Sopes con Cecina

In a bowl combine masa harina, flour, and salt. Stir in water and egg. Add melted shortening, mix well. Gently knead dough until it’s moist but holds its shape. Cover and chill for 1 hour.

While dough is chilling begin preparing salsa. In a pot place tomatillos and jalapeno and cover with water. Bring them to boil and keep them in there until the tomatillo skins turn brownish color. Using a slotted spoon scoop tomatillos and jalapeno out and place into blender; add about 1/2 cup of water from pot. Add onion, garlic, cumin and salt. Blend several minutes until smooth.

To cook cecina heat a skillet on high, place cecina onto skillet until browned on each side; about 3-5 minutes each side. Remove from pan and repeat until all pieces of the cecina are cooked.

Divide dough into 6 portions. Roll one portion of the dough into a ball (keep remaining dough covered to prevent drying out; if it dries out add a little water). On a floured surface pat ball and roll it in between a plastic bag to form and oval shape about 4″ long; form a shell by pinching up the edges of the round to make a ridge. Repeat until all pieces of the dough are done.

Pour oil into skillet about 1/2″ deep. Heat to 365 degrees F. Fry shells a couple at a time. About 1-2 minutes per side until crisp, turning only once. Using slotted spoon remove shells from oil and place on paper towel to drain excess oil.

To assemble sopes, spread about 3 tablespoons of salsa evenly onto each sope. Add 1 tablespoon Mexican crema to each and top with casero cheese. Serve with cecina, refried beans and rice.