Tomato and corn pie

I generally feel that summer is a time for simple food. Life moves at a leisurely pace during the summer months (relatively speaking), and the seasonal produce doesn't need a lot of manipulation to taste awesome. But every once in a while, I get the urge to make something elaborate, something that will show off summer vegetables in a special way. This tomato and corn pie does just that. I have actually been wanting to make this recipe since 2009, ever since it was posted on Smitten Kitchen. Somehow three years went by, and  though the recipe crossed my mind often, I never got around to making it. I finally got my act together and gave it a try this past weekend, and I can't believe I waited this long! This recipe combines fresh tomatoes and corn with herbs and cheddar cheese, and encases it all in a flaky crust. It's really wonderful, ideal for a special summer dinner. I'd say it's perfect to serve to guests, except for the fact that you're not going to want to share...

Sweet potato, kale, and black bean enchiladas

As a kid, enchiladas were my favorite thing to order when my family went out for Mexican food. For some reason though, I hadn't ever cooked enchiladas myself until recently. I guess I usually make tacos or burritos when I have a Mexican craving, and I never really thought about making enchiladas instead. But I was doing a freezer cleanout recently, and found a package of corn tortillas that needed to be used. I had also been wanting to experiment with making chile sauces, and enchiladas seemed like the perfect way to kill two birds with one stone. It took a couple tries for me to come up with a good chile sauce recipe, and I am thrilled with the final result that I am sharing with you here. It has a nice deep chile pepper flavor that is tempered by tomatoes, and it isn't too spicy. It worked really well with the sweet potato, kale, and mashed black bean filling that I used (spring is almost upon us, but until spring vegetables arrive, I'm perfectly happy eating kale and sweet potatoes!). I'm really glad I made a batch of 16 enchiladas for dinner - Andrew and I have been really enjoying the leftovers and I don't think they're going to last very long...

In other news, I finally created a Facebook page for my blog so that I can stop spamming my whole friend list with blog updates. You can "like" the page here if you are interested in following via Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/4SeasonsOfFood.

p.s. I know it's St. Patrick's Day, and enchiladas are really not Irish. Sorry. They do pair well with beer though!

Is there a dish that you love eating at restaurants but have never tried making at home?