Easy Chile Relleno Casserole

Have you ever tried a dish that you haven't had in years, since childhood, and that first taste immediately took you back? I remember when I was a child, my mom would toy around with different approaches to cooking. She had these recipe cards delivered that would fit into this recipe box, and each week she'd add the newest ones. She also had this one specific cookbook that was all sorts of recipes you could create in the microwave. Hey, it was the eighties then and it was all about convenience at the time! I recall there was this one dish she would make. It was actually a casserole, and she'd make it often.

It was a chile relleno casserole, and she'd make it in the microwave. I remember that I loved the way it tasted, the eggs and cheese was so delicious, but I never wanted to touch the green stuff! That egg and cheese though? Oh, I lived for it!

For years I've wanted to replicate that dish. It's such a strong memory for me, and I thought it would be cool to recreate it. I didn't, however, want to use the microwave. Last winter I got a few of the ingredients listed from her, added some more of my own, changed some things around so that I could bake it in the oven instead. Hers didn't have the topping so I added that as well. The night that I made it I'd posted it on my facebook page, and the comments went crazy! I hadn't even taken photos or anything because it was my first trial. After we all gobbled it up though, I regretted not taking photos or writing anything down. Thankfully I remembered most of the ingredients and how I did things. I recreated the same meal and it was just as good, if not better than the first time. If you want to get a bit fancier, you can add some onions or additional spices to suit your tastes. Personally I love the simplicity of this dish, and you don't even notice that it's meat free! Now, with all that cheese and heavy cream it's not the healthiest dish around, but at least it's not deep fried rellenos like the original dish! This is fun to build, easy to make and it goes so great with my Simple Spanish Rice and Crockpot "Refried" Beans. It's a perfect Sunday dinner!

Casserole Ingredients:

• One can (27 ounces) whole, fire roasted green chiles.
• 1 pound cheddar cheese, shredded
• 1 pound monterey jack cheese, shredded
• 4 eggs
• 1-1/2 cups heavy whipping cream
• 3 tablespoons flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon cumin

Topping Ingredients:

• 1 small (4 ounce) can tomato paste 
• 4 tablespoons chunky medium salsa
• 1-1/2 teaspoon sour cream

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Remove chiles from can, rinse and pat dry.

Take 1/4 cup of each cheese (1/2 cup total) and put aside for use in the topping later.

Spray a large casserole dish with non stick spray.

Arrange half of the chiles in the bottom of the dish, then top with the remaining cheddar cheese.

Arrange the remaining chiles, then top with remaining monterey jack cheese.

In a small bowl, crack open the eggs and separate the egg white from the yolks.

Add the yolks to a separate bowl. 

Beat the egg whites for about a minute, just until they thicken.

Add whipping cream, flour and seasonings to the bowl with the yolks, then whisk to combine. 

Add the beaten egg whites and mix it all together.

Pour the egg and seasoning mixture over the casserole, then bake uncovered for about 40 minutes.

While casserole is baking, mix together tomato paste, salsa and sour cream. 

Spread over top of casserole when done baking, then sprinkle the remaining cheese all over the top. 

Bake another 15 minutes

Let cool to allow ingredients to stiffen, making it easier to cut. 

Enjoy!