 large onion, diced
pinch salt
1 larg clove garlic, minced
½ tsp dried oregano

12-18 corn tortillas
3 cups Monterey Jack, shredded

Combine sauce ingredients, bring to a boil, simmer 15 minutes.

Preheat oven to 350°F

Saute chicken in skillet until cooked through. Remove. Saute onions with salt on medium-low heat for 5 minutes. Add garlic, oregano, cook 3 minutes more. Mix in chicken and remove from heat.

Grease glass baking dish(es) and assemble:
1 cup sauce spread over bottom
Dip 4 tortillas into remaining sauce and form a layer -- cut into halves as necessary.
Half the chicken mixture.
1 cup cheese.
Repeat tortillas, chicken, cheese.
Repeat tortillas.
Pour remaining sauce over, and top with cheese.

Cover with foil and bake 30 minutes covered with foil; uncover and bake 10 more minutes.

(From Alton Brown's Good Eats. GEFP summary; GEFP transcript)

Papaya, Red Pepper, and Pecan Salad with Chicken

Fruity, but the lime in the dressing cuts the sweetness.

For 4.

Salad:
8 cups torn romaine leaves; about 2 heads
2 ripe papaya, peeled, seeded, and cubed
1 large or 2 small red bell pepper, diced into ¼-inch pieces
4 green onions, sliced finely
¾ lb boneless, skinnless chicken, cooked and cubed
¼ cup chopped pecans, toasted

Dressing:
3 cloves garlic, pressed
¼ cup fresh lime juice (1 lime)
2 tbsp chicken broth
1 tbsp honey
1 tsp Dijon mustard
3 tbsp olive oil
salt and pepper

Mix salad; whisk dressing ingredients together; dress.

Papayas were fiendishly expensive ($2.99 each!) and poor-looking today; I substituted with the remains of a bag of Trader Joe’s frozen mango and half a can of pineapple. It worked out very nicely.

I also substituted leftover turkey for the chicken, which also worked out, making this a good post-Thanksgiving or post-Christmas recipe.

I’m not convinced the broth adds anything much to the dressing; I wouldn’t bother unless you happen to have some handy.

(From the American Institute for Cancer Research’s The New American Plate Cookbook.)

Green Chile Chicken Enchilada Casserole

I got this one from a New Mexico green chile promotion at Nob Hill Foods. Careful, though: it takes a lot more green chiles than you might expect to yield two cups. My three medium chiles, once roasted and peeled, yielded about half a cup. Improvise by adding jalapeños if, like me, you fall short.

Makes 6–8 portions.

• 3 chicken breasts, cooked and shredded (I used 2 bone-in rib-in breast portions, poached, which was plenty)
• 2 cups roasted, peeled, and chopped New Mexico green chile (about 12; could probably substitute 4 green bell peppers and add jalapeños to up the heat)
• 1 26 fl.oz. can cream of chicken or cream of mushroom soup
• 26 fl. oz. milk (measure using the empty can)
• 2 cups grated cheese
• 2 medium onions, chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, chopped
• green jalapeños to taste, chopped (seeds in or out to taste; I used 4, seeds out, but would leave them in next time)
• ground pepper to taste
• 10–15 corn tortillas, torn into quarters

Fry onions, garlic, jalapenos in a large saucepan until soft. Add soup, milk, chile, pepper, bring to a simmer, and remove from heat.

Layer sauce, tortillas, cheese in casserole dish. (I found this made too much for my 13"x9" pan and had to overflow into a second dish; no big problem, can freeze the excess uncooked.)

Bake at 350°F, 20 minutes covered followed by 20 minutes uncovered.

(From a New Mexico Department of Agriculture promotion; more recipes, although not this one, at their website.)

Asian Chicken Salad

2 servings

1 boneless, skinless chicken breast
½ cup rice
4 tsp soy sauce
2 tbsp crunchy peanut butter
1 tsp roasted sesame oil
2 small garlic cloves (or 1 large), peeled and crushed
a good dash Tabasco
¼ tsp sugar
1 tbsp rice or other mild vinegar (cider vinegar works well)
1 cucumber
2 handfuls salad leaves (baby spinach works well)

Season chicken and pan-fry whole in a little oil.
Cook rice by absorption method with 1 cup water.
Mix soy sauce, peanut butter, sesame oil, garlic, Tabasco, sugar, vinegar. Add 4 tsp hot water 1 tsp at a time until smooth and creamy.
Peel, deseed, and dice cucumber.
Dice chicken. Combine with cucumber and dressing.
Serve on rice and salad leaves.

(Heavily adapted from Mark Bittman’s The Minimalist Cooks at Home; original weblog post.)

Golden Jubilee Chicken

Nigella Lawson's Golden Jubilee reworking of Coronation Chicken, which I finally got around to trying. Better late than never. For 2.

1 mango, cut into 1cm cubes
1 spring onion, finely chopped
1–2 red chilis, deseeded and finely chopped
juice of 1–2 limes
1 cold cooked chicken breast, cut into chunks
1 little gem lettuce, shredded
1 handful fresh coriander, chopped
1 tsp groundnut oil
few drops toasted sesame oil

Mix mango, spring onion, chilli, lime juice.
Add chicken, lettuce, coriander, and toss.
Add oils, toss.

I substituted ¼ chopped red onion for the spring onion and 1 tsp olive oil for the groundnut oil: still good. However, it does need a lightweight lettuce like little gem or iceberg; Romaine is too dark and robust.

(From Nigela Lawson’s Forever Summer; also online as Golden Jubilee Turkey.)