Category Archives: Recipe

Spicy chile cauliflower & garbanzo beans

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Cauliflower is the gift that keeps on giving. Honestly, you hack off enough florets to feed a band of maurading pirates, come back the next day and it’s regenerated. I’m convinced that we’re still eating the same head we bought back in ’72.

Of course, on these dark days of winter that’s no bad thing, is it? You scratch your head and wonder what’s for dinner and the answer is there staring you in the face: cauliflower. Friends drop over unexpectedly and you’re stumped for what to feed them? Not any longer: cauliflower. Who needs to run out to the grocery store and buy something for dinner. It’s right there, taking up 99% of the veg shelf: cauliflower.

Yes, it’s white. Very white. Ghostly pale and let’s be honest, rather sulphurous when your old Aunt Edith cooked it for 3-4 hours before she was sure it had been beaten into submission. But tuck it into a roaring hot oven with a lick of some spices and suddenly — va, va, va, voom — it’s transformed.

Those of you impatient souls who race to the recipe will note that we’re using our Abiquiu Steak Marinade for this dish. You will also note that there is no steak in the recipe. Clever clogs. Just because we call it a steak marinade doesn’t mean you can’t use it in other things. Like cauliflower. Now get cooking.

Slice the cauliflower florets so they cook faster.

Spicy chile cauliflower & garbanzo beans

Serves 2 as a main dish or 4 as a side dish

8 oz. cauliflower florets (about 2 large handfuls), sliced thinly

1-14oz can of garbanzo beans, drained

2 scallions, sliced into large dice

1 Tbsp Abiquiu Steak Marinade

1/2 tsp turmeric powder

zest of one lime, plus the juice

1/2 tsp salt

2 1/2 Tbsp olive oil

To garnish (your choice – go crazy):

Chopped cilantro

Cumin seeds

Chopped pistachios

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Place the sliced cauliflower and garbanzo beans in a large roasting pan. Mix together the Abiquiu Steak Marinade, turmeric powder, lime zest, salt, and olive oil. Spread over the vegetables and give them a good stir so the vegetables are evenly coated.

Place in the preheated oven and roast for around 15 minutes until the cauliflower is tender. Add in the chopped scallions and cook for another few minutes. Remove from the oven, spritz on the lemon juice. Taste and add some more salt if needed and top with your choice of garnishes.

Red chile pink grapefruit & fennel salad

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The shortest day looms over us like — well, like the shortest day of the year. It’s Wednesday 21 December and the winter solstice takes place at 9:47 p.m, in case you were wonderfing. As it doesn’t involve a delivery of food, a crate of wine or a jumbo box of chocolates, I can’t be bothered. I won’t be celebrating as I’ll be in bed with the covers pulled over my head.

If you need me, drop me an email and I’ll get back in touch next May.

I mean, honestly, it’s all I can do these days to get out of bed and get dressed, let alone take a shower. While some smiley so-and-so’s think winter is ‘cosy’ I think it’s cold, dark and far too long. Surely I’m not the only one who gazes longingly at the drinks cabinet at 3:00 p.m.?

The only solace this solstice is the fact that the days will get longer after the 21st. Slowly — and I mean slowly– but surely night will get shorter. Yes, it’s at a snail’s pace but it’s something and frankly I’m grasping at straws these days (*reaches for variety box of chocolates and pops another in mouth*).

If winter is dragging for you too and a trip to Barbados isn’t in your bank account, then might I suggest a sunny salad? Pink grapefruit cooked quickly in honey and chile. Roasted fennel because apparently vegetables are ‘good’ for you. And a gentle scattering of pomegranate seeds and poppy seeds if you’re a show off. And for heaven’s sake have some pride and take a shower. Please.

Red chile pink grapefruit & roasted fennel salad

Serves 3-4

2 heads of fennel

2 Tbsp. olive oil

1 pink grapefruit

2 Tbsp. runny honey

1/2 tsp Chimayo blend New Mexico Red Chile powder

Salt

Pomegranate seeds (optional)

Poppy seeds (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Farenheit

Wash the fennel and remove any cute little fronds and set those aside. Aren’t they adorable? Slice the fennel in half lengthwise and then each half into four so you have eight wedges in total. Trim the core from the base slightly but leave enough so the fennel wedges stay together. Place in a baking pan, toss with the olive oil and a generous sprinkling of salt.

Place in the preheated oven and cook for about 20-25 minutes, until you can easily insert a knife into the base of a wedge. You can crank up the heat for the last few minutes to get some nice browning if you can be bothered.

While the fennel is cooking, prepare the grapefruit. Take a slice off the bottom of the grapefruit and then one from the opposite end. You can now stand the grapefruit on your chopping board without it rolling off the table, hitting the dog and creating a scene. Take a sharp knife and cut away the peel, starting from the top to the bottom and following the shape of the grapefruit. The aim is to remove the bitter white pith without taking away the juicy flesh. Got it?

Then take a smaller knife and make v-shaped incisions to remove each grapefruit section — again leaving the fibrous white bits behind. Do this over a small bowl so you can capture all of the juice. Set the grapefruit slices aside. To the grapefruit juice, add the honey and the chile powder along with a healthy sprinking of salt.

Heat a skillet and place the grapefruit sections with the liquid in the pan and cook for a few minutes, reducing the liquid and coating the grapefruit. If a grapefruit section or two breaks up, don’t fall apart yourself. It’s really not the end of the world.

Place the fennel on a platter, top with the grapefruit slices and the syrupy liquid. Gently scatter some pomegrate seeds on top (if using and of course you’re using pomegranate seeds — they’re a super food) and some poppy seeds. Finish off with those cute fennel fronds and hey, presto! — you’re done. Look smug, serve and then get back to bed. It’s bound to be dark outside.

Green beans with red chile tomatoes & crispy onions

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Is it just me or are stores cranking up the Christmas tunes around Halloween these days? “It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas!” No it isn’t. It’s not even Thanksgiving, although at least that holiday is days away. Note to self: buy a turkey. Speaking of which, why don’t we have Thanksgiving carols? “It’s beginning to look a lot like Thanksgiving!” Now that’s a tune you could belt out.

And then there is Black Friday…don’t even get me started…Bah humbug.

Green beans, chile roasted tomatoes and crispy onions. What’s not to like?

I love Christmas as much as the next die-hard Scrooge. I even gave someone a Christmas present back in ’72. It was a tie. But I digress. I’d simply like to celebrate one holiday at a time. I’d like to enjoy New Year’s without feeling like I had to buy a Valentine’s card. Or celebrate Valentine’s Day without feeling like I need to stock up on Easter candy. Do you know what I mean?

On principle, I almost didn’t share this green bean recipe. Why you ask? Is it not delicious? Oh, yes it is. Is it not an excuse to open up a can of crispy onions, eat half of them while no one is looking, sprinkle the rest on the beans and then hide the can so no one knows your dirty little secret? Oh, yes it is.

It’s simply because it’s red and green. There, I said it. It shouts Christmas when all I’m thinking about is how can I wedge a 25-pound turkey, sweet potato casserole and dressing all into the oven at the same time. When I’m wondering why I invited Aunt Rose (again). And how many naps I can fit in post-Thanksgiving meal stupor. These are the things on my mind — not Christmas carols. I’ll deal with that later. Right after Black Friday.

Posole spice blend? Are you mad? Perhaps, but it’s just the ticket to spice up your green beans.

2 cups cherry tomatoes

3 Tbsp olive oil plus a splash more for the green beans

Scant 1/2 tsp sea salt

1/2 tsp. New Mexico red chile (Chile Molido)

1 lb. green beans, tops removed

1 Tbsp. Posole spice blend

Store-bought crispy onions — as many as you want, go ahead it’s Thanksgiving!

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

To make the red chile tomatoes, wash the tomatoes and slice them in half. Pour half the olive oil in the bottom of a casserole dish that is large enough to hold the tomatoes in one layer. Place the tomatoes cut side up in the dish and drizzle the rest of the oil on top. Dust with the salt and red chile powder and place in the oven and cook for around 1 1/2 hours — until the tomatoes have shrunken but are still soft and jammy. You can make these ahead of time and store in a container in the fridge.

When you’re ready to get the show on the road, wash the beans, trim the top (stem end). Bring a large pot filled with water to a boil. Add the posole mix and let it boil happily for a few minutes. Add the beans and cook until just tender. This is not the time to go and make a Tik Tok video. Drain the beans and posole spice mix in a fine mesh strainer so you don’t lose any of the chile goodness.

Toss the beans in a bit of olive oil, top with the tomatoes and sprinkle some of the crispy onions on top. And be generous. It is a holiday after all.

Baked Stuffed Sweet Potatoes with a chile, lime, pecan butter

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Hey fellows, did you dodge the bullet? C’mon, you know what I’m talking about. Valentine’s Day. Yesterday. I saw you at the gas station buying a slightly — scratch that, very — suspect bunch of carnations that looked like they’d seen better days. It was the panicked look in your face that said it all: ‘Yep, I totally forgot it was Valentine’s Day.’

Or you, the fellow standing in the frozen food section, wondering to yourself if a pepperoni pizza says ‘I love you’. In case you’re still wondering, it doesn’t.

But let’s face it, Valentine’s Day is a ruse, a ploy to strike fear in your heart and empty your wallet. Love — or even mild affection — doesn’t need a day. It doesn’t need a smaltzy card or roses and baby’s breath. You don’t need February 15th to say I-think-I-sort-of-perhaps-might-somewhat-like-you-only-not-during-a-major-league-baseball-game.

Jazz up your sweet potato with an easy chile, lime, pecan butter

If you really want to win someone’s heart, then cook for them. Make them a plate of food and you’ve got them wrapped around your little finger. This isn’t Valentine’s Day, it’s every day. It doesn’t have to be complicated or cost a lot — it just has to taste good.

And our baked stuffed sweet potatoes tick all the boxes. They’re quick, easy and taste delicious. You can’t ask for more than that.

A quick rub of olive oil and sprinkle of sea salt adds extra flavor

4 small sweet potatoes, about 5-7 ounces each

1 stick, 4oz butter (softened)

1/2 Tbsp New Mexico Red Chile (mild or hot)

2 Tbsp chopped pecans

Zest of 1 lime

Salt

Olive oil

Optional extras:

Crumbled goat’s cheese

Chopped cilantro

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Wash the sweet potatoes, dry them and give them a light rub of olive oil. Sprinkle them with sea salt and place them in a casserole dish. Bake them for 45 minutes to an hour, until you can easily insert a knife or skewer into them.

While the sweet potatoes are doing their thing, make the chile, lime, pecan butter. Place the softened butter in a small bowl, add the pecans, chile, lime zest and about 1/2 tsp of salt. Mash it around like you’re a toddler playing with your food. Taste and add more chile or salt.

Slice the baked sweet potatoes down the middle and add a generous dollop of the butter mixture. Top with goat’s cheese and cilantro, if using and get eating. No one’s extending any invitations around here.

Dinner, my friends, is served!

Spiced Butternut Squash & Bean Soup

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‘Tis the season for multi-tasking madness! Yes, it’s the time of year to over extend yourself and your credit card. Commit to far too much. Eat and drink yourself silly. Send holiday greetings to friends you haven’t seen or spoken to since you sent them a card last year. Ask yourself why stores insist on playing Christmas music months in advance. Buy your nearest and dearest something they’ll dislike and discard. Then collapse and promise you’ll never do this again.

Or you could turn your phone onto silent. Channel your inner Scrooge. No Christmas cards. No Christmas sweaters. Scowl at those cute carollers who come to your door. Then slip into the kitchen and make yourself a restorative pot of soup.

Accompany said soup with a hefty wedge of bread, some really good butter and a good book. The book, I might add is to read, not eat. Although if you enjoy reading you’re a voracious reader who devours books so maybe you do ‘eat’ them up. I digress…Perhaps something to listen to (not Mariah Carey singing ‘All I Want for Christmas’ for heavens sake). Something classy like Elvis.

Breathe deep and sigh. Do feel smug if this feels appropriate. For soup, you’re spoiled for choice. At our Scrooge Grotto this year, we’ll be serving a Spiced Butternut Squash & Bean Soup. It’s packed full of health-giving goodness (yawn) and is easy to make. Do share with someone if you must or store the rest in the freezer for a cold winter’s day.

Spiced Butternut Squash & Bean Soup

Serves 4

1 butternut Squash, around 1.5-2 lbs.

14 oz. can of beans (garbanzo, black eyed peas, you get the idea)

A hefty handful of cavolo nero (black cabbage), kale or spinach

3 cups chicken or vegetable stock

1 onion, diced

1 clove garlic, minced

2 Tbsp. olive oil

1 New Mexico red chile pod

1 1/2 tsp. turmeric

1 tsp. ancho chile powder

1/2 tsp. cumin

Heat the oil in a medium-large saucepan over low heat. Saute the onion slowly until soft and translucent. Don’t rush this step folks. While the onion is cooking, peel the squash, slice in half, remove the seeds (you can save them to roast if you’re feeling energetic) and chop into 1/2″ dice.

Add the garlic to the softened onion, saute for another minute then add the spices, including the chile pod. Stir to coat and cook for a minute or two to bring out the flavours of the spices. Add the diced butternut squash and stir to coat. Cook for a few minutes then add the stock. Increase the heat to medium (it should be at a low simmer). Cook until the squash is tender — this won’t take long, perhaps 15 minutes.

While the soup is cooking, wash your greens. If using kale or cavolo nero, strip the leaves from the woody stems and chop. If using spinach, take a break, check your Instagram ‘likes’ and then get back to work.

When the squash is cooked, drain and rinse the beans, add them to the soup along with the greens. Stir, taste and add salt and more chile if desired. Remove the chile pod and serve.

Tomato Salad with Cilantro Pesto

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I never met a tomato I didn’t like. Scratch that. I never met a vine-ripened tomato I didn’t like. Now don’t start rolling your eyes and muttering under your breath. I can hear you, you know and no, I’m not being an elitist snob.

Okay, maybe I am, but so what? Sometimes in life there is a right way to do something and a wrong way. And trust me folks, picking a tomato when it’s green, transporting it halfway around the world and then popping it in the refrigerator is wrong. W-R-O-N-G.

Whoever thought that tomatoes need to be refrigerated anyway? The refrigerator is for bottles of strange chutneys and sauces that you use once and then forget about for 2-3 years. It’s for leftovers that find their way to the very back of the shelf where they gestate until they’re so covered with fuzzy mould that you can’t tell if they were animal, vegetable or mineral. The fridge is not, however, for tomatoes.

Refrigerating tomatoes kills the flavor so don’t do it. Got it?

Tomatoes should smell of sun (yes, I know that technically you can’t smell sun, but bear with me). They should be warm to the touch, firm yet yielding and above all, juicy. Place thick slices between two pieces of white bread that have been liberally slathered with mayonnaise. And don’t forget to generously season them with salt and pepper. Eat and enjoy life as the tomato juices run down you chin.

Yes, it’s messy. Yes, you look like a slob. Yes, you trash that brand new white shirt you bought (what were you thinking of buying a white shirt for heaven’s sake?). But it’s worth it. Just don’t let those precious tomatoes anywhere near the fridge. Promise?

Toasting nuts is not the time to check your emails or put a load of laundry in. Focus, people, focus.

And if you’d like something a smidge more sophisticated, then try our tomato salad recipe.

Tomato Salad with Cilantro Pesto

Serves 4

1 1/2 lbs tomatoes

Small bunch of cilantro, leaves and stems washed and roughly chopped

2 heaping Tbsp pine nuts, plus more for garnishing

1 small clove of garlic, minced

3 oz olive oil

1/8-1/4 tsp Hatch green chile powder

Salt

Chile pequin, to garnish

Place the pine nuts in a small saucepan and toast them for a few minutes over medium heat until nicely browned (Browned people, not burnt. There is a difference). Remove from the pan and allow the pine nuts to cool. Place the cilantro in the bowl of a small food processor along with the minced garlic, Hatch green chile powder, pine nuts and two tablespoons of the olive oil. Blitz until it forms a rough paste. Season with salt and add more chile powder if it needs more heat. Add the remaining tablespoon of oil if the mixture feels too thick — you should be able to drizzle it over your tomatoes.

Slice your non-refrigerated tomatoes and place them on a plate. Drizzle over the pesto and garnish with more pine nuts and some Chile pequin. Serve and enjoy.

Even better? Add a baguette so you can soak up all those juices!

Green chile potato salad

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Whoever said the potato is humble? There is nothing humble about the noble spud. Yes, it grows quietly underground, doing it’s tuber-thing. It doesn’t call attention to itself but does that make it humble? Nay, gentle reader. On the contrary. Picture a tiny new potato, boiled gently, sliced in half, a bit of the flesh spooned out and replaced with a dollop of black caviar and a lick of sour cream. Call that humble?

Or try vichyssoise. That’s vihsh–ee–SWAHZ, darling. The rich, creamy, potato and leek soup that’s served cold, and garnished with a fluttering of chopped chives. You say a bowl of pureed onions and potatoes? I say you’re a philistine.

The beauty of potatoes is that they can go all ‘Puttin’ on the Ritz’ one moment and down home comfort food the next. They are culinary chameleons. As it’s the Fourth of July (cue fireworks, burned burgers and dodgy hotdogs), we thought a green chile potato salad was in order. We’ve used small, new red potatoes, celery including the leaves, if you can find them, and shallots instead of onions.

Yes, slightly pretentious but we can live with that. What we can’t abide is anything humble, except for home of course.

If you can find celery with the leaves, don’t toss them. Finely chop the leaves and add to your potato salad.

Serves 5-6 as a side dish

1.25 lbs. potatoes, preferably new red potatoes but we won’t quibble

1 stalk of celery, diced, plus chopped celery leaves if you’ve got them

1 small banana shallot, finely minced

2 Tbsp mayonnaise

1/2 – 1 tsp Dijon mustard

1 Tbsp white wine vinegar

1 Tbsp olive oil

1/2 tsp Hatch green chile powder, or more to taste

Salt

Rinse the potatoes, slice them in half and put them in a pan with water. Generously salt the water and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and cook until the potatoes are just tender.

While the potatoes are cooking, place the diced celery, celery leaves if you have them, minced shallot, mayonnaise, mustard, vinegar, olive oil and the Hatch green chile powder — basically the rest of the ingredient list Einstein — in a bowl. Combine. Drain the potatoes and while hot, add to the bowl. Give a firm but gentle stir (like you’re dealing with a slightly over excited five year old). Serve as is or at room temperature.

Call that humble?

Habanero berries with lime & mint

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A siesta is a mighty fine thing. Some might think it’s a luxury but here at Chile Trail HQ, we think it’s a necessity, especially in the summer. Think about it — you’ve had lunch and it’s now the hottest part of the day. What are you going to do — run a 10k? Of course not. Any sensible person would put their feet up and take a nap.

A super speedy summer dessert or post-nap snack

It doesn’t have to be long but no peaking at your phone or computer. No quick notes on your ever lengthening to-do list. Feet up and eyes closed. That’s an order. Then when you wake up (it doesn’t have to be long — 15 or 20 minutes can do the trick), you’re rested and rejuvenated. Some people might even say you look 10 years younger, but that’s pushing it.

You stretch, smile and feel like a light snack is in order. Might we suggest berries macerated in a sugar syrup with lime, mint and habanero chile? Of course we can. Make it ahead of time, pop it in the fridge and serve it with a large spoonful of COYO, coconut yogurt. Suddenly you’re feeling super human, able to leap tall buildings in a singe bound.

Is it the nap or the berries? We’ll leave you to decide.

Serves 4

1 lb. mixed berries (rasp, black, straw)

1/4 tsp habanero chile powder

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup water

Zest & juice of one lime

A sprig of mint plus more leaves to garnish

COYO coconut milk yogurt

Wash the berries and slice the strawberries in halves or quarters, depending on their size. Put the chile, sugar, water, lime juice and zest, and the sprig of mint in a small saucepan. Place on the stove and heat until the sugar dissolves. Remove from the heat and allow to cool.

Strain and pour over the berries. Allow to macerate for half an hour or so before serving with a large dollop of COYO and some chopped mint leaves.

The creaminess of COYO coconut yogurt helps to temper the fieriness of the habanero. Trust us.

Grilled asparagus with mozzarella and red chile-honey dressing

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Sharing is seriously overrated. Sure, it looks good on paper. It’s the ‘right’ thing to do. And be honest, how many times have you told your kids to share the toys/computer game/remote control and ‘play nicely’? 

But sometimes it’s a whole lot more fun to have a party where only three invitations go out: me, myself, and I. No sharing that stellar bottle of wine. No fear that when you offer a guest first dibs from your box of chocolates that they’ll end up with your favorite dark chocolate with caramel and sea salt, while you get stuck with the weird one with the pink filling that tastes like the perfume your Granny used to wear. 

There is no better argument for not sharing than a bunch of asparagus, especially if you’re lucky enough to get your hands on some thick, fat stalks. Sure, you could divide them in half and give your dining companion three or even four, if you’re feeling like a martyr. But how much better to hog them for yourself. Add a ball of fresh mozzarella, a chile-honey dressing and go for it.

No sharing. No ‘Honestly, you have the last one. I couldn’t eat another bite.’ No holier than thou moment. And when you’re done, crack open that box of chocolates. Go on – you know you want to. 

Serves one (or two if you’re feeling friendly)

One bunch of asparagus – about 6 fat spears

One ball of mozzarella – buffalo or burrata if you won the lottery

3 Tbsp. vegetable oil + extra for grilling the asparagus

1 – 1 ½ Tbsp. rice wine vinegar

1 tsp runny honey

¼ – ½ tsp Chile de arbol – Cayenne powder

¼ tsp sea salt

Chile caribe to garnish 

Note: some folks like to snap off the end of their asparagus but we think you lose too much. Instead, trim the end and then take a vegetable peeler and shave off some of the outer woody bit. It will be nice and tender. Promise. 

Add a couple of inches of water to a frying pan that is large enough to hold the asparagus in a single layer. Bring the water to a boil, add a generous spoonful of salt and the asparagus. Cover and steam for 2 to 3 minutes or until you can insert a knife easily into the base of the stalk. Gently place the asparagus into a wide colander and rinse with ice cold water to cool them down. Set the asparagus on some paper towels to dry them off.

Heat your grill to medium-hot. (You can also do this inside on a grill pan if the weather isn’t cooperating.) While the grill is heating up, make the dressing. Whisk together the oil, rice wine vinegar, honey, chile and salt. Taste and add more chile and/or salt as needed. 

Brush the asparagus with some oil and place on the hot grill. Turn the spears about every thirty seconds to get nice grill marks all around the spears. Remove from the grill. Place the mozzarella on a plate, place the spears around it, and drizzle over the dressing. Sprinkle with some chile caribe. 

Christmas Caesar Salad

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In New Mexico, we don’t care where you live. We don’t care what you do for a living. And we definitely don’t care what you got up to last weekend when you said you were ‘cleaning the garage’. 

What do we care about? It’s simple. One question and one question only is on the lips of any self-respecting New Mexican: red or green? All we care about is chile. We eat it for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Folks round here are divided into two camps – those who favor red chile and those who swear by green. 

Scratch that – three camps. There are some chile lovers who simply can’t make up their minds. They love them both so that’s what we give them – red and green, or as we like to call it, Christmas.

For the Christmas lovers out there, we’ve got a Christmas Caesar salad. There is green chile in the salad dressing and red chile on the crispy croutons. And as if that’s not enough, we use two different red chiles. Over the top? Yep, so sue us. Cayenne or chile de arbol, gives heat, while New Mexico or chile molido adds a kinder, gentler warmth. 

It’s salad so it’s good for you so go ahead and look smug, we don’t mind. Add some whole anchovies and halved hard boiled egg if you like and here’s a secret – we pick up the leaves and eat them with our fingers. Forget cutlery. We’re heathens but you know you love us. 

Bon appetit!

Serves 2 as a lunch salad

For the dressing:

½ tsp Dijon mustard

2 Tbsp olive oil

1 Tbsp lemon juice

1 ½ tsp whipping cream

¼- ½ tsp Green Jalapeño Chile Powder

For the salad:

1 large head of baby Romaine, about 8 oz., washed and dried

8-large shavings of parmesan (you can do this with a vegetable peeler)

Anchovy fillets in oil, optional

Hard boiled eggs, optional

For the croutons:

6 slices of baguette

2-2 ½ Tbsp olive oil

1 clove garlic, minced to a pulp

New Mexico Red Chile/Chile Molido powder

Chile de Arbol/Cayenne chile powder

Combine all of the ingredients for the salad dressing. Whisk them like your life depended on it. Taste, season with salt, add some more chile – you know the drill. Set the dressing aside.

To make the croutons, mix the bashed garlic with the olive oil and brush over the baguette slices. Sprinkle each slice with a bit of chile de arbol and chile molido. Place the slices on a baking pan and broil for a minute or two until crisp. 

While the bread is in the oven, make haste. Divide the leaves between two plates and do the same with the shaved parmesan. Add the halved hard boiled eggs and whole anchovies, if using. 

Remove the pan from the oven, divide the slices between the two plates and drizzle over the dressing. Eat and be careful not to drip any dressing on that new linen shirt. Honestly, you can dress ‘em up but you can’t take ‘em out.