Wanna Be As Good As Dos Queso

There once was a Mexican food restaurant in my hometown that served the most wonderful Chile Con Queso.  And they were stingy with the recipe.  Wouldn't even give a hint.  So stingy in fact, that even now, years after they shut the doors for the last time, the real recipe is almost impossible to come by.  A former hostess, a waitress's sister, a friend of a cousin of the high school sweetheart of the owner's sister's best friend; several people have given me suggestions, hints, and opinions as to what goes into this particular queso. After several experiments, I have come closer than ever to replicating the taste and texture.  It still lacks the creamy quality of the real thing, and I believe that's due in part to the fact that most restaurants use something called Land 'O Lakes Extra Melt Process American Cheese, a "performance" cheese, which according to the Land 'O Lakes website "maintains appearance, texture and taste for hours." Unfortunately this is only sold as a foodservice item which I have not been able to get my hands on without ordering 30 lbs. at a time.  From what I understand, this is the cheese that was used in the famed queso.  I heard it from my Mama, who heard it from her hair dresser, whose daughter used to date the son of the guy who cooked enchiladas when the regular enchilada cook was on vacation.

Here's how I did it.  

INGREDIENTS:

One pat of butter

Half a large yellow onion, chopped

One loaf Velveeta Queso Blanco processed cheese

One can whole green chiles, chopped (canned pre-chopped always have too many stems and skins)

One medium tomato, chopped

Cubed Chicken Bouillon

Using a double boiler (or a pan nested inside another pan of boiling water in my case), melt a pat of butter and add chopped onion.  Once onion is slightly cooked, begin to add chunks of Velveeta Queso Blanco, letting each chunk melt a little before adding more.  Stir repeatedly throughout process. 

Stir in chopped tomato and green chiles.  Add one cube of yellow Velveeta if desired for yellow color.

Add one chicken bouillon cube to 1 cup of hot water and dissolve.  Add this to the cheese mixture in small amounts to thin as desired.  If you end up making it too thin, you can add cornstarch to thicken without affecting the flavor. 

Continue to add all ingredients until you reach the desired amount of product. I recommend keeping it on the thin side, as the dang Velveeta will cause it to thicken up after you take it off the fire.  And if anyone knows where to get their hands on some Land 'O Lakes Extra Melt, please share!!