Stretch Cooking: nothing standard about Green Enchiladas

September is traditionally one of our hottest months in Southern California; in fact next week the weather bureau is looking for temperatures in the 90s or 100s in the inland valleys of San Diego, where we live.

That’s not to say it’s not the right time for Green Enchiladas. There is no unright time for Green Enchiladas, which is one of the most reliable comfort foods known to man. There are certain days, though, that issue a particular call for comfort food, and many of them are associated with cooler temperatures.

I am thinking specifically of the day that Daylight Savings Time ends. Spring forward, fall back. On Nov. 1, a Sunday, we will turn our clocks back one hour. On Monday night, we will suddenly be driving home from work in the dark. I hate that. And on Nov. 2, even in Southern California, it’s likely to be cool, maybe even rainy. Monday, Nov. 2, is the date I have circled for Green Enchiladas.

You want to make them on Sunday, then Monday night just pull them out and run them into a 350 oven for 30 or 40 minutes, until they’re steamy-hot all the way through.

The smallest batch you should make, even for two people – or even one person, for that matter, in which case you may REALLY need Green Enchiladas – is that which will fill a 9 by 13 Pyrex baking dish.

Brown a pound and a half of hamburger in a black skillet, seasoning to taste with salt, pepper, garlic powder, cumin and a scant teaspoon of Gebhardt’s Chile Powder. Put it aside to cool.

Make the sauce. In a large saucepan, melt two tablespoons of butter. Over medium-high heat, add three tablespoons of flour and stir with the butter to make a roux. Cook the roux just long enough to take off the raw flour taste. Add two cups of milk and stir constantly until the sauce thickens. Turn down the heat. Add two medium cans of diced green chiles and three-quarters of a pound of cubed Velveeta. Keep stirring until the Velveeta is melted and the sauce is smooth. Take the pan off the heat.

Have ready chopped onion and grated cheese. Prepare the tortillas. You need good corn tortillas. I recommend Porkyland’s, which you can mail-order, but if you have a good tortilleria near you, go for it. You will need 9 or 10. Paint both sides of the tortillas with oil. In a dry skillet, heat tortillas one by one and make a layer in the bottom of the baking dish. I like to cut one tortilla in half and snug the straight edges up to the ends of the pan. Make a layer of hamburger, chopped onion, and grated cheese. Be generous with the grated cheese. Repeat the tortilla layer, then repeat the hamburger etc. layer. Put on a top layer of tortillas. Then pour the chile-Velveeta sauce over all, getting it into all the seams and corners. Sprinkle the top with grated cheese.

Bake in a 350 oven for 40 minutes. Or cover with foil and refrigerate, as I am going to do on Nov. 1, in anticipation of Nov. 2. When it is ready, cut it into six sections with a spatula. Make a salad of shredded lettuce, chopped tomatoes, and good salsa, all mixed together, and serve on the plate with a section of Green Enchiladas. The only thing standard at your table on Nov. 2 will be the time.