Chile Rellenos Casserole

Above, the finished casserole. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Since it is now Hatch chile pepper season, I bought a few over the weekend. 

Even though the New Mexico supermarkets now have boxes of them, they will fast disappear.  

Last evening, I made the chile relleno casserole from a recipe I found. This is the third year I've made the casserole.

Above, right after putting to peppers on the grill. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Before getting started, I roasted the chile peppers over the barbecue. This helps with the flavor and makes it a lot easier to peel the skin off of them. 

Above, having a brewski while the peppers roast.

I then put all the ingredients together and baked it at 350°. Needless to say, the casserole came out great.

I have enough to make another batch. After that, it will be it for me this year.

For those of you intrigued enough, here's the recipe:

A Little Trek To Lupton, Arizona

Above, Tee Pee Trading Post yesterday. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Yesterday, I headed over to the Tee Pee Trading Post in Lupton, Arizona (40 miles away) to pick up some stogies. Lupton is at the New Mexico-Arizona border.

Since gasoline is at $3.049/gallon (with my Good Sam discount, I only paid $2.989.gallon at Flying J), it was a good time to go to Lupton.

I am waiting on an order of Olivas and it seems to be delayed, hence the trek. I was able to get $25 discounted from the total at Tee Pee Trading Post as I am a member of their discount program. 

After this, I headed into Gallup for an early dinner at Genaro's. I got the chile rellenos plate. I was able to finish the first one and part of the second one (the chile peppers they use are big, almost twice the size of the ones at Jerry's Cafe). I will finish the second relleno this morning for breakfast. 

Above, yesterday's chile rellenos at Genaro's. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

I noticed a work crew working on the railroad tracks as the site of April's train derailment on the way to Gallup.

I did stop at the market for a few things before heading back home. All in all, it was an enjoyable little ride.

10 Best Regional Foods In The U.S.

Above, New Mexico's red and green chile cuisine made the list at number 3. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Here's one for you foodies out there!

RV Travel has posted a list of the ten best regional foods in the United States. New Mexico's red and green chiles have made the list, as well they should.

They begin it with:

In the video below, the Geography King shares his top 10 picks of the best regional foods in the U.S. Almost every region of the country has a signature dish that defines that area of the country from a culinary perspective.

After traveling the country extensively, these are our host’s personal subjective favorites, listed in reverse order. He also puts in the disclaimer that he has not been to Maine. Trust me when I say that I have, and Maine lobsters and lobster rolls definitely need to be added to this list. In fact, in my opinion, they could be swapped out for the king’s #1 pick (which is a big yuck in my book).

To see what they are and view the video, go here. 

Chile Relleno Casserole

Above, the chile peppers before roasting. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Last year, I made a chile relleno casserole from a recipe posted at a Facebook New Mexico recipe page.

Even though I couldn't Hatch Valley chile pepper then, the ones I used were adequate to the task and the casserole came out delicious.

This year, I was able to get some Hatch Valley chile peppers and made the casserole yesterday afternoon.

I have to say that the casserole came out great, even better than last year's. I first roasted the chile peppers over coals in the barbecue on Monday. That brought out the flavor and made it easier to peel the skin off the peppers.

I have enough left for breakfast and lunch tomorrow.

Here's a look at the casserole:

Above, right out of the oven. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Above, after cooling, avocado slices added. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Above, ready to eat with salsa and sour cream. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Here's the recipe:

Laptop Rebuild

Above, the rebuilt laptop. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

About an hour ago, I returned from home from Gallup after picking up my laptop from the shop and having dinner at Genaro's.

I basically had my computer rebuilt. It got a new hard drive, casing and screen. I was thinking about getting a new laptop, but this was way cheaper.

At Genaro's, I had the two chile rellenos. I ordered the two rellenos plate and ate one there and took the other home for tomorrow's breakfast. Their rellenos are much bigger than the ones at Jerry's Cafe, so it is not unusual for me to bring one home. 

I got home in time before any thunderstorms decide to come into the area. It was starting to get cloudy on the way home. 

Dinner At Jerry's Cafe

Above Jerry's Cafe in Gallup. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

One of the best Mexican restaurants (New Mexico style) in Gallup is Jerry's Cafe. 

The menu has a mix of Mexican and American foods and they are reasonably priced. The restaurant is a small one and quite often there are lines of customers waiting. 

Above, the cheese enchilada and chile relleno combo I had last night. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

I headed there last evening for dinner and it was crowded as usual. But I was able to get a table right away. I was not in the mood for cooking at home after being somewhat cooped up at home due to snow storms, I decided to go to Jerry's.

I decided to try their cheese enchilada and chile relleno combo with red sauce. Red sauce is supposed to be milder than green sauce, but I started sweating after only a few bites. 

Chile Relleno Casserole

A few days ago on Facebook, I shared a recipe for a Chile Relleno Casserole that was posted at New Mexico Cooking. The image above is the finished result from the original post.

A friend's daughter gave the recipe a try last night and her mom said, "It was great!"

So, for you readers who are also foodies, here's the recipe:

I haven't tried it yet, but I will be going to the market either today or Friday to get the ingredients. It is best that I get the chile peppers as we are now in Hatch chile season in New Mexico.

Cocina de Dominguez Mexican Restaurant

Above, the chile rellenos. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Following Larry Lucier's physical therapy session, we headed out for dinner.

We decided to try out a new place, Cocina de Dominguez on Second Street in Gallup. It isn't exactly new to me as I discovered it three years ago and ordered take-out from them twice (chimichangas). They were good, by the way. This was during the height of the pandemic and dine-in at restaurants were verboten at the time. My computer repairer is only a few doors away.

This was the first time we dined there. The restaurant decor was better than average. 

Above, at Cocina de Dominguez. 

I tried out their chile rellenos and the chili peppers were large and loaded with plenty of cheese. The red sauce had a nice kick to them. They were quite good.

I forgot what Larry had, but he was pleased with his meal. He ran into a local silver jewelry artist friends while there. It is typical of small town life where one always manages to run into someone they know.

We will definitely go there again. 

Finally Tried Jerry's Café

Above, inside Jerry's Café. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Finally, at long last, I tried out Jerry's Café in Downtown Gallup. I had wanted to try out their food, but for one reason or another, I just never got there until today.

After picking up Larry Lucier from his physical therapy appointment, we headed over to Jerry's Café. The timing couldn't have been better, The place was packed, but a table able to accommodate Larry's wheelchair was available.

Above, Larry Lucier in front of Jerry's Café. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Since the El Rancho Hotel's restaurant manager decided to eliminate chile rellenos, this was good time to try a new (for me) place. Jerry's had chile rellenos on their menu and, of course, I had to try them out. They were great! Larry had their BLT sandwich. He said they make them "the way I would."

Above, the chile rellenos. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Jerry's Café has been in business in Gallup since the 1970s. It is a small hole-in-the-wall family restaurant, but the food is good (as I confirmed) at reasonable prices. It is usually packed and during the summer, people can be seen waiting for a table in a line that extends out along the sidewalk.

I'll definitely will be going back.

El Rancho Hotel Drops Chile Rellenos From Menu

Above, El Rancho's chile rellenos last April. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Yesterday evening, after picking up Larry Lucier from his physical therapy session, he, Russell Azbill and I headed over to the El Rancho Hotel & Motel for dinner. It had been a few weeks since we were last there.

The menu at the restaurant was unchanged, but when I ordered the chile rellenos (Russell was going to order them too), we were told that they were dropped from the menu, despite them still being listed. The waitress said the restaurant manager decided that they weren't selling enough. 

I ended up getting chicken enchiladas. 

As Larry pointed out, chile rellenos should be considered basic food items along with enchiladas, tacos and burritos at Mexican restaurants, which is what the El Rancho restaurant is. We protested the change, in a humorous way, but we got our point across. It was a dumb move on the restaurant manager's part. They'd sell more if they weren't listed in the back page of the menu.

Larry tried to flag over the restaurant manager several times, but he didn't respond.

Their rellenos, in my opinion, were the best in town. It looks like we'll have to find another place for dinner who has decent chile rellenos. 

Yesterday In Gallup

Above, from left, Russell, yours truly and Larry at El Sombrero Restaurant.

Yesterday, I was in Gallup as I had to take Larry Lucier to his physical therapy session. 

While he was doing that, I had other things to attend to, such as picking up a framed poster that had to have the glass of the frame replaced as it fell and cracked. 

Following that, I headed over to the Gallup indoor flea market on Coal Ave. to browse around. I didn't see anything that I would want, but it was a fun way to pass the time. 

After Larry was done, we headed over to the El Sombrero Restaurant on Historic Route 66 for dinner. This was the first time Larry and I have been there (and Larry has lived in the area 12 years). 

He ordered a burrito with green sauce and I ordered chile rellenos with red sauce. 

While there, we spotted one of our community buddies, Russell Azbill. He had just finished eating and was heading out. We called him over and he sat with us and we had a good conversation on wills, space program, autographs, guitars, guns and other topics. 

On the food, Larry was pleased with his, but I thought mine was just "okay". The rellenos were good but the sauce was disappointing. There was no kick to it. The chips and salsa that was brought after we sat down was mediocre. 

Thus far, this was the most disappointing Mexican restaurant in Gallup. The better ones that I have been to include Genaro's, Don Diego's, El Rancho Hotel's restaurant, Earl's, Cocina De Dominguez and Kiva Café (in Milan-Grants). There's one left in Gallup I have to try: Jerry's Café. It is a small restaurant and usually has a line of people waiting to get in. I've been told that Jerry's Café is one of the best in Gallup.

In Search Of: Tamales

Above, the bag of tamales I found at the market. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

A little while ago, I returned home from my tamale-hunting trek in Gallup.

I contacted Erlinda's Tamale Shop this morning after my Messenger message of yesterday to them went unanswered. 

So, I decided to call them this morning. The owner said they've been closed for 3 months and may open in late January or early February. I then jumped into the car and headed to Gallup. 

After getting home, I found a reply on Messenger from them:

We are currently closed due to lack of employees.

I headed into Gallup to see if I can find tamales that are comparable to Erlinda's. Well, I didn't. But I did find some that look like they'd be okay, but there's an added bonus. I found some pre-made chile rellenos.  

Above, the chile rellenos I found at the market. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Since I love chile rellenos, I decided to buy a package and try them out tonight.

Busy Day

Above, at Cabela's today. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Finally, I am done doing what I needed to do while in Albuquerque.

The day began looking for a gizmo for the motorhome. I went to La Mesa RV, Auto Zone and Camping World and none had the right size. I'll have to order one from Lichtsinn RV.

Then, I headed into Albuquerque for a haircut. I was first in line and was able to get done almost right away.

Above, chile rellenos from Los Forasteros Mexican Restaurant. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Following that, I decided to have an early lunch at Los Forasteros Mexican Restaurant. I tried out their chile rellenos, which were quite good.

After lunch, I headed to where the dentist office is, but before heading there, went over to Cabela's to do some shopping and browsing (mainly browsing). They are only a half mile down the street from the dentist's office and had an hour and a half to kill before my appointment time.

I did buy a box of 30-30 Winchester ammo for my Winchester 98 rifle. It was a little high in price, but I bought a box anyway. Be prepared!

I was in and out of the dentist office in about an hour. 

After making a stop at Love's Travel Center to pick up some munchies, I was in for the night.