Mushroom Tacos (Vegetarian)
Recipe courtesy of Borderlands: Recipes and Stories from the Rio Grande to the Pacific by Hank Shaw
Makes 4 TO 6 servings
The Filling:
1 lb. fresh mushrooms, chopped (Any mushroom will work, but wild ones make this even better.)
½ white onion, chopped
3 T. lard, bacon fat or oil
Salt
3 cloves garlic, minced
Pinch of dried Mexican oregano
Black pepper to taste
To Finish:
½ lb. pound shredded melty cheese such as asadero, Oaxaca, mozzarella, or “Mexican blend”
Flour tortillas
Chopped cilantro
½ red onion
¼ c. cup freshly squeezed lime juice
Lime wedges, to serve
The Serrano Crema (optional):
1 or 2 serrano chiles, seeded and minced
2 cups Mexican crema, or 1½ c. sour cream and ½ c. cream
Salt
Soak the red onion in the lime juice with a pinch of salt.
If you’re making the serrano crema, blitz the crema and the serranos in a blender on high until completely puréed. If you want to get fancy, push the mixture through a fine-meshed sieve. Set it aside for now.
To make the filling, add the mushrooms and onion to a large sauté pan, and turn the heat to high. Toss the contents of the pan to keep the mushrooms and onion moving as it heats up. As soon as it starts to sizzle, sprinkle some salt over everything. Shake the pan from time to time. At some point the mushrooms will give up their water. Add the lard or oil now and toss to coat. Add the minced garlic and oregano and mix well. Let all this cook, undisturbed, a few minutes to develop some browning. Stir and mix well one more time, then let it brown once more. Turn off the heat and cover the pan.
To make the tacos, set about 2 tablespoons shredded cheese on a hot comal, griddle or flattop, set over medium-high heat. As it begins to melt, set a flour tortilla on it and press this down with your hand or a spatula until the melted cheese barely reaches the edges of the tortilla. Let this cook until the cheese releases, usually about 1 to 3 minutes (it’s better to let the cheese sit a little too long than too short. You want it pretty and brown and crispy). When it releases, or when you decide to scrape it off the comal with a spatula, flip the tortilla over, top it with some of the mushroom mixture, some of the lime-soaked onion, a bit of cilantro, and a drizzle of the serrano crema. Serve with lime wedges.
NOTE: If you’re not using the serrano crema, you may want to add hot sauce.
Mexican Street Corn Empanadas
Recipe courtesy of Performance Foodservice
45 servings
45 ea. Pillsbury Round Frozen Pie Dough (or your own dough)
1 #12 scoop per empanada filling (recipe below)
14 oz. Chili Lime Crema (recipe below)
13½. oz. cheese, cotija
The Empanada Filling
4 c. cream cheese, softened
1 c. sour cream
1 c. mayonnaise
2 c. chilies, green, mild, canned
¼ c. lime juice
2 T. hot sauce
1 t. garlic, powder
1 t. paprika, smoked
½ t. red pepper, flakes
½ t. kosher salt
9 c. roasted corn
3 c. pepper jack cheese, shredded
3½ c. bacon, cooked, chopped
Combine cream cheese, sour cream, mayonnaise, green chilies, lime juice, hot sauce, garlic powder, paprika, red pepper flakes and salt in a large mixing bowl. Stir until combined; fold in corn, cheese and bacon and refrigerate until needed.
Chili Lime Crema
8 oz. mayonnaise
12 oz. sour cream
1 T. Sambal Oelek chili garlic sauce
1 T. lime juice
⅛ t. sugar, granulated
½ t. garlic, powder
3 T. milk, whole
Combine mayonnaise, sour cream, Sambal Oelek chili garlic sauce, lime juice, sugar, garlic powder and whole milk in a mixing bowl. Stir until combined and refrigerate until needed.
To make the empanadas: Thaw pie dough round, covered, either at room temperature 15-30 minutes until flexible or refrigerated overnight. Remove paper from pie dough round and place sticky side down on parchment-lined sheet pan.
Deposit #12 scoop of filling mixture onto each pie dough round; flatten to cover half of the round, leaving a border. Brush border all the way around with water; fold dough over filling and crimp edges with a fork to seal.
Bake at 325°F for 18-22 minutes in a convection oven or 375°F for 28-32 minutes in a standard oven.
Serve an empanada immediately, topped with 2 teaspoons Chili Lime Crema and 1 tablespoon sprinkle of cotija cheese.
Sweetpotato and Black Bean Empanadas
Created exclusively for the North Carolina SweetPotato Commission by Savorez Mexican Restaurant, Wilmington, NC
Makes 8 servings
The Empanada Dough:
3 c. all-purpose flour
1 t. salt
1 stick cold butter, cut into small cubes
¾ to 1 c. cold water
Stir together flour and salt in a large bowl. Scatter the butter over the flour. Use a pastry cutter to cut the butter into the flour until butter is incorporated and mixture resembles cornmeal. Using a fork, stir in just enough water until the dough comes together. Knead 5 to 6 times, being careful not to overmix. Wrap dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate.
The Filling:
4 lbs. sweet potatoes, peeled, diced, and roasted
2 oz. coconut oil
2 yellow onions, peeled and diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
6 c. black beans, cooked and drained
1 T. mild chili powder
½ T. ground cumin
2 t. salt
Place all ingredients in a large bowl and toss together.
To Finish the Empanadas:
1 egg
1 T. water
To Prepare the Empanadas: Preheat oven to 400° F. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper. Lightly flour a work surface. Roll out half of the dough to ¼ inch thick. Cut out 4-5-inch rounds, larger if you’d like. Place about 2 tablespoons of the filling at the center of each round. Fold the dough over to encase the filling, making a half-moon shape. Use the tines of a fork to seal the edges. Empanadas may be frozen at this point.
When ready to bake: Arrange empanadas on baking sheets. Whisk together egg and water and brush empanadas with egg mixture. Bake empanadas one pan at a time (refrigerate the other pan until time to bake) until golden brown, about 30 minutes. (Savorez chefs deep-fry empanadas served at the restaurant, but this baked version is easier.)