Roasted Tomatillo Enchiladas

Enchiladas is usually a dish my husband prepares, as he learned from his mother. I saw this recipe at Mary Ellen's Cooking Creations and figured I'd give him a treat, and make the enchiladas myself.  I've become somewhat obsessed with tomatillos lately, so I couldn't wait to try this take on enchiladas.  I made some modifications to the filling, using avocado to keep the chicken from drying out, and it worked great! I also decided to go with homemade whole wheat tortillas, which turned out to be really easy to make, and delicious!  The enchiladas were absolutely fantastic, and perfect when topped with fresh pico de gallo!




Roasted Tomatillo Enchiladas
Source: Slightly adapted from Mary Ellen's Cooking Creations

For the chicken: 

• about 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts
  
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 jalapeno, chopped
• 1/3 bunch of cilantro,
• 1 tbsp chili powder
• 1/2 tbsp cumin (we use coriander)
  
• 1 tsp Mexican oregano
• 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
• 2 tbsp lime juice - added about an hour before cooking

For the enchiladas:

• 4-5 strips roasted red pepper (from jar), diced
• 1 avocado, peeled and fruit diced
• 1/4 cup shredded Mexican blend cheese, plus more cheese for topping the enchiladas
• Creamy Roasted Tomatillo Sauce (recipe follows)
• 7-8 corn or flour tortillas, warmed (recipe follows)
  

Directions:

1. Combine chicken with marinade ingredients (except lime juice) in a large ziplock bag or bowl. Refrigerate at least 4 hours, adding the lime juice during the last hour.  After removing the chicken from the marinade, saute it until golden brown on all sides. Shred the chicken, or chop it up into rough cubes.
2. In a bowl, combine cooked chicken, red pepper, avocado, and 1/4 cup Mexican blend cheese. 
3. Coat the bottom of a baking dish with some of the tomatillo sauce.
4. Take a tortilla shell, dip both sides in the tomatilla sauce, then add some of the chicken mixture.  Roll it and put into the baking dish, seam side down.
5. Continue until you have filled the casserole dish, making sure the enchiladas are tightly packed together (but not overlapping).
6. Spoon the tomatillo sauce over the enchiladas, and finish with a sprinkling of shredded cheese.
7. Cover and bake on 375 for about 25 minutes, or until hot and bubbly.

Creamy Roasted Tomatillo Sauce

• 10 small/medium tomatillos; remove husks and wash; cut into halves or quarters
• 2 jalapenos, roughly chopped
• 1 onion, roughly chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
• Olive oil
• Salt
• 1 cup cilantro, thoroughly washed
• 1/2 cup 2% cottage cheese, blended thoroughly
• 3 oz Monterrey Jack cheese
• Dash of salt

Directions

• Combine the first 5 ingredients in a baking dish. Roast on 450 degrees for about 20 minutes, or until tomatillos are tender.
• In a pot, add roasted veggies, cilantro, and the salt. Mix everything together and then puree. I used my handheld immersion blender, but if you don't have one you could use a blender.
• Add the cottage cheese and stir thoroughly. 
  
• Add the cheese and stir until melted.
• Let lightly simmer until you are ready to assemble your enchiladas, stirring occasionally.

Homemade Whole Wheat Flour Tortillas
Source: Slightly adapted from The Homesick Texan/The Border Cookbook by Cheryl Alters Jamison and Bill Jamison
Makes 8 tortillas

• Two cups of whole wheat pastry flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder
• 1 teaspoon of salt
• 2 teaspoons of vegetable oil
• 3/4 cups of warm milk

1. Mix together the flour, baking powder, salt and oil.  Slowly add the warm milk.  Stir until a loose, sticky ball is formed.  Knead for two minutes on a floured surface. Dough should be firm and soft.  Place dough in a bowl and cover with a damp cloth or plastic wrap for 20 minutes.
2. After the dough has rested, break off eight sections, roll them into balls in your hands, place on a plate (make sure they aren’t touching) and then cover balls with damp cloth or plastic wrap for 10 minutes. (It’s very important to let the dough rest, otherwise it will be like elastic and won’t roll out to a proper thickness and shape.)
3. After dough has rested, one at a time place a dough ball on a floured surface, pat it out into a four-inch circle, and then roll with a rolling pin from the center until it’s thin and about eight inches in diameter. (If you roll out pie crusts you’ll have no problem with this.) Don’t over work the dough, or it’ll be stiff. Keep rolled-out tortillas covered until ready to cook.
4.  In a dry iron skillet or comal heated on high, cook the tortilla about thirty seconds on each side. It should start to puff a bit when it’s done.  Keep cooked tortillas covered wrapped in a napkin until ready to eat.

Can be reheated in a dry iron skillet, over your gas-burner flame or in the oven wrapped in foil.  While you probably won’t have any leftovers, you can store in the fridge tightly wrapped in foil or plastic for a day or so.