Lunch: Broiled Black Sea Bass with Enchilada Sauce, Mexican Rice and Refried Beans

Ingredients

4 (6-ounce) black sea bass fillets, skinned
Salt and pepper
1 cup Enchilada Sauce, recipe follows
Refried Beans, recipe follows

Instructions

Set the oven to 450 degrees F and position the rack in the center position.
Season the fish on both sides with the salt and pepper. Place on an aluminum foil lined sheet pan and pour 1/4 cup of the Enchilada Sauce over each of the fillets. Place in the oven and cook until the sauce is well browned and the fish is cooked through, about, 8 minutes, rotating the pan midway to ensure even cooking. Serve with Refried Beans and Mexican Rice on the side.
Recipe courtesy Francisco Mojica
In a medium saucepan, combine the beans, bay leaf, 2 onion quarters, smashed garlic, and enough water to cover by 2 inches, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat so that the water boils gently and cook for 10 minutes. Cover, remove from the heat, and allow the beans to sit for 1 hour.
After 1 hour, return the beans to a low boil and cook, stirring occasionally, until they begin to soften, about 45 minutes. Add the salt and continue to cook until the beans are very tender, about 15 to 30 minutes longer. Drain the beans in a colander set over a bowl in the sink and reserve the cooking liquid. Discard the bay leaf, onion quarters and garlic.
In a medium 10-inch skillet, heat the bacon drippings or olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the chopped onion and cook until soft, stirring occasionally, about 4 minutes. Add the minced garlic, cumin and oregano and cook for 1 minute. Add the beans and 1 cup of the reserved cooking liquid and, using a potato masher, mash the beans until chunky-smooth. Add 3/4 cup more of the reserved cooking liquid and cook, stirring, until the beans are very thick and flavorful, about 10 minutes. Be careful of splatters. If the beans become too thick, simply add more of the reserved liquid cooking liquid. When the beans have reached the desired consistency, stir in the extra-virgin olive oil and serve immediately with cheese, tomatoes and sour cream.
Yield: about 3 cups
At night before you go to bed, put all dried chiles in the 2 gallons of water. Keep submerged with a plate.
The next day, very carefully remove stump and seeds, which can be thrown away. As you do so, put them in a blender. Save 3 or 4 cups of water used to soak the chiles.
Put the rest of the ingredients in the blender and blend very well. You will need to add water as you go because it is quite thick. Using pulse method might be required. You don't want the sauce to be too thin though or too blended; you want to see the chile skin (which can also be thrown away). Put in colander and slowly filter out skins and whatever didn't blend smoothly, two cups at a time.
In a medium, heavy saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the onions and bell peppers, and cook, stirring, until soft, about 3 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds. Add the rice and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add the tomatoes and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add the stock, salt and saffron, and stir well. Bring to a boil, lower the heat to low, cover and cook undisturbed until all the liquid is absorbed, about 20 minutes.
Remove from the heat and let sit, covered, for 10 minutes. Uncover, fluff the rice with a fork, and add the oregano, cilantro and green onion. Stir to incorporate.
Yield: 6 cups