Stuffed Poblanos with Black Beans, Spinach and Several Cheeses

Four forest green, firm and satiny Poblanos arrived in our CSA box on Friday. They were so beautiful they demanded special treatment. I scoured the internet and my cookbooks for recipes and while I found many tempting dishes, nothing called out to be made. Most recipes were for stuffed peppers and I also found a recipe for spinach, goat cheese and poblano lasagna which I vaguely remembered being told was not very good. With these examples rattling around in my head I went for a bike ride and inspiration struck (although not at Inspiration Point). I had a vision combining the best of the lasagna and stuffed peppers, and the nascent recipe satisfied my requirement of using, for the most part, what I already had at the house: tons of tomatoes from my farmer's market spree, cilantro and jack cheese from last weeks' quesedillas, ricotta from last week's lasagna, oregano I had picked up for the gratin a la myriam I was making for a Sunday party as well as onions and garlic from the box. Because I started with dried black beans, the total time spent was long, but there wasn't too much much active time. Perfectly fine for a lazy Saturday afternoon/evening.

Black Bean and Spinach Stuffed Poblanos with Tomato Sauce

for the beans:
1/2 cup of dried or 1 can of black beans
1 small onion, chopped
4 cloves of garlic, minced
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp ground corriander
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
1/2 tsp chipotle or other spicy powdered chile
6 cups of water if you are using dried, 1/2 cup if canned
1 bay leaf

for the cheese/spinach filling
1/2 cup ricotta
1 cup (packed) spinach
1.5 tbsp chopped fresh oregano (1 tsp dried)
juice of 1 meyer lemon or 1/2 regular lemon

for the tomato sauce:
4 medium to large tomatoes, diced
3 minced cloves of garlic
2 tbsp olive oil
scant 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

Additionally:
4 poblano chiles
2 tortillas
few oz jack cheese
ricotta salata (optional)

If you are using dried beans bring beans and water to a hard boil for 1 minute, take off the stove, let sit for 1 hr. Drain off the water, add another 6 cups and the bay leaf and simmer for 1.5 hrs. For both dried and canned: Saute the onions over medium heat until soft and translucent, then add the garlic, cumin, corriander and oregano. Cook for another couple of minutes. If using dried beans, add to the beans and simmer until the beans are soft and the liquid has thickened, about another 1.5 hrs. If using canned beans, add the beans and 1/2 cup of water and cook until the beans are soft and the flavors have melded, this probably only takes a few minutes. Once the beans are to a texture you like, add the vinegar and pepper and add salt to taste. Beans are done.

While the beans are cooking you can make the tomato sauce. Heat the olive oil in a sauce pan over medium heat and add the garlic. Cook for a minute then add the tomatoes and cook, stirring occasionally, until the tomatoes have broken down and the sauce has thickened. This can take up to 20 min. When the sauce is near the consistency you like, add the cilantro. I think that oregano would also be a great choice of herb. Tomato sauce is done.

Now, onto the ricotta filling. Blanch the spinach in a pot of boiling salted water for one minute then dump into a collander and let the liquid drain out. Transfer to a cutting board and chop roughly. In a bowl mix the ricotta with lemon juice and the oregano. Add the spinach and stir, salting to your taste. I'm not a big ricotta fan, so that's why I've put a lot of extra flavors in this. If I didn't need to use up the ricotta I might've used goat cheese thinned with a little cream, which is what the lasagna recipe used. I think it would've give the dish a slightly more assertive flavor.

At some point you need to roast the poblanos. Turn on the broiler and broil them till the skin is blacked on all sides, about 8 min, turning them once. You can also do this over a gas flame if you have it. Immediately transfer the charred peppers to a bowl and cover with a plate. Let them sit for 20 minutes then slide the skin off them.

While you are letting the peppers sit you can make the tortillas by brushing both sides with olive oil then sprinkling one side with some of the grated jack cheese. You then put them under the broiler. I recommend putting them on a wire rack and then on a pan or putting the wire rack driectly on top of the oven rack and putting a pan on a lower oven rack to catch any melted cheese. This way the bottom side does not get soft. Take them out after 3-4 minutes and put cool them on a wire rack before cutting into four pieces.

Now you need to assemble the poblanos. Preheat the oven to 400F. Take each pepper and cut off the top 1/3rd lengthwise, being careful not to tear the delicate skin. Remove the seeds gently and put them onto a lighly oiled baking dish. Fill halfway with the ricotta mixture and the other half with the beans. My poblanos were small so I could only fit two layers, but if I had larger ones I would've filled them with 1/3rd ricotta, 1/3 beans, 1/3 tomato sauce. Put the top back on the chiles then sprinkle with some jack. Put in the oven for 10 min till the cheese is melted and the peppers are heated through.

Arrange two plates on the counter and split the tomato sauces between them. Ladle any remaining beans into the center then lay the poblanos on top. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese and grated ricotta salata, if you have it. Serve with the tortillas and enjoy the product of your hard work!

Whew I'm exhausted just from writing that!