Enchiladas

2016-02-19 17.37.26

 

First tried,  and then modified from OhSheGlows

This is amazing.  I would have never thought of using sun dried tomatoes in an enchilada, but it works.  There are three main components.  The filling.  The enchilada sauce.  And the creamy cashew avocado dressing.  You can make these ahead of time and then assemble and bake, or you can make the dressing while the dish is baking.  Note that the one thing you have to do ahead of time is soak the cashews in water. You can do this in the morning and it will be ready in the afternoon….or if you use hot water, one hour ahead of time.

And to be clear, I think these would be great even if you used canned enchilada sauce and a quick vegan sour cream on it.  Or nothing on it.  But using the enchilada sauce and the creamy dressing do not take much time and take it over the top.  If you use canned enchilada sauce, get a small and a large can.
Red Enchilada Sauce

YIELD
2 1/2 CUPS
PREP TIME
COOK TIME

Ingredients:

  • 2 tablespoons vegan butter or extra virgin olive oil
  • 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons chili powder
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 teaspoon cumin
  • 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
  • 1 scant cup (8-ounces) tomato paste (very small can or half the medium can)
  • 1 1/2 cups low-sodium vegetable broth
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions:

  1. In a medium pot, melt the vegan butter over medium heat or simply add the oil and increase heat to medium.
  2. Stir in the flour until a thin paste forms. If it is too dry, add some olive oil.
  3. Stir in the chili powder, garlic powder, cumin, onion powder, and cayenne pepper until combined. Cook for a couple minutes over medium heat until fragrant.
  4. Stir in the tomato paste and the broth. Whisk until smooth and blended.
  5. Bring to a simmer over low-medium heat. Stir in salt to taste and continue simmering until thickened for about 5 minutes, or longer if desired.
  6. Set aside.

Creamy Dressing

YIELD
1 CUP
SOAK TIME
1-8 HOURS
PREP TIME
COOK TIME
0 MINUTES

Ingredients:

  • 1/2 cup of soaked and drained raw cashews
  • 1/3 cup fresh cilantro leaves (remove bigger stems, press into measuring cup)
  • 1 large garlic clove
  • 1/4 cup water, and more as needed
  • 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
  • 3 tablespoons avocado
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

Directions:

  1. Add the cashews into a small bowl and cover with boiling water. Soak for 1 hour. Alternatively, you can soak the cashews in room temperature water for 8 hours or overnight.
  2. Drain and rinse the soaked cashews.
  3. Add all of the ingredients including the cashews into a high-speed blender. Blend on high until a super smooth sauce forms.  If needed, add small amounts of water if too thick.  Stop at times and scrape down the sides with a small spatula.
  4. Set aside.

Making the Enchiladas

YIELD
7 TO 8 ENCHILADAS
PREP TIME
COOK TIME

Ingredients:

FOR THE ENCHILADAS:
  • 2 cups peeled and chopped (1/2-inch dice) sweet potato.  This is about 1 and 1/2 sweet potatoes
  • 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1 medium red onion, diced (2 to 2 1/2 cups)
  • 3 large garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 cup jarred roasted red pepper, drained and chopped
  • 1/2 cup oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, drained and finely chopped
  • 2 cups (after chopping) baby spinach, roughly chopped
  • 1 (14-ounce) can black beans (about 1 1/2 cups), drained and rinsed
  • 2 1/2 cups Enchilada Sauce
  • 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
  • 1 teaspoon chili powder
  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste
  • 6-8 large soft flour tortillas (I use 8)
FOR THE TOPPINGS:
  • Creamy Dressing
  • Chopped green onion, red pepper flakes, avocado, and cilantro (all optional)

Directions:

  1. Lightly grease a large rectangular baking dish (at least 8×12-inches). Set aside.
  2. Add the chopped sweet potato into a medium pot of water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 9 to 15 minutes, uncovered, until fork tender. Drain and set aside. You can also steam the potatoes until tender, instead of boiling.
  3. In a large skillet, stir together the oil, onion, and garlic and sauté over medium heat for around 3 to 5 minutes until the onion softens. Season with a pinch of salt and pepper.
  4. Preheat the oven to 350F.
  5. Add the onion/garlic mix, chopped roasted peppers, sun-dried tomatoes, spinach, and black beans to the cooked/drained sweet potato in a med to large pot. Cook for 3 to 5 minutes over medium-high heat, until the spinach is wilted.
  6. Stir in 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons of homemade enchilada sauce, followed by the lime juice, chili powder, cumin, and salt. Adjust seasonings to taste, if desired.
  7. Add 3/4 cup of Enchilada sauce onto the bottom of your casserole dish and spread it out evenly.
  8. Scoop ~3/4 cup of the sweet potato and black bean filling onto each tortilla. Roll up the tortilla and place it, seam side down, in the casserole dish. Repeat for the rest. If you have any leftover filling, you can spread it on top of the tortillas. Spread all of the remaining enchilada sauce on top of the tortillas until they are completely covered in sauce. I like to spread out all my tortillas and just fill them equally.
  9. Bake the enchiladas, uncovered, at 350⁰F for 25 minutes, until the sauce is a deep red color and the enchiladas are heated through.
  10. Garnish with creamy dressing, chopped cilantro, avocado, red pepper flakes, and green onion. Serve any remaining cashew cream on the side with a spoon.

2016-02-19 17.50.04