Rellenos bring autumn to life

Fort Collins' farmers markets may not rival Boulder's main market in terms of diversity or sheer volume of produce and pedestrians, but September is the perfect month to visit the local market and buy some roasted chiles.

And once you've purchased the chiles, there's no better use than to stuff them and serve them as rellenos.

Two questions arose when my wife asked me to make rellenos: Is there a way to avoid frying the rellenos (the traditional method)? Can we jam something besides cheese into the chiles?

Answers: Yes. Yes.

First, I found a recipe for baked rellenos from a restaurant in Los Angeles called Senor Pico's. With that in mind one Sunday, I purchased a half-gallon bag of roasted poblanos from the farmers' market at Harmony and Lemay.

However, when I first tried Pico's recipe, the egg (whites whipped to stiff peaks and yolks beaten) and butter mixture was too soupy at the end of the baking process. Thus, it slid off the luscious rellenos.

So this weekend, I added a half a box of Jiffy corn muffin mix to the eggs, and it sat up nicely, but might have been a bit too stiff. The coating stuck to both the rellenos and the pan. Next time, just a little less mix ought to do it.

Second, I've experimented with non-cheese stuffing for the rellenos. The most interesting and tasty result came from a mixture of local Hazel Dell baby shiitake mushrooms sauteed in olive oil and Native Seeds guajillo chile powder, and touch of sharp manchego cheese.

Of course, try out your own combinations. The chiles are tasty enough to cover any missteps you might make.

Buen provecho.