Week 35 - Chilean

We love Chilean food, but for some reason, Chilean restaurants don't seem to last very long in NYC. Over the years, we'd been to Pomaire on Restaurant Row, Barros Luco, and San Antonio Bakery, but none of them exist anymore. In the entire metro area right now (and who knows how that's changed because of COVID this year), you could probably count all the Chilean restaurants on one hand, which is so sad, because the cuisine is so delicious.

I wasn't sure what to make for this challenge since we've had such good Chilean food made by professionals. Back in 2015, I made a Chilean butternut squash casserole for a challenge meal, which was tasty and reminded me of a vegetarian pastel de choclo, which I really like, but I didn't want to make that again. Completos weren't a great option since hot dogs are a choking hazard, and sandwiches (if I made chacareros) wouldn't be the easiest thing for a toddler to eat either. In the end, I decided to circle back to pastel de choclo, one of the first Chilean dishes I remember eating, to give that a try.

After looking around, I found a recipe on The Spruce Eats that sounded good, so I started there but knew I was going to need to make some modifications. First, I don't cook much beef at home, so I needed a replacement for that. I wanted to use Impossible Burger, but Trader Joe's was sold out of it on our last two visits before making this, so I ended up going with their beefless beef. Second, hard-boiled eggs were not going to be part of our casserole, but the internet said extra firm tofu mimicked the texture of hard-boiled eggs so I went with that. Lastly, the recipe used fresh basil, but I used dried. Considering all the grocery issues lately (especially with vegan options; they had no Impossible Burger or tempeh at the time we shopped for this meal), I wasn't sure when we were going to make this, and it seemed like a better idea since basil can go bad really quickly.

The ingredients for our version of pastel de choclo were:

- 2 onions ($1.50)

- 1 tbsp olive oil ($0.10)

- 1 package of beefless beef ($2.99)

- 1 tbsp cumin ($0.10)

- salt and freshly ground black pepper ($0.03)

- 16 oz bag of frozen corn ($1.29)

- about 1 cup whole milk, divided ($0.30)

- 4 tbsp butter ($0.36)

- 1 tsp sugar ($0.04)

- 2 tbsp dried basil ($0.15)

- 2 small boxes (1 oz size) of raisins ($1)

- 2.25 oz can of sliced black olives ($1.49)

- 16 oz package of extra firm tofu ($2.49)

- 1 can of chicken ($2)

- about 2 tsp powdered sugar ($0.05)

The whole dish cost about $13.89, which was lower than I thought it would be, considering it had three different proteins included. If it had been Impossible Burger, it would have been over $18, and if it had been ground meat of any sort, it would probably have been at least a couple dollars more. Fresh basil would have tacked on another couple of dollars too, so I guess we made the budget version of pastel de choclo!

To make the pastel de choclo, here's what I did:

1. Prep - chop the onions and tofu.

2. In a medium skillet, heat the olive oil and then add the onions, cooking until translucent. Then add the beefless beef (or whatever meat/protein you're using), cumin, and some salt and pepper, and cook until done (whatever that means for what you're using). Remove from heat and set aside.

3. In a food processor, add the corn (came out to just under 4 cups) and about 1/2 cup milk, and process until all the corn is blended. [The original recipe used 1/4 cup of milk and said that it would appear creamy, but ours just looked like powder, even after adding another 1/4 cup of milk. I figured it was getting cooked more anyway, so just went with it as it was.]

4. In a small saucepan, melt 4 tbsp butter, and then add the corn mixture, a sprinkling of salt, and about 1 tsp of sugar, along with 1/2 cup of milk. [The original recipe had 3/4 cup but it seemed like enough with 1/2 cup, getting a little bit watery, plus it came out to the same total as the recipe just split differently.]

5. Simmer the corn mixture until thick, stirring constantly for about 5-10 minutes. Then add the basil and remove from heat.

6. Preheat oven to 375 degrees, and grease a casserole dish. [The original recipe said 3-4 quarts for the size of the dish. That seemed a little big for our finished product, but not sure if the next size down would have been too small.]

7. Add the components to the casserole dish in layers:

- beefless beef and onions on the bottom

- raisins, olives, and tofu

- chicken

- corn and basil mixture on top

- sprinkle of powdered sugar over the top

[The corn was supposed to fully cover the whole thing, but despite using almost a cup more corn than the original recipe, it barely made it.]

8. Bake for about 30 minutes until the casserole is bubbling and hot, and the top is golden brown. [Our corn was white, so it was more golden than golden brown. Funny story, the week before, I made arepas, and the corn flour we bought was yellow while Venezuelan arepas often use white, and here we had white corn, while every pastel de choclo we've had has been yellow.]

With all our modifications, how was the pastel de choclo? Really tasty! The flavor probably would have been richer if we used Impossible Burger (why is TJ's often out of stock?!), and actual eggs would have added something different than tofu as far as taste, but the finished dish was really good. I think if we made this again, I'd want to try it with the fresh basil for a more potent basil flavor (and of course, with Impossible Burger if we could get it), but we really liked how this turned out. I might also add another box of raisins, because the raisins were B's favorite part and I'm sure he wouldn't mind more. I also might try using a smaller casserole dish in the future. I don't know how often we would be making this though, considering it had three different proteins (beefless beef, tofu, and chicken), which would normally turn into three separate meals for us, but it could be good every once in a while!

Week 43 - Hit for the Cycle

Week 43's theme, hit for the cycle, was a lot of fun. By "hit for the cycle," they meant to pick 4 consecutive weeks from any previous year's challenges. I came up with 3 possible sets of challenges, but the one I immediately clicked with was from 2012 - baking, squash, comfort food, and casseroles. Those seemed pretty easy to work together into a single dish. After a (very) little bit of searching, I found this recipe for a Chilean butternut squash casserole on food.com, and knew I had to try it.

So glad Trader Joe's sells butternut squash by the piece and not by the pound

I've been wanting to branch out and push myself in the challenges a little bit more, so to try something new, I bought a whole butternut squash instead of the more convenient, pre-cut squash that I've bought in the past. For one thing, it was so much cheaper buying it whole. But the other was that I had never worked with it whole, and I wanted to cross that off the list.

The non-squash ingredients for the casserole

I adapted the ingredients a little bit from the original recipe and used:

- 1 large butternut squash ($1.99)
- 1 large onion, chopped ($0.54)
- 5 garlic cloves, minced ($0.10)
- 1 tbsp olive oil ($0.20)
- ground cumin, a few tsp ($0.05)
- chili powder, a few tsp ($0.15)
- cayenne, a few dashes ($0.05)
- salt and pepper to taste ($0.05)
- garlic powder, a few tsp ($0.05)
- 1 red bell pepper, chopped ($0.64)
- 1 green bell pepper, chopped ($0.38)
- 4 eggs, beaten ($1.33)
- 2 cans of corn ($1.78)
- 2 cups of grated sharp cheddar cheese ($2.05)

The cost of the casserole was around $9.36. It was enough food for a filling dinner for both of us, as well as 2 days of lunch for me, so that was pretty cost-efficient. Using the whole butternut squash was probably about half the price of using the pre-cut stuff, so that will definitely be the way to go in the future.

Butternut squash "halved"

The steps for making the casserole (slightly adapted from the original recipe) were:

1. Wash butternut squash and then cut in half. (My halves were a little uneven. Oh well.) Use a spoon to scoop out all the seeds and stringy stuff.

2. Spray a baking pan with cooking spray and place the butternut squash halves cut side down. Bake at 425 degrees until soft. I baked it for 50 minutes, and it seemed soft enough when I was testing it with a fork, but I think next time I'll bake it for at least 60 so it gets even softer and easier to mash.

3. Remove squash from oven when soft, and allow to cool.

Onions, garlic, spices

4. Heat olive oil in pan over medium heat. Add onions, garlic, salt, cumin, chili powder, and cayenne. Saute until onions have started to soften and are translucent.

5. Add red and green peppers, and reduce heat to medium low.

6. Scrape the squash out of its "shell" and into a baking pan that was sprayed with cooking spray. (For some parts of the squash, this was more peeling the skin off the squash than scooping the squash out of the shell.) Mash it up in the baking pan. (While a spoon was helpful, I found mashing and kneading it with my hands was even more effective.)

Squash comfort food casserole, pre-baking

7. Mix the beaten eggs into the mashed squash until all the squash is coated in egg.

8. Add the corn, cheese, and some more cumin, chili powder, and salt. Also add freshly ground black pepper and garlic powder.

9. Add the pepper-onion sauteed mixture, and then stir everything together to mix really well. Try to level out the mixture so that it's the same height throughout the pan. (In the future, I'll add some cheese on the top after this step, before putting it in the oven.)

Finished casserole

10. Cover pan with aluminum foil and bake 20 minutes at 350 degrees.

11. Remove foil and bake for another 20 minutes. Eat!

Not the most attractive dish, but very tasty

This casserole was really good. It reminded me a little bit of a Chilean pastel de choclo (but a vegetarian version) and a little bit of a Paraguayan chipa guazu. It was filling and hearty and 100% comfort food. While the flavor was good, in the future, we would increase the amount of cheese, garlic/garlic powder, and cumin, and also add some cheese to the top of the casserole. We would definitely make this again, especially now that cooler weather is on its way.

San Antonio Bakery

In our continuing quest to eat food from every World Cup 2014 country, we made stop # 3 at San Antonio Bakery for Chilean food. For our World Cup challenge in 2010, M went to Barros Luco which is now closed, and we both went to Pomaire which, sadly, is also now closed. We're hoping that the closing of Chilean restaurants after our visits ends there since we really don't want to be known as Chilean restaurant killers...

San Antonio Bakery is known as the "Home of the Completo" so we knew we had to get at least one to share. After seeing pictures, we decided that it would be a much better idea to each get our own since sharing, while caring, wasn't going to happen. We did also share a Chacarero Pollo as well.

The food comes with a large bowl of their hot sauce which tasted similar to both Tabasco and Cholula sauces, but it had fresh onions and cilantro mixed in. The hot sauce was really good. There was a definite vinegar hit like with Tabasco, but it had a slightly sweeter flavor like Cholula. It also wasn't too hot unless you got a chili pepper seed, but it certainly had a great flavor.

The Completo is described as "The Chilean Hot Dog topped with sauerkraut (chucrut), tomatoes, avocado, and mayonnaise, served in our own freshly-baked bun."

I thought the bun was the weakest part of the dish which was surprising since they're a bakery. It was drier than a regular hot dog bun, and they must have toasted it a bit because it was crisp and a bit crumbly. M was also expecting a softer hot dog bun and was surprised to find it drier, but thought maybe that's how it was supposed to be. The hot dog was just a hot dog to me. I don't know if they do anything different in making it, but I couldn't find anything special.

The other toppings, however, were amazing. The sauerkraut is very mild in comparison to German or Polish versions, but it offered a bit of moisture and a little tang. The cabbage also wasn't reduced to mostly mush so there was a little bit of crunch to them as well. The avocado is mashed up similar to guacamole, but it wasn't seasoned so the flavor of the avocado really came out well. The mayo was a really nice accent as it gave the hot dog a little richness.

Overall we really liked the Completo and would definitely get one again.

The Chacarero Pollo is described as a "sandwich with sliced grilled chicken breast, tomatoes, and string beans in a freshly-baked bun."

In contrast to the Completo, I enjoyed this bun. Perhaps it's my own idiosyncrasy of expecting a softer bun for hot dogs and slightly toastier bread for sandwiches, but who knows. M wanted to get the chacarero because it came with the string beans, and I was very happy she made that decision. They're such an interesting addition because of the freshness, crispness, and sweetness they add to the sandwich. The tomatoes add water, and the grilled chicken is, well, grilled chicken (but it wasn't dry). But as simple as these ingredients seem, the sandwich was amazing. It was fresh and bright, and only because of our adding of the hot sauce did it make any sort of mess. 

The chacarero was what M always got at Barros Luco and it was one of her favorite sandwiches ever, so at least there's somewhere else we can still go to get one.

We were really happy with our choice of coming out to San Antonio Bakery for our Chilean meal for the World Cup (it also might be the only option left...), and we really want to go back out and try the rest of their menu as everything that came out for the other tables looked and smelled really, really good.

San Antonio Bakery is located at 3620 Astoria Blvd in Astoria, Queens.

Farewell Barros Luco

This morning, while catching up on blogs, M came across the news on Grub Street that Barros Luco, a Chilean spot on the east side, had closed. The news of their closing made us very sad.

What Barros Luco was most known for was their Chilean sandwiches, such as the chacarero (usually, a sandwich of thinly sliced meat with, among other things, tomatoes, green beans and peppers) and the namesake barros luco (usually, a sandwich with beef and melted cheese). They also had Chilean hot dogs and empanadas but unfortunately, we never got to try those.


The first time we finally had a chance to go to Barros Luco was about a year ago for lunch on A's birthday. We were going to be on the east side and it was a great choice for lunch. We both got sandwiches, took them to the dining room upstairs and watched the Olympics while eating (mostly ski jump).


M got the chacarero - chicken, string beans, tomato, mayo, cheese, avocado and banana peppers. It was delicious and filling. Since it was full of vegetables, it also felt really healthy.


A got the churrasco italiano, which came with chicken, mayo, tomato and avocado. Basically it was the chacarero without the cheese, string beans or peppers. A liked this one too. M loved the extra vegetables that came in hers.


We don't live very close to Barros Luco so we didn't really get over there that often. If we lived in the neighborhood, we would probably have been there so much more often.

M did make it back there once after our visit together. Several other times she thought about going, but just didn't have enough time. But on this occasion, Chile was playing in the World Cup, and M was still trying to have lunch in honor of a country playing each day. The only places we could think of for our World Cup challenge for Chile were Barros Luco and Pomaire (which we went to for dinner during the World Cup). Barros Luco was about a mile walk from M's office (and even further from A's), but on Chile's first day of group play in the World Cup, M made the trek and was rewarded with an awesome chacarero sandwich.


It even stayed intact for the entire mile walk back! It wasn't soggy or anything. It made M happy.

You can even see the Univision World Cup page (Copa Mundial de la Fifa!) behind the sandwich:


We're so sad that the restaurant is closed and we never had another chance to go back. It's really one of the best sandwiches we had in NYC, and if we had known they were closing, we would have definitely found the time to make another trip. It just seemed like such a great place with lots of Chilean pride - they had parties for World Cup games, they had an event for the miners and they celebrated their cuisine with awesome sandwiches. Barros Luco, we'll miss you.