Easy Enchiladas #Recipe @PegCochran

I found this easy enchilada recipe on the Betty Crocker web site.  I followed the recipe pretty closely except I traded ground turkey for the beef and corn tortillas for the flour tortillas--I find they hold up better and also contribute to the taste.  Normally I make my own enchilada sauce (it's not hard) but I was in the mood for something super simple.  Sometimes you just don't feel like spending a lot of time in the kitchen, you know?  These turned out great even with the store bought ingredients!  If you keep a couple of cans of enchilada sauce and a package of tortillas in the pantry and some ground meat in the freezer, you can whip up a meal without having to go to the grocery store.  Always a plus!

 

1 lb ground beef or ground turkey

2 cans (10 oz each) red enchilada sauce

1 can (4.5 oz) chopped green chiles

1 package flour or corn tortillas

1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese  

 

Heat the oven to 375 degrees and spray a 9 x 13 inch baking pan with cooking spray.

Sauté ground  beef or turkey in a skillet until cooked through.  Drain any grease.  Add 1/2 cup enchilada sauce and the green chilies.

 

Spread 1/2 cup enchilada sauce in the baking pan.

 

Prepare enchiladas:  Spread 1/4 cup meat mixture down the middle of the tortilla. Sprinkle with one tablespoon shredded cheese.  Roll tortilla tightly and place seam side down in baking dish. **If using corn tortillas you may have to soften them a bit first by moistening with enchilada sauce.

Top with remaining enchilada sauce and sprinkle with remaining cheese.

 

 

Bake for 20 to 25 minutes.  Let stand for 5 minutes before serving.

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Cranberry Cove #7 is finally here!  Publication date: September 20.  

 

Monica's stepmother wakes up next to a dead man!  Did she do it?

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An unscrupulous realtor pays the ultimate closing costs in the new Cranberry Cove Mystery from USA Today bestselling author Peg Cochran!

Autumn is settling in on Cranberry Cove, but things are starting to heat up when Monica’s stepmother shows up at her back door gripped by panic. Gasping out an explanation, she tells Monica she’d been dozing in her realtor’s car when he was shot dead. Refusing to alert the police for fear that the killer will target her next—or that the police will consider her their prime suspect—Monica’s stepmother goes mute, and Monica decides to track down the culprit herself to clear her name and keep her safe.

Finding the killer won’t be so easy, though, as the victim had run afoul of buyers, sellers, and even other realtors at one time or another, and it seems that nearly everyone in the small town had a reason to want him dead. Even more puzzling is that the deeper Monica digs into the background and final days of the victim, the more the clues point to her stepmother. Then a second body is found, and Monica realizes she’s going up against a devious killer who will stop at nothing to put everyone involved out of commission . . .

Erin's Enchiladas, from TREBLE AT THE JAM FEST - #bookgiveaway

LESLIE BUDEWITZ: I always say that one of the secrets to a happy life is friends who cook well.

And nothing proves that better than my longggg friendship with Lita, whom I met during sophomore year of college. She married a man with a Hispanic mother and embraced Mexican cooking with both very strong arms. This is Lita’s recipe, which I think she based on one from America’s Test Kitchen. Admittedly, it’s a bit, oh, involved is the best word, and in TREBLE AT THE JAM FEST, Erin admits that she occasionally grabs a jar of sauce from the Merc’s shelves when she craves enchiladas. Granted, she and the Merc are fictional—don’t tell her I said so—so this is the recipe in those jars.

TREBLE AT THE JAM FEST, the 4th Food Lovers' Village Mystery, will be out officially on June 8. Leave a comment below for a chance to win a signed copy!

Fill the enchiladas with chicken, shredded beef, or black beans---or a combination, as described below.

This sauce freezes beautifully, and can be used in burritos, tamales, tortilla soup, or other recipes. Double it some Sunday afternoon and stick a pan of unbaked enchiladas in the freezer for a night when even reaching for a jar seems like too much.

A NOTE ABOUT CHILES: After I posted this, a few comments asked about the California and Guajillo chiles in the sauce. Both are mild, red chiles. California chiles start out green and turn red as they ripen; they are apparently sometimes called chile seco del Norte or Magdalena chiles. Guajillo chiles are the dried mirasol chile. This guide has more details and pictures, as does this site. I've noticed that naming varies and is not necessarily consistent. If you can't find dried chiles with these names, look for a red chile with a mild flavor and try combining a couple; if you like more heat, you'll have more options. Remember that cooking is an art, not a precise science, and be willing to play -- if you're not sure whether a pepper will be too hot, try a small amount, and add more later if you'd like.

Enchilada Sauce

2 ounces dried Ancho chiles
2 ounces dried Guajillo chiles
2-3 ounces dried California chiles
½ large or 1 medium white or yellow onion, coarsely chopped
3 cloves garlic, smashed with the side of a knife blade
1 large carrot, coarsely chopped
½ - 1 orange, sliced, including the peel (if the peel is thick, use half of it)
4 – 6 cups chicken or vegetable stock
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon dried oregano, crushed in your hands
1 teaspoon kosher salt, or more to taste
1 tablespoon masa harina (corn flour) or very finely ground corn meal
½ lime, juiced (2-3 tablespoons of juice)

Using kitchen scissors, and optional gloves, stem and seed the chiles.

Heat a large skillet on high and quickly dry roast the chiles, in batches, 1-2 minutes, to darken the skin; do not burn.

Place the peppers, onion, garlic, carrot, and orange in a large pot, and cover with the stock. Cover pot and bring to a rolling boil, then turn off the heat and let mixture sit about 30 minutes.

Ladle 2-3 cups of liquid and vegetables, about half and half, into a blender. Puree about 3 minutes and place in another pot or a non-staining bowl. Repeat with additional batches till complete.

Return sauce to pan and add the cumin, oregano, and salt. In a small bowl, make a slurry of the corn flour and about 1/4 cup of the chile puree, to prevent clumping, then add to pot and stir in. Add lime juice. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally and tasting to adjust the seasoning.

The Enchiladas

8 - 8 inch corn tortillas
oil
sauce
1 pound beef (stew meat), slow cooked until it can be shredded with a fork, OR 1 pound chicken breast, cooked and shredded, OR 1 pound black beans, cooked (or a 16 ounce can)
2 ounces diced green chiles, fresh or canned
2 cups cheddar cheese, grated
10-12 green onions, chopped
½ cup cilantro, chopped (optional)
sour cream (optional)
fresh tomatoes, chopped (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Lightly oil the tortillas on each side and warm them in the oven to prevent cracking—you can warm them while the oven is preheating.

Mix your beef, chicken, or beans with the green chiles, and if you’d like, a few green onions and cilantro.

Pour ½ cup (about a ladleful) of sauce in the bottom of a 9X13 baking pan. Place a warmed tortilla on a plate. In the center, place about 1/4 cup filling and a tablespoon of cheese. Roll up tightly and place in the baking dish.

Ladle more sauce over the top of the tortillas and sprinkle with cheddar. Bake about 15 minutes, until cheese melts. Serve with chopped onions and cilantro, and optional sour cream and tomatoes.

Unbaked enchiladas freeze beautifully, in the pan. To serve, thaw and bake 15 to 20 minutes, or until thoroughly heated and the cheese is melted.

Makes 8 enchiladas.

Does your BFF have a favorite recipe you adore???

Leave a comment below for a chance to win a signed copy of TREBLE AT THE JAM FEST, Food Lovers' Village Mystery #4 (Midnight Ink, June 8, 2017). (US and Canadian addresses only; winner will be chosen Thurs, June 1.)

From the cover:   

Erin Murphy, manager of Murphy’s Mercantile (aka the Merc), is tuning up for Jewel Bay’s annual Jazz Festival. Between keeping the Merc’s shelves stocked with Montana’s tastiest local fare and hosting the festival’s kick-off concert, Erin has her hands full.

Discord erupts when jazz guitarist Gerry Martin is found dead on the rocks above the Jewel River. The one-time international sensation had fallen out of sync with festival organizers, students, and performers. Was his death an accident?or did someone even the score?

Despite the warning signs to not get involved, Erin investigates. And when the killer attacks, she orchestrates her efforts into one last crescendo, hoping to avoid a deadly finale.

Leslie Budewitz is the author of the Food Lovers’ Village Mysteries and the Spice Shop Mysteries—and the first author to win Agatha Awards for both fiction and nonfiction. The past president of Sisters in Crime, she lives in northwest Montana with her husband, a musician and doctor of natural medicine, and their cat, an avid bird-watcher.

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Turkey Enchiladas

by Sheila Connolly

Five days after Thanksgiving, I was still staring at the mangled corpse of a turkey. It was a small turkey—11 pounds—but there are only two of us eating it. In the past I’ve made turkey pot pie, turkey a la king, and probably Thai turkey and turkey chili. There must be more recipes somewhere!

For a change of pace, I thought I’d try making enchiladas. Confession: I don’t often cook southwestern or Mexican recipes, although I am well supplied with the ingredients, including dried chiles. So I turned to Epicurious, but even there I found only a couple of recipes, one from 1994, and one from 2014. The earlier one started with a jar of enchilada sauce, the later one with a list of ingredients. My, how times have changed!

The newer recipe wanted me to assemble the ingredients and roast them under the Thanksgiving turkey as it cooked. Well, that bird had flown, although I admire the idea, because the flavor would be very rich (I was also supposed to make the enchilada sauce on Thanksgiving day, which might be difficult for most people). So I had to improvise and make a quicker stove-top version.

The original recipe made enough for eight servings, so I cut it in half.

Turkey Enchiladas

28 oz. (2 cans) chopped tomatoes

1 large onion, roughly chopped

4 dried ancho chiles (seeds removed)

1 head of garlic, cloves separated and peeled

1 large carrot, roughly chopped

2 Tblsp whole coriander seeds

1 Tblsp whole cumin seeds

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Turkey (or chicken) leftovers

Unsalted butter for greasing the baking dish

2-3 cups of the cooked turkey

4 12” flour tortillas

1-1/2 cups grated queso fresco (the recipe said I could substitute feta cheese, so I did)

1-1/2 cups shredded queso Chihuahua (the recipe allowed mozzarella)

Soaking the chiles

Soak the ancho chiles in hot water, then remove the stems and seeds and chop. Combine the tomatoes, onions, ancho chiles, garlic, chopped carrot, coriander and cumin. Season with salt and pepper. Place in a large saucepan and simmer gently for an hour or more (you do make this in advance).

Transfer the sauce mixture to a food processor or blender and process until smooth (add a little water if necessary—you want a smooth thick liquid).

The pureed sauce

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and butter a baking dish (9x13, although 9x9 will do). Spread about a cup of the enchilada sauce in the bottom.

Put the turkey meat in a bowl. Add half the remaining enchilada sauce and half of each of the cheeses and mix.

Lay out each tortilla and spread about one cup of the filling on the lower half. Roll each one up (like a burrito) and tuck the sides in. Place the enchiladas tightly in the prepared baking dish, and cover with the remaining sauce. Sprinkle the remaining cheese over the top.

Cover the dish with foil and bake until the cheese has melted and the sauce has darkened, about one hour. Serve immediately (top with sour cream if you like).

Ready to bake

There was still turkey left. Soup, anyone?

The next book to come out is An Early Wake, the third of the County Cork Mysteries, arriving in February.

Not a lot of enchiladas in Ireland, I must say, although the food is pretty good (and diverse) these days..

Lighter Chicken and Black Bean Enchiladas

by Peg Cochran

I've adapted this recipe from one by Martha Stewart to better suit our tastes.  It's super easy, is a great use for leftover chicken (either from a rotisserie chicken or one you prepared yourself) and it makes two  casseroles--one for now and one to freeze for later!  I don't know about you, but having a dinner in the freezer ready to go makes me feel like I have money in the bank!

2 to 3 boneless chicken breast halves (approx. 6 ounces each)
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
4 tablespoons vegetable or olive oil
6 teaspoons chopped garlic (for convenience sake I used the already chopped garlic in the jar)
1/2  cup flour
2 teaspoons ground cumin
2 to 3 tablespoons minced, canned chipotles in adobo (depending on how hot you like it)
2 cans chicken broth
1/2 cup water (as needed -- optional)
6 inch corn tortillas
1/2 cup grated Monterey Jack cheese (or more, to taste)

In a large skillet bring one inch salted water to a boil.  Add chicken, cover and reduce heat to medium low.  Simmer 5 minutes, remove skillet from heat.  Let chicken steam, covered, until opaque (about 15 minutes.)  Transfer to a cutting board and shred with two forks.

Add chicken to bowl and mix in black beans.

Heat oil over medium heat in a saucepan.  Add garlic and cook approx. one minute.  Add flour, cumin, chopped chipotles and cook, whisking, for approx. one minute.  Whisk in broth and bring to a boil (if sauce appears too thick, add optional water until desired consistency is reached.)  Simmer 5 to 8 minutes, add salt and pepper to taste.

Transfer one cup of sauce to bowl with chicken and beans and stir in.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Pour 1/4 cup sauce in the bottom of each of two pyrex or oven proof dishes.  Stack tortillas, wrap in layer of damp paper towel and microwave approx. one minute (to soften).  Fill each tortilla with a couple spoonfuls of chicken/bean mixture, roll and place seam side down in baking dish.  Cover with most of the remaining sauce (I like to reserve some because my husband likes to add it at the table--the sauce is doubled from the original recipe which he thought was too dry.)  Top with cheese and bake until hot and bubbling approx. 15 to 20 minutes.  Let sit 5 minutes before serving.

If freezing one pan for later, cover tightly with aluminum foil and then freeze.

Shred cooked chicken

Can be found in the international aisle of your grocery store

Chopped chipotles

Spread sauce in bottom of baking dish

One meal for now...

And one to freeze for later!

Pour sauce over each baking dish and then sprinkle with cheese

Bake until hot and bubbling!

Margaritas are optional!

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