Chiles RellenosNote: A typical serving of chiles rellenos, which is about two peppers, contains 790 calories and 52 grams of fat. This healthier version has just 309 calories and 10 grams of fat.
Ingredients:
1 chipotle chile
1 tsp. canola oil
1 medium white onion (minced)
1/4 tsp. ground cumin
8 small poblano chiles
4 oz. low-fat Monterey jack cheese (shredded)
4 Tbsp. fresh cilantro
1 large egg
1 large egg white
1 Tbsp. Dijon mustard
1 box (5 oz.) plain melba toast
1/4 tsp. ground cumin
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
Steps:
1. Preheat oven to broil.
2. Place a steamer basket in a small saucepan with about a cup of water in the bottom. Heat on high and allow to steam. When the chipotle is soft, move it to a cutting board and carefully remove the seeds.
Note: Try to avoid touching the chipotle with your bare hands; if you do touch it, wash your hands thoroughly.
3. Mince the chipotle and set aside.
4. Pour the canola oil into a large nonstick skillet and heat on medium. Add the onion and cook slowly until translucent. Add the minced chipotle and cook for another two minutes. Remove from the heat and allow to chill in the refrigerator for about an hour.
5. Preheat oven to broil. Place the poblano peppers in the oven and roast them turning by a quarter-turn about every three minutes. The skin of the chile should begin to turn black. After the skin is blackened, remove the peppers from the oven and place in a brown paper bag.
6. After about 30 minutes the peppers should be cool. Remove them from the paper bag and gently peel the thin skin from each. Using the point of a knife, make a slit down the long side of each pepper. Gently remove the core and seeds from the inside, trying to keep the pepper whole. Reset the oven to 400 degrees.
7. After the cooked onion is cool, toss it together with the cilantro and shredded cheese. Form the cheese into eight small cylinders. Place the cylinders inside the peppers and reform the poblanos to resemble whole peppers.
8. Place the egg, egg white and mustard in a small bowl. Whisk until smooth.
9. In a food processor place the melba toast, ground cumin, salt, black pepper and cayenne pepper and process until small bread crumbs. Leave some pieces about the size of currants.
10. Coat the peppers with the egg / mustard mixture and then coat with the melba toast crumbs. After all of them are coated place on a non-stick cookie sheet and place in the oven. Bake for about 15 minutes. Spray lightly with spray oil and turn at about 7 minutes.
Serving size: 2 peppers
Servings: 4
Nutrition Facts:
Calories: 309
Calories from fat: 90
Total fat: 10g
Saturated fat: 5g
Cholesterol: 73mg
Sodium: 974 mg
Total carbohydrates: 41 g
Dietary fiber: 6 g
Protein: 16 g
Vitamin A: 31%
Vitamin C: 244%
Calcium: 26%
Iron: 13%
Tomatillo Salsa
For a nice addition to our chiles rellenos, serve them with a tomatillo salsa. It will give it an extra zing that will really complement the spices in the dish.
Ingredients:
8 ounces tomatillos (chopped fine)
1 medium tomato (chopped fine)
1 small shallot (minced)
1/4 cup red bell pepper (diced)
1/4 cup green bell pepper (diced)
1/2 tsp. chili powder
1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper (minced)
1 medium jalapeño pepper (minced)
1 tsp. honey
1/8 tsp. salt
Juice of one lime
Blend all ingredients and let stand for at least 24 hours.
Makes approximately 1 cup.
