Chicken and Spinach Enchiladas

Happy Cinco de Mayo! Not to be confused with Mexico’s Independence Day (which is in September), Cinco de Mayo (literally “Five of May”) celebrates the Mexican army’s unexpected and unlikely defeat of French forces at the Battle of Puebla on May 5, 1862. My husband and I will probably head to the Mexican restaurant near our house, which we frequent almost once a week, usually splitting a giant quesadilla or burrito - or just gorging in their delicious house guacamole, chips, and salsa! In honor of Cinco de Mayo, here’s a recipe for homemade chicken and spinach enchiladas!

Ingredients:

~1½ cups cooked, shredded chicken breast

~10oz chopped spinach (I used frozen, thawed and drained)

~¼ cup chopped onion

2-3 cloves minced garlic

Ground pepper, salt to taste

2 cups shredded Cheddar Jack cheese (or Colby Jack, or any Mexican-style blend)

~10 corn or flour tortillas (enchiladas traditionally call for corn tortillas, but I used flour tortillas)
 

For the sauce:

¼ cup canola oil

2 TBSP flour

Scant ¼ cup chili powder (the seasoning, not ground red chili)

1 8-oz can no salt added tomato sauce

~1½ cup water

Garlic powder

Ground cumin


To make the sauce:

In a saucepan over medium heat, brown the flour in oil. Add chili powder and toast for a couple minutes. Add water and tomato sauce and stir well. Season with garlic powder and cumin to taste.

 

To make the filling:

Saute spinach and onion in a pan over medium heat (you can use a little cooking oil if you like, but it is not necessary). Add chicken and season with garlic and pepper to taste.

Assembling & Baking:

Preheat oven to 375°F. Reserve 1 cup of shredded Cheddar Jack cheese.

 

 

Lay a tortilla flat and put about ½ cup of chicken-spinach mixture toward one side of the tortilla. Sprinkle a bit of the cheese (about ½ - 1 TBSP) over the filling, then roll up tightly and place in a baking dish lined with Aluminum foil. Repeat until all the filling is used up (I was able to use 10 tortillas).

Spoon enchilada sauce over the top and spread to cover everything evenly. Sprinkle the remaining cup of cheese on top.

Bake at 375°F for 15-20 minutes until cheese is completely melted and a little crispy at the edges. Enjoy!

~Karla 

 

 

Find us on Facebook



Vegetarian Enchiladas with Sour Cream Sauce

What do you do when you’re stressed out from school/work or having a really bad day? Well, I generally bake :-)… shopping helps too, but baking is always better! So yesterday, after arguing with my apartment management folks to no avail (didn’t know carpet cleaning could be so complicated!), I came home and decided to bake. I was thinking of making a simple chocolate cake, but didn’t have all the ingredients (that rarely happens!). I realized that I had not baked anything savory in a while, so I figured I’d experiment with a tomatillo and sour cream sauce for enchiladas… it turned out pretty delicious! The recipe might seem long, but it is very simple and quick. The sauce can be modified as per taste and desired consistency. Also, the filling for the enchiladas is completely customizable to your taste, or ingredients available in your pantry :-). Here’s what I used:

Ingredients:

For sauce

6-8 tomatillos (can use canned)

1 tbsp butter

1 tbsp flour

1 ½ cup vegetable stock (or water)

1 – 1 ½ cup fat free sour cream (depending on how thick you want the sauce to be)

Diced Serrano pepper (to taste)

½ cup chopped cilantro

Salt

Cumin powder

For enchiladas

1 tbsp olive oil

Salt

Paprika (to taste)

Pepper (to taste)

1 tsp cumin powder

(You can use fajita seasoning or other spices of your choice)

2 cloves of garlic - chopped

1 small onion sliced/diced

½ red bell pepper sliced

1 zucchini chopped
1 cup cooked black/kidney beans (or 1 can)

Any other vegetables/meat of your choice

Shredded cheese (I used the Sargento 4 Cheese Mexican blend)

6-8 corn/wheat tortillas

To make the sauce:

Cut tomatillos in half and broil on both sides until soft (Took me about 5 minutes per side). Heat butter in a saucepan. Add chopped Serrano peppers, flour. Add vegetable stock once the flour is golden brown. Whisk to avoid lumps. Let the mixture boil and reduce till the vegetable stock is thickened. Add sour cream and cilantro, mix well and take off the heat.  Puree the mixture with tomatillos in a blender. Season with salt as required.

Making the filling:

For the filling, heat oil and add onions, garlic. On medium-high heat, sauté onions and garlic for a minute, then add peppers. After the peppers have softened a little, add zucchini, beans, salt and spices. Sauté for a couple minutes and turn off the heat.

To assemble:

Pour about ¾ cup of sauce in a baking dish. Lay the filling in the middle of a tortilla, sprinkle cheese (optional), and roll. Lay it seam side down in the baking dish. Repeat for all the tortillas. Pour rest of the sauce evenly and top with more shredded cheese if desired.

Bake in the oven at 350 deg F for 20 min followed by broiling until top is golden brown (only about a minute). Let it cool for a few minutes before serving.

~Gayatri