Meatless Meal: Spicy Bean Enchiladas

It's been a while since there's been a food-related post on this blog, so I figured it was time to remedy that! Here's a great recipe that's healthy, cheap, and meatless!

With just under a month until we move out, Operation Pantry Clean Out is in full effect. Somehow, even in just 7 months of living here, we have accumulated a pretty full pantry and fridge/freezer. Typical! We have no desire to move a ton of food with us across the country, so we are seriously trying to use up what we have.

When I spotted this recipe for Spicy Black Bean Enchiladas, I immediately knew I wanted to make it. Not only did it look delicious, but it would also be a good use for a couple of the cans of beans and green chiles that were hanging out in our pantry. Perfect!


I made a few adjustments to the recipe, which I noted below, but mostly kept it the same. And oh man were these tasty!! They were super filling, even despite being meatless, and I loved the creaminess that the sour cream added to the filling.

They were super easy to make too, especially with a little help from the husband. We tag teamed the filling and rolling of the tortillas, which made it go a lot faster. I love working together in the kitchen! Great husband-wife bonding time. :)
Spicy Bean Enchiladas

Source: Adapted from Keep it Simple Foods

Makes 4-6 servings

Ingredients:

1 package small corn tortillas (with 10-12 in a package)

2 cans black beans, drained and rinsed (I used 1 can of black beans and 1 can of red kidney beans since that's what I had on hand)

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 handful cilantro, chopped (plus some for garnish if desired)

1/2 cup onion, chopped (divided)

1 small can green chilis or a spoonful of jarred/fresh sliced jalapenos

1 teaspoon cumin

1 teaspoon onion powder

1 teaspoon chili powder

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon (The Husband said he would omit the cinnamon next time, as he doesn't like cinnamon in savory foods. I couldn't even taste it though, so it didn't bother me!)

1/2 cup (light) sour cream (You could also sub plain greek yogurt for this but I didn't have any...gasp!)

1 cup shredded Monterey jack cheese (or whatever kind you like) (divided)

1/2 lime (juice and zest)

1 can green enchilada sauce (I used a jar of tomatillo green salsa that I had on hand instead of enchilada sauce....but I also think these would be yummy with RED enchilada sauce. Just use whatever you have!)

Directions: Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a mixing bowl, combine beans, garlic, about a third of the chopped onions, cilantro, green chiles, all the spices, sour cream, lime juice & zest and about 1/3 cup of cheese. Combine well.

Spoon about 1/4 cup of the filling into each of the corn tortillas and roll them by hand. Try to get them as tight as you can and then place them in a baking dish seam side down.

Pour the green sauce on top so that it coats each tortilla.

Top with the remaining cheese, onions, and chopped pickled jalapenos (if desired).

Bake for 15 to 20 minutes until cheese is melted and tortilla edges look crispy and brown. Let sit for about 2 minutes before serving. Top with more sour cream, cilantro, jalepenos, or whatever you like!

NOTE: You could easily add some chopped, cooked chicken to the enchiladas if you need more substance. I'm sure it would be tasty, but they don't need it! They are very flavorful and yummy as written!

Eggplant Parmesan

If you've been reading my blog for any amount of time, you probably already know that my husband is a "man's man" who dislikes meat-free main dishes. In his mind, No meat = Not a meal.

There are two notable exceptions to his No Meat rule though.

(Source)

Pizza (specifically Margarita style) and...

Eggplant Parmesan.


Why are these exceptions? Well I honestly don't know, but I have a feeling it has to do with the copious amounts of cheese.

Eggplant Parmesan has always been one of Hubs' favorite things to order at an Italian restaurant, but surprisingly enough I had never made it at home for him.

Until now.

And now, I think I've created a monster.

Because he could. not. stop. talking about how good this was and how it was "the best eggplant parmesan he has ever had".

I have to agree. It IS really, really, really good. But what I like even better is that this "healthified" version is just as good, if not better, than the "real" thing.

Usually Eggplant Parmesan involves deep frying slices of eggplant and then covering them in tomato sauce and mozzarella cheese. This version lightens things up a bit by oven-baking the eggplant and then still topping with tomato sauce & cheese.
So. Stinkin'. Good. You must make this!

FYI it's a bit more labor intensive of a dinner than I typically go for, but it is SO worth every extra minute of effort!

Eggplant Parmesan
Source: adapted from Cooking Light

• YIELD: 8 servings

Ingredients

• 2 (1-pound) eggplants, cut crosswise into 1/4-inch slices
• 1/4 cup water
• 3 egg whites, lightly beaten
• 1 1/4 cups Italian-seasoned breadcrumbs (or use plain and add Italian seasoning)
  
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• Vegetable cooking spray
• 1 jar spaghetti sauce* (I used Emeril's Eggplant & Gaaahlic)
  
• 3 cups (12 ounces) shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese OR sliced fresh mozzarella (which is what I used)
  
• Fresh basil, chopped (optional)

Preparation

Place eggplant in a large bowl; add water to cover, and let stand 30 minutes. Drain well; blot dry with paper towels. Combine 1/4 cup water and egg whites in a shallow bowl. Combine breadcrumbs and Parmesan cheese; stir well. Dip eggplant in egg white mixture, and dredge in breadcrumb mixture.

Place half of eggplant on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray, and broil 5 minutes on each side or until browned. Repeat procedure with remaining eggplant. Set eggplant aside.

Spread half of tomato sauce in bottom of a 13 x 9-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Arrange half of eggplant over sauce; top with half of mozzarella cheese. Repeat layers with remaining sauce, eggplant, and cheese.

Bake at 350° for 30 minutes or until bubbly. Let stand 5 minutes before serving. Garnish with fresh basil, if desired.

*NOTES: The original recipe called for you to make your own tomato sauce, but I went the easy way out and used store-bought sauce. I used Emeril's Eggplant & Gaaahlic sauce and it was DELICIOUS! Highly recommend.

Chicken Pot Pie

Chicken Pot Pie is and always will be one of my ultimate comfort foods. I just love it.

Something about the creamy sauce, tender veggies & chicken and the flaky pastry crust just makes me swoon.

I hadn't made a good homemade chicken pot pie in far too long, so I decided that now was the time to do it (before it gets to be hot as hades and comfort food doesn't sound as appealing)!

I loosely based my recipe off of Alton's Curry Chicken Pot Pie. I really wanted to try the curry pot pie version but that was unfortunately nixed by the husband, who happens to be a curry-hater. :::sad face:::

So instead I just winged it and vaguely followed Alton's method. I tried to make my version very veggie-heavy to increase the nutrition a bit. I think even a veggie-hater would love this dish since the veggies are smothered in a creamy sauce!


It turned out really well so I think I'll file this one away for future reference when a pot pie craving hits. :)

Chicken Pot Pie
source: loosely based on this recipe

Serves 4-6 people, depending on portion sizes

2 Tbsp olive oil
1 cup onion, chopped
1/2 cup celery, chopped
1/2 cup carrot, chopped
1 baking potato, peeled and chopped
1 cup frozen mixed vegetables (peas, carrots, green beans, corn)
1/2 packet of Ranch dressing mix
3 Tbsp flour
1 1/2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1/2 cup milk (I used 1%)
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp ground oregano
1 tsp poultry seasoning
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
2 cups cooked chicken, shredded or cubed (*see notes below)
1 sheet packaged puff pastry, thawed

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Heat oil in a large saute pan over medium-high heat.

Add onion, celery, carrot and potato and cook for about 10 minutes, until the veggies soften. Add in the frozen veggies and continue to cook until they are thawed and heated through.

Stir in the Ranch dressing and the flour and continue to stir while it cooks, about 1-2 minutes. Pour in the chicken broth and the milk and stir frequently until the mixture thickens a bit (about 3-5 minutes).

Stir in the rest of the ingredients, except for the puff pastry, and cook until everything is heated through (about 2 minutes).

Pour the mixture into a square baking pan that has been coated with cooking spray. Place the sheet of puff pastry on top of the mixture.

Cook at 400 degrees for about 30 minutes, or until the puff pastry has browned and the mixture looks bubbly.

*Notes: I didn't have any leftover cooked chicken to use for this recipe so I just cooked 3 chicken breasts with about 1/2 cup of chicken broth in a slow cooker on low for 7 hours. Works every time for perfect, tender chicken!

Feel free to increase, decrease or substitute the veggies to your liking!

Blogging in the Dark

I really hate that it gets dark so soon now.

When I left work tonight at 6:15, it was PITCH BLACK outside. That pretty much made working late suck 10 times more because it FELT like working til 9pm.

Then I come home and cook a delicious Mexican casserole, plate it up, and take some very mediocre photos of it due to the little issue of not having any natural light. Fudge.

Luckily, with the magic of Picasa, I was able to infuse a little bit more life into the photos, but they're still not great.

Stupid daylight saving time.

Anywho, this casserole was delish and definitely is not done justice by the photos. It also makes a great freezer meal. In fact, I divided mine up into two square pans (instead of one rectangular) and froze one for later.

Mexican Casserole

Source: Seen on Meals & Moves

Ingredients:

• 1 lb ground turkey, chicken or beef

• 1 green bell pepper, diced

• 1/2 red onion, diced

• 1 packet low sodium taco seasoning

• 2 cups cooked brown rice

• 1 (15 oz) can black beans, drained

• 2-3 tomatoes, diced (I used a couple of canned tomatoes)

• 1 (11 oz) can green enchilada sauce (I used red enchilada sauce)

• 1 (4.5 oz) can diced green chiles

• 1 cup 0% plain greek yogurt (can sub sour cream)

• 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

• avocado or guacamole for garnish

• serve with whole wheat tortillas (We served with steamed broccoli, since the rice was enough carby goodness for us)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large, deep skillet, sauté your onion and bell pepper over medium-high heat. When the vegetables are tender, add the ground meat (turkey in our case) and cook until it's cooked through. Add taco seasoning, rice, black beans, tomatoes, enchilada sauce & green chiles and combine well. When the mixture is heated through, turn off the heat and stir in greek yogurt.

Transfer the mixture into a greased baking pan (either one 9x13 or two square pans). Top with cheese, cover with foil, and bake for 20 minutes at 350 degrees. Remove foil and bake for another 10 minutes. Remove, let cool for a few minutes, and serve with avocado or guac.

A Hangover and Enchiladas

Today I did basically nothing all day because I was "sick".....and by "sick" I mean hungover. I think I'm officially too old to drink copious amounts of alcohol. It was rough!

The culprit for the hangover was a very fun Halloween party that we went to last night. Hubs and I dressed up as the Blues Brothers, I drank margaritas and played MANY games of cornhole and beer pong. Too many, in fact, but I was winning so I kept going to prove it wasn't a fluke!

If only having so much fun didn't result in a terrible all-day long hangover and one stint with my head over the toilet at 9 am. Yuck!

When I finally started to feel human again around 6 pm tonight and the thought of food hitting my mouth didn't make me gag, I decided to cook.

Veggie Enchiladas....aka hangover cure

And I'm so glad I did, because this is probably one of my new favorite dishes.

I spotted the recipe over on How Sweet It Is a while back and had it bookmarked since. I'm so glad she shared this because it is a great way to incorporate lots and lots of veggies in a more palatable way for those who aren't huge veggie fans (ahem husband).

Plus, it's warm and gooey and cheesy! Who doesn't love those things?!

I modified the recipe slightly so my way is listed below. My mix of veggies was pretty random, but that's the great thing about this recipe: you can modify it to include whatever veggies you have on hand!

Loaded Veggie Enchiladas

Source: Modified from How Sweet It Is

8-10 whole wheat tortillas

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 green pepper, chopped

1/2 red onion, chopped

2 medium white or red potatoes, chopped

1/2 cup butternut squash, chopped

1/2 cup broccoli florets, chopped

1 summer squash, chopped

1 cup refried black beans (half a can)

1 can red enchilada sauce

1 1/2 cups shredded Mexican blend cheese

Preheat oven to 350.

Heat a skillet on medium heat and add olive oil. Add peppers, onions, potatoes and butternut squash, sprinkle with salt and saute until soft, about 8 minutes. Add in summer squash and broccoli, sauteing for another 5 minutes. Add refried beans and half the can of enchilada sauce, mixing until combined and heating through.

To assemble enchiladas, add about 1/2 cup mix into the center of a tortilla and roll tightly. Add to baking dish and repeat with tortillas and mix. Top with remaining enchilada sauce and cheese.

Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes.

Hangover officially cured.

But I'm still never drinking alcohol again. (yeah right)

Postpartum Enchiladers

Last week one of my really good Army wife friends gave birth to a beautiful baby girl named Erika.

Precious baby.

And the proud poppa.

I wanted to make them a meal for when they came home with baby so they would have one less thing to worry about. Cuz you know, babies are like hard work, yo! (That's my Teen Mom impression)

So over the long weekend I prepped a double batch of enchiladas, packaged one up for them and kept the other for us to eat for dinner tonight.

Dinner tonight was superrrrrr easy since all I had to do was pop the enchiladers (that's what my dad calls enchiladas) in the oven and let 'em bake for 30 minutes. Gave me plenty of time to fit in that workout I've been putting off for several days now. Oopsie!

When the timer beeped we had gooey, cheesy comfort food enchiladers waiting for us.

Don't worry, though! These enchiladers aren't TOTALLY devoid of any nutritional value.

See that? There's SPINACH in there! Gooey, cheesy spinach but SPINACH nonetheless! It's practically health food!

Chicken & Spinach Enchiladas

Adapted from this source (my changes in pink)

1 (10 oz) package of chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry

2 (10 oz) cans of red enchilada sauce

1 (16oz) jar of medium salsa, divided

1 (8 oz) package of reduced-fat cream cheese, softened

2.5 cups of shredded rotisserie chicken (I baked 2 split chicken breasts (bone-in) at 425 degrees for about 45 minutes and then chopped it up...this is enough chicken for TWO batches of the enchiladas so you could probably just do one if you are only making one batch)

10 (8 inch) whole wheat tortillas

1 (8 oz) package of shredded Mexican cheese blend (I only used about half to three quarters of the bag)

Combine both cans of enchilada sauce with 1/2 cup of salsa in a bowl. Pour about 1/2 cup of the sauce mixture in the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking pan and spread around. Set the rest aside for later.

Combine cream cheese, chicken, spinach & salsa in another bowl and stir until well blended. Place about 1/3 cup of the chicken mixture in the middle of each tortilla and then roll up. Place rolled up tortillas, seam side down, in the baking pan.

Pour the remaining sauce on top of the tortillas and then top with cheese. Bake at 350 degrees for approximately 30 minutes, or until bubbly. Let stand for 5 minutes before serving.

NOTE: If you're making this as a meal for someone, don't bake it. Just prep everything and then package it up. At this point you can freeze it if you'd like (or your recipients would like) and thaw and cook it later.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

These were super delicious and Alex LOVED them! I enjoyed them too but might make some changes next time. I don't think the cream cheese in the chicken filling is completely necessary and I could probably make a few other changes to healthify them a bit.

Can't wait to play around with it a bit in the future! Which, apparently will be soon since my husband asked me to make them again next week. Um....no.

But soon enough!

Lightened-Up Shepherd's Pie {What's for Dinner? 4/18/2010}

{First off, sorry my what's for dinner? posts have been MIA the past two days! I worked a concert on Friday night and we went to our little friend Autumn's 3rd birthday party on Saturday night. Hence, both nights we ate dinner out and about. Nothing to report.}

When we were trying to decide what to eat for dinner tonight I pulled out an old April 2008 issue of Every Day with Rachael Ray that I kept. I flipped through it and landed on this lightened-up shepherd's pie recipe that I had dog-eared way back when. It looked perfect for a rainy Sunday night dinner so we went with it.

It's not a standard shepherd's pie, which I like. Ground beef instead of lamb, mushrooms instead of peas, carrots AND parsnips. I had never cooked with parsnips before so I wasn't sure what to think of them. I'd say they are basically like a cross between a carrot and a potato.

The only thing I didn't like about this recipe is that it was split up into waaaay too many steps. I thought they could be combined into less steps so I tried that out. See my changes below. Just keep in mind that if you make it the way I did, you need to use a giant, deep skillet in order to fit all the components. If you don't have a giant skillet like I do, then do it the way it was originally written.

Now please don't judge a book by it's cover here....it is CERTAINLY not photogenic, but still extremely tasty!



Shepherd's Pie
Source: Every Day with Rachael Ray magazine - April 2008

INGREDIENTS:

* 2 pounds small yellow-fleshed potatoes, halved {I used red potatoes}
* 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
* 10 ounces cremini mushroom slices {I used baby Bella mushrooms}
* 2 carrots, cut into 1-inch pieces
* 2 parsnips, cut into 1-inch pieces
* 1 onion, chopped
* 1 pound 93-percent lean ground beef
* 1/4 cup flour
* 1-1/2 cups beef broth
* 1/2 cup canned crushed tomatoes
* Salt and pepper
* 3/4 cup 2-percent milk
* 1-1/2 pounds baby spinach

DIRECTIONS:


1. In a large saucepan, combine the potatoes and enough salted water to cover by 1 inch. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer until tender, about 15 minutes. Drain and return to the pot; cover.

2. In a large, deep skillet, heat 1/2 tablespoon olive oil over high heat, add the mushrooms {I added the carrots, parsnips and onion at this point too....make sure you use a giant, deep skillet if you do it this way} and cook, stirring, until browned, about 5 minutes. Arrange in a greased 9-by-13-inch baking dish in an even layer {I omitted this step} .

3. In the same skillet, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium high heat. Add the carrots, parsnips and onion and cook, stirring, until crisp-tender, 6 to 7 minutes {omit this if you did it my way}. Add the beef and cook, breaking it up, until no longer pink, about 4 minutes. Stir in the flour. Add the beef broth and tomatoes and simmer {At this point I also added the baby spinach to the pan and let it wilt down}, stirring, until thickened, about 5 minutes; season with salt and pepper. Ladle the meat mixture {into the pan} over the mushrooms. Reserve the skillet {no need if you did it the way I did}.

4. Position a rack in the upper third of the oven and preheat to 400°. Add the milk to the potatoes and mash. Season with salt and pepper.

5. In the reserved skillet, bring 1 cup water to a boil. Add the spinach and cook, turning, until wilted, about 2 minutes; season with salt and pepper. Transfer to a colander; press to extract any liquid. {I omitted this whole step...see above where I added the spinach to the meat mixture}

6. Arrange the spinach over the meat mixture {omit this if you did the spinach like I did}, then spoon the potatoes on top. Drizzle with the remaining 1/2 tablespoon olive oil. Bake until golden, about 25 minutes.

What's for Dinner? 2/20/2010

Saturday evening we found ourselves with not much in the way of food and no ideas on what to make for dinner at around 5pm. Then I realized that we had leftover cooked chicken breasts and fresh mushrooms and the first thing that popped into my mind was Chicken Tetrazzini.


The funny thing is I don't think I'd ever made Chicken Tetrazini before but I had eaten it so I knew it involved chicken, mushrooms & pasta. I googled for a couple of recipes but nothing really fit exactly what I was looking for. Most made enough to feed an army and it was just going to be the two of us. But I got the general idea from a couple of different recipes and then just winged it from there. I think it turned out pretty well for a last minute thing! Alex said he definitely wants me to make it again so that's always a good sign.

WARNING: This recipe contains what some foodies refer to as "cream of crap soup" {a.k.a. cream of mushroom/chicken/etc. soup}. If you are opposed to using it then don't bother checking out this recipe. :)

As I went along I wrote down what I was doing so I would remember for the future:


Chicken Tetrazini
Source: Me

Ingredients:
-8 oz (half a package) of egg noodles {or whatever noodle you have}
-1 tsp. olive oil
-1/2 a medium onion, chopped
-1 c. button mushrooms, coarsely chopped
-2 cloves garlic, minced
-1/2 c. green beans or peas, frozen
-2 cooked chicken breasts, chopped
-1 can cream of mushroom soup {healthy request}
-1/4 c. chicken broth
-1 tsp. garlic salt
-1 c. shredded cheddar cheese
-1/2 c. parmesan cheese, grated

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Cook pasta a minute or two shy of the time listed on the package to al dente. Drain.

While pasta cooks, heat oil on in a nonstick pan on medium heat. Saute onion & mushrooms for about 5 minutes in oil until softened. Add garlic and green beans/peas and cook for another minute.

Mix cooked pasta, sauteed veggies, chicken, cream of mushroom soup, chicken broth and garlic salt in a bowl until well combined and coated in the sauce. Pour mixture into a square baking pan sprayed with Pam.

Sprinkle the cheeses on top of the casserole and then bake in a 400 degree oven for about 30 minutes. Enjoy!