Showgirl Sunday Brunch: Huevos Mexicanos with Chilaquiles and Fresh Guacamole!

So  earlier this week, I got a big-time hankerin' for some Messkin' Food.  Specifically, I was jonesin' for carnitas.  Carnitas is/are basically just Mexican-themed pulled pork.

So Google and I discussed it, and I found a whole slew of recipes, but I was super-duper busy with work so I settled on "crock-pot" carnitas.

Now mind you, I didn't have a pork-roast on-hand (which kinda complicated matters!), so I dashed out to the grocery store before most-of-the-working-world woke-up.  Five bucks and change got me a ~4# bone-in pork shoulder roast.  Perfecto!

Oh, and "while I'm here," let me check the "Cheater's-Seasoning" aisle, and I picked up an envelope of Lawry's Smoky Pork Carnitas seasoning mix (the link is Amazon - pkg of 12 - and yes, I get a wee bit o' spliff if you use it) (but you can pretty-much pick it up at any grocery store, I bet'cha!)

I basically followed the directions on the package, except instead of using a can of tomato paste, I dumped in a 14.5oz can of diced tomatoes with jalapeno peppers, and a smaller (11oz?) can of corn with chipotle peppers.  And I added a teaspoon of Hickory Liquid Smoke to bump-up the smoky flavor.  I ended up with a lot more liquid than I needed  - at the end.  And it was SUPER spicy.  So I poured it off and saved it for Showgirl Sunday Brunch!

Dinner was deeelish (burritos w/mexican rice and refried black beans).  And I ended up with several containers of leftover carnitas!

Okay.  On to today's recipe!

QT's Huevos Mexicanos with Chilaquiles and Fresh Guacamole
Serves two (with lots of leftovers!)

Chilaquiles (which - to me - are basically like a Mexican Lasagna - using soggy tortilla chips in place of pasta) (it tastes a lot better than it sounds - trust me!):

Ingredients:

• Appx half of an 11oz bag of Tortilla Chips (I used a cheap brand of yellow chips)
• 1 smallish red onion, thinly sliced
• 4-5 white mushrooms, sliced
• ~1 cup of leftover carnitas pork
• 1/2 cup of leftover excess sauce from the carnitas
• 1/4 cup cream
• 1/2 can of Bush's Grillin' Beans - Black Bean Fiesta
• 1/2 small (4oz) can of diced green chiles
• Bag of shredded Mexican Blend cheese (Jack+Mild Cheddar+Queso Quesadilla+Asadero)(sadly, my actual measurements are in handfuls - but NO, it didn't take the entire bag!)
• Garnish(es): Fresh Salsa, sour cream, chopped green onion, sliced radishes, cilantro (whatever works!)

Instructions:

1. Preheat your oven to 350*.  Dump a thin layer of tortilla chips in the bottom of an oven-safe baking dish (I used a 9" round disposable aluminum pan).  It's okay if they overlap a bit, and if you can't get them to fit properly, break 'em up a little.
2. Heat-up some oil in a medium frying pan.  Heat-up your leftover carnitas 'til warm.  Then spread the meat somewhat-evenly over the tortilla chips.  Spread a generous handful of cheese on top.
3. Using the same pan, heat-up half-a-cup of your leftover carnitas sauce (or use some kind of spicy mole sauce - or even salsa, if you prefer).  Pour it into a cup, and mix-in 1/4 cup of cream (makes it creamier and helps to dial-back the spiciness a bit).  Set aside for a moment.
4. Again, same pan, saute the sliced onions and shrooms 'til tender (add more oil, if needed).  Then dump in half a can of Bushs Black-Bean Fiesta.  Stir it all together 'til well-mixed and everything is warm.  Dump the onion/shroom/bean mixture on top of the chips/meat/cheese.  Top with more cheese :-)
5. Add another layer of tortilla chips (same rules apply - breakage is fine).  Try to get a good "cover" layer of chips.  Pour the Mole/Sauce/Cream mixture over the whole thing, and top with even MORE cheese (all-told, I think I used roughly 3/4 - 1 cup of shredded cheese).
6. Sprinkle some chopped green chiles (w/liquid), sparingly, over the top.
7. Put the whole thing in the oven 'til the cheese is melted and starting to brown (appx 15-20 minutes).

Guacamole

Ingredients:

• 2 smallish-medium avocados - preferably "somewhat squishy" (but not MUSHY)
• 1-2 TBS sour cream
• 1 tsp "Mexican Seasoning"
• 1 TBS fresh chunky salsa
• spritz of lime juice (optional - helps prevent browning)

Directions:

1. Peel and pit the avocados - hang onto one of the seeds (which also helps prevent browning)
2. Mush 'em with a fork
3. Add sour-cream and seasoning. Mix 'til it reaches your desired consistency (I like mine somewhat chunky - but if you're a smoothie, then by all mean, pop it in a food processor or whatever!)
4. Add salsa to taste and stir it one final time.
5. Put the avocado pit in the middle of your serving dish and it should stay delicious-looking through your meal!

Huevos Mexicanos

Ingredients:

• 6 medium eggs
• 1 TBS cream
• 1 tsp fresh salsa
• a bit of fresh chopped green onion
• 1/4 cup shredded Mexican Blend cheese

Directions:

Ha!  I hope I don't have to tell you how to scramble eggs!  I used the same pan as before, but I cleaned it up first (since I prefer my scrambled eggs to remain mostly yellow).  Scramble the eggs first, then as they approach done-ness, toss in your salsa and onions.  Add the cheese last and stir til everything's nicely mixed.

Serve and Enjoy!

Brought to you by...

The Vegas Showgirls

Enjoying a nice, refreshing dust-bath after a long day of egg-laying!