White Corn Tamales

with raw cacao mole, marinated portobellos and green tomato salsa

Courtesy of Sarma Melngailis of One Lucky Duck and Pure Food and Wine
Serves 4 to 6 (makes 12 tamales)

For the portobellos:

3 medium or 2 large Portobello mushroom caps, sliced into sticks about 2 inches long and 1/4 inch thick
1/2 C	Pumpkin seed oil
1 clove	Garlic, minced
1 T.	Minced fresh oregano
1 tsp.	Sea salt

In a medium bowl, toss the mushrooms with the pumpkin seed oil, garlic, oregano and salt. Add a bit more oil if necessary to coat all the mushrooms. Transfer the mushrooms to a lined dehydrator tray and dehydrate at 115°F for 12 to 24 hours (tossing them around from time to time) or until the mushrooms taste as if they have been sautéed.

For the mole sauce:

3	Dried child peppers (such as ancho, pasilla or cascabel)
3 T	Navitas Naturals Cacao nibs
1/2 C.	Pumpkin seeds or sunflower seeds
1/4 C.	Sesame seeds
3/4 C.	Raisins
1/2 tsp	Cumin
1/4 C.	Raw almond butter
1 T.	Navitas Naturals Cacao powder
2 T.	Walnut or other nut oil
to taste	Sea Salt
to taste	Freshly ground black pepper

In a bowl, add the chiles, Navitas Naturals Cacao nibs, pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds, raisins and cumin and mix to combine. Add enough water to the bowl to cover and let stand at room temperature for one to two hours. Transfer the mixture to a high-speed blender, add the almond butter and Navitas Naturals Cacao powder and blend until completely smooth, adding as much filtered water as necessary to get it to a thick-sauce consistency. Add the walnut oil, and sea salt and black pepper to taste and blend to combine.

For the corn filling and tamales:

12	Corn husks
6 C.	Fresh white corn kernels, cut from 4-5 ears
1 C.	Pine nuts
1 C.	Navitas Naturals Cashews
1/2 tsp.	Cayenne
1 tsp.	Sea salt
1	Small handful cilantro, finely chopped

Soak the corn husks in warm water for one to two hours to make them pliable. Place five cups of the corn in the food processor with the pine nuts, cashews, cayenne and salt, and process just until smooth, but do not overprocess. Fold in the remaining 1 c. corn and the cilantro and adjust seasoning if necessary. Transfer to a bowl and mix in the dehydrated mushrooms. Dry the corn husks with a towel. Tear a thin strip off the side of each husk – this will be used as string to tie the tamale together. Lay the corn husks flat and place about ½ c. of the corn mixture onto the center of each. Fold the bottoms up over the filling and then fold the sides over. Using the husk strips, tie the tops of each tamale. Place the tamales in the dehydrator at 115°F to warm them through, ideally for about two hours before serving.

For the salsa verde:

2-3	Medium green tomatoes
2-3	Medium tomatillos
to taste	Sea salt
2	Jalapeno peppers, seeds to taste, chopped
1 very large	Handful cilantro
1	Green onion, white and 1” green, chopped
2 T.	Lime juice

Quarter and salt the tomatoes and tomatillos. Let sit for one hour and then drain the liquid and place them in the food processor. Add the jalapeno, cilantro and green onion and pulse until chunky. Drain any additional excess liquid and discard, and season the mixture with lime juice and salt to taste.