I am absolutely loving my new gig where I get to travel...a lot!!! However, one of the first things I crave when I get home is my kitchen. There is something just nurturing and relaxing about being in the kitchen...cooking. And so far the last few weeks one of the first things I do when I get home is to cook. Don't get me wrong I am loving exploring new restaurants, bars and experiences on my travels, however at the end of the week I just want home cooking. This weekend I continued this tradition by making Huevos Rancheros in Tortilla Cups.



The first part of this recipe consisted of the construction of the tortilla cups. When I read the recipe I thought this was brilliant...take a muffin tin and invert it, drape the tortillas over the cups and mold into a bowl and bake....until I tried it...and it looked like this.


The tortillas decided to break on me, they continued to move on me and not drape or shape and I was pretty sure I was going to bake these and they were going to look like tostadas. I was already envisioning putting my pictures on Pinterest as an epic fail, when I pulled them out of the oven, only to find that they looked pretty darn good!! This was cause for a kitchen celebration of sorts, also known as a kitchen happy dance!!


From that point on I was pretty cocky about this recipe. I combined the diced tomatoes, black beans, chiles, cilantro, cumin and red hot sauce in a pan and brought to a boil. I simmered the mixture for 4 minutes and it started to make my house smell so good!!


Next I cracked the eggs into the pan and placed the entire pan in the oven for 6-8 minutes. If you like your eggs over hard like I do, go the full 8 minutes. And oh yeah please remember to use an oven proof pan otherwise you may have a potential hazardous materials spill on your hands...not fun!!




Sprinkle cheese on the eggs and bake for another 1-2 minutes, just so the cheese melts.


Fill your tortilla cup with the bean mixture and the egg, sprinkling the top with leftover cilantro.


This recipe had a lot of good flavor. It was a little spicy from the red hot sauce and the chiles and the cilantro and cumin gave it some nice earthy flavors. It was also packed full of protein and it was healthy, which is always a good thing after a week of eating in restaurants.

Here is the actual recipe:

 4 medium corn tortilla(s), 6 inches  
 14 oz canned diced tomatoes, with green pepper, celery, and onion  
 15 oz canned black beans, rinsed and drained  
 1/2 cup(s) canned green chili peppers, mild, diced  
 3 Tbsp hot pepper sauce, or to taste  
 3/4 tsp ground cumin  
 3 Tbsp cilantro, chopped  
 4 large egg(s)  
 1/4 cup(s) low fat shredded cheddar cheese

Place the oven rack in the center of the oven; preheat the oven to 425ºF. Lightly spray both sides of the tortillas with nonstick spray. Place 4 inverted custard cups on a baking sheet, and drape a tortilla over each to give it a bowl shape. (You may also use an inverted 12-cup muffin pan, placing the tortillas over alternate cups.) Bake until the tortillas are crisped and lightly golden around the edges, 10 minutes. Remove the tortillas and set them on a rack to cool.

Combine the diced tomatoes, beans, chiles, pepper sauce, cumin, and 2 tablespoons of the cilantro in an ovenproof skillet. Bring to a boil over medium heat, reduce the heat to low, and simmer until the flavors are blended, 4 minutes. Break the eggs one at a time, on top of the sauce, spacing them evenly apart.

Immediately place the pan in the oven and bake until the eggs are almost set, 6–8 minutes. Sprinkle the cheese on top of the eggs and bake until melted, 1 minute. To serve, place the tortilla cups on serving plates and spoon the eggs and sauce into the tortilla cups. Garnish with the remaining tablespoon of chopped cilantro and serve immediately. Yields 1 filled tortilla cup.

Hope you all have a fabulous weekend! Cheers!