Baked Chili Rellenos

I bought some Anaheim peppers awhile ago, and some Yellow Wax peppers today (I thought they were banana peppers, but they are longer and hotter...) So tonight I made baked Chili Rellenos - Alex called it 'a recipe never before made by Mom -- or the world.'

My twist - instead of frying these in an egg based batter, I baked them in egg roll wrappers.

I think they look Christmas-sy!

Ingredients:

Sauce
1/2 white onion, diced
1 tablespoon olive oil
29 ounces tomato sauce
1/2 cup of water
3 ounces diced green chilis
1 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 pinches ground cinnamon
1 pinch ground clove

Peppers
8 - 10 Anaheim or Yellow Wax peppers
1 white onion, diced
4 ounces diced green chilis
1.5 cups shredded of mild white cheese (such as mozzarella or queso blanco)
1 cup cheddar
1 white onion, diced
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 pack egg roll wrappers (optional)
12 to 20 sprigs of fresh cilantro

Instructions:

Roast Peppers

1. Wash and dry chilis, place on parchment paper on large cookie sheet.
2. Spray chilis lightly with cooking spray, broil 10 minutes or so to blacken skins. (Turn peppers every 3 or so minutes.)
3. Seal peppers in a heat resistant container - let steam 10 minutes or so.

Make Sauce 

1. Add 1 or so tablespoons of olive oil to heavy cooking pot - saute all onions until softened.
2. Divide 2/3 of onions into a medium bowl for filling, and leave 1/3 in the cooking pot.
3. Add tomato sauce, water, 4 ounces diced green chilies, and spices. 
4. Let sauce simmer for 10 minutes or so.

Prepare Peppers

1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Spread peppers on a cutting board and let cool a couple of minutes.
3. Spray 9 x 13 baking pan with cooking spray. (You may need a second pan.)
4. Shred cheese if needed. Reserve about 1/2 cup of cheese to sprinkle on chili rellenos after cooking.
5. Mix all cheeses and 4 ounces of diced chilies with the medium bowl with the onions.
6. When the peppers cool enough to handle, remove skins.
7. Slit peppers open, scrape out most of seeds and seed membranes. (Leave some in for spiciness.)
8. Tile several egg roll wrappers on another cutting board.
9. Place a skinned, cleaned pepper on a diagonal on each egg roll.
10. Spoon 2 or 3 rounded tablespoons of cheese mix into each pepper. (Evenly distribute the cheese mix.)
11. Wrap the wrappers around each pepper in sort of 'papoose style' triangle.
12. Gently move each chili pepper into the pan, alternating base and points of triangles. (Use two pans and separate each pepper a bit if you want to find the individual peppers more easily for serving.)
13. Spoon sauce over every pepper. (You may reserve some for other uses.)
14. Cover and seal pan (or pans) with aluminum foil, place in oven.
15. Bake for 25-30 minutes. (Prepare rice and black peppers while the chili rellenos bake.)
16. Remove from oven, sprinkle reserved cheese over peppers. Sprinkle with leaves from fresh cilantro for color and a bit of flavor.
17. Serve with black beans and white rice.

Carole's Notes:

We liked these! They were spicy, but not too spicy, especially with the white rice and black beans. Use a milder Anaheim pepper if you want it less spicy.

The filling is a mash up of several ideas. The sauce is a slight adaptation of the sauce from Chiles Rellenos de Queso on pg 66 of http://www.amazon.com/Mexican-Cookery-Barbara-Hansen/dp/0895865890