Goaty Queso Fundido Food

QUESO FUNDIDO WITH CHORIZO

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place a skillet over medium heat, add the oil if using. Most Mexican chorizos have enough fat and won't need the vegetable oil. Add the chorizo and cook, stir frequently to cook evenly and avoid it from sticking to the bottom. It'll take about 6-7 minutes to cook.
• Once cooked, remove the excess fat from the skillet or place the cooked chorizo over a paper towel to absorb the fat.
• Place the chorizo in an oven proof dish, setting aside 2 tablespoons to garnish when ready to serve. I divided the chorizo and cheese into 2 small clay pots, but you can use a large oven proof dish.
• Place the grated cheese over the chorizo and bake for about 10-12 minutes or until the cheese is melted and bubbling. Do not overcook or it will have a chewy texture.
• Remove form oven and place over a heat proof surface. Serve warm with salsa and plenty of flour tortillas or tortilla chips.

QUESO FUNDIDO

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Cook the chorizo in a large cast-iron skillet over medium heat, breaking up the meat with a wooden spoon as it renders, about 5 minutes. Add the onion, serrano and garlic and continue cooking until the chorizo is crisp and the onion is translucent, 5 to 7 minutes. Remove the mixture from the skillet and transfer to a bowl. Toss the cheeses with the flour in a separate bowl.
• Add the beer to the skillet, stirring and scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the skillet. Whisking constantly, add the cheese mixture a little bit at a time, whisking until smooth and well blended. Stir in the beans, chiles and chorizo mixture.
• Place the skillet in the oven and cook until the queso is hot and bubbly, about 5 minutes. Garnish with scallions and tomato and serve with tortilla chips.

QUESO FUNDIDO

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• In a 9-inch cast-iron skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the chorizo and cook, crumbling it as you go, until browned and cooked through.
• Remove the chorizo from the skillet and drain it on paper towels (chorizo is very greasy!). Pour off any excess fat from the skillet.
• Without cleaning the skillet, add the onion and bell peppers.
• Cook the veggies over medium-high heat, stirring frequently, until they brown and soften, about 5 minutes. Turn off the heat and stir in the tequila, if using. Turn the heat back on to medium-high and cook until the vegetables are golden brown and the liquor has reduced, 2 to 3 minutes more. Remove the vegetables from the skillet and set them aside. Turn off the heat.
• Mix the cheeses together, then cover the bottom of a medium ovenproof skillet with one-third of the cheese mixture . . .
• Add one-third of the vegetables . . .
• And one-third of the chorizo.
• Continue with two more layers, ending with chorizo. Sprinkle the top with chili powder.
• Bake until the cheese is totally melted, hot, and slightly bubbling around the edges, 4 to 5 minutes. Watch it constantly, as you don't want the cheese to get overly melted and hard. But you want it to be sizzling!
• Top with the tomatoes, a sprinkle of kosher salt, and the cilantro.
• Serve immediately with tortilla chips . . .
• Or carrot sticks and cauliflower florets if you want to avoid chips!

GOAT CHEESE QUESO FUNDIDO (FONDUE)

Steps:

• Bring the wine to a simmer in a double boiler. Add the mozzarella and goat's milk cheddar, then stir until melted. Add the remaining ingredients and cook for 5 minutes. Place in a fondue pot and serve with jicama slices and tri-color corn chips.

QUESO FUNDIDO WITH ROASTED POBLANO VINAIGRETTE

Steps:

• Make the vinaigrette: Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Put the poblanos on a baking sheet and roast, turning, until browned, about 15 minutes. Transfer to a bowl, cover and let sit 5 minutes. Peel the poblanos with your fingers, then halve, seed and roughly chop.
• Combine the roasted poblanos, vinegar, garlic, honey, canola oil and 2 tablespoons water in a blender; puree until smooth. Season with salt and pepper.
• Make the queso fundido: Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat; add the flour and cook, whisking, 1 minute. Whisk in the milk and cook, whisking, until slightly thickened, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the monterey jack. Add 1/4 teaspoon salt, and pepper to taste. Turn on the broiler.
• Scrape the cheese mixture into an 8-inch cast-iron pan and arrange the goat cheese rounds on top. Broil until golden brown in spots. Drizzle with the vinaigrette and sprinkle with the cilantro. Serve with tortilla chips.

GOATY QUESO FUNDIDO

Steps:

• Set oven rack about 6 inches from the heat source and preheat the oven's broiler.
• Blend chiles with juices, garlic, vinegar, honey, pinch salt, and pinch black pepper in a blender until smooth.
• Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Whisk flour into into butter and stir until mixture is thick and flour cooks slightly, about 2 minutes. Slowly pour milk into butter-flour mixture, whisking constantly, until mixture thickens and is just beginning to bubble, 3 to 5 minutes. Add 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon black pepper; remove from heat.
• Stir pepperjack cheese into milk mixture until cheese is melted and mixture is smooth. Pour cheese sauce into a baking dish; spread goat cheese slices over the sauce.
• Bake in the preheated oven until dip is golden and bubbling, 3 to 5 minutes. Drizzle chile sauce over the hot dip.