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Meat-stuffed poblano chiles covered with a walnut cream sauce, garnished with pomegranate seeds and parsley. This is a festive dish served in the month of September to celebrate Mexican Independence Day. The finished dish is said to resemble the colors of the Mexican flag.

Ingredients

3 pounds of chicken, beef or pork

1 onion, halved

2 carrots, peeled

1 clove garlic, peeled

12 fresh poblano chiles — cleaned, roasted and peeled (keep whole)

1 white onion, diced

3 cloves garlic, minced

4 ounces raisins

4 ounces brown sugar

4 ounces walnuts

¼ teaspoon ground black pepper

4 bay leaves

1 tablespoon white vinegar

½ cup chopped cilantro

3 tablespoons tomato paste

32 ounces cream cheese

8 ounces soft goat cheese

1 cup sour cream

8 ounces walnuts

½ teaspoon ground nutmeg

¾ teaspoon white sugar

½ bunch cilantro, finely chopped

8 ounces pomegranate seeds (arils)

Directions

Preheat oven to 250 degrees.

Prepare filling:

Place your choice of meat with onion, carrots and garlic in a large pot and cover with water. Cook until tender. Cut into small pieces. If you prefer you can use ground meat.

In a large skillet, sauté onion and garlic until translucent, then add the chopped meat, raisins, brown sugar, four ounces of walnuts, pepper and bay leaves. Sauté for three to five minutes, then stir in vinegar, cilantro and tomato paste. Reduce heat and let simmer for 15 minutes. Remove from heat and cool.

Stuff chiles:

Slit each pepper lengthwise, stuff with sauteéd mixture, place in preheated oven to keep warm.

Make sauce:

In a large pan over medium heat, combine the cream cheese, goat cheese, sour cream, eight ounces of walnuts, nutmeg and sugar. Heat and stir for five to seven minutes to blend. Pour sauce over warm chiles and garnish with pomegranate seeds and cilantro.

Recipe adapted by Vanessa Gray-Douglas. Original recipe by Douglas Cullen on mexicanfoodjournal.com.