Huevos rancheros for a crowd
Since moving to New Hampshire, we have unfortunately moved farther away from some of our family and friends. The great thing though, is this area is full of things to do and we love opening up our home to guests. I really enjoy being a hostess and I firmly believe that it doesn't have to be all that hard or stressful, at least food wise :)
One great way to ease the stress of meal preparation for a crowd is to do as much ahead of time as you can. This way, the morning of, when people wake up hungry, you don't have to spend tons of time running around in the kitchen. This recipe was another great example of how to achieve this. I didn't cook the entire dish ahead of time and just reheat (eggs don't reheat the best anyway), but I was able to prepare the components so putting it together in the morning was a breeze.
I must say though, in my excitement of having Jamie and Natasha over for breakfast, I didn't snap the best picture of the meal. It looked great in the Le Creuset pot...you'll just have to trust me :)
The only thing I would change is to cook it less - the egg yolks were cooked through and I would have preferred them to be a bit runny. It all depends on how you like your eggs though - it still tasted good with the yolks cooked all the way, but I think it would have been even better a few minutes less done. Either way, you'll impress your guests and you only have about 15 minutes of prep in the morning. More time for relaxing with your favorites!
Huevos rancheros for a crowd
Adapted from The Smitten Kitchen Cookbook
Time: Prep: 45 minutes; cooking the morning of: 15 minutes
Level: Easy
Ingredients
Ranchero sauce:
1 jalapeño, seeded
2 14.5 ounce cans of fire roasted, crushed tomatoes
1 medium onion, chopped
Salt and ground black pepper, to taste
15-ounce can of cooked black beans, rinsed and drained
Crisp tortilla chips:
2 tablespoons olive oil
4 small (6 inch) corn tortillas
Kosher salt, to taste
Lime cream:
Juice and zest of 1 lime
1 cup sour cream
Kosher salt, to taste
1 1/4 cups shredded pepper jack cheese
12 large eggs
1 avocado, sliced
Directions
The day before:
Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
Make ranchero sauce: taste your jalapeño for heat (they really can range in heat; mine, I used the whole thing but removed the seeds) and toss it into a blender. Add the tomatoes, onion, and several pinches of salt and grinds of pepper and blend until smooth. Pour into a Dutch oven, add the black beans and bring to a simmer. Cook for 10 minutes, until everything has reduced slightly. Pour into a container and put in the fridge until the next morning.
Make tortilla strips while the ranchero sauce simmers: brush a baking sheet with 1 tablespoon olive oil. Cut the tortillas into 1/2-inch wide strips and place them on the sheet. Brush the tortilla strips with the other tablespoon of olive oil. Sprinkle with kosher salt. Bake for 3-6 minutes - you want them to be brown and crisp; turn them over once if you need to. When cooled, place in a container or resealable plastic bag until you need them the next day.
Make lime cream: in a small bowl, combine the lime juice, lime zest, sour cream, and salt. Refrigerate until needed the next day.
Shred the pepper jack cheese and keep in a container in the fridge.
The morning of:
Rewarm the ranchero sauce in the Dutch oven. Once it comes up to a simmer, take the pan off the heat and crack in the eggs across the surface of the sauce as evenly as you can. Return to the heat, cover the pan, and gently simmer the eggs over medium low to low heat for roughly 10-12 minutes (I did 12 and that was too much; I'd recommend checking around 10 and make sure the heat isn't on too high). You want the egg whites to be nearly opaque, but not completely. Turn on your broiler on high. Sprinkle the surface with cheese and broil until the cheese is nice and bubbly (just takes a few minutes).
Serve with the lime cream, broken up pieces of tortilla strips, and avocado slices. And if you're insane, cilantro.
Mangia!