Aztecpie Recipes

AZTEC PIE

Steps:

• Remember that you will need to cook the pork before preparing the rest of the casserole.
• Heat 2 tablespoons of the corn oil in a sauté pan over medium heat and cook the onions until soft.
• Add the garlic, poblano, and tomatillos and let them cook for about 10 minutes, stirring frequently, until the poblano is soft.
• Add the chicken stock and bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low and cook for 10 minutes.
• Add cream and cook for 5 more minutes.
• Purée the poblano sauce in a blender until smooth, strain, and return to the pan.
• Season with salt and reduce some more if necessary.
• Sauce should coat the back of a spoon.
• Heat a few tablespoons of corn oil over medium-high heat and cook the tortillas in it for no more than 10 seconds.
• Drain on paper towels.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Place 6 tortillas on the bottom of a shallow baking or casserole dish (about 9 by 11 inches or 10 by 10 inches in size; shape does not matter).
• Cover the tortillas with half of the shredded pork, ladle on half the sauce, and sprinkle with half of the cheese.
• Repeat with a second layer.
• Cover and cook for 35 minutes, then uncover and lightly brown on top.
• Cut into serving-size pieces and garnish with cilantro and a dollop of sour cream.

AZTEC PIE

Steps:

• Saute onion in oil in a skillet over medium heat until soft.
• Add garlic and cook another minute or so.
• Transfer to small bow.
• Cook beef in skillet until no longer pink, about 8 minutes.
• Return onion and garlic to skillet.
• Stir in chili powder, sugar, cumin, oregano, salt, pepper and cinnamon; cook 2 to 3 minutes more, stirring to blend falvors.
• Stir in undrained tomatoes and chlies; break up tomatoes.
• Reduce heat to low and simmer gently for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
• Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
• Place half of chips in an even layer on bottom of large casserole dish.
• Spoon half of the meat sauce over.
• Sprinkle with green onion.
• Reserving 6 olives, scatter remainder of olives over green onion.
• Sprinkle with half of the cheeses.
• Press down with a spatula to compress slightly.
• Top with another layer of chips and meat sauce.
• Press down slightly again.
• Top with remaining cheeses.
• Bake in 400 degree oven for 20 minutes or until hot and bubbly.
• Let stand 10 minutes befire serving.
• Garnish top with reserved olives and additional green olives, avocado and lime, if desired.

AZTEC PUDDING

Steps:

• For sauce mixture: Place the tomatoes, onion, chilies, water and chicken consume in a blender and blend well. Pour mixture into a pot and boil. When sauce begins to boil, place a lid on the pot and simmer for at least 20 minutes. Add the corn, zucchini, squash flowers and cooked chicken or pork to the simmering mixture. Cook for another 10 minutes or until the vegetables are just cooked. Adjust for salt and mix in the epazote and cilantro. After mixed well, set aside to cool.
• For base of pudding, fry each tortilla very quickly in hot oil -- only a few seconds on each side. Drain on paper towels. Set aside.
• In a blender blend all ingredients for the cream mixture together until smooth. Set aside.
• Assemble in a 9 1/2 by 13-inch pan. Layer tortillas to cover the bottom and sides of pan, then layer cheeses, sauce, cream mixture, and continue layering in that order, ending with the cheese. Bake at 350 degrees, for about 20 minutes or until bubbly. Salt to taste with chicken consume.
• The recipes for this program, which were provided by contributors and guests who may not be professional chefs, have not been tested in the Food Network's kitchens. Therefore, the Food Network cannot attest to the accuracy of any of the recipes.

AZTEC SOUP

Steps:

• To make Aztec Soup: In a large pot, heat the extra-virgin olive oil over medium heat. Add the garlic and saute for 2 minutes, until golden. Throw in the minced chipotles, red onion, cumin, smoked cayenne, smoked paprika, sea salt, freshly ground pepper and saute for 8 minutes. Deglaze the pot with chicken broth and add the tomatoes, Greek oregano, chicken meat and the sprig of epazote. Stir. Partially cover pot and simmer soup for about 40 minutes.
• Boil some salted water in a separate pot. Throw in the wild rice and simmer for 40 minutes. Strain.
• Heat a grill pan on medium-high heat. Brush some canola oil on the ears of corn. Grill the corn for a few seconds on all sides until marked. Slice off the corn niblets. Add the corn, wild rice, and cooked black beans to the soup. Season the soup with brown sugar, sea salt, freshly ground pepper and coriander (cilantro) to taste.
• Serve this soup with a dollop of creme fraiche, crispy tortillas and a squirt of fresh lime juice.
• To make 'Liquid Gold' Chicken Broth: Heat the olive oil in a large soup pot over medium heat. Add the crushed garlic cloves and saute for 2 minutes, until garlic is golden. Add the onions, carrots, and celery. Season the vegetables with sea salt and freshly ground pepper. Saute for about 8 minutes. Cut the organic chicken and chicken bones into pieces. Really hack into it so that the bones and marrow are exposed. Add the chicken pieces and pint of chicken bones to the pot. Fill the pot with water until it just covers all the chicken, and bring to a boil.
• Tie the parsley, celery leaves, bay leaf, thyme, and tarragon into a bouquet using butcher's twine or kitchen twine. Add the bouquet to the pot along with the black peppercorns.
• Once the broth has begun to boil, bring the heat down to medium-low. Partially cover, and let the broth simmer for 2 to 3 hours.
• Strain the chicken broth through cheesecloth. Hand-pick the good chicken meat and set it aside.
• Refrigerate the broth overnight. Slip a sharp knife around the edges of solidified chicken fat and discard.

AZTECA SOUP

Steps:

• Heat oil in large skillet and carefully drop in half the tortilla strips. Fry in batches until golden brown and crunchy. Place fried tortilla strips on a paper towel-lined plate and pat dry. Sprinkle salt on tortillas, tossing to coat both sides.
• Using a blender or food processor, blend tomatoes, onion and cilantro until completely pureed.
• In a saucepan, heat chicken broth, chipotle chili, and pureed vegetables. Bring to a boil; remove from heat. Ladle soup into serving bowls. Prior to serving, add tortilla strips and avocado. Buen provecho!

AZTEC PIE

Steps:

• Simmer chicken in broth with whatever seasoning you like (I use garlic powder, some chopped onion and celery) and cut up. Cut tortillas into wedges.
• Mix soups, chilies, onions, olives, chicken and 1/2 of the cheese to make the sauce.
• Prepare 9x13 pan, spray with cooking spray. Layer the pie by spreading a layer of sauce on the bottom of the pan, arrange layer of tortilla wedges over the sauce, repeat layer of sauce, tortillas, top with remaining cheese. Cover with foil and refrigerate overnight.
• Bake uncovered 1 1/2 hours at 300°F. Let cool to firm a little before serving. Cut into pieces (like lasagna).

TORTILLA CASSEROLE (BUDIN AZTECA)

Steps:

• Place chiles directly over the flame of a gas-stove burner on high heat. Roast chiles, turning with tongs, until blackened all over. (Alternatively, broil chiles on a baking sheet, turning, until skin has charred.) Transfer to a bowl, and cover immediately with plastic wrap. Set aside to steam, about 15 minutes. Peel chiles; discard skins. Remove stems, seeds, and ribs; cut chiles into 1-by-1/2-inch strips. Transfer to a nonreactive bowl.
• Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Brush tortilla halves on both sides with 3 tablespoons oil. Arrange on baking sheets. Bake, rotating sheets halfway through, until tortillas begin to bubble (before becoming crunchy), 5 to 7 minutes. Set aside. Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees.
• Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Wash spinach, and drain but do not dry. Add spinach to skillet. Cover, and cook until spinach has wilted, about 2 minutes. Season with 1/4 teaspoon salt. Transfer to a cutting board; let cool slightly. Squeeze out liquid. Coarsely chop, and set aside.
• Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add onion and 1/2 teaspoon salt; cook, stirring occasionally, until translucent, about 3 minutes. Stir in chiles; cook until heated through, about 1 minute. Transfer to a bowl.
• Heat remaining 2 tablespoons oil in same skillet. Add garlic, and cook, stirring, 30 seconds. Add beans and 1/2 teaspoon salt; cook, mashing slightly with the back of a wooden spoon, 2 minutes. Transfer to a bowl; set aside.
• Line bottom of a 10 1/4-inch-round, 2 1/2- to 3-inch-deep baking dish with 12 tortilla halves, overlapping slightly. Layer with chile mixture, half the bean mixture, and half the crema. Spread 3/4 cup salsa over top. Sprinkle with 1/2 cup cheese. Repeat for second layer, using spinach instead of the chiles. Top with remaining tortillas, 3/4 cup salsa, and 1/2 cup cheese.
• Bake until heated through, 45 minutes to 1 hour; cover with foil for last 15 minutes if browning too quickly or becoming too dry. Let stand 15 minutes before serving. Serve with more salsa and crema.