Pastel de Tres Leches (Three-milk cake)

Yeah, nothing to write home on the face of it, innit? Until, one day, at a Mexican restaurant in Montclair NJ, my uncle made me try some. Holy. Mother. Of. All. That. Is. Sacred. And. Tastes. Good.

Take a sponge cake, and soak it with condensed milk and cream - bleurgh you say. I don't like condensed milk you say. That really doesn't sound very appetising you say. And then you eat two pieces. (True story, of my colleague who is addicted to all that is chocolate.)

When I came back to India and realised I would never be able to stroll out to a restaurant and eat it again, I was desperate, desperate to find a recipe that worked. Much research revealed that it is a Central-American dessert, and called so because the soaking syrup calls for three kinds of milk: condensed, evaporated and cream. The first time I tried it was for my gramma's birthday last year. I assumed evaporated milk was milk powder, and proceeded to toss some in. Bad idea. If you can't get evaporated milk, skip it! I also found that the damn cake wouldn't drink the syrup as promised, which just meant much more work. And then I left it to soak in the fridge, which meant it set instead of soaking and wasn't all gooey right through.

Enchiladas Verdes

There are two ways to do this, the cheating shortcut way and the good-'ol-start-start-from-scratch way. Comin up first, the shortcut.

Prep time: 10 min
Cooking time: 10 min
Serves: 4

• 8 corn tortillas
• 1 12oz bottle of tomatillo salsa (Trader Joe's for preference!). This should have tomatillos, onions, chiles and other minor ingredients.
• 1 handful fresh cilantro leaves
• 4 cloves of garlic, peeled
• 6 tbs sour cream

For the filling:

• 8 tbs shredded cheese (Trader Joe's Mexican blend for preference)
  OR
• Mixed vegetables (peppers, eggplant, mushrooms, onions, zucchini, etc) cut in long strips and grilled with olive oil and salt
  OR
• Shredded chicken
  OR
• Beans: refried, Cuban style black, Mexican pinto, whatever

Remember that filling goes inside the tortillas and make the filling accordingly.

Preheat the over to 350F.
Toss the cilantro into a blender. Follow with garlic, salsa and lastly, sour cream. Whizz until a coarse puree is formed. If too tart, add more sour cream and a little salt.
Pour some sauce to cover the bottom of a flat baking dish. Toast the tortillas lightly in a pan, with or without oil. Spread them out, spoon in the filling and fold over to form semi-circles. Lay the tortillas in the pan, overlapping. (Put the first one in so that the circular side is up against the wall of the dish and then lay the next one with its circular side over the first one's flat side.) Spoon the rest of the sauce over them so that they're are covered. Bake for 10 minutes. Serve hot!


The sauce from scratch:

• 8 corn tortillas
• 8 tomatillos
• 8 green onions
• 2 serrano chiles, seeded
• 4 cloves of garlic, peeled
• 6 tbs sour cream
• 1 handful fresh cilantro leaves
  

Whizz in blender and follow the recipe as above!

Yellow Rice or Arroz a la Mexicana

There are some seven billion versions of this, and here is MinCat's very own special hybrid!

1/2 medium onion, chopped fine
1 large clove garlic, crushed
1/4 medium pepper [the first time I used green and yellow and a lot more than 1/4th, so improvise], diced
1 cup rice
1 1/2 cups vegetable broth
1/2 cup water [or more depending on how soft you want it]
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
less than 1/4 tsp cumin powder
1 tbs olive oil
salt to taste


In large pot heat oil. Fry garlic and onions till onions are translucent. Add peppers and fry for a few minutes. Add rice and spices. Stir. Add water, broth and salt. Cover with lid and leave to cook on very low flame. Check on it periodically to see if it needs more water.

Suggestion: Serve with Beans and Plantains

Quesadillas with Cheese and Vegetables

Quick-fix lunch for all us in Ye Forn Lands.

• Shredded cheese [You can grate if you're enthu enough. Trader Joe's Mexican blend for preference. Cheddar, queso blanco and Monterrey Jack]
• Tortillas [Trader Joe's sundried tomato and basil flour in this case]
• Veggies of choice, chopped long and thin [Onions and peppers are a good staple]

Heat oil in frying pan. Toss veggies in with salt, let them cook about 5-10 min. I hate crunchiness so I let em cook. Lay out a tortilla. Sprinkle cheese across half. Lay out veggies as you wish. Sprinkle more cheese. Fold over. Toast in frying pan till cheese melts. About 1 min each side should do. Eat.

Goes well with orange juice and the Colbert Report.

Quesadillas and Tequila salsa

My first recipe here...

In keeping with the green onions and 10 minutes or less meme, here is my quesadilla recipe. Minkie, thou remeberest?

Need

Wholewheat tortillas, burrito size (I recommend Trader Joe's, but I usually do)
Shredded Cheese

Salsa, made according to following recipe,
2 tomatoes, chopped into small pieces
2 green onions
1 clove garlic
A small fistful of coriander/cilantro, chopped well
1 jalapeno chile, seeded and chopped, optional
2-3 tbsps really good olive oil
Dash of tequila
Salt

Combine all ingredients for salsa, ergo you have salsa!
(Would recommend making double the amount of salsa to go with chips and cooking-time margaritas)

Heat a tortilla on a skillet, medium high heat. Once it is warm all the way through put some cheese on one half. Use your discretion about cheese. Remember, quesadillas are generally folded over, so plan accordingly. Add as much or as little salsa as you like. Fold over, heat well on both sides, the cheese should melt.

Comen!