tasty enchiladic quickie
I love enchiladas, burritos, tacos, or anything that purports to be pseudo-mexican inspired. O-town is not exactly a hotbed of mexican culinary authenticity, but the bits I've had have still been more than enough to give me a taste of this zesty cuisine.
My initial plan for last night was to make up a batch of chili-cheese enchiladas. Something quick, easy and healthy (using black beans and veggie ground round). I was going to make 12 of the little suckers and figured that should easily feed 5 people.
But then I remembered who was coming to dinner. And promptly realized that 12 enchilads would be a mere drop in the bucket. So I frantically went off in search of another enchilada recipe to offer as an alternative....came upon a recipe for chicken enchiladas with salsa verde. Behold, we have a winner. I used turkey instead of chicken (and you could really substitute whatever your heart desired) and they were FABULOUS.
Both kinds were awesome. I didn't take photos, because I didn't realize just how awesome they would be, but trust me when I say that you should make these. It's pretty quick to make up the 2 pans and you too can be a dinner hero.
Chicken Enchiladas with Salsa Verde
stolen from Cooking Light.com
Ingredients
1 cup chopped onion
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 (7-ounce) bottle salsa verde (such as Herdez brand - Ottawa readers, you can find this at the Gloucester Loblaws and the Bells Corners Price CHopper, amont other places)
2 cups shredded cooked chicken breast (used turkey and it was fab)
1/3 cup (3 ounces) 1/3-less-fat cream cheese, softened
8 (6-inch) tortillas (corn tortillas were past their sell-by date so I used whole wheat)
Cooking spray
1/4 cup (1 ounce) crumbled queso fresco (didn't have time to go searching for this, so just used cheddar)
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
4 lime wedges (bought 'em and forgot to use 'em)
Cilantro sprigs (optional)
Preparation
Preheat oven to 425°.
1. Combine first 4 ingredients in a blender; process until smooth. Combine chicken and cream cheese in a large bowl. Stir in 1/2 cup salsa mixture. Reserve remaining salsa mixture.
2. Warm tortillas to soften them (if necessary) Spoon about 1/4 cup chicken mixture down center of tortilla; roll up. Place tortilla, seam-side down, in an 11 x 7-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Repeat procedure with remaining tortillas, broth, and chicken mixture.
Pour remaining salsa mixture over enchiladas; sprinkle evenly with queso fresco and chili powder. Bake at 425° for 18 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Serve with lime wedges. Garnish with cilantro sprigs, if desired.
Yield
4 servings (serving size: 2 enchiladas and 1 lime wedge)
Nutritional Information
CALORIES 327(26% from fat); FAT 9.5g (sat 4.4g,mono 2.9g,poly 1.3g); PROTEIN 28.5g; CHOLESTEROL 78mg; CALCIUM 149mg; SODIUM 493mg; FIBER 3.3g; IRON 1.8mg; CARBOHYDRATE 31g
Chili Cheese Black Bean Enchilada
Ingredients
Cooking spray
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 (15-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 (12-ounce) bag frozen soy crumbles, thawed (I used a package of Yves veggie ground round)
3/4 cup bottled salsa
1/3 cup (3 ounces) block-style fat-free cream cheese, softened
1 cup (4 ounces) shredded reduced-fat extrasharp cheddar cheese, divided
12 (6-inch) corn tortillas (could only get whole wheat)
1 (10-ounce) can enchilada sauce (can be found at either the Gloucester Centre Loblaws or Bells Corners Price Chopper)
Preparation
Preheat oven to 350°.
1. Heat a large nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat. Add onion, and sauté 4 minutes or until tender. Stir in cumin, oregano, chili powder, garlic, beans, and soy crumbles, and cook 2 minutes, stirring mixture frequently.
2. Stir in salsa, and cook 1 minute. Remove from heat, and add cream cheese and 1/2 cup cheddar cheese, stirring until cheese melts.
3. Warm tortillas according to package directions. Spread 1/3 cup enchilada sauce in bottom of a 13 x 9-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Spoon about 1/3 cup black bean mixture down center of each tortilla, and roll up. Arrange enchiladas, seam sides down, crosswise in dish. Pour remaining enchilada sauce evenly over enchiladas, and sprinkle with 1/2 cup cheddar. Bake at 350° for 20 minutes or until thoroughly heated.
Yield
6 servings (serving size: 2 enchiladas)
Nutritional Information
CALORIES 386(30% from fat); FAT 12.9g (sat 4g,mono 3.8g,poly 3.4g); PROTEIN 26.8g; CHOLESTEROL 17mg; CALCIUM 390mg; SODIUM 995mg; FIBER 10.7g; IRON 5.4mg; CARBOHYDRATE 43.9g
This was awesome. There was barely enough left for my lunch today! I served the enchiladas with salsa and sour cream and would happily eat them at any time of day. YUM. This would be a great dish to make up in advance for company, and the best part is that you can have one of each enchilada, still have a fabulous dinner for less than 400 calories, and it's loaded with protein and fibre and really does a great job of making you feel full. YUM.