Spice up your dinner with chicken tinga

Place the rinsed tomatoes and tomatillos in a medium saucepan and cover them with water. Set the saucepan over medium heat. Once it comes to a simmer, cook for 8 to 10 minutes, or until the tomatoes and tomatillos are soft, thoroughly cooked and smooshy but not coming apart. Remove them with a slotted spoon, place in the jar of a blender or food processor and process until smooth.

Heat the oil in a large and deep pan over medium heat. Once it is hot but not smoking, stir in the onion and cook until soft and translucent, for about 5 to 6 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook until it becomes fragrant and lightly browned, about 1 minute.

Pour the tomato/tomatillo sauce on top and sprinkle the oregano, marjoram, thyme, salt and black pepper. Spoon the chipotle chiles in adobo sauce as well. If you want it spicy, you may drop in a whole chipotle chile in adobo in there as well. Let the sauce simmer, stirring now and then, until it seasons and deepens its red color, for about 10 to 12 minutes. You may want to partially cover the pan as the sauce may want to jump over your burners.

Toss in the chicken and combine with the sauce. Let it cook, stirring casually as it does, until the chicken has absorbed almost all of the juices and the mix is moist but not juicy.

Place the tostadas on a large platter. Place all the toppings in separate bowls.

To arrange tostadas:

Layer a couple tablespoons of refried beans on the tostada. Spread a couple tablespoons of chicken tinga on top and garnish with about 1 or 2 tablespoons of lettuce, 1 or 2 slices of ripe avocado, 1 or 2 tablespoons of crumbled queso fresco and Mexican cream.

Place the tomatillos along with the garlic cloves and the chiles serranos in a pot and cover with water. Place over high heat until it comes to a boil. Simmer at medium for about 10 minutes, or until tomatillos change their color from a bright to a pale green. Cook through until they are soft but are not coming apart.

Place tomatillos, garlic and chile (you may add one chile first) and 1/2 cup of the cooking liquid in the blender and puree until smooth. Incorporate the cilantro leaves, onion and salt and process again. Taste for salt and add more if need be. Also taste for heat; you may add the other chile in pieces until you reach your desired heat level.

Heat the oil in a pot over medium heat. Once it is hot but not smoking, pour in the sauce and bring it to a boil. Simmer over medium heat for 6 to 7 minutes, until it thickens a bit and deepens its flavor and color. Turn off the heat.

Once it cools down, you may store it in a closed container in the refrigerator for weeks. However, the heat level of the sauce will diminish as the days go by.

In batches, place beans and their cooking liquid in a blender or food processor and puree until smooth.

In a large saute pan over medium heat, pour the oil and heat until hot but not smoking, about 1 to 2 minutes. Add the onions and let them saute for about 3 to 4 minutes, until they have softened, become translucent and have started to slightly brown along the edges.

Add the pureed beans over the sauteed onion. Let them season and thicken for about 10 to 15 minutes, stirring now and then, until they have achieved a thick puree consistency and are somewhat pasty-looking. It depends on your liking. Some people like them thicker and some people like them with a softer consistency. While it depends on how you like them, they are mostly cooked until they can hold a shape when scooped with a spoon. If the beans are bubbling way too much, lower the heat a little to medium-low.

Heat a nonstick skillet or comal over medium-low heat. You may also use the grill. Once hot, after 3 or 4 minutes, brush one side of 2 flour tortillas. Place them on the skillet, top with the cheese slices and the chicken tinga. Place 2 flour tortillas on top, and brush with a little bit of oil on the top as well. Let the quesadillas cook until the tortillas on the bottom have begun to harden a bit and achieve a nice golden to brown tan.

Flip to the other side with the help of a cooking spatula and let the quesadillas continue to warm up, until the cheese has completely melted and the tortillas have hardened and tanned on both sides. Repeat with the rest.

Cut in halves or triangles and serve with guacamole on the side for your guests to spoon on top.

Gently mix ingredients in a bowl and serve. It can be prepared a couple of hours in advance if covered and stored in the refrigerator.