After being sick last weekend and only being allowed saltines and warm 7up (which I’m still mad at Mr. E about) I was in the mood for two things, cooking and Mexican food. Wanting to satisfy both of these desires but trying to keep with our recent agreement of incorporating more meatless meals into our diet, I decided to make Pasilla Chiles Stuffed with Quinoa and served with a Ranchero Sauce. 

This came out so incredibly good! In fact, Mr. E said that if I don’t make this again, he’ll have to fight me.  (That means he really liked it.) 🙂 It’s also very easy, however the chopping does take a bit of time.

First I started with the Ranchero Sauce.  Which I should mention I have no idea if this is close to authentic or if that is even the right name for it, but when I first thought of this recipe that is what popped in my mind and its stuck lol.

I chopped the onions, red and green pepper, fresh tomato and garlic…. okay I have a confession… I was too lazy to go to the store (again) because I realized that I didn’t have any green peppers.  I almost trashed the whole idea and went to read a book. BUT then I remembered that Pasillas are typically very mild peppers and taste almost similar to bell peppers.  Soooo,  since I knew I would need to make a cut in the Pasillas anyway to stuff them, I just cut the hole bigger and used that excess to replace the bell pepper.  Yea!

I lightly sautéd the onions, peppers, tomatoes, garlic and seasonings. Remembering to breathe the fantastically wonderful smell of cooking garlic! I added the canned tomatoes with chilies and water; simmered for a bit and set aside.

I prepared the quinoa according to package directions.  I made the full recipe even though I only needed half.  I turned the other half into lime and cilantro quinoa that makes a tasty substitute for ground beef soft tacos (it really does! I’ll prove it by adding the taco recipe soon) or added to a taco salad.

I chopped and sautéd the onion, red pepper, garlic and banana pepper. Then I added this mixture, plus the spices and cilantro, to the cooked quinoa. 

Stuffed the Pasillas, then covered and baked.

Throw some cheese on at the last minutes and….Taa daa!  Yumminess on a plate!

Pasillas Stuffed with Quinoa:

2 Pasilla Chilies (Poblanos would also work)

1 1/2 cups cooked quinoa (approximately)

1 large garlic clove minced

1/2 red bell pepper, chopped

1/4 of a small onion, chopped

1-2 tablespoons of chopped banana pepper

1/8 teaspoon chili powder (I used chipotle, but any kind would be good)

1/4 teaspoon paprika

1 teaspoon chopped cilantro

Cheddar cheese

Queso Fresco cheese

Olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste

In a sauté pan over medium heat, add a little oil, the onion and red pepper. Sprinkle a bit of salt and pepper on top.  Cook for about 5 minutes until the onion begins to brown.  Add garlic and banana peppers and cook for about 30 seconds, just until fragrent. Set aside. 

Prepare quinoa according to package directions.  Once cooked, measure out about 1 1/2 cups, this should be about half of the cooked quinoa (assuming that the package directions  use 1 cup uncooked quinoa).  Add the above mixture, cilantro, paprika and chili powder to the quinoa. Mix and set aside

Wash the pasilla chiles and cut an opening from the stem to the end.  Remove the seeds and core.  Stuff the chiles with the quinoa mixture.  Cover with foil and bake at 375° for approximately 20 minutes.  Uncover, sprinkle cheese on top if desired, and bake for another 10 minutes or until the chile pepper is soft and cooked through.  Pour Ranchero Sauce (recipe below) over the peppers and enjoy!

Ranchero Sauce:

1/2 small onion, chopped

1/2 red pepper, chopped

1/2 green bell pepper, chopped

1/2 can diced tomatoes with green chiles, reserve liquid

1/2 cup to 1 cup water

1/2 teaspoon cumin

1 large garlic

1 fresh tomato, diced

Olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

 In a sauté pan over medium heat, add onion and peppers and cook a few minutes until the onion starts to become translucent.  Add fresh tomatoes and salt and pepper.  Cook for about 2 minutes, add garlic and cumin and cook 30 seconds just untill fragrant.  Added 1/2 of the canned tomato with green chilies, all of the juice and 1/2 cup water.  May need to add more water if sauce is thicker than what you would like.  Simmer 10 to 15 minutes just to let all of the flavors meld and the onion and pepper to cook thoroughly.