Gourmet Vegetarian Slow Cooker - Lynn Alley [15]
Oil the inside of the slow cooker insert. Place 2 or 3 overlapping tortillas in the bottom of the insert. Add a layer of half the mixed vegetables and top it with a generous sprinkling of cheese (about one-third of the cheese). Pour ½ cup of the enchilada sauce over the layer.
Add another layer of tortillas, then half of the remaining vegetables and another one-third of the cheese. Pour on another ½ cup of sauce. Finish with an additional layer of tortillas and the remaining 2½ cups sauce. (Even though you may appear to have an excess of sauce, much of it is absorbed into the tortillas and vegetables as they cook.)
Cover and cook on low for 5 to 6 hours, or until the cauliflower is tender. Top the casserole with the remaining cheese, cover, and cook for an additional 30 minutes, or until the cheese is melted.
Turn off the heat and allow the contents of the insert to sit for 10 to 15 minutes to set, then carefully scoop up generous individual servings of the enchilada into bowls. Top each serving with a sprinkle of cilantro and a dollop of sour cream.
SUGGESTED BEVERAGE: A nice, light, summery rosé would be great with this dish.
SOPA DE AJO
Serves 4
There is a Mexican restaurant in my town that specializes in caldos, or Mexican broth-based soups like this sopa de ajo. Everyone goes there to get take-out caldo when they feel a cold or flu coming on, but most of the time, everyone goes there just because they like caldo!
6 cups water
2 large heads garlic, cloves separated and peeled
4 slices French or country bread
¼ cup fruity olive oil
Salt to taste
1 ripe avocado, cut into ½-inch dice
1 teaspoon dried Mexican oregano
3 ounces Mexican queso fresco or feta cheese, crumbled
1 ripe tomato, diced
4 green onions, thinly sliced, green part only
¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves, for garnish
Place the water and garlic in the slow cooker insert, cover, and cook on low for 6 to 8 hours, or until the garlic is quite tender.
Add the bread to the broth and allow to soften for about 10 minutes, then purée the garlic and bread using a handheld immersion blender. Add the olive oil and salt to taste.
To serve, place some of the avocado, oregano, cheese, tomato, and green onions in the bottom of each bowl, then ladle in the broth over the ingredients. Top each bowl with a sprinkle of cilantro.
SUGGESTED BEVERAGE: I would enjoy a light-bodied white wine or possibly a light, fruity, young red wine with this soup.
MEXICAN CHOCOLATE PUDDING CAKE
Serves 6
Making puddings is one of the tasks the slow cooker does especially well. This scrumptious blend of flavors often found in Mexican chocolate and desserts is a wonderful ending to a meal, or an afternoon or evening snack all by itself. I like to eat it hot, warm, or at room temperature, topped with a generous dollop of whipped cream and dusted with cocoa powder or grated chocolate.
Pudding
8 ounces bittersweet chocolate, cut into chunks
½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
½ cup packed dark brown sugar
¼ cup all-purpose flour
1½ cups buttermilk
4 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
½ teaspoon pure maple extract
1 tablespoon apple pie spice
1 tablespoon finely ground coffee
½ teaspoon baking powder
Pinch of salt
1 cup heavy cream
1 to 2 tablespoons confectioner’s sugar
Grated chocolate or unsweetened cocoa powder, for garnish
To make the pudding, in a food processor, finely grind the chocolate. Add the butter, brown sugar, flour, buttermilk, eggs, vanilla and maple extracts, apple pie spice, coffee, baking powder, and a pinch of salt and process until the mixture is relatively smooth. (There will still be tiny flecks of chocolate in the mixture.)
Pour the mixture into the slow cooker insert, cover, and cook on low for about 2 hours, or until the edges are set. The center of the pudding will still appear to be somewhat uncooked, and this is fine.
Once the pudding is done, with a hand mixer or an immersion blender, whip the cream until frothy, then add a tablespoon or two of confectioner