Baked Chilaquiles with Black Beans and Kale

Name: Baked Chilaquiles with Black Beans and Kale
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 40 min
Total time: 60 min
Ingredients: 10 (6") corn tortillas, cut into sixths; a few tablespoons light cooking oil (such as sunflower); sea or kosher salt, as needed; 1 (16-ounce) jar red enchilada sauce (I use Sweet Creek's medium sauce); 1/2 a small yellow onion, peeled and thinly sliced; 1 bunch of kale, stems removed and torn into large pieces; 1 (14-ounce) can black beans, drained, rinsed, and drained again; 4-6 large eggs; 1/2 cup packed, grated mild melting cheese such as jack or goat gouda; chevre, feta, or cotija cheese, crumbled; cilantro leaves; lime wedges; salsa; 1 or 2 ripe avocados, sliced; sour cream or thick, whole milk yogurt

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Baked tortilla chips slathered in enchilada sauce, black beans, and sauteed kale and topped with eggs, avocado, salsa, and cheese makes a satisfying twist on traditional chilaquiles.

I was first introduced to chilaquiles, tortilla chips sauteed in red chile sauce, as a hangover cure when I worked as a server at a Santa Cruz restaurant during college. Though I never tested this theory (I rarely want to eat anything at all when I’m hungover, least of all spicy, greasy chips) I did develop a fondness for the chilaquiles served at the Ferry Building Farmer’s Market in San Francisco. Market-goers line up around the block for an order of Primavera’s thick, handmade tortillas fried into chips and slathered with red sauce and fried eggs.

Chilaquiles popped into my head when my friend Amelia dropped by for brunch the other day. I had a jar of enchilada sauce in the cupboard, a new bag of Rancho Gordo tortillas, a bunch of kale, and a can of black beans.

The most tedious aspect of making chilaquiles is standing over the stove, frying tortillas in batches. They always seem to soak up too much oil, which splatters all over the place, and they never get quite crisp enough. So I threw them in the oven instead, and since it was already hot, I baked everything in there as well, even the eggs. Chilaquiles success!

Erika a.k.a. The Pancake Princess came over the other day and we styled and shot this recipe together. A native Californian, Erika has lives in Houston, Texas where she’s pursuing an MBA. Since chilaquiles are a Tex Mex dish, and we’re both good kale-loving Californians, we felt that this dish was a perfect combination of our places of residence.

Erika makes amazing things like this, and this, and these. I’m absolutely in love with her recipes and photos, and she’s one of the kindest people on the planet to boot.She’s an incredibly talented food photographer and stylist.

Also, kale model.

We had so much fun! Check out her beautiful behind-the-scenes photos from our afternoon togetherhere.

This dish reminds me of a cross between nachos and enchiladas, but
brunchier. Our eggs seemed to cook at different rates, which worked out
well for us. Jay likes his firm, Erika likes hers runny, and I like mine right in the middle.

I could hardly wait for the shoot to be over so I could devour this plate of chilaquiles. They make a pretty simple brunch dish that can please a crowd (if you double it and bake it in a lasagna pan). One day I’ll go all out and make my own enchilada sauce, but Sweet Creek’s is a huge time-saver, and it comes in mild, medium and spicy (we used medium). Black beans and kale appeal to my Californian sensibility, but I’m not afraid to get a little Texas by piling on the cheese.

Sadly I’m down with a cold and won’t be drinking enough champers tomorrow night to test out the hangover theory…

but that doesn’t mean you can’t.

Wishing everyone a happy and delicious new year!

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*Bojon appétit! For more Bojon Gourmet in your life, follow along on Instagram, Facebook, or Pinterest, purchase my gluten-free cookbook Alternative Baker, or subscribe to receive new posts via email. And if you make this baked chilaquiles recipe, I’d love to know. Leave a comment and rating below, and tag your Instagram snaps @The_Bojon_Gourmet and #bojongourmet.*

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