Cravings: a gluten free, healthy, rounded, re-heat-able dish
How do you spell reheatable? I put the dashes because I'm just not sure.
This reminds of my junior year of high school when my mom and I sat down to make a list of what colleges I would apply to and I went to write "Ivy League" and stopped and said, "Wait, how do you spell league...?"
Yes that came out of my mouth...At least I was organized and categorized things even back then.
Okay on to the food. Mmmmmmm. Enchiladas, yummmm.
(a corner with no cheese for Charlie)
After a while of no cooking I was craving it, BAD. I would see a recipe on pinterest and get so upset I couldn't make it due to my no kitchen. Well, last weekend we were staying in Enterprise with Charlie's parents, and his Aunt Susan and Uncle Eddy were visiting. Aunt Susan doesn't eat gluten. Challenge accepted! (yes that was a Barney Stinson reference).
My new running buddy Alison had told me about white enchiladas she made, and I based my recipe off of hers, with some tweaks.
White Enchiladas with Chicken Breast, Spinach, and Corn
Ingredients:
-about 10 corn tortillas, or flour if you do not need it gluten free
-two containers of plain, nonfat Greek yogurt
-one small can of chicken broth
-two jalapenos (you can use green chili peppers or omit if you don't want it spicy at all)
-3 tbs extra virgin olive oil
-2 tbs corn starch (or 3 tbs flour, but then it's not gluten free)
-1 pound of skinless chicken breasts
-cumin, onion powder, garlic powder, salt and pepper for seasoning (I eyeball)
-juice from a lime
-2 cups of part skim shredded cheese (you can omit this if you are sensitive to cheese)
-small bunch of green onion
-one can of corn (frozen or fresh works as well, but I had canned on hand)
-one packet of frozen spinach, thawed
Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 400. Sprinkle your chicken with salt, pepper, garlic and onion powder, and cumin. Cook for 25 minutes. Let cool
, and shred with a fork and knife (or two forks)
2. While the chicken is cooking, remove the setting from your gas burner, and put your jalapenos directly on the fire. I forgot to take a picture of this. I let them sit for about 10 minutes until they were charred and black. Put them into a ziplock bag so they steam.
3. While the chicken is cooking and jalapenos are steaming in the bag, start your "roux". Mix your olive oil and corn starch, and stir on medium low:
Add about a tablespoon of cumin, teaspoon of garlic and onion powder each, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Peel the skin off your charred jalapenos and chop them finely. Add half the jalapenos into your roux:
4. Add the chicken broth to your roux and stir it. Let it thicken on medium. I have no idea how long this took - you want it to be thick but still runny, it should coat a spoon. Once the mixture is slightly thick, let it cool for about 10 minutes, and add your greek yogurt.
5. Chop up your green onion, and slice your lime.
Add them, as well as the spinach, corn, and remainder of the jalapeno to your shredded chicken. If you are good to go on the cheese, add about 3/4 of it all as well. Mix well together.
6. Scoop the mixture evenly into your tortillas. Line them up in a casserole dish and secure with a toothpick.
7. Top your rolled tortillas with the yogurt mixture, and top with the remaining cheese. (If you love someone who doesn't do cheese, leave some naked, they still taste great!)
8. Bake at 350 for 25 minutes. You can broil it at the end if you want the cheese to be a bit crispy.
Don't forget to remove your toothpicks before you serve!
In retrospect, I think I would rather make these as a Mexican "lasagna" next time, stacking layers of tortillas, chicken mixture, and sauce, (repeat), instead of rolling them. But they are still yummy, nutritious, and gluten free! You can also substitute almost anything for the stuffing - any veggies you fancy, shredded beef or pork, or even tofu. Hope you enjoy them, and let me know what creative combinations you come up with.
