Molletes (Mexican bean and cheese toasts)
Crusty bread toasted with butter, spread thick with refried beans, broiled under melted cheese and topped with fresh pico de gallo, a Mexico City favorite that’s dinner in 20 minutes.
- 20 min total
- 15 min hands-on
- Anyone can make this
- Serves 2
- About $2.39 a serving
- 720 calories
- Vegetarian
Dolly says: I’d make this on a weeknight. It’s on the table in 20 minutes.
Ingredients
For 2 servings.
- 2 Roma tomatoes, diced
- ¼ white onion, finely chopped
- 1 jalapeño, seeded and finely chopped (optional)
- 2 tbsp cilantro, chopped
- ½ lime
- ½ French bread, halved lengthwise and crosswise
- 2 tbsp butter, softened
- 1 cup vegetarian refried beans
- 1 cup Monterey Jack cheese, shredded
From your pantry
- 1 pinch salt
Each serving has about 720 calories, 32 g protein, 77 g carbs and 32 g fat, and costs about $2.39 at typical US grocery prices. Both are estimates from what the recipe uses.
Missing something?
- No cilantro? Fresh parsley works.
- No limes? Lemons work.
- No French bread? Sourdough bread works.
- No butter? Ghee works.
Steps
Tap an underlined word for a quick explanation.
the tomatoes, the onion and jalapeño, and chop the cilantro.
Dice. Dicing means cutting food into small, even cubes, usually a quarter to half an inch across. Pieces the same size cook at the same speed, so nothing burns while the rest catches up.
How you’ll know: Your pieces are little cubes about the size of a chickpea, and they all look close to the same.
Finely chop. Finely chopping means cutting food into small pieces, a little bigger than minced, about the size of a lentil. Small pieces spread their flavor through the dish and cook quickly.
How you’ll know: Nothing is bigger than a lentil, and the pile looks like confetti rather than paste.
Dolly’s tip: Curl the fingertips of your holding hand under like a claw, so the knife slides past your knuckles.Stir the tomatoes, onion, jalapeño and cilantro with the lime juice and of salt in a bowl. This is your pico de gallo.
Pinch. A pinch is what you can hold between your thumb and two fingers, less than an eighth of a teaspoon. It’s a small, forgiving amount, so there’s no need to measure.
How you’ll know: It’s a light sprinkle you can barely see on the food, not a little pile.
Turn on the with a rack about 6 inches below it.
Broil. Broiling means cooking under the oven’s top heating element, with strong heat from above. It browns and crisps the top in minutes, and it can burn fast, so stay close.
How you’ll know: The top bubbles and spots golden brown; check every minute and pull it before it blackens.
Spread the cut sides of the bread with butter, set them cut side up on a , and about 2 minutes, until toasty.
Sheet pan. A sheet pan is a flat metal baking tray with a low rim all the way around. The rim catches juices, and the wide surface lets food spread out and brown.
How you’ll know: Everything fits in one layer with a little space between the pieces.
Broil. Broiling means cooking under the oven’s top heating element, with strong heat from above. It browns and crisps the top in minutes, and it can burn fast, so stay close.
How you’ll know: The top bubbles and spots golden brown; check every minute and pull it before it blackens.
Timer: 2 min
Dolly’s tip: Broilers are fast. Stay at the oven door and peek every 30 seconds.Spread a thick layer of refried beans over each piece and cover with the cheese.
2 to 3 minutes, until the cheese has and has a few spots.
Broil. Broiling means cooking under the oven’s top heating element, with strong heat from above. It browns and crisps the top in minutes, and it can burn fast, so stay close.
How you’ll know: The top bubbles and spots golden brown; check every minute and pull it before it blackens.
Melt. Melting means gently heating something solid, like butter or cheese, until it turns liquid. Low or medium heat keeps it from browning or burning.
How you’ll know: It’s smooth and liquid, and butter may foam a little but hasn’t turned brown.
Brown. Browning means cooking until the outside turns brown, which is where a lot of savory flavor comes from. Give food room and time without stirring, or it steams and stays gray.
How you’ll know: The food looks brown rather than gray, and the kitchen smells toasty and savory.
Timer: 2 min
Spoon the pico de gallo over the top and eat them hot.
Plan this in Dollop, and get the grocery list
Dollop puts this dinner on a night that suits your week, lists only what you still need to buy, and walks you through each step while you cook.
