Super Bowl Food: Green Chili Empanadas

For the second of my three posts this week on "Super Bowl" food, I'll be sharing a dish representing the Denver Broncos' home state of Colorado.  In the first post of the series, I shared Colorado green chili, which is a popular meal in Broncos country.

That recipe makes calls for two and a half pounds of pork shoulder, so you're bound to have some leftovers.  With regards to the chili world, leftovers aren't a bad thing-- you can stuff them into burritos or just heat up and throw on some rice-- but with the Super Bowl coming up this weekend, you need something economical and tasty to serve your guests.  These green chili empanadas are perfect for that.

Not only are the ingredients for my green chili recipe inexpensive, the only thing left to do is make a little bread, which is dirt cheap.

What's Green, Fragrant, and Consumed All Over Colorado? Chili, Of Course!

Colorado Green Chili w/ Candied Jalapeños, Tortilla Crisps, and Chipotle Pinto Crema

Surprised at the answer in the title?  You shouldn't be.  Green chili ubiquitous across the Centennial State.  What makes this chili so special?  Well, it's all about the chiles.

An Updated Classic: Spanish White Bean Stew

I don't know about you, but I'm a little bit bored of finding the same five to seven tapas at "Spanish" restaurants in the U.S.  If you've been to too many of these places, you might assume Spanish fare has nothing more to offer than tortilla española and patatas bravas.  Nothing could be further from the truth.  A country the size of Texas, Spain has so much regional culinary variation, limiting ourselves to paella and a handful of tired tapas is like saying you've tried Mexican food after only eating at Taco Bell-- it's just plain wrong.

If the chefs at our Spanish restaurants won't step their games up, it's up to us.   With this in mind, I decided to revamp a Spanish classic that much like the region it comes from, is well-known in Spain, but relatively obscure to the rest of the world.

Eat Your Veggies - Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Crispy Spanish Chorizo

Even though Brussels sprouts are the runt of the cruciferous vegetable family, these miniature cabbage pack a potent dose of vitamins C and K, as well as cancer fighting properties such as sinigrin, much like the rest of their relatives (broccoli, kale, collards, etc).

Some people despise Brussels sprouts because they've only ever eaten them boiled, which renders the beautifully nutty veggie into a dark and mushy, organic sulfur bomb.  If you fall into that category, consider this a sprout rehabilitation, as you have not really tried a Brussels sprout, but some dastardly perversion.  Not only will we keep a lot more of the nutrients and beneficial compounds of the plant by roasting, you'll  be equipped with a foolproof way of preparing delicious, sweet Brussels sprouts appropriate for casual family dinners, as well as the most formal of dining occasions.

Dig into... Some Tonkatsu

Modern Japan isn't merely a country where East meets West.  The Land of the Rising Sun's story is more a case where East thought West was chou kawaii but after running through a couple different Western suitors (Portugal and Holland), East gave up on all foreigners and went totally asexual for a couple hundred years before that Chandler guy made them start airing Friends episodes in English... Yeah, that sounds right*.

Anyway, East finally settled on a handsome Western suitor who had the traits of a myriad of Western states, including Amurrica and Germany, to make 126 million homogenous children.  Here's where I tell you how this all relates to tonkatsu.

A Better Egg (for Wraps and Sandwiches)

How many times have you sunk your teeth into a breakfast burrito and taken out half the bacon on the first bite?  Worse yet, how many times have you finished all of the bacon before the wrap is done?  Whether it be a fried egg and bacon on a burger or bagel, if you incorporate bacon directly into the whites, you're guaranteed to have crispy porky goodness in every bite.

Wild Boar Ravioli

Ravioli are one of my favorite foods of all time.  I understand (and sympathize) if you have Celiac's, but you just can't trust someone who doesn't enjoy a well-prepared dish of pasta-- especially pasta that's been stuffed full of homemade ricotta and mouthwatering wild boar.  

Espinacas con Garbanzos: Because Spinach and Chickpeas Doesn't Have the Same Ring to It

While the name in English is anything but sexy, the taste of this tapa I greatly enjoyed from my time in Spain greatly exceeds the mundane Anglophonic title.  Though spinach and chickpeas might garner a lukewarm reaction from dinner guests, espinacas con garbanzos is sure to excite the Spanish and non-Spanish speaker alike-- granted, once you've tried the dish, the English name will do just fine.