Chili Relleno Bake!

I scoured the cookbooks yesterday in search of this recipe, instead, found a variation online. The original recipe came off a can of Rosarita Refried Beans...and this has some zingy updates that I liked. Ellie, for once, let me crack and separate the eggs--and watched while the Kitchenaid mixer frothed the eggwhites for us. Really. There's NOTHING to be afraid of with egg separation if you own a Kitchenaid mixer.

Ingredients

• Pam cooking spray
• 3 large eggs, separated
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 (7 ounce) cans diced green chilies
• 1 (16 ounce) cans rosarita vegetarian refried beans
• 1/4 cup onions, chopped finely (optional)
• 1/3 cup salsa verde (optional)
• 2 cups cheddar, monterey jack pepper cheese OR 2 cups monterey jack cheese, shredded (I used cheddar)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375°F.
2. Spray 8 x 8-inch glass baking dish with cooking spray.
3. Beat egg whites* in small bowl until stiff peaks form.
4. Whisk egg yolks in separate bowl; fold into egg whites.
5. Add Flour into eggs until just combined.
6. Fold in green chilies.
7. Spread beans over bottom of dish.
8. Layer chopped onions over beans and make sure to get sides.* (we didn't use onions...Perry & the kids not a big fan of crunchy stuff in the beans... ugh)
9. Spread layer of salsa verde, smoothing into the sides.
10. Mix all the beans, onions and salsa verde together.
11. Top with half of the egg mixture, spreading evenly.
12. Sprinkle with half of the cheese, then remaining egg mixture and remaining cheese.
13. Bake, uncovered, 30 minutes or until golden brown.
    Mine got nice and toasty on top after about 25 minutes, so it depends on your oven. This REALLY dresses up a side dish. And, my Spanish friends have always told me--you can tell a great restaurant by their Chile Relleno. Casa De Ludwig serves up a mean one!
    Also--as for my finicky family? Rachel had a corn dog, apple sauce, and cheddar cheese with a side of tomatoes. Ellie ate a taco with her daddy, tried the relleno bake, and informed me "I liked the crunchy top and the beans. Didn't care for the green stuff."
    NOTES:
    *How to separate an egg: Crack and peek into egg over your bowl, weight the yolk side to one half, let whites drip down, turn yolk into other half of shell, when white is all in the bowl, return yolk to other bowl. If you want to be more heart healthy, go 1 yolk to 3 egg whites for this recipe. I made it with all 3, though. Delicious.Oh! and another trick! don't turn the whites more than you have to, once they're all frothed up. Keep it light and fluffy!