Hola! Me llamo Lupe.

Thanks to the Wethersfield, Connecticut Public School System and, later, Loyola College in Maryland (now Loyola University of Maryland...no comment), I have absorbed portions of 7 school years of Spanish language education. I say portions because I am nothing like fluent in reading, speaking or understanding the Spanish language. Not. Even. Close. Of my handful of educational failings, it is definitely the most glaring. Considering the amount of time spent in Spanish class and considering that one of those years was spent in honors Spanish (clearly, the result of placement by an over-confident guidance counselor), I know next to no Spanish.

My knowledge of Spanish is so scant that by junior year of high school, I was terrified of being called on in Spanish class because that was the year that la professora (the delightfully wacky Sra. Peel) stopped speaking any English, so not only was I sure I could not answer her properly, I probably wasn't even going to know what I had been asked. Unfortunately, my Spanish name, Cristina, was not only pretty common but it was practically the same as Catalina, Catarina and several other names also very common in Spanish class. I was so regularly alarmed that my name might have been being called that I was eventually prompted to research and construct the proper verb tenses and sentence structure to request of Sra. Peel an official name change. Needless to say, I have no recollection of that question, but Sra. Peel was impressed enough to grant me my name change. Henceforth, I would be referred to in spanish class as Lupe. Ahhh...Lupe. Similar to nothing and much, much more conducive to zoning out in spanish class.

While my knowledge of the Spanish language is poor, my knowledge of the cuisines of Spain, Mexico and much of Latin America is extensive and growing. I love authentic Spanish cooking, especially lovely little tapas. We'll talk about that some other time. I also loove Mexican food, and I'm no snob about it...Tex Mex is just fine by me. I just really appreciate the balance of fresh ingredients, nice spicy spices, good cheeses, the almighty and prominent tomato and cilantro flavors and, of course, we all know how I feel about braising and grilling. Basically, in my heart of hearts, I am Lupe, my generic American rootlessness replaced by rich Latin cultural heritage. Or, at the very least, rich, Latin food.

So, on behalf of Lupe, I present a burrito so profoundly good that my jaded husband (who is totally spoiled by my willingness to make elaborate and tasty meals on an average Wednesday) looked at me the other night and said "wow." Translation: Muy Bueno.

Green Chicken Burritos

Ingredients:

1 & 1/3 - 1 & 1/2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breasts

2 small Haas Avocados, peeled, pitted and diced into 1/2" chunks (in this recipe, you can get away with using avocados that are a bit on the firm side. If you use really ripe ones, they might get a little too mushy)

1 medium red onion, diced

2 cups shredded cheddar & monterey jack cheeses (I also like the Kraft Mexican blend shredded cheese, but for God's sake, not the one with taco seasonings mixed in)

About 2 dozen grape tomatos, halved

1 bunch fresh cilantro, rinsed thoroughly and mostly dry

2 limes

1 or 2 jalapeno peppers, to your taste

6 burrito size flour tortillas, any flavor or variety you like

Tomato salsa, tomatillo or green chili salsa and/or sour cream for garnish.

Instructions:

Season chicken breasts with salt and pepper and a bit of olive oil just to prevent them from sticking to the grill. Grill until cooked through, but not over cooked since they will esentially be cooked again once they are incorporated into burritos. (If you prefer to roast, poach or broil chicken breasts, go ahead. I just like the grilled flavor in this recipe.) Chop into 1/2" chunks and set aside.

Preheat oven to 425. In a large bowl, combine chicken, onion, tomatoes, cheese & avocados and toss to mix. Set aside.

Using your blender or food processor, combine 1 generous handful of cilantro leaves; the zest of one lime; the juice of both limes and one jalapeno, stem, seeds and membranes removed.* Blend until a pesto-like texture is acheived. If you need extra liquid, use a few drops of canola oil or water. Taste the mixture. If you want it to be spicier, add the second jalapeno. If you want it super spicy, leave some of the membranes and seeds in tact but proceed with caution; you can always add more spice but you can't take it out.

Pour green lime-cilantro-jalapeno dressing over chicken mixture and stir to coat. Place tortillas in microwave between damp paper towels and zap for one minute. Working on a large cookie sheet, add a few heaping spoonfulls (about 3/4 to 1 cup) of chicken mixture directly into the center of the first tortilla. Fold left and right sides of tortilla inward over mixture, and then roll the burrito from top to bottom snugly, placing the finished product seam-side down on cookie sheet. Repeat with remaining tortillas & mixture. Bake for 20 minutes until tortillas brown just slightly.

Serve with your favorite salsa and sour cream, or "Christmas style" with red AND green salsas as shown. Enjoy!