Party Food « (y)our food choices™

Steve is obsessed with chilaquiles. He talks about them endlessly. And he’s been talking about making them forever. A staple Mexican comfort food, chilaquiles is essentially fried corn tortillas simmered in chili sauce and topped with lots of cheese. A sort of soft, saucy nacho dish. Chilaquiles are relatively simple to prepare. We used the stale leftover homemade tortillas from the last post, but you could use store bought just as well. But be sure to find good quality, thick tortillas. They’ll stand up better to the frying and the sauce.

On Saturday afternoon, after days of futzing around making homemade tortillas (and talking about chilaquiles more than anyone should), Steve decided to jump into cooking his beloved dish, a la Steve—at the last minute. Luckily our dinner guest is more like family, so all we needed to do was to supply her with a cocktail while Steve put the finishing touches on the dish. Alas, the chilaquiles came together deliciously!

Lots of people add an additional protein like shredded chicken or fried chorizo. In this iteration, we added some chopped venison steak leftover from a dinner earlier in the week. Finally, garnishes. Chilaquiles is fine with no embellishments, but it’s traditionally served with thin slices of onion, radishes and jalapeños. Some crema, sour cream, or plain yogurt, and probably a little more grated cheese, preferably a crumbly white queso and a fried egg, to gild the lily.

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Chilaquiles Rojas

Adapted from Bon Appetit.

Serves 6

Sauce:

8 Guajillo or New Mexico chilies
1 28 oz can tomatoes
5 garlic cloves, chopped
1 jalapeño pepper, stem and seeds removed
1 medium onion, cut into large dice
1/8 tsp smoked paprika
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Tortillas/Assembly:

vegetable oil for frying
12 6 inch corn tortillas (homemade or store bought)
Kosher or sea salt
2 cups shredded rotisserie chicken, fried chorizo, left over steak, or other meat (optional)
1 cup crumbled queso fresco or mild feta
1 cup shredded white cheddar
6 large eggs
Finely chopped white onion (or thinly sliced green onions)
Thinly sliced radishes
Chopped fresh cilantro
Crema, sour cream, or yogurt
Sliced jalapeño
Lime wedges
Preparing the sauce:

Remove the stems and seeds from the dried chills, break them into large pieces and place them in a large enough bowl to cover with 2 cups boiling water. Set aside to soak for 15 minutes (do not discard the soaking liquid).

In the container of a blender, add the tomatoes, the rehydrated peppers, garlic, jalapeño, onion and paprika, along with a cup of the soaking liquid from the peppers. Purée until you can no longer see pieces of chili pepper skins. It should be very smooth.

Heat two tablespoons vegetable oil in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add purée to the pan and bring it to a boil. Reduce heat to medium and partially cover the pot while the sauce cooks and thickens, about 15 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.[Sauce can be made up to 3 days ahead, kept in the fridge. Be sure to reheat it before using.]

Tortillas/Assembly:

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Heat vegetable oil in a heavy pan or skillet at a depth of 1 1/2 inches. Heat over medium-high heat until the oil reaches 350 degrees (we guessed, but you should be sure about the heat and a deep fry thermometer is very useful here).

Line a baking sheet with paper towels. Cut tortillas into quarters or sixths and carefully add them to the hot oil one at a time until you have enough in the pan to cover the surface of the oil without the chips overlapping. Fry until golden brown and then remove to the paper towels to drain. Season with salt.

Once the chips are fried, add them to a large mixing bowl and toss them with a cup of the chili sauce until they are well coated. Add half to a casserole or large baking dish and sprinkle with half the cheese. Add remaining chips, the remaining sauce and the rest of the cheese.

Cover the casserole with foil and place into hot oven for 20 minutes. Remove the foil and turn the oven to broil. Place the casserole under the broiler for 6-8 minutes or until the cheese getting toasty brown spots. Slice into 6 portions.

Plate the chilaquiles and top with a fried or scrambled eggs. Top with an array of sliced radishes and jalapeño, with chopped red, white, or green onions, crumbled fresco queso or feta, and a little drizzle of crema, sour cream, or yogurt.

I’m not a baker, so things were likely to go awry when the non-baker decided to bake a birthday cake for the baker’s birthday. To make matters more interesting, Jason’s response to my question “what kind of cake would you like,” was a funny “the Queen’s 90th birthday cake.” Ha! But he seriously wanted a three tier purple and orange cake and that is what he got.

From the get-go, I doomed my effort to the panic of a last-minute frenzy by getting a very late start. I didn’t appreciate how much time it takes to bake and decorate a cake. Cooking shows make it look like it can be done in minutes, maybe an hour or so, but certainly no longer than two. But there I was, birthday afternoon, with dinner reservations looming and a growing pile of buttery dishes in the sink.

There were ample opportunities to seek the wise counsel of the birthday boy baker. He suggested early on that I make small cakes. I ignored him. Having stretched a recipe to include a larger-than-called-for cake pan, my cake tiers were thin. The cake itself turned out well. The crumb is tender, but dense and rich. I had to halve them horizontally to add a filling and so, with a smile and lots of patience, Jason jumped in to demonstrate how to cut a cake round into layers using a long serrated knife and a cake decorating stand. He really is a master at this stuff!

With the cakes halved, we brushed the cut sides with Grand Marnier and spread apricot jam or fig butter on alternating base layers of each cake round. Then came a layer of frosting followed by the top layer of cake. Frosting is magic! We increased the amount to give a bit of height to the thin layers. What I didn’t expect is just how difficult it is to get the hang of applying frosting to the outside edges of round cakes using an offset spatula.

We made the frosting and decorated the cake in just under two hours. To make our dinner reservations on time, we quickly showered while the frosting was whipping away. It felt like we were competing on The Great British Bake-Off, and our reward was a night out at Bon Marché. We were both pleasantly smiling and having fun, but I secretly think we were both doubting our ability to finish on time and get to the restaurant.

My advice to the first time cake baker: start a day ahead and listen to your husband. If you can follow a recipe, you can bake a delicious cake. But unless you’ve done this a hundred times, the chemistry, the textures and temperatures, the timing of it all – none of this is necessarily intuitive. Not to the novice. Be patient and take your time.

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A Queen’s Birthday Cake
The Whiteout Cake from Baked Bakery
Yield: 1 (10-inch; 8-inch; 6-inch) thin layer cake or 1 (8-inch) cake

For the white cake layers

2 1/2 cups of cake flour
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup vegetable shortening
1 3/4 cups sugar
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
1 large egg
1 1/2 cups ice cold water
3 large egg whites, at room temperature
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar

For the white chocolate frosting (this recipes was increased by 1/2 to ensure proper cake frosting coverage)

9 ounces white chocolate, coarsely chopped
2 1/4 cups sugar
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 1/4 cups milk
1/2 cup heavy cream
2 1/4 cups (4 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, soft but cool, cut into small pieces
1 1/2 teaspoon pure orange extract
food coloring (optional)

Make the White Cake Layers

Preheat the over the 325 degrees F. Butter cake pans, line the bottoms with parchment paper, and butter the parchment. Dust with flour, and knock out the excess flour.

Sift the flours, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together in a large bowl. Set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and shortening on medium speed until creamy, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the sugar and vanilla and beat on medium speed until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Scrape down the bowl, add the egg, and beat until just combined. Turn the mixer to low. Add the flour mixture, alternating with the ice water, in three separate additions, beginning and ending with the flour mixture. Scrape down the bowl, then mix on low speed for a few more seconds.

In a medium bowl, whisk the egg whites and cream of tartar until soft peaks form. Do not overbeat. Gently fold the egg whites into the batter.

Divide the batter among the prepared pans and smooth the tops. Bake for 30 to 45 minutes, rotating the pans halfway through the baking time, until a toothpick inserted in the centre of the cake comes out clean (smaller cake pans will require less time [cupcakes will take about 20-25 minutes]). Transfer the cakes to a wire rack and let cool for 20 minutes. Invert the cakes onto the rack, remove the pans, and let cool completely. Remove the parchment.

Making the White Chocolate Frosting

Using either a double boiler or a microwave oven, melt the white chocolate and set it aside to cool, but not too cool that it solidifies.

In a medium heavy-bottom saucepan, whisk the sugar and flour together. Add the milk and cream to cook over medium heat, whisking occasionally, until the mixture comes to a boil and has thickened, about 20 minutes.

Transfer the mixture to the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Beat on medium high speed until cool. Reduce the speed to low and add the butter; mix until thoroughly incorporated. Increase the speed to medium-high and beat until the frosting is light and fluffy.

Add the orange and vanilla extract and white chocolate and continue mixing until combined. If the frosting is too soft, put the bowl in the refrigerator to chill slightly, then beat again until it is the proper consistency. If the frosting is too firm, set the bowl over a pot of simmering water and beat with a wooden spoon until it is the proper consistency.

Crumb Coating the Cake

Refrigerate the frosting for a few minutes, if necessary (but no more), until it can hold its shape.

Sprinkle the cake stand with a little sugar. Place the 10 inch cake layer on the stand and using a serrated knife, cut the cake through the middle, horizontally, making two equally thick layers. Spread a thin layer of apricot preserves or fig butter on the bottom, then add about 3/4 cup of the frosting, spreading it over the cake layer evenly. Add the top layer and evenly spread about 1 1/4 cups of the frosting on top. Transfer the layer to a large plate and refrigerate for at least 15 minutes.

Repeat the crumb coat frosting step for the next two cake layers.

Assembling the Cake

Divide the remaining frosting among three bowls in proportion with the cakes. The bowl with the least amount of frosting will be colored light orange (or whatever color you desire). Do the same with the other two bowls of frosting (light purple and a little darker purple in our case).

Transfer the largest layer of the cake back to the cake decorating stand. Frost the bottom cake layer with the frosting from the fullest bowl. Add the frosting to the top of the cake first and, using an off-set spatula, move the cake decorating stand as needed, frost the top of the cake pushing the frosting over the sides. Next, positioning the spatula at 90 degrees next to the cake sides, turn the stand and frost the sides of the cake until all sides are covered. Transfer the layer to a display cake plate/stand and refrigerate.

Repeat the above steps for the next two layers. Transferring the finished layers to the bottom tier of the cake. Clean-up any flaws with more frosting as needed. Garnish with sprinkles, nonpareils, ribbon, or anything your heart desires. Refrigerate for 15 minutes to firm up the finished cake.

This cake will keep beautifully in a cake saver at room temperature (cool and humidity free) for up to 3 days. If your room is not cool, place in a cake saver and refrigerate for up to 3 days. Remove the cake from the refrigerator and let sit at room temperature for at least 2 hours before serving.