Enfrijoladas

2 cups dried black beans
2 avocado leaves
2 pasilla de Oaxaca chiles
5 cloves garlic, divided
1 cup oil, divided
1 onion, chopped
18 corn tortillas
1/2 cup crumbled queso fresco
1 bunch cilantro, leaves only, for garnish
1/2 onion, sliced, for garnish
1 1/4 cups (10 ounces) chorizo sausage, casing removed

Rinse beans, place in saucepot and cover with 3 cups water, remove any beans that float and heat slowly to a simmer. with water.



Toast avocado leaves and chiles in skillet over high heat until fragrant, no more than 30 seconds. Set aside. Remove chiles to bowl of hot water, soak until softened, about 10 minutes. Drain.



Add 1/4 cup of chorizo and 1/2 onion to beans, partially cover. Simmer over medium to medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until beans are fully tender, 1 1/2 to 2 hours. If you see beans peeking up through liquid, add water to cover them by 1/2 inch.



In small skillet, cook remaining 1 cup of chorizo over medium-low heat until done, about 10 minutes, breaking up any clumps as it cooks. Drain off fat, cover skillet and keep warm over very low heat.



Blend beans along with chiles and 2 garlic cloves well until puréed, working in batches and adding water or salt, if necessary.



Heat 1/4 cup of oil in large skillet over medium heat. Add 1/4 onion onion and 3 cloves garlic and cook until lightly browned, 3 to 4 minutes. Discard onion and garlic. Add blended bean mixture and enough water (use bean cooking water, if any remains) to thin to consistency of enchilada sauce, cooking until blended and heated through.



Set up steamer (a vegetable steamer in a large saucepan filled with 1/2 inch of water works well); heat to boil. Wrap tortillas in heavy kitchen towel, lay in steamer and cover with tight lid. Boil 1 minute, turn off heat and let stand without opening steamer for 15 minutes.



Heat remaining 3/4 cup oil in skillet to 350 degrees. Fold tortillas in quarters and fry, one at a time, for a few seconds each side. Do not allow them to become crisp. Drain on paper towels.



To serve:



Place folded tortillas, a few at a time, in bean mixture just until softened. Do not let them soak too long or they will dissolve.



Place tortillas on plate, spoon additional sauce over them, top with chorizo, cheese, slices of onion, and cilantro.





Advance Preparation: The black beans can be prepared through Step 1 several days ahead; the chorizo can be cooked, too. Store separately in the refrigerator, covered. Reheat the sauce slowly in a covered pan, thinning if necessary. Warm the chorizo before heating the tortillas and finishing the dish.

Shortcuts: Though the flavor and color won’t be as nice, the beans could be replaced with 2 drained 15-ounce cans of black beans.



VARIATIONS AND IMPROVISATIONS: The avocado leaf (or fennel) could easily be omitted or replaced with 2 or 3 canned chipotles en adobo or toasted-and-soaked red-black chipotles or chiles pasillas oaxaqueños (in fact, with the chipotle or pasilla oaxaqueño you won’t really miss the chorizo--either in the beans or on the top). Spooning soft goat cheese onto the tortillas before folding them makes the dish more substantial (you can omit the cheese garnish, if you wish). Bacon, ham or other sausage can replace chorizo; enfrijoladas are also delicious splashed with Roasted Tomatillo-Chipotle Salsa. In short, with bean sauce and tortillas as a base, you can vary toppings (or fillings) as you like.




Number of Servings: 6

Recipe submitted by SparkPeople user NARCISA.