Last weekend, I attended a cooking class at Las Cosas with Chef Johnny Vee about adding New Mexico flavors to other cuisines. I really liked how the bread pudding turned out. The cannellini bean dip was pretty good, but I do not like fennel (or rather licorice flavors) so I used the flour tortillas from the baba ghanoush to eat it. The smoked salmon with the additional of Caribe chile was delicious. I would love to buy that stovetop smoker some day.
Class Description: Tonight we take the wonderful ingredients and flavors that we love about our New Mexico Cookery and include them into some ethnic dishes from around the world. Our “Norteño” International menu include: Red Chile Chicken Shawarma with Chipotle Tahini, Green Chile Cannellini Dip with Grilled Fennel, Caribe Chile Baba Ghanoush with Flour Tortillas, Shrimp & Jalapeno Potstickers, Santa Fe Cured Smoked Salmon with Blue Corn Blini, and for dessert; Sopaipilla Bread Pudding with Caramel Sauce. YUM! (Hands-On)
Per usual, the menu items were divided up among the class members. I worked on my two items on my own – Sopaipilla Bread Pudding with Caramel Sauce and the Green Chile Cannellini Dip with Grilled Fennel.
Sopaipilla Bread Pudding
The caramel sauce was a red chile caramel sauce and was already made so I only worked on the bread pudding part.
My ingredient tray was already prepared – heavy cream, milk, eggs, sugar, vanilla extract, dried cranberries, and white chocolate.
I mixed together the cream, milk, eggs, sugar, and vanilla extract in the bowl.
Already cooked sopaipillas were obtained from Atrisco Cafe & Bar next door.
I tore them into chunks and added them to the mixture.
Then I added the dried cranberries.
I used a rake to break up the white chocolate into small bits.
I added the white chocolate to the mixture and let this all soak for 20 minutes.
Then this went into a buttered casserole dish and into the oven for one hour at 375˚F.
Came out beautifully browned.
The last step was to sprinkle it with powdered sugar.
Green Chile Cannellini Bean Dip with Grilled Fennel
This was quite simple. The ingredients included canned cannellini beans, garlic, lemon juice, olive oil, red pepper flakes, tahini, New Mexico green chiles, salt, and pepper.
Everything except the fennel went into the food processor. But now that I am looking at it, I think we forgot the green chiles.
I poured the olive oil on top of the bean dip and cut the fennel into strips.
The Other Menu Items
Red Chile Chicken Shawarma with Chipotle Tahini
Red Chile Chicken Shawarma – yogurt, white vinegar, olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, cinnamon, nutmeg, oregano, New Mexico red chile, bay leaves, salt, chicken breast, and olive oil.
Chipotle Tahini – lemon juice, tahini, soy sauce, onion, chipotle in adobo sauce, salt, and pepper.
Caribe Chile Baba Ghanoush with Flour Tortillas – eggplant, garlic, tahini, lemon juice, yogurt, Caribe chile, salt, olive oil, and parsley.
Shrimp & Jalapeño Potstickers with Chili Orange Sauce
Shrimp & Jalapeño Potstickers – shrimp, rice wine vinegar, cornstarch, sugar, toasted sesame oil, salt, white pepper, scallions, jalapeño, pork, and wonton wrappers.
Chile Orange Dipping Sauce – rice wine vinegar, sugar, orange zest, hot chili paste, ginger, garlic, shallots, honey, and lime juice.
Santa Fe Cured Smoked Salmon with Blue Corn Blini and Hot Mustard Sauce
Santa Fe Cured Smoked Salmon – salt, dark brown sugar, Caribe chile, black pepper, and fresh salmon.
Blue Corn Blini – blue corn flour, flour, baking powder, baking soda, buttermilk, melted butter, egg, dill, chives, and thyme.
Hot Mustard Sauce – sour cream, hot mustard, garlic, salt, black pepper, scallion, and lime juice.
Makes an appetizer plate with the blinis on the bottom, hot mustard spread on it, and then topped with the smoked salmon.
This last dish (Quick-Cured Smoked Salmon with Hot Mustard Sauce and Fresh Herb Blue Corn Blini) is in Chef Johnny Vee’s cookbook pp.56-58.
Cooking with Johnny Vee: International Cuisine with a Modern Flair (978-0-9887791-4-3) by John Vollertsen
If Only This Were Springfield 