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When you hear the phrase “The Pacific Northwest,” it’s likely that your mind first travels to the coastal rainforest, of verdant greens dripping in rainfall, mushrooms hiding under the duff. Those ancient woodlands are enchanting, but they are only a fragment of what this region has to offer. On the other side of the coastal range are the high mountain deserts, seas of juniper, pinion, and sagebrush. It’s in golden valleys that you can find prickly pear cacti washing their soft green across the arid landscape. I was pleasantly surprised to discover large groups of them growing in the foothills near my Western Idaho home, and figured it would be the perfect opportunity to give them a try! 

This is saying a lot, considering my history with cacti. In my childhood I became notorious for run-ins with cactus spines every time we’d go to Arizona to visit a relative. There was the time I sat on a cactus and it took weeks for the tiny irritating spines to work their way out of my backside. Another time, I was crouched under a tall cactus and something startled me and my head jerked upwards, lodging itself firmly onto a large cactus spine that had to be removed by pliers and a good deal of force (those things are barbed, in case you didn’t know.) And yet, despite my pitfalls with cacti, I figured they were a different and beautiful part of my landscape that warranted exploration! This time, though, I was going prepared. 

If you think foraging for nettles is exciting, just wait until you get up close and personal with these cacti. Wear long pants, close-toed shoes, and thick leather gloves. You’ll also want some pliers and a long knife. To harvest a pad, carefully grab the top of it with the pliers and cut it loose. To remove the large spines, place the pad on a piece of wood and, while still holding it in place with the pliers, use a sharp knife in quick motions to cut them free, cutting away from yourself. Cut around the edge of the pad to remove the spines on the side. Use a lighter or heat gun to singe off any of the tiny hairs that remain, as they can be very irritating. After salting and frying, nopales have a pleasantly tart flavor, adding a bit of brightness and juicy crunch to recipes like this one.  

This dish is not just in honor of the diversity of the landscape of the Pacific Northwest, but of the people as well. How grateful I am to my Latinx brothers and sisters for sharing their ways and their flavors with us! Having a large community of Latinx and Hispanic people means amazing Mexican food in comfortable restaurants and served out of street stands. It means a culture of dancing that adds so much life to this city! It means a feeling of community that is so open, so welcoming, so forgiving and kind: pre-Christmas tamale-making parties, the revelation of sweet corn sprinkled with briny cheese on warm summer nights, the smell of fresh corn tortillas from a few houses down. Post-Thanksgiving turkey enchiladas are now as much of our ritual as the turkey itself. (Actually, more-so; while we had a meat-free Thanksgiving this year, we had our beloved enchiladas afterwards as well, this time filled with beans and corn.) I hope you are lucky enough to see how different cultures have introduced more delight into your life, and be grateful for them. I certainly am. 

Nopales Enchilada Cake 

I would probably get at least an eyeroll from any Abuelita for this creation, so I must preface this by saying it is Mexican - inspired. I took one of my favorite Mexican dishes, folded in a few local and foraged ingredients, then served it up as a savory cake for the birthday of someone who’s love language is essentially Enchiladas. (He loved it, by the way.) Make sure you make the Green Enchilada sauce first so it’s ready to go. In fact, if you can, make it a day or two ahead of time to allow the flavors to blend! 

Green Enchilada Sauce

This tomatillo and chile-based sauce is fresh and bright, perfect for a spring feast. If you have an open fire or gas burners, you can blacken the chiles right over the flame. Otherwise, use the broiler in your oven to get that marvelous char. I added some foraged curly dock leaves to boost the green color and add some extra nutrition to this flavorful sauce. I recommend wearing gloves while handling the chiles, since that heat can stick to your fingers for days, irritating mucous membranes. (Nobody wants essence of jalapeno in their eye, I promise.) 

Ingredients: 

1 lb tomatillos

3 cloves garlic, still with peel

2-5 jalapenos, depending on spice preference

3 green anaheim chiles

1 c. chopped fresh cilantro

2 cups curly dock leaves

Salt 

Directions: 

1. Bring a medium pot of water to boil and toss in the dock leaves. Boil for 2 minutes, then remove them and plunge them into a bowl of ice water. Spin dry and set aside. 

2. Rinse the tomatillos and anaheim chiles and cut them in half. Set the chiles aside, and put the tomatillos cut-side-down on a foil-lined baking sheet with the garlic and jalapeno. Set the oven to broil and put the pan on the top rack. Cook until lightly charred, then transfer everything to a plate.

3. Put the anaheim chiles onto the baking sheet and broil them until the skin has blackened. Remove from the oven and place the chiles in a bowl covered with a plate for about five minutes, which will steam them and loosen the skin. 

4. Peel and discard the blackened skins, then remove and discard seeds and stems from the anaheim chiles and jalapenos. Peel the tomatillos and garlic. Place all of the ingredients in a blender and pulse until you have a slightly-chunky puree. Add salt to taste. Let cool to room temperature, then store in the fridge for up to a week. 

Nopales Enchilada Cake: 

Ingredients: 

2 or 3  cleaned cactus pads

Sea salt

1 Tbs. olive oil

8-12 green spinach tortillas

1 recipe Green Enchilada sauce, above

½  c. sour cream, plus extra if desired 

2 c. shredded chicken

1 c. grated cheddar cheese

1 c. grated jack cheese

1 c. sliced black olives, optional 

1 avocado

2 limes

Fresh cilantro, for garnish

Directions: 

1. Dice the cleaned cactus pads into cubes, then salt them liberally and let it sit for about 15 minutes. Meanwhile, prepare your pan: use a spring-form pan as close to the diameter of your tortillas as possible. Lightly grease it and set aside. 

2. Rinse and drain the cactus cubes, then saute them over medium high heat in the olive oil to sear the outsides. The pan should be free from excess liquid and the sides should be lightly browned. Pour onto a plate to cool. 

3. Mix together the enchilada sauce and the sour cream, then stir in the chicken and fried nopale chunks. 

4. Preheat the oven to 375F. Lay one tortilla in the bottom of the spring-form pan, then add ⅓ c. filling and spread out, leaving ½” space around the edges. Top with a sprinkle of olives and cheese. Add another tortilla on top and continue layering filling, cheese, and tortillas until your filling is used up. Top the last tortilla with a sprinkle of cheese.

5. Bake until the cheese is melted and bubbling, about 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and let sit in the pan for 10 minutes, then gently remove the spring form pan and transfer the cake to a serving platter. Decorate with sliced avocado, lime slices, and fresh cilantro. Serve warm. 

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