New Year’s Day queso compuesto
A year or so ago, I was visiting Texas in August and stopped by my grandma’s farm to say howdy. She asked if I was hungry, as she’d just cooked up a pot of black-eyed peas. How could I refuse? We sat down at the table and ate big bowls of the freshly picked peas along with Swiss chard cooked with bacon and warm cornbread slathered in butter. It was a fine late-summer feast using up the bounty of her garden.
Now, this time of year people start thinking more about black-eyed peas, greens and pork as they’re required eating for good fortune in the New Year. A meal such as the one I shared with my grandma would not be out of place on New Year’s Day. But these foods for us are an essential part of life and we eat them all year long, not just on January 1.
This isn’t to say, however, that I won’t be having black-eyed peas, greens, and pork on Sunday. But I like to take a little license with these ingredients and take them on a journey to a new place.
And that’s how I arrived at my New Year’s Day queso compuesto.
The last time I was dipping into a queso compuesto, I asked myself, “What would this taste like with Mexican chorizo, black-eyed peas, and collard greens?” Was it kind of crazy or kind of good? I decided to find out.
For those of you wondering what the heck is queso compuesto, let me explain. Queso the dish is melted cheese mixed with chiles—hence it’s official name, chile con queso. (The word “queso in Spanish means cheese.)
In Texas, this melted cheese is usually of the yellow processed variety, though sometimes we make queso with non-processed cheese instead. Queso compuesto then takes this bowl of queso and makes it better by adding stuff such as taco meat, refried beans, guacamole, and pico de gallo. It’s one outrageous dip.
Now, melted cheese goes with just about anything savory. And earthy black-eyed peas, smoky collard greens and spicy Mexican chorizo are good friends, too. But for some reason I worried that combining these three with melted cheese would be a bit much. I shouldn’t have—this dip lasted about a minute and even people who think they don’t like black-eyed peas couldn’t get enough.
Of course, if you’re not a fan of black-eyed peas, chorizo or collards, you can make endless substitutions—though I have to say that it is fun combining Southern comfort with Tex-Mex, plus I guarantee that your guests will be very impressed with this twist on a classic.
This queso compuesto might just be my new favorite way to begin a new year, especially if you’re gathering with friends and family and want something to keep them occupied while you work on the main meal. And sure, it may be a little decadent and go against those resolutions, but don’t worry—salads and soups will still be around on January 2.
Happy New Year! May it be filled with lots of love and joy.
New Year’s Day queso compuesto
Ingredients
- 6 jalapeños
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1/2 pound Mexican chorizo, removed from any casing
- 1/4 medium onion, diced
- 2 cups cooked collard greens, drained and finely chopped
- 2 cups cooked black-eyed peas drained or 1 (15-ounce) can of black-eyed peas, drained
- 8 ounces cream cheese, cubed
- 4 cups (1 pound) shredded Muenster
- 1/2 cup half-and-half
- 1 teaspoon lime juice
- 1/2 cup chopped cilantro
- Salt, to taste
- Tortilla chips, for serving
Instructions
- First, to roast the jalapeños, place under the broiler for 10 minutes until blackened, turning once. Leaving on the darkened skin, dice the chiles.
- Preheat the oven to 375° F. In a large oven-proof skillet, such as a cast iron skillet, heat the oil on medium low and add the Mexican chorizo and onion. While stirring occasionally to break up any large chunks of chorizo, cook until the chorizo and onions are cooked through, about 5-8 minutes. Remove the skillet from the heat and if you like, drain off any excess grease.
- Stir into the skillet the diced jalapeños, black-eyed peas, and collard greens. Evenly distribute on top the cubed cream cheese and shredded Muenster then pour in the half-and-half. Bake uncovered until the cheese is bubbling, about 15-20 minutes. Remove from the oven and gently stir to combine everything. If you’d like a little tang, you can squeeze in some lime juice. Garnish with chopped cilantro and add salt to taste. Serve warm tortilla chips.To keep the dip warm, you can place on a chafing dish, in a slow cooker or in a fondue pot.
Greetings and Happy New Year to all!
I recently found your blog Lisa and am very happy as a former east Texan to see some of the ways which you've found to "crack the Tex Mex code" as you put it so well. Especially the chili gravy recipe for enchiladas for example, and simple refried beans which I never thought in a google of years I'd become a serious student of as I calibrated the flavors at home. I applaud your guac as a trace of dairy in the green confection doesn't pass the sniff test (for me) and of course the "no beans" chili policy is a solemnity which must be spread far and wide. : ) I do take issue with your ceviche recipe, but not too much because you did call it "Pickled Shrimp" in the end. Ceviche is a thing of delight which begins with slices of raw white fish that become cooked in the lime juice – no other boiling or cooking method is applied. I learned to make this in Austin from a wonderful and high powered lady lawyer – and you don't get more Texan than that gal! If you'd like me to dig it out I'll share it with you gladly.
I have had to become a very determined and inventive Tex Mex cook as I live half a world away now on a remote island that barely grows chilis (hothouse only), has no corn tortillas in the stores whatsoever, a bag of 4 limes costs $10 if you can even get one, and where the locals think regular olives out of a jar are too "spicy".
Here a fake Tex Mex meal costs upwards of $100 for two, again, if you can even get that. If you order "tacos" you will get to pay $18 dollars a naked plate for a couple of large warmish soft tortillas folded over iceburg lettuce chunks, some slivers of baked unspiced chicken, a tomato slice, a desultory sprinkle of cold shredded local white cheese and that is IT. NO rice, NO beans, NO fresh salsa and never ever in an aeon of tears will you get a free basket of chips as you sit down. If you order chips as an $8 appetizer, they open a bag of cheese FLAVORED dorito-like bag chips and put a few cold on a plate. There may be a previously unopened bottle of habanero sauce on the table strictly for looks. As far as Tex Mex or even Mex goes, my life is one long slipshod vaudeville show and I'd be better off on Uranus. Pun intended.
So I cook any and all of our Tex Mex at home, and get dried chilis smuggled through to me in the mail (possibly banned as overseas produce, I'm not sure and I ain't asking). I have two precious cans of 99 Cent Store Enchilada sauce brought back from the US which I must use to taste test until I can replicate the flavor with what I've got here. My in laws send me canned queso sometimes and it is more precious to me than local Artisan Anything.
If anyone wants to make a small fortune and immigrate to New Zealand to set up a Tex Mex place, I'm game. Although the locals aren't used to chilis, they do love Indian food and the younger generation is much more appreciative of flavors of the world. There are also a LOT Of US tourists here who miss their "Mexican" food. I've even managed to source local small fresh green and HOT chilis from the Indian store lately so things are looking up!
In the meantime, I'll keep adapting recipes finding and learning the old tricks, and I've bookmarked this site and really look forward to enjoying the offerings here and especially the company in 2012.
By the way, today's recipe got me thinking, what is the difference between Queso Flameado, Queso Compuesto and Queso Fundido? After poking around a bit, it seems that they are just different ways of saying essentially the same thing. Any thoughts?
Signed,
The Expat Texan
I LOVE the tradition of eating black eyed peas on New Years. And what a great way to incorporate this tradition into a delicious dish! Beautiful pictures, can't wait to try this…
Sportsglutton–Of course, if you don't like collards you could leave them out or substitute spinach.
USmonzu–Thank you, I'm glad you're having fun cooking from it! Happy New Year!
Larks–Sometimes it's good to switch it up.
Heather–Howdy! In answer to your question, fundido and flameado are more or less the same–thick and better with tortillas, while queso compuesto has a thinner cheese base that works well with chips.
Cozy Herbivore–It's one of my favorite traditions, too!
This looks so fantastic! I love making queso and this looks like a great change of pace from the usual recipe. I'd be making it for New Year's if I hadn't already planned a menu and bought groceries. We'll have to do a snacks for supper night again soon and try this.
Although I already have black-eyed peas and collards in other forms on our Sunday menu, I certainly won't be waiting a whole year to make this dish. It sounds perfect! Happy New Year!