K2's Favorite Veggie Enchiladas

 

Have you ever eaten something so memorable that at random times the idea of it will pop into your head and make you start drooling?  I don't know what it is about this particular dish, but that happens to me all the time.  It's vegetarian fare, but very filling and quite the tasty treat.  Even GP Dad, who is by no mean a huge fan of veg-only cooking, loved this.

So after years of drool-filled cravings, I FINALLY remembered to ask my friend Mara if I could get the recipe from her and here are the make-your-tastebuds-happy veggie enchiladas.

Veggie Enchiladas
based on recipe from Vegetarian Classics by Jeanne Lemlin (2001) via Mara via me, paraphrased and slightly tweaked -- makes 8

1 tbsp. olive oil
1 large white onions, diced
2 medium zucchini, quartered lengthwise and sliced thinly
1 (15 oz.) can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
1 (4 oz.) can chopped green chiles
2 cups frozen corn
2 tbsp. fresh cilantro, finely chopped
1 tbsp. fresh oregano, finely chopped
8 large whole wheat tortillas
1 cup medium salsa
1/2 cup skim milk*
1/2 cup Half-n-Half*
1-1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

Heat oil in a skillet over medium-high heat.  Cook onions until they become translucent and start to caramelize, about 7-10 minutes.

Add zucchini slices to the skillet and cook an additional 5-6 minutes.

Turn off the heat and add beans, chiles, corn, oregano, and cilantro to the pan.  Mix everything together and set aside.

In a medium size bowl, blend together the salsa, milk, and Half-n-Half.  Set aside.

Prepare two (2) 9x13" baking pans (or one big honkin' cake pan) with cooking spray, then spread a thin layer of the salsa-milk mixture in the bottom of each pan.

Take the bean mixture and divide it between the eight (8) tortillas, then fold and wrap them up.  I found the easiest way to get a more even distribution was to divide the filling mixture in the skillet, lay out four tortillas at a time and divide half of the filling mix between the four.  Wrap those and then do the next four.

Place the filled tortillas folded-side down in the pan(s).

Spread the rest of the salsa/milk mixture over them and sprinkle with shredded cheese.

 

Cover with foil and bake at 400 degrees for about 20 minutes.

Serve up with some shredded lettuce, sour cream and/or guacamole and some extra salsa if you want.

Ole!

NOTES

Mara's Note:  If you want your cheese to be "well done," after 20 minutes remove the cover and continue to bake until it's the texture/color you want.  Dad was chomping at the bit for dinner, so we opted out of the extended cooking option.

*You can substitute 1 cup of whole milk for the 1/2 cup milk + 1/2 cup H-n-H.  You want the higher milk fat content to give the dish some depth and flavor, skim milk by itself will be too watery.

Dad suggested adding some Monterey jack cheese in the filling to give it some more kick.  Or you could use hot salsa with the sauce.  Mom suggested adding sour cream to the filling before baking to give it some tang.  All good suggestions for the next time...and oh yes, there WILL be a next time.