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Saturday Morning Mole (a (bad) pictorial)

RECIPE:

Chiles:

8 oz ancho chiles, tops removed.

8 oz guajillo chiles, tops removed.

Spices:

12 black peppercorns

6 cloves

1 piece (2 in) cinnamon stick Cinnamon Stick or 2 tsp ground cinnamon Ground Cinnamon

2 tbsp dried Mexican oregano Oregano

Nuts:

2 tbs lard or vegetable oil
1/2 cup sesame seeds

1/2 cup dry-roasted unsalted peanuts

1/2 cup slivered blanched almonds

1/2 cup walnuts or pecans

(I used filberts, almonds, hazelnuts, cashews and peanuts)

Dried Fruit:

1/2 cup golden raisins

1 cup pitted dried prunes, sliced

1 cup pitted dried apricots, sliced

1 cup tequila and a little triple sec or cointreau

Vegetables:

1 head garlic (about 8 cloves), smashed
1 large onion, coarsely chopped

4-6 roma tomatoes

4-6 tomatillos, tops removed, cored

For Pureeing:

4 to 5 cups Caldo de Pollo (en ingles: CHICKEN STOCK, mi amigo!)

To Complete the Dish:

1 1/2 tablets (5-6 ozs) Mexican chocolate, dissolved in water

What I did:

I combined the raisins, prunes and apricots in a bowl and poured warmed cuervo gold and triple sec over them. Let 'em get wasted.

Soak the Fruit in Tequila and Triple Sec

I rinsed the chiles under cold running water, removed seeds, tops and veins. WEAR PROTECTIVE HANDWEAR FOR THIS!! (Like a dummy, I burned my freaking hands and the pain did not cease for a few hours. At least I knew NOT to touch my eyes. Ha!) Boil them and let soak until softened, no more than ten minutes.

Boil the Peppers

(not pictured...was out sick on picture day)

In a pan, roast the tomatoes, tomatillos, and garlic in the oven at about 450 or so while you are preparing the rest of the ingredients. No need to cut them up or anything.

I sauteed the onion, adding a little chicken broth to aid the browning/caramelization. I love this part, as you can tell!

Sauté Onions

Keep Going...

Keep Going...

Mmmm. There. Carmelization Heaven...

I toasted the sesame seeds and cooked them, stirring, just until golden, about 3 to 4 minutes. Then I added the other carnival of legumes. Toast them all.... Set aside. You're ALMOST ready to play with the blender. Almost.

Toast the Sesame Seeds...

Toast Filberts, Cashews, Peanuts...

I studied the chocolate. Here, I encourage you to try some. It's got a very grainy, rough texture. Not anything like a tempered confectioners chocolate. Taste it. I did. I really like it, even by itself... well... its good in milk and with those little mexican animal crackers like a hot chocolate soup... ah, getting sided tracked... FOCUS, kd!

Mexican Chocolate

What it Looks Like

Melted Chocolate...

OK, Line up all the ingredients. Get yer Mise En Place!

Mise En Place

Now, puree ingredients in sequence, working in batches ACCORDING TO THE CAPACITY of your blender and adding chicken stock as necessary to facilitate blending. I have a pretty muscular blender, the motor was designed for abuse. Still, don't burn up the motor. You've got a pulse button. Pretend it says "mole" and use it.

With a medium spoon, poured the puree through a medium-mesh sieve into a bowl; discarded whatever wouldn't go through. Scrape puree into a large, heavy saucepan; rinse out the blender to wash away any hard or fibrous bits.

Pureed the sesame seeds and nuts in several batches with just as much chicken stock as necessary. Help free those blades! Add to chile puree. Puree dried fruit, (now three sheets to the wind, adding a little stock if necessary). I added this to the bowl with chiles and nuts. Puree onion, garlic, tomatoes and tomatillos. Add to other purees in saucepan, along with chocolate. Then I made a pretty leaf design in the bowl and tried to take a nice picture. Emphasis on tried. :(

Before Final Blending...

Blend the whole mix together again. I worked from one big bowl and poured it into a saucepan. Then finally (really! Like an hour later, ha!) I boiled over medium heat, stirring constantly. I reduced the heat to medium-low and simmer, uncovered, stirring often, for 30 minutes. (Are we there yet? This is like driving to Sac from Ohio. A long trip, but worth the drive in the end!)

Holy Molé!

OK. Now I am freezing the mix and now have a base sauce for one of the dishes for the wine dinner next Saturday, a quart to give to my neighbor in a Mason Jar (sorta like how people give away jam, see?) And I am keeping some for a veggie dip for myself. Yes, I dip broccoli in everything. ;)

The End. Love Tolstoy...