Chile con Queso

Lunch time, and off to find a new and different taste sensation. There is a “Mexican Resturant”, not far from my office I have been meaning to try, and had hopes that it may just fit my taste-buds today.

Sadly, this was NOT destined to happen, seems I am back in the land of the culinaryily clueless.. I expected Chile con Queso, not pepper jack processed cheese spread, heated over in a microwave…

The “Quesadilla Grande” should be a bit more than the aforementioned insult to peppers and cheese, with a spread of, I’ll call it “sala”, and a spoonful of black beans on a stale tortilla, microwaved until it glowed…

And while processed cheese is just “Oil Field Trash”, in its melted state it is good stuff, the stuff of my youth. But when a restaurant serves queso, you hope for something more sophisticated. Some places serve something they call queso compuesto, or “queso and other good things”—good things could be a scoop of beans or fajita meat also added to the dip.

While I have eaten MANY bowls of cheese spread and jalapenos poured over tortilla chips, I really have a urge to make a real Chili con Queso with real peppers and real cheese, and have it taste as good or better than the rectangular brick of cheese food.

Once I do that, an outstanding Quesadilla is within my grasp. One can also enjoy this with tortilla chips, or one can brown up some chorizo and mix it in.

Preparation:

1. Foam out butter over medium low heat
2. Fry Cumin Seeds until aromatic (~60 sec)
3. Add onion, peppers, and saute unitl onions are translucent, (~5 minutes)
4. Add garlic and saute until aromatic, (~60 sec)
5. Whisk in flour and cook ~ 60 sec
6. Add milk and whisk until thickened, (~5 minutes)
7. Stir in Tomatoes and Herbs
8. Add Cheese in batches (~1/4 cup), stir each batch until melted
9. Add sour cream and stir to integrate
10. Serve in warmed bow, with tortilla chips

(Similar to a warmed pasta bowl)

This can be used as a sauce for Enchiladas, a filling for Quesadillas, as a topping for Nachos, or as above, a dip, layered with tortillas, peppers and beans in a crepas con queso y chiles

One can also thin with a beer / broth and serve as a cheese soup, with crusty bread …