Chile Relleno Casserole

I got this recipe from a friend of mine about 16 years ago. She and her mother hosted a baby shower for me before my oldest daughter was born, and this is what they served. It was a Sunday brunch, and nothing could have been more perfect than this casserole. Since then, I've made it for breakfast, lunch and dinner on every other day that ends in "y".

Here's what you'll need to start:



- 6 or 8 long green chiles, roasted and peeled. You can take the seeds out of you're a weenie.
- 4 oz. Monterey Jack cheese
- 8 eggs
- 2/3 cup milk
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 8 oz. grated cheddar cheese



Before you start stuffing the chiles, preheat your oven to 375 degrees. Done? Okay. Cut the Monterey Jack into slices. Next, take a paring knife and cut each chile lenghwise so you can stuff each one with the cheese.



It helps to have a dog as your sous chef. I don't have nearly that much crap to sweep up when Libby helps. Hi, Libby...Mama loves you.



Get the idea?



When you're done, line 'em all up in a greased 13x8 glass baking dish.



Next, toss 8 eggs into a stand mixer if you have one. I got my KitchenAid from my mom for my 30th birthday. It's now 10 years old. Do the math...I'm ancient. Now turn that sucker on and let it beat the heck out of those eggs. If you don't have a stand mixer, a hand mixer will do. If your dog is better trained than mine, make him hold the mixer.



That will give you time to grate the cheddar cheese.



When your eggs look like this, you're done! Pat yourself on the back. Celebrate with a glass of wine. I did. Before the second glass of wine, add the milk, flour and baking powder to the eggs and beat until smooth.



Next, pour the egg mixture over your chiles. Pay no attention that this photo is out of focus. Do you know how hard it is to pour something with one hand and photograph it with another?



This is what your lovely casserole should look like now. But we're still not done.



Remember all that cheddar cheese? Pile it on, baby.



Now you're close to being done. Pop that sucker into the oven and let it bake for 30 minutes.



Voila! Done. Inhale deeply. Take another sip of wine.

Now go do all those dishes.

Fire Crackers

My Grandma used to make these all the time. Whenever I start missing her, I bake a batch and my kitchen smells just like hers used to. She called them "Cheese Dainties". A friend of hers, Edie Tate, gave her a recipe for them back in the 50s. About 20 years ago, she passed it on to me, typed on an index card with some special notes on the back about how Edie lived well into her 90s, loved to garden, and was a passionate cook. Edie and my Grandma had a lot in common.

I've passed this recipe on to my friends and family, too. I call them Fire Crackers and they're pretty much the same, but with an added kick of cayenne. Grandma said mixing the dough with your hands was best, but she never lived long enough to enjoy a KitchenAid mixer. If you have one, it saves loads of time.

Ingredients
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese
2 cups Rice Krispies cereal
2 sticks of butter, softened
1 tsp salt
1 tsp cayenne
More cayenne to sprinkle on top (don't leave this out!)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Combine flour, cheese, cereal, and butter in a large mixing bowl. Mix well and add in the salt and cayenne. Roll the dough into nickel-sized balls and place an inch apart on a parchment-lined baking sheet. (I'm not being snobby about the parchment; it will keep the bottom of your crackers from getting too brown. Genius!)

Using a fork, gently flatten each ball. Sprinkle the tops of each cracker with a little cayenne. More if you're feeling adventurous. Bake for 13 to 15 minutes and then transfer them to a wire rack to cool. These crackers make great appetizers and go great with wine.