Prickly Pear Enchilada Sauce Recipes

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the peppers, onions and garlic and cook until soft, about 2 minutes. Add the chili powder, cumin, cayenne, bouillon cube and some salt and pepper and cook until the spices darken and their flavors are released, about 2 minutes. Sprinkle in the flour, stir to combine and cook it for another minute. Add the stock and stir to combine, then allow the liquid to thicken. Add the tomato sauce and 1 1/2 cups water and bring to a boil. Cook until the sauce is nice and thick and reduced by about a third, 5 to 10 minutes.
• Allow the sauce to cool slightly, then use an immersion blender to completely puree the sauce until smooth. (Alternatively, you can transfer it to a blender to puree it; just make sure the sauce is cooled, as blending hot liquids is dangerous!)
• The sauce will keep in the refrigerator for up to a week and can also be frozen! Just reheat the sauce in a saucepan or skillet for whatever recipe calls for it.

Steps:

• Cut a 1/2-inch slice off both ends of the prickly pears, then make a 1/2-inch deep incision down the side of each one. Carefully (remember there are little stickers) peel off the rind, starting from your incision: The rind is thick, and, if the fruit is ripe, will peel easily away from the central core. Roughly chop the peeled prickly pears, puree in a food processor or blender, then press through a fine strainer into a bowl. There should be about 3 cups.
• In a medium-size (2- to 3-quart) saucepan, combine 2 cups of the puree with 1/3 cup sugar, and simmer rapidly over medium to medium-high heat, stirring frequently, until reduce to 1 cup. Cool.
• Combine the cooked mixture with the remaining1 cup of uncooked puree in a small bowl. Taste and season with lime juice, orange liqueur and additional sugar if needed.
• Advance Preparation:
• Covered and refrigerated, the sauce will keep about a week. The finished sauce (as well as the prickly-pear pulp) also can be frozen.