On his resume, my son lists “pepper cultivator” as one of his hobbies – the picture below tells it all. Of course that means we love making any dish with peppers. One of the family favorites is traditional chiles rellenos, but that involves a lot of roasting, stuffing and frying, plus it’s sort of messy and not really a practical dish to serve to a lot of people. Here is the perfect solution; my easy, go to recipe – Chilies Rellenos For a Crowd. When we have a garden full of peppers and a bit of of free time, I roast my own peppers, but canned whole roasted peppers will work extremely well in this fabulous casserole.
At our house, game nights - football, basketball, hockey – you name it - can turn into an impromptu party with little warning, and suddenly TVs are all tuned to sports channels and hungry people are looking at me. I know what you’re thinking – this gal needs to read the sports page. That’s probably true, but I’ve got a few tricks up my sleeve, and Taco Night can always make a party happen, or at least save one that’s already started.
I do love tacos, but sometimes get tired of the same old rice and beans as a side dish, but Chilies Rellenos For a Crowd is the perfect casserole to shake things up and makes everyone happy. If you keep a few cans of whole roasted chilies around, and a bit of cheese in the fridge, you can have this ready to bake in under ten minutes. It can be made as spicy as you like and if you want something more substantial adding layers of cooked ground beef or sausage can turn it into a meal. (We call it the Mexican Quiche) It can work as a great side dish for a Mexican inspired meal – even brunch. Chilies Rellenos For a Crowd is one dish you’re going to want to add to your recipe collection. Plus you can put this to use right away, basketball tonight, and hockey tomorrow. Your crowd will love it! Put out taco fixings and this yummy casserole and you’ve got it made. Don’t forget corn tortillas to serve with the Chilis Rellenos for some crunch, then sit back and wait for the compliments. Enjoy!
Ingredients
3 10 oz cans whole roasted chilies (You can use 8 to 10 fresh poblano chilies roasted, peeled, seeded and cut in half.)
1½ cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese
1 cup shredded sharp cheddar (Feel free to play around with different cheeses like queso fresco etc.)
5 eggs
2 cups milk – (I used a mix of 2% and ½&½.)
3 Tbsp flour
½ tsp baking powder
½ tsp cumin
1 tsp salt
¼ tsp cayenne pepper (add more or less – depending on desired heat level)
Optional for serving: corn tortillas, salsa, onion, cilantro
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Spray a 9 x 13 or similar size casserole dish with cooking spray.
Drain chilies and layer half in the casserole dish
Cover with half of the cheese.
Cover with a second layer of chilies and cheese.
In a food processor, or with a whisk, combine eggs, milk. flour, baking powder, cumin, salt, and cayenne pepper and pour mixture over the chilies.
Bake for 45 to 50 minutes until middle is set and the top is nicely browned.
Best if you can wait five minutes before serving.
Serving Suggestion: Add one pound of cooked beef or sausage divided between layers to make this a main dish. Serve with corn tortillas and salsa.
