CTN: Matzoh Brei and Chilaquiles

Although I made the Matzoh Brei more than a week ago, I have not had an opportunity to write about it until now. Busy times.

I had eaten Matzoh Brei before, because our office used to be down the street from a Jewish deli where I occasionally ate. Nothing ever looked good to me on the menu, except Matzoh Brei. I had never made it before, and never really thought about how it was put together. Soaking the Matzoh was a bit of a surprise to me. As was the ENORMOUS amount of butter. Yikes! Six tablespoons. As you can see, that more than coats the bottom of the pan.

 The rest of the dish was really just scrambled eggs, with a little more sitting than scrambling. While I was making the Matzoh Brei, Natalie commented on the fact that this dish was a bit like Chilaquiles. She was actually not thinking about Chilaquiles, but about a breakfast dish that Pete makes from time to time when he adds fried tortilla strips to scrambled eggs. But once she said Chilaquiles, I couldn't get them out of my head.

 Since I followed the recipe, there wasn't really enough food for four people. I ate mine with black pepper, sea salt, and a drizzle of honey--per the recipe. It was really good that way, something which surprised me. Natalie, Cassandra, and Pete all tried different varieties. I believe most of them involved hot sauce.

After we had all tasted the Matzoh Brei, I decided that I would make Chilaquiles to round out the meal. Here is my recipe for Chilaquiles:

1 large can of tomatoes (I didn't have this. So I used 3 slightly squishy tomatoes and about half a jar of pasta sauce. Similar, right?)
2-3 chipotles in adobo (I like it to be spicy--3 is almost incendiary)
1/2 onion
About 2 garlic cloves

Blend all of this in the blender until smooth.

Take some corn tortillas (I used about 8-9), cut them into wedges (eighths), and fry them until they are almost like a chip, but not quite.

Throw the fried tortillas and the sauce into a large pan (I use a saucepan because the sauce bubbles and makes a big mess when I use a frying pan). Cook until the chips and the sauce become one. Eat sprinkled with Cotija cheese.

Oh yeah--and don't forget the fried egg on top. Or leftover Matzoh Brei.