Black Bean Chicken Enchiladas & Cilantro Lime Rice

Happy Memorial Day Weekend! I hope everyone is doing something relaxing this three day weekend. I will be going to work tomorrow, but I’ll probably only be there for half the day. I only have SEVEN days of staff relief left until I am DONE! Graduation is next Wednesday! I am so excited to be a working adult. No more unpaid internships for me!

 

I am loving staff relief. I’ve definitely improved my nutrition support skills these past couple weeks. This is once area that I’ve struggled with the whole internship, but now after writing TPN’s (IV nutrition) and tube feeding orders over and over again, I’ve gotten much better at it. My confidence has grown times ten just during staff relief. New-found independence and the super friendly, small-hospital environment helps as well!

 

My sister and I decided to cook something special together for our boyfriends who were coming to visit. I saw this recipe on Pinterest and wanted to try it out. It was AMAZING. I have never been a fan of red enchilada sauce, but this one was awesome. It was creamy and had the right combination of flavors. Never again will I buy ready-made enchilada sauce.

 

Black Bean Chicken Enchiladas, makes 8 enchiladas

Adapted from The Garden Grazer/Martha Stewart

You will need:
For the sauce:

• 3 cups vegetable broth
• 1/4 cup tomato paste
• 1/4 cup all purpose flour
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 2 tsp cumin
• 1/4 tsp garlic powder
• 1/4 tsp onion powder
• 1/4 tsp chili powder
• Salt/pepper

For the enchiladas:

• 1/2 lb fresh chicken breast
• 15oz can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 1/2 cups frozen corn, thawed
• 6oz frozen spinach, thawed and drained
• 6 green onions, thinly sliced
• 1/3  cup cilantro, chopped
• 2 tsp cumin
• 3 cups shredded pepper jack cheese
• 8 whole wheat or flour tortillas (we used white tortillas)

 

First, make the sauce. In a saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add tomato paste, flour, 2 tsp cumin, garlic powder, onion powder, and chili powder. Cook for 1 minute, whisking. Whisk in the broth and bring to boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook until thickened, about 8 minutes. Set aside.

 

 

While the sauce is cooking, add the chicken to a pan with some olive oil. We rubbed our chicken with Lowry’s Season Salt first, but you can add whatever you like (salt and pepper). Cook until the inside is flaky, 10 minutes or so on medium heat. Slice into small strips and set aside.

 

 

Make sure your frozen corn and spinach has been thawed and drained. You can press your spinach through a strainer to get the excess water out.

 

 

In a large bowl, add the chicken, beans, spinach, corn, green onions, 2 cups of cheese, 2 tsp of cumin, and cilantro.

 

 

Preheat your oven to 375. Spray a 9 x 13 inch baking dish with cooking spray. Pour a small amount of the sauce into the pan to cover the bottom. Fill each tortilla generously and roll up with the ends tucked in. Place seam side down in the dish.

 

 

Mmmm… they look snuggly.

 

Pour the remaining sauce over the enchiladas. Sprinkle the remaining cheese on top. Bake for about 20 minutes!

 

 

Yum. Nothing looks better than melted cheese.

 

We served these enchiladas with Cilantro Lime Rice. Each person got 2 enchiladas and a small pile of rice. It was probably a little carb-heavy, but we made sure to have a side salad.

 

Cilantro Lime Rice

You will need:

• 1 cup Basmati rice
• 2 Tbsp fresh lime juice
• 3/4 cup cilantro, chopped
• Salt to taste

 

Cook the rice according to package instructions.

 

In a bowl, add cooked rice, cilantro, and lime juice. Stir well, salt to taste!

Serve yourself up a couple enchiladas and some rice! Enjoy!

 

 

This picture is making my mouth water all over again. They were seriously the best enchiladas I’ve had in a while. They got five stars from everyone at the table, including three meat-and-potato guys. My mom said it was better than any she had before at restaurants. Success!

 

Each enchilada has about 350 calories. I ate one myself—they ended up being huge. We had suspected a fight against the spinach from the boys, but they ended up eating 2 each and loved them! The pepper jack cheese and chili powder gave it a nice spice without being too overwhelming.

 

You’ve got to try this recipe, its amazing!