(M)ole!

Yes, I am aware that the above photo is a rather sub-par. Unfortunately it's the best I have at this particular juncture for a recipe that, while you may not realize it yet, you really want.

First of all, if you do not like spicy chocolate, you are dead to me. Just turn around and walk away now.

When I was in Charlottesville, I frequented a restaurant with face-sized margaritas and surprisingly good Mexican food. I mean, come on, it's in the middle of Virginia, what are the odds? Anyway, I invariably ordered the enchiladas drowning in mole sauce and ate every bite on the plate. Much to my chagrin, the plate was several times larger than my stomach, so the remainder of the evening was spent curled up in the fetal position contemplating an early death. Worth it.

Upon moving away, however, I decided that it was time to learn how to make my very own mole sauce with the hoped-for side effect that I would be able to moderate my consumption thereof. This has... sort of... worked. On the one hand, I do not eat enough in an single sitting to philosophise on the merits of lying face down on the kitchen floor to counter the internal stomach pressure. On the other hand, this just means that I eat it for dinner one night, and lunch and dinner the next or until someone in the house has polished it off.

We'll say it's a wash.

Mole Sauce
(You can serve this over pretty much any kind of enchilada, though I generally use a primarily chicken or sweet potato/black bean filling)

3-4 cups chicken broth
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup onion, finely chopped
3 tablespoons garlic, chopped
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3 tablespoons chili powder
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons raisins, heaping
2 tablespoons slivered almonds, heaping
2 ounces dark chocolate, chopped

1. Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion, garlic, oregano, cumin and cinnamon. Cover and cook until onion is almost tender, stirring occasionally, about 6 minutes.

2. Mix in chili powder and flour, stir for 1 minute.

3. Gradually whisk in chicken broth. Increase heat to high and boil until reduced, about 35 minutes, stirring occasionally.

4. Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly.

5. Here you have an option. You may process sauce, raisins, and almonds in blender until smooth for a satiny sauce -or- you may just chop the raisins and almonds really fine and toss them into the sauce because you don't feel like dealing with a blender. The sauce will be chunkier, but still delicious (this is what I usually do).

6. Return to heat and whisk in chocolate.

7. Reduce heat to low whisk and simmer for a few minutes, until well blended.

8. Pour over anything.