Bonita's Blog: June 2018

WARNING!! THIS IS A LONG POST. Hopefully in the end maybe it will be worth it.
If you decide to not follow this recipe to the letter, that's OK. Recipes are made to be broken.
----

When Steve and Grampa came home for Memorial Day, I planned to make my family's single most favorite dish; my Americanized and Allergy Friendly enchiladas, for all to consume.

This entire process takes me approximately 35 minutes to mix up and get in the oven. Or longer if I enjoy too much of step 4.
Here are my steps. photographed for your enjoyment.

The ingredients list is as follows: (ingredient measurements can vary)

This recipe should make two 11 or 13 x 9" dishes of Enchilladas (make 2 and freeze one for smaller families)

2 shallow (1 1/2" deep) baking pans, rectangular, 11x9" or 13x9" work well

1-2 medium sized onions (purple, yellow, or white)
3-10 cloves of garlic (or more if you like)
1 to 1 1/2 cups of mushrooms, crimini or bella (not Asian)
3-6 cups cooked and diced chicken or turkey (whatever your preference) (or 3-4 cups ground)
1 box Bone broth (or 3-4 cups bean or vegetable stock
12-16 oz tomatillos (peeled, deveined and diced)
12-16 oz diced green chiles
Salt, Black Pepper, Powdered Ginger, and Garlic Powder (optional)
Corn starch powder
1/4cup to 1/3cup cold water
3 12oz cans of regular tomato sauce (not paste!)
Corn tortillas (I buy the pack of 72)
Sliced black olives (garnish-optional)
grated cheese (Mexican mix or cheddar, or Daiya Dairy free)
Pinto/refried beans and Trader Joes Green Sauce (these are optional, see below)

OPTIONAL to add in the mix: refried black or pinto beans. I've gone to making these as a side dish only

ALSO OPTIONAL: I like to mix in another ingredient on the bottom and top layers - Trader Joes Green Sauce. You don't have to have it but it really adds something to this dish.

1. In a very large pan, sauté sliced mushrooms and onions and garlic (no measurements here, just however much you like). I used two small purple onions, a full box of mushrooms, and about 10 cloves of peeled garlic. The oil I used was Avocado Oil, just a little, maybe 1/8 cup, but I often use Olive Oil.

TIP: An extra step here for people with little kids: after this mixture was soft, I put in my blender to puree it so the kids couldn't see the onions and mushrooms. They still got to eat it and I didn't have to hear them whine. Just put this mixture over the meat in Step 2 once it's pureed.

2. Dice up some cooked turkey or chicken and add to the sauté. I love to use left-over turkey after a turkey dinner but use whatever you have; chicken thighs, breasts, a whole chicken, several cans of chicken if you need a shortcut (although fresh chicken or turkey is better). When I use chicken I just boil it then pull apart and dice. If you are making a large batch, you are going to need a lot. Maybe 5 or 6 cups of meat.

You could use any meat really, I've even used ground turkey in a pinch, but in that case, I only use 4 lbs. for my big-eater family.

3. Add Bone Broth or vegetable stock (like bean broth!).

If you pureed your veggies add them here too. The puree looks a little muddy but don't worry, it will completely disappear.

Bone broth is far better than using chicken or turkey or vegetable stock but use whatever you have. I use Pacific Bone Broth, about 2/3 a box in the amount of meat and veggies I use. I don't heat it or do anything to it, just open and pour. Of course, you can make your own, or make your own bean or vegetable stock, too. In that case, you'll need at least 2 cups, maybe 3.

4. Open up your favorite beer. This is for sipping while you cook. Wine works, too. or both.
If your name is Annie, you may even want to add a little of one of these to your mix.

5. Add in a few cans of (or diced fresh/peeled) Green Chiles. I also like to add about 2/3 a can of Tomatillos, also diced. I remove the stem and veins from the tomatillos.

any brands will work, both fresh and canned taste great

6. Simmer the meat, veggie and bone broth for a few minutes until bubbly. If it doesn't look like it's soupy enough add more broth. This is how it should look. Don't let it dry out, but it should simmer for about 10-12 minutes on low. In step 8 we'll thicken it up into a nice creamy soup. If you decide to add in a cup or two of refried beans, now is the time. As I said, I no longer do this, and surprisingly, these things taste almost exactly the same with or without the beans. Initially when the kids were young I did this to be able to use less meat (tight budgets and all). Now I leave them out because many of this household have legume allergies, sadly, so beans are now a side dish.

7. Add spices to taste. I only use 3 spices. Four if you count garlic again. Salt, Pepper, Ginger, and some Garlic powder if you like. The Ginger gives it a little zing, since I am allergic to other spices, this is the most wonderful alternative and closest to my original recipe. I never did make my enchiladas spicy. If you get creative that's OK but just know, it's not going to taste like mine, so it depends on what you are trying to accomplish.

Let this mixture with the spices simmer about 5-7 minutes on a low heat, just to get bubbly.

8. Thicken the mixture into a soup using Corn Starch powder. Some people think this part is tricky but if you follow my instructions you should not have any issues. In a 2 cup measuring cup, put about 1/4 cup of cool water. Take about 4 Tablespoons (4Tbs) corn starch and stir into the cool water in your cup. Use a fork to stir and mash any lumps, making the mixture creamy. It should not look watery, so if it does, add another Tablespoon. It'll be fine if you're not sure, add the extra one and blend well in the cup.

Once this is mixed up smoothly start stirring it SLOWLY into the mixture, stirring constantly. Just dribble it in all the while stirring, and you will feel the mixture thicken.

Let this cook 5 or so minutes and keep stirring every minute or two. If you think it's not thick enough you can mix up a little more corn start mix and add it, but only another Tablespoon or so. Corn starch goes a long way and the heat changes the thickness slowly, so give it a chance. Once this is thickened to the consistency you like - and you're looking for something you can spoon into tortillas that will stay put but not be a lump - then you can turn off the heat.

Let this sit in the pan for about 5-7 minutes. Cooling allows the corn starch to thicken a bit more. The final filling mixture should look something like the picture below.

PHASE 2 - PUTTING IN THE PAN AND OVEN TO BAKE

9. Get your baking pans out and put a little olive or avocado oil in the bottom. Please--OH PLEASE--don't use Soybean or Canola oil here. I won't scream too loud if you opt for corn oil, since this IS a Mexican-style dish. But Olive or Avocado are preferred.
Just pour in a tiny bit and rub it around a bit with your finger or a spatula.

10. Layer in tomato sauce. Just open one of the cans of tomato sauce and put a little on the bottom. It does not have to cover the entire bottom, just spread it around a bit, it's really just to coat the tortillas and make them not stick but still taste great. Then if you opt for the Trader Joes Green Sauce, sprinkle in a little of that in the bottom of the pan, too.

11. Start filling and folding the tortillas and layer them in the pan. Get a big spoon - tablespoon size or bigger. If using a tablespoon, use about 2 spoonfuls inside a single tortilla. I like to hold the tortillas in my hand, put in the filling then carefully fold in half and lay each one in succession overlapping the other.

I get two full dishes with this recipe. One for regular cheese, and one Dairy-free.

12. Pour on the final layer, a little Tomato Sauce (I know it sounds gross, but trust me on this one), plus a little Salsa Verde from Trader Joe's.

13. Top with your option for cheese. If you remembered to buy sliced black olives, scatter those on top of the cheese.

14. Bake in ove at 375 degrees for about 23-40 minutes, or until the Mexican cheese is golden. Daiya cheese only melts but doesn't brown, so if you're using only Dairy-free cheese then watch your time for sure since you will over-cook, if you are waiting for the toasty-cheese result. They are both done at the same time. Notice I had forgotten the olives, which would make this dish so much prettier.

15. While the enchiladas are baking, warm up your beans in a fry pan, if you decided to serve them a'la carte.

It doesn't take the beans as long to warm up, so do that about 15 minutes before your timer is set to go off. If you are like us and have to purchase vegan beans, with no lard or spices, then you'll want to add just a little oil and maybe just a sprinkle or two of garlic. When it's all done, you should have a feast.

Of course, you can also make rice or quinoa to go with this if you need to stretch your main dish, but I did not do that, except of course when the kids were small and budgets were tight. Now we just focus on the main foods and eat quinoa on left-over days with this. I still never seem to make enough, and we are all sad when it's gone.

When it's all done, I like to top the serving with a little dollop of Sour Cream (which is actually plain yogurt because I never buy sour cream these days and it tastes the same on dishes).