Another Day in the Life

It’s been another soggy Seattle day. I hate to say that, because the rest of the week-end has been rather nice with lots of sun, and because so many people elsewhere think that’s ALL it does here. Today though has been downright wet. I’m sure the ducks, if there are any still here this time of year, love it.

Since I haven’t wanted to go outside, what have I been doing instead? I’ve been cooking, knitting, reading, and watching TV. It looks as though I may finish the sweater I’ve been working on since completing the baby blanket project, and I tried a new recipe. Last night we watched PBS’ Nova program on the Sphinx on Comcast On Demand (which has a companion article in this month’s Smithsonian magazine, by the way—if you get a chance, see both of them), plus a couple of Netflix rentals: The Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer (2007); and Babel (2006), starring Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett. Quite a juxtaposition of movies!

I rented The Silver Surfer because Sam and I used to be big comics fans many years ago (my own favorites being The Mighty Thor—Marvel Comics, 1970, scripted by Stan Lee’s brother Larry and penciled by Jack Kirby; and Conan the Barbarian—Marvel Comics, 1970, written by Roy Thomas and illustrated by Barry Windsor-Smith. These are collector’s items, folks!), and because the Silver Surfer character was supposed to have some sort of cosmic significance—since I’d never read any of The Fantastic Four comics, I didn’t know what that was. If you’ve ever been to my house, you’ve probably seen the painting I’ve been working on of Odin, which was taken from an old back issue of Thor. Anyway, the Silver Surfer movie is extremely light-weight stuff and very comic-bookish, which was no doubt intentional. Stan Lee even has a cameo in it. Sorry guys, it was entertaining but not much more than that. There is probably a sequel planned, because we see the Surfer floating in space at the end of the movie, after he’s defeated Galactus and saved Earth from destruction. Tsk, tsk, I won’t be adding this to my library.

Babel is quite another story. I rented this movie because it had a number of Oscar nominations (including Best Picture) and won a Golden Globe for Best Drama in 2006, but aside from those things, I had no idea what the story was about—except perhaps the obvious theme from the Biblical story regarding the Tower of Babel. The movie posits that humanity still suffers from confusion and the lack of communication, though according to New York Times reviewer A.O. Scott, October 27, 2006, in his review of the same name, emotion needs no translation. It is a moving story, and I don’t want to say too much in case you haven’t yet seen it. It is worth viewing, and I find myself still reflecting on it today.

Now let’s get to the recipe. This year I re-subscribed to Cook’s Illustrated magazine (they are the same folks who produce America’s Test Kitchen TV series), and part of the deal is weekly emails from them. This week there was mention of a recipe they had developed for beef enchiladas, which I had not prepared for some time (the last time I made it, I used a recipe from one of Betty Crocker’s cookbooks), so I went to their Website and downloaded it. Needless (perhaps) to say, I came up with my own variation of the recipe after preparing it once, and frankly, I think it’s better and easier to make than their version. I will share my version, and maybe you’ll be inspired to make it yourself:

Aunt Di’s Beef Enchiladas (Serves 4 to 6)

3 large (or 6 small) garlic cloves, minced
3 Tbsp chili powder
2 tsp ground coriander
2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp salt
1 ½ lb beef flatiron or flank steak, cut in strips
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
1 (15-oz) or 2 (8-oz) cans tomato sauce
½ C water
1 C shredded Monterey Jack cheese
1 C shredded medium Cheddar cheese
½ C chopped fresh cilantro leaves (a nice big handful)
1 C chopped, canned nacho jalapenos (I used the hot La Victoria ones that come in a jar. These are actually only about medium hot, or I couldn’t eat them. If you want milder chilies, you can buy them canned, though I’ve found those have hardly any flavor at all.)
12 (6-inch) yellow corn tortillas

Combine the minced garlic, chili powder, coriander, cumin, sugar, and salt in a small bowl and set aside. Slice the flatiron or flank steak into strips against the grain and also set aside. Heat the olive oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat and cook the meat until browned on all sides, about six minutes, and then transfer it to a plate. Cook the chopped onion in the pot until golden and then add the garlic/spice mixture. Cook this about a minute, and then add the tomato sauce and water. Bring sauce to a boil, return the meat to the pot, reduce the heat to low, and simmer it for about 1 ½ hours, until the meat is tender enough to break up with a spoon (if not, you’ll have to remove the meat and chop it up when you get to the next step).

Adjust oven rack to the middle position and pre-heat oven to 350⁰ F. Strain sauce over a medium bowl to remove the meat and set it aside. In another medium bowl mix the meat with ½ cup each of the Monterey Jack and Cheddar cheeses, plus the chopped cilantro and jalapenos.

Prepare a 9 x 13-inch baking dish by spreading about ¾ cup of the sauce in the bottom. Microwave the corn tortillas for about a minute to soften them, and then spread about 1/3 cup of the meat mixture in each tortilla. Roll the tortillas and set into baking pan with seam sides down, and then ladle the remaining sauce over the top, being sure to cover all the tortillas. Spread the remaining cheese over the sauce, then cover pan with aluminum foil, and bake until fully heated—about 20 minutes. Remove foil and brown the cheese for another 5 minutes, then serve. Sour cream and/or guacamole make nice accompaniments, as does a tossed salad or other greens.

Note: The beef filling and sauce can be made ahead and the enchiladas rolled and baked just before serving.

I should tell you that when I asked the butcher at QFC about using blade steaks, as directed by Cook’s Illustrated, he told me, “No, no, no! You don’t want to have to be messing around boning out meat for this—just use a flatiron or flank steak and cut it against the grain before you cook it.” Well, I took his advice and was not sorry, though I did have to chop the meat before making the enchiladas. Enjoy! This is great comfort food for a cold rainy winter day.