gratitudes & recipes of the week: green chile chicken enchiladas and potato latkes

I am so grateful to everyone who commented and sent emails and called this week offering love, support, and encouragement, in response to my previous post — as we three struggle with our nursing, calming, napping, etc.

Thank you!

On Saturday we continued the “I surrender” plan of nursing from boob to boob till he just can’t nurse no more. And we were rewarded with a couple of 20 minute snoozes and then a three hour nap at 5:30 p.m. and I napped too and it was good.

On Monday, Scott will go back to work. I’m trying not to think about it.

And now, back to our regularly scheduled, previously written on a different day (after more sleep) post.

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In honor of Scott’s culture and mine, two of our favorite family recipes.

The enchilada recipe is New Mexican. I love New Mexico. It’s one of the reasons I wanted to date Scott — that his online dating profile said he was from there (yes, we met THAT way, sort-of; I’ll tell you that story later).

When he first made them for me, I was highly skeptical. Cream of mushroom soup? In enchiladas? Really???

Yes, yes, YES!

Try it, you’ll like it:

Green Chile Chicken Enchiladas

In a medium-sized pot, heat up two cans of cream of mushroom soup (original recipe calls for Campbell’s but personally, I like Amy’s Organic) with 4, 8, or 12 ounces chopped roasted Hatch green chile to taste (depends on how hot or mild chiles are). Unless you live in New Mexico, and then you know what to do and how to make this anyway… You can buy New Mexico green chile canned at the supermarket, roast your own fresh if your store carries them, substitute Anaheims for Hatch if needed, or order the real thing online, dried or frozen. (If you get dried, soak them before chopping.)

Add one yellow onion — chopped and sautéed, and around two cups chopped cooked chicken (or however much looks good). This recipe also works well with turkey and is great for Thanksgiving leftovers, or if your friend Louis brings you six pounds of sliced fresh-roasted turkey as a welcome-baby gift. Thanks Louis!

In a large rectangular Pyrex dish (9×13??), layer like a lasagna:

corn tortillas (dipped in soup mixture to wet/soften)
soup and chicken mixture
grated cheese (cheddar, jack, asadero, whatever — usually about one to 1-1/2 lbs total)

…then tortillas, mixture, cheese, etc. Bake 30-40 minutes at 350 degrees. Let cool about 10 minutes. Serve with sour cream (or yogurt — we like this), avocado, tomatoes, green salad, whatever you like.

Scott made this for lunch for us on Thursday. SUuuuper YUmmmy.

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It’s also Hannukah right now, for those of you following along at home. Normally, at this time of year, I invite nearly everyone I know over for a big latke party and fry up about 30 pounds of potatoes to feed the masses. You can smell the hot oil for at least a block in either direction (and the smell lingers in our house for about a week). But this year, baby has preempted the festivities. Thursday night, our neighbor dropped by with a few of their latkes for us. And my dad says he may make them when he and mom come back to visit in a few weeks.

In lieu of feeding them to you myself, here is the recipe:

Potato Latkes

4 large russet potatoes
1 large yellow onion
1-1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup matzo meal
4 large eggs
1 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper
oil for frying

Grate the potatoes and onion (Cuisinart is best for this, although some say skinned knuckles add a certain flavor). Mix in eggs, matzo meal, baking powder, salt and pepper.

Scoop mixture into palm-size patties, press flat to squeeze out excess water. Drop into hot oil, about 1-1/2 inches deep in skillet (18/10 stainless works better than cast iron in my opinion). Fry to a pleasing orange-brown color, turning once. Keep warm on paper towels in a foil roasting pan in oven on lowest setting. Serve with applesauce and sour cream.

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I’ve mentioned the roasted applesauce in the blog once or twice, and the bags of front and backyard apples we have lying around from the batches we were going to make, until baby came early.

In a fit of daddy-style nesting, Scott cooked up a batch with our Granny Smiths this week, just in time for the arrival of the gift latkes from our neighbor. Deeeelishhhh.

As I’ve noted before, it’s really Michael Chiarello’s recipe with infinitesimal modifications.

Honey Roasted Apple Sauce

24 apples, Gravenstein, McIntosh, or Granny Smith
4 tablespoons butter
4 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup honey

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

Peel the apples with a vegetable peeler, remove the core and cut into 1-inch chunks, place in a large bowl. Heat a large skillet, dutch oven or roasting pan over medium-high heat. Add the butter. When the butter begins to brown, add lemon juice, then add the apples. Cook until the apples just begin to color, about 4 minutes. Stir in the honey. Cover pan and roast the apples in the oven until soft and lightly caramelized, about 30 minutes or longer as desired — taste for consistency and flavor. Fork mash for a chunky version or puree in food processor if needed for a smoother sauce.

Serve warm, room temperature, or cold.