Mexican Marinated Chicken with Pepper Casserole
The pepper casserole is from one of my favorite vegetarian cookbooks: Moosewood Cookbook. It’s the 15 year anniversary edition, so things have been lightened up a bit. The pepper casserole is also great on a baked potato (especially if you do a twice baked thing with some salsa and black beans. Mmm…) Maybe I’ll make a potato for leftovers for lunch… I serve it now with some tasty chicken recipe I half invented/half copied, and some warmed tortillas. (Forgive my lack of burrito rolling skills, as discussed previously.)
Pepper Casserole:
- 2 c. sliced onions
- 6-8 sliced bell peppers - a mix of colors if possible (I use two bags of the tri-color pepper mix from Trader Joe’s, when I can get it)
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tsp. salt
- 2 tsp. ground cumin
- 1 tsp. dry mustard
- 1 tsp. dried coriander
- 2 Tbs flour
- 3 eggs
- 2 cups sour cream
- 2 c. shredded cheese
- cayenne, salt, and black pepper to taste
Heat a deep pan with a little olive oil. Add onions and saute 5-8 minutes, until they begin to soften. Add peppers, salt, cumin, coriander, mustard, black pepper, and cayenne. Saute an additional 8-10 minutes, then sprinkle with flour. Cook another 5 minutes, until peppers are very tender. Transfer to baking pan. Beat together eggs and sour cream. (If you have some fresh cilantro on hand, some chopped would go very nicely in with that mixture.) Pour over peppers. Top whole shebang with cheese, cook at 375 40-45 minutes until firm in the center.
Mexican Marinated Chicken: This isn’t really a marinade so much as it is a “schmear” to put on your chicken. It makes it quite flavorful, though.
- 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts (I halve mine to make them cook easier)
- 1/2 Tbs. dried oregano
- 1/2 Tbs. cider vinegar
- 2 tsp. ground cumin
- 1 Tbs. Dijon mustard (I use country Dijon - I like the flavor better)
- 1 clove garlic, crushed with press
- 1 Tbs olive oil
Throw all of that into a gallon sized zip-lock baggie for about 20 minutes, then remove chicken and either grill, or cook in a non-stick pan for about 6 minutes per side.
I also sometimes make quesadillas with this chicken - there are two kinds I make, and perhaps I will post the recipe sometime soon 