Creamy Chicken Enchiladas

These enchiladas are made almost weekly in my home. They are easy, relatively healthy and delicious. The recipe is from the AHA's Low-Salt Cookbook but I've adjusted it to bring back the flavor and fat (although I still wing it with the salt). You can substitute reduced-fat cheese, fat free milk and take the salt out of everything (including the chili powder) and still have a very good meal but, come on, why punish yourself if you don't have to.

Sauce

1 C milk

1/2 C chicken broth

2 Tbs all-purpose flour

1/4 tsp pepper

1/2 C Monty Jack cheese (Cheddar is also good)

1 tsp lime juice

1 pinch salt or to taste

Enchiladas

8 6-in corn tortillas

2 C cubed, cooked chicken (about 10 oz cooked)

1/4 C thinly sliced green onions (regular onions work too)

1-2 medium garlic clove(s), minced

1/2 tsp ground cumin

1/4 tsp chili powder

1-2 pinches salt or to taste

1/2 C Monty Jack cheese (again, Cheddar is just fine)

2-3 Tbs canned chopped mild green chiles (I use an entire 4 oz can)

Preheat oven to 350F. Lightly spray a 13x9x2-inch baking dish with vegetable oil spray. Set aside.

In a medium saucepan, whisk together the milk, broth, flour, pepper and salt. Bring to a simmer over med-high heat. Reduce the heat and simmer for 5-6 minutes, or until the mixture thickens slightly, whisking occasionally.

Whisk in the 1/2 C cheese and lime juice. Remove from the heat. Set aside.

To soften the tortillas, wrap in aluminum foil and warm in the oven for 5-10 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, stir together the chicken, green onions, garlic, cumin, chili powder and 1-2 pinches of salt.

To assemble, place the tortillas on a flat surface. Spread 1/4 C chicken mixture and 1 Tbs cheese in the center of each. Roll up jelly-roll style and place with the seam side down in the baking dish. Pour the sauce over the enchiladas. Sprinkle (or spoon over) with the chiles.

Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the filling is warmed through.

Meat Free Recipes?

Post your Lenten favorites! If you're not a contributor to this blog and would like to add something, email me at kathryn.lemieux@gmail.com and I will gladly make you an author or post your recipe.

Thanks!

Hungarian Goulash (Slow Cooker!)

Ok, don't let the name scare you off, this is delicious. It's just been sitting here in my trusty old America's Test Kitchen book for the last 4 years and I tried it for the first time tonight. After trying Goulash for the first time on my 10-day in Germany, I have at least had it in my mind that this was something worth trying again because it was amazing there. Why it has taken me so long I don't know. I also figured I needed to get in as many hearty winter meals as possible before it gets to a normal Texas temperature around here.

In a new commitment to not eating out I have been using my crock pot roughly 5 times a week. Mine tends to cook extremely fast so I cooked this on low for about 6 hours and it was perfect. A word of warning: if you are prone to heartburn or indigestion this may not be the dish for you as it is chock full of red peppery goodness.

You will need:
1 boneless beef roast cut into 1 inch pieces (or pre cut stew meat, which is what I used- the recipe says 5 lbs but that is WAY more than what I used and it was fine
5 TBSP sweet paprika (make sure on this or have a nice spicy surprise for dinner)
2 TBSP oil
3 onions, roughly chopped
2 red bell peppers, roughly chopped (stemmed and seeded, obvs.)
6 garlic cloves, minced
3 cups low sodium chicken broth
2 TBSP tomato paste
1/2 cup flour
1/2 sour cream
3 TBSP red wine vinegar
1/4 parsley, minced (I left this out)

Brown the meat (or don't if you want to save time) and remove from pan
Add peppers, onions, 1.4 tsp of salt and paprika. Cook about 5-10 min until veggies are soft
Stir in garlic until fragrant and add tomato paste and broth
Bring to simmer and add to slow cooker
n.b. I think you could omit all of this prep and put it directly in the slow cooker- ATK seems to think differently but hey, not all of us have endless amount of prep time

Cover and cook on high for 6-7 hours (depending on your crock pot) until meat is tender
About 20 minutes before serving mix water, broth and sour cream together and add to pot. Let it cook until the sauce starts to thicken, about 20 minutes longer. Add vinegar before serving (I gave it another 5 minutes after adding to let the flavor mix in)

I served this over egg noodles per the recipe's suggestion.