I love mexican food, I love black beans and I especially love goat cheese so I had to try this recipe. I substituted our Spicy Jalapeno Goat Cheese for regular goat cheese and it gave this recipe a nice “kick” The recipe is time consuming but well worth it. Serves 6

From Gourmet Magazine 2002

INGREDIENTS:

For chiles
12 medium to large fresh poblano chiles (2 1/4 lb)

For tomato sauce
1 (14- to 16-oz) can whole tomatoes including juice
3 large garlic cloves, chopped
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1/4 teaspoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt, or to taste
2 tablespoons olive oil

For goat cheese sauce
1 cup heavy cream
2 teaspoons dried epazote* (optional)
8 oz soft mild goat cheese
1/4 teaspoon salt, or to taste

For spinach filling
4 (3/4-lb) bunches spinach, coarse stems discarded
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 cup raisins
1/4 teaspoon salt, or to taste

To assemble dish
3 tablespoons olive oil
6 (6-inch) corn tortillas, halved
1 cup cooked black beans, rinsed and drained if canned

Special equipment: a 2- to 2 1/2-quart shallow flameproof casserole dish (about 2 inches deep; not glass)
Garnish with toasted pine nuts

Prepare chiles:
Lay 4 chiles on their sides on racks of gas burners and turn flames on high. Roast chiles, turning with tongs, until skins are blackened and chiles are tender, 4 to 6 minutes. (Or broil all 12 chiles on rack of a broiler pan about 2 inches from heat, turning, until skins are blackened, 8 to 10 minutes.) Transfer immediately to a large bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Roast remaining 8 chiles in same manner, then let stand 20 minutes.

When cool enough to handle, peel chiles, then open flat and discard seeds and stems, wiping with paper towels or dunking in a bowl of water briefly, if necessary, to remove seeds. If chiles taste very spicy, cut out ribs with scissors to make them milder.

Make tomato sauce:
Purée tomatoes with juice, garlic, cilantro, sugar, and salt in a blender. Heat oil in a 10-inch nonstick skillet over moderate heat until hot but not smoking, then add sauce (be careful of splattering) and simmer, stirring, until thickened and reduced to about 1 cup, about 6 minutes.

Make goat cheese sauce:
Gently simmer cream, with epazote if using, in a small heavy saucepan, covered, 10 minutes. If using epazote, pour cream through a fine-mesh sieve into a bowl, pressing on and discarding epazote. Return cream to pan. Whisk in goat cheese and salt and heat over low heat, whisking until smooth.

Make spinach filling:
Blanch spinach in batches in a large pot of boiling salted water 1 minute, transferring with a slotted spoon to a large bowl of cold water to cool. Drain in a colander, pressing on spinach with back of a spoon to remove excess water, then coarsely chop.

Heat oil in cleaned nonstick skillet over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking, then sauté spinach and raisins, stirring, 2 minutes. Stir in salt and transfer filling to a plate.

Fry tortillas and assemble dish:
Preheat oven to 350°F.

Heat oil in cleaned nonstick skillet over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking, then fry tortillas 2 halves at a time, turning over once, until just crisp, about 1 minute total. Transfer tortillas to paper towels to drain.

Spread 1/4 cup tomato sauce over bottom of casserole dish. Arrange half of tortillas on top, then spread another 1/4 cup tomato sauce on top and sprinkle evenly with black beans. Arrange 4 poblanos flat over black beans to cover, then spread half of spinach filling evenly over chiles and drizzle with 1/4 cup goat cheese sauce. Make another layer with 4 chiles, remaining spinach filling, and another 1/4 cup of goat cheese sauce, then cover with remaining 4 chiles.

Cover chiles with remaining tomato sauce, spreading evenly, then top with remaining tortillas. Cover tortillas with remaining goat cheese sauce, spreading evenly.

Bake lasagne, covered with foil, in middle of oven until bubbling and heated through, 25 to 30 minutes.

Preheat broiler. Remove foil and broil about 3 inches from heat until top is bubbling and beginning to brown, about 2 minutes.

Cooks’ notes:
• Chiles can be roasted and peeled 1 day ahead and chilled, covered.
• Tomato sauce, goat cheese sauce, and spinach filling can be made 1 day ahead and chilled separately, covered. Reheat goat cheese sauce before proceeding.
• Lasagne can be assembled (but not baked) 1 hour ahead and kept, covered, at room temperature.

4 Cheese Assortment with Insulated Travel Pack

Summer is a great time to get out with friends and enjoy the beautiful weather, especially for some al fresco dining. If you’re planning on some travelling and want to spread out some gourmet cheeses, we’ve packed four of our summer favorites into this signature igourmet.com insulated travel bag. This is ideal for trips to the park, the beach, or even out of town. This sampler includes a cheddar, blue, swiss, and goat cheeses, providing enough contrasting flavors and textures to allow everyone to find a favorite! We’ve also included some mini toasts, for those who enjoy some crunch with their cheese.

This assortment includes:

Murray Bridge Cheddar: This gold medal award winning cheddar, aged for a year, hails from Australia. This all natural cheddar, made from pasteurized cow’s milk is one of our new favorites. (8 oz)

Atalanta Blue: Atalanta is the Greek goddess of hunt, travel, and adventure. The name Atalanta is thus appropriate for this new blue cheese from Wisconsin. It’s a bold cheese that took several years to perfect. Enjoy it crumbled over salads, stirred into sauces, or on crackers. (8 oz.)

Nazareth: A fine match for a glass of Leffe, Nazareth comes from the makers of Oud Brugge. It is a Maasdam style wheel, complete with a buttery, nutty mild flavor and impressive eye formation. (8 oz)

Classic Chevre by Vermont Butter and Cheese: Vermont Chèvre has earned an honored place among chefs and consumers alike. Distinguished by a simple, mild, fresh goat’s milk flavor, the cheese is highly versatile - an excellent ingredient in many dishes as well as on its own. (4 oz)

Insulated Travel Bag: Inscribed with the igourmet insignia, this insulated travel bag is perfect for transporting your cheeses safely in summer weather.

Mini Toast: Perfect for elegant canapés and delicious snacks, you will love these little toasts from Holland. (0.9 oz.)

Crossing Pairs With igourmet.com at Mohegan Sun Casino in Pocono Downs
 
Crossing Vineyards Wine and Cheese Shop is one of only six retail outlets selected for “Project Sunrise,” a $208 million, 300,000 square-foot gaming and entertainment complex at Pocono Downs. Among the shop’s offerings will be multi-level flights of wine and cheese, paired to complement the flavors of each. Customers can build their own pairings, based on their cheese preferences, with wine suggested by a staff knowledgeable about both products.”Crossing Vineyards and igourmet.com are the perfect pairing, two Pennsylvania based companies that value quality and service,” says Christine Carroll, one of the owners of Crossing Vineyards.

Crossing will feature a wide range of its award-winning wines - they’ve earned nearly 70 prizes in national and international competitions - including limited quantities of its Library Wine Series, which has been held in reserve. Quality wine accessories, Reidel glassware, wine gifts such as decanters and wine bags, wine books, games, wine-related dishes and giftware, and seasonal gift items such as wine-themed Santas also will be available.

The wine and cheese shop will also offer igourmet.com’s line of gourmet food products exclusively. Headquartered in West Pittston, Pa., igourmet.com is the nation’s leading online gourmet food and gift retailer. Lauded by Forbes magazine as the best gourmet food Web site for the past seven years, its product line includes more than 850 imported and domestic specialty cheeses along with an award-winning line of exquisite gifts baskets.

INGREDIENTS:

Serves 6 to 8
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 chicken (about 3 pounds), cut into 8 pieces
1 tablespoon ground ginger
2 teaspoons ground turmeric
1 teaspoon ground allspice
1 tablespoon smoked paprika
1/8 teaspoon saffron threads
1 large onion, chopped
2 tablespoons minced garlic
3 cups low-sodium chicken stock
2 tablespoons finely diced preserved lemon
1 cup pitted black Kalamata olives
Sea salt and freshly ground pepper
1/4 cup loosely packed cilantro leaves, finely chopped

DIRECTIONS: 

1. In a Dutch oven or a large skillet with a tight-fitting lid, heat oil and butter over high heat. Add the chicken pieces and lightly brown on both sides, about 3 minutes per side. Transfer chicken to a plate and reduce heat to a medium-low.

2. Add the ginger, turmeric, allspice, paprika, and saffron to the skillet and cook for 30 seconds stirring constantly. Add the onion and garlic and cook for 3 minutes more stirring occasionally.

3. Return to the chicken skillet. Add the stock and preserved lemon; stir well. Cover and cook over medium-low heat for about 30 minutes, or until chicken is cooked through.

4. Turn off heat, add the olives, and season with salt and pepper to taste. Stir, replace cover and let rest fro 5 minutes.

3:30…The time I dread every day. The afternoon crash. I need my coffee! Lets take a look at some of the varieties I can choose from. Quick! Before I nod off.

Zambia Premium Estate Coffee Zambia is a landlocked country in Southern Africa surrounded by Angola, Congo, Tanzania, Mozambique, Zimbabwe and Namibia. The finest Zambian coffee is grown in the northern district of the Muchinga Mountains within the regions of Nakonde, Isoka and Kasama and near the vicinity of the capital city of Lusaka. Our coffee comes from Lupili Estate, where the first coffee crop was planted in 1982. They have a rotational program that uproots and re-plants each field every seven to eight years, which means that they are always harvesting from young coffee, which is largely disease free. The coffees are all hand picked red cherry, with the same trees being re-picked approximately 10 times over the harvest. The wet method is common in Latin America and parts of Africa and Indonesia. The coffee cherry is depulped (grated-off) by milling machines to expose the green beans. The beans are then soaked and washed in an interconnected system of water channels and reservoirs and dried on patios. The beans are then sorted, graded and bagged.Zambian coffee is often compared to Tanzanian and Kenyan coffee. Lupili Estate is wonderfully acidic coffee with an intense flavor, rich body and a very fragrant and floral aroma with mellow winey overtones.

Jamaican Blue Mountain Coffee Clifton Mount Estate Jamaica’s Blue Mountain coffee has, for more than a hundred years, had the enviable distinction of fetching the highest prices in the world. A quintessential coffee of rich flavor and aroma, full body and moderate acidity, it is deemed by the coffee experts of the world to possess all characteristics in perfect balance in the cup. Clifton Mount Estate is one of the oldest coffee plantations in Jamaica, and it is located in the heart of the Blue Mountains on the slopes of Catherine’s Peak. Coffee was produced at Clifton Mount continuously from the 1790’s until 1950 when a hurricane caused severe damage. After that, the property was allowed to fall into ruins. In 1983, Richard Sharp, eldest son of the present owners, took over the day-to-day operations of the property and began the re-establishment of coffee at Clifton Mount. Early indications were good. J. Martinez & Co.’s founder, John Martinez, encouraged the Sharp family to establish a pulpery so that the coffee could be sold as a single-estate coffee. In 2003/2004, the outturn of the farm was 16,000 boxes of high quality coffee and in March of 2004 construction was completed on the pulpery. In September 2004, Hurricane Ivan, a category five storm, skirted Jamaica’s coast, causing extensive damage which reduced the 2004/2005 crop by more than fifty percent. At a time when most coffee merchants are out-of-stock of Jamaica’s renowned Blue Mountain coffee, J. Martinez & Co. are fortunate not only to have stocks but to introduce to you a new single-estate coffee from one of Jamaica’s oldest coffee plantations.In order to purchase Jamaica’s world famous Blue Mountain coffee, one must apply to the Coffee Industry Board of Jamaica for permission to do so. The applicant is rigorously investigated and, if the findings are suitable, granted the status of “Approved Importer”. Since 1988, J. Martinez & Company has been an approved importer of Jamaica Blue Mountain coffee.

Pine Nuts are the kernels of the stone pine (Pinus pinea), a native of the Mediterranean area. They grow in other parts of the world also, including the American Southwest, where they are a native staple crop of the Pueblo Indians. China and Portugal are the largest exporters. Pine Nuts have a rich but delicate flavor; delicious in dishes as varied as stuffings, fruit salads, and pesto sauce. They may also be ground into a flour suitable for desserts. Eat them raw or roast them lightly in a dry skillet or oven to bring out their flavor.
2 cups fresh basil leaves, packed

PESTO RECIPE 

2 cups fresh basil leaves, packed
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup Olive Oil
3 tablespoons pine nuts
3 garlic cloves, finely minced

Place basil leaves in small batches in food processor and whip until well chopped (do about 3/4 cup at a time). Add about 1/3 the nuts and garlic, blend again.
Add about 1/3 of the Parmesan cheese; blend while slowly adding about 1/3 of the olive oil, stopping to scrape down sides of container.
Process basil pesto it forms a thick smooth paste. Repeat until all ingredients are used, mix all batches together well. Serve over pasta. Basil pesto keeps in refrigerator one week, or freeze for a few months.

Cheeses come in all shapes, sizes and flavors but for every cheese it all starts with the milk. While cow’s milk cheeses are the most well known, cheese lovers demand products made from sheep, goat and buffalo milk as well. Pasteurized or raw, each milk type lends a unique quality to the cheese, so always be certain to include a variety of milks on your cheese tray for hors d’oeuvres and on the cheese plate for dessert.