Mexican Chiles en Nogada

Preheat oven to 425°F. Place whole poblano peppers on a foil-lined baking sheet. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until peppers are charred and tender, turning once or twice. Bring foil up around peppers and fold edges together to enclose. Let stand about 15 minutes or until cool enough to handle. Using a paring knife, gently remove skins from peppers.* Carefully cut one vertical slit down the length of each pepper, keeping stem intact. Remove seeds. Reduce oven temperature to 350°F.

Meanwhile, for filling, in a large skillet cook ground pork, onion, jalapeño pepper (if desired), and garlic over medium heat until meat is brown, using a wooden spoon to break up meat as it cooks. Add oil if necessary to prevent sticking. Drain off any fat. Stir in tomatoes, pear, corn, raisins, salt, 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon, and black pepper. Simmer, uncovered, for 10 minutes. Cool.

Spoon about 1/2 cup of the filling into each poblano pepper. Place stuffed peppers in an ungreased 3-quart rectangular baking dish. Bake, uncovered, about 20 minutes or until heated through.

For sauce, place nuts in a blender or food processor. Cover and blend or process until finely ground. In a small bowl stir together ground nuts, sour cream, milk, lime juice, and 1/8 teaspoon cinnamon. To serve, spoon sauce over stuffed peppers. Sprinkle with chili powder (if desired) and pumpkin seeds.