Nopales y Calabaza con Queso

Nopales y Calabaza con Queso

• 6 large nopales leaves, 1.5 to 2 lbs
• 1 lbs (seeded chunks) to 2 lbs (whole) pumpkin or other yellow winter squash.
• 1 lbs queso fresco, diced
• 1 anaheim or poblano pepper
• 1 tbs dried oregano, preferably Mexican
• 2 to 4 chiles de arbol, dried
• 2.5 cups water
• 3 tbs olive oil
• 1 large yellow onion
• Juice of 1 lime
• 2 tsp salt, plus more to taste

First, the hard part: de-spine the nopales.  Don heavy rubber or leather gloves.  Then, run a long vegetable knife along both sides to remove most of the spines.  Remove the remaining ones using a paring knife and/or a potato gouger.  Wash and dry the nopales, and slice them into narrow strips.

Halve, peel and slice the onion.  Spit and seed the chiles de arbol, and cut them into 1" pieces.  Halve, seed and slice the anaheim pepper.  Peel, seed and dice the pumpkin into 1" cubes; you should have between 2 and 3 cups.

Put the nopales, pumpkin, olive oil, water, and chiles de arbol in a large, wide pot.  Heat to a boil, do not cover.  Stir periodically for about 10 minutes of boiling.  Add the onions, anaheim, oregano, and salt.  Simmer for another 15 minutes or so, until the water is basically gone and the vegetables are starting to fry in the remaining oil.  Turn off heat, and mix in the lime juice and queso fresco.  

Serves 6 to 8 as a side dish.