1 Chicken; whole cut into 8
-serving pieces 6 c Chicken Stock; homemade
5 Ancho Chiles; dried, stems
-and seeds removed 2 Guajillo Chiles; dried stems
-and seeds removed or -substitute New Mexican 5 Black Peppercorns; whole
5 Cloves; whole
2 Cinnamon Stick; 2″ pieces
1 White Onion;peeled,quartered
10 Cloves Garlic
3 tb Lard or Vegetable oil
1 sm French Roll; sliced
1 sm Plantain; or substitute
-a banana 2 tb Raisins
1/4 c Sesame Seeds
10 Almonds; whole
2 md Tomatoes; quartered
3 Marjoram sprigs, or Oregano
1 Bar Mexican Chocolate; or
-to taste, (3.5oz is best) -use Ibarra or Abuelita 2 Avocado leaves; bay leaves
Salt to taste : Seenote: dried peppers; Mikenote, After the peppers have been toasted and soaked I strain them through a foley food mill, to remove ALL of the skin and seeds. This is a longer messier solution to grinding them in a blender but it makes a smoother, less stringent sauce. Another method is to toast and soak the peppers and then lay them down on a cutting board and use the blade of knife, scrape the reconstituted pepper off from the skin….. longer, messier, but do-able…. Simmer the chicken in stock until tender about 1/2 hour. Remove the chicken and keep warm and reserve the stock. In a large frying pan or comal, toast the chiles, turning once until darkened, but not burned. Toast the guajillo a little longer because of their tougher skins. Place the chiles in a bowl and cover with hot water to soak for 1/2 hour to soften. Remove the chiles and place in a blender or food processor and puree, adding a little chile water if necessary, strain. Toast the peppercorns, cloves, and cinnamon lightly in a dry pan or comal. Cool and grind in a molcajete or spice grinder. In the same pan, roast the onion and garlic cloves until slightly browned. Cool and place in a food processor and puree with a little water. Heat the lard in a pan until smoking hot, and fry the bread until lightly brown, remove and drain on paper towels. Fry the plantain on both sides until brown, remove and drain. Quickly fry the raisins, remove. Lower the heat and add the sesame seeds, stirring constantly for a couple of minutes. Then add the almonds and continue to fry until both are well browned. Remove, drain, and combine with the bread, plantain and raisins, reserving some of the sesame seeds for garnish. Place in a food processor or blender and puree, adding a little water if necessary. Wipe out the skillet with a cloth and add 1 tb lard. When it is hot, add the tomatoes and fry well. Place in a blender or food processor and puree, remove. Heat a tablespoon of lard in a cazuela or heavy pot until smoking. Add the chile puree and fry, stirring constantly, so it will not burn. It tends to splatter about, so be careful! Fry for a couple of minutes, add the tomato puree, the ground spices, and the marjoram and heat through. Stir in the bread mixture and continue to heat, stirring constantly. Add the chocolate and the avocado leaves, thin with the reserved chicken stock and continue to simmer for 30 minutes. Add the chicken, adjust the salt, and heat through. Serve with black beans, rice, and tortillas. Heat scale medium