Black Bean Enchiladas

Another Mexican dish....what can I say? They are just THAT good! I can't help but share!

I found this via Pinterest (per usual), but it comes from a post on Self.com. Here is the Link. The only thing that I did to clean up the recipe was use a homemade enchilada sauce and sprouted grain tortillas. Otherwise this is perfect!

This one is particularly special because it is meatless, so it's easy on the budget, but tastes good enough that no one in your family will care. With the black beans you still get your dose of protein, and if you pair it with some brown rice you'll get even more. If you really love black beans, then you could make the Brown Rice and Beans side dish I posted a while ago. Either way, you don't have to worry about protein!

One nice thing about this dish is that it uses enchilada sauce, which I have a clean recipe for. The recipe makes more than enough for this dish, so you can freeze the leftover sauce and you'll have it for next time. It makes it even easier to throw this together for dinner. 

For once, you don't need green peppers, just onions. Cook some chopped onions in olive oil and sprinkle in Cumin. 

Once the onions are cooked, add the black beans, corn, tomatoes, and cheese. Then you roll the filling up in taco shells and place in a greased baking dish. 

Pour any remaining bean mixture over the top of the tacos. Then pour enchilada sauce on top.

Bake in oven for 25-30 minutes at 350 degrees. Top with cheese, and put back in oven until cheese is melted, about 5 minutes.

And there you have it! A meatless-mexican meal everyone will love.

Black Bean Enchiladas

• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 cup onion, chopped
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1 cup frozen fire-roasted whole kernel corn, thawed
• 3/4 cup chunky medium salsa
• 1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1/4 cup shredded cheese
• tortillas
• Enchilada sauce

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray large baking dish with cooking spray (I use a sunflower oil). 

In a large skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add onion and cumin; cook and stir 4-5 minutes or until onion is tender. Stir in corn, salsa, beans, and half of the cheese. Remove from heat.

On a microwavable plate, stack tortillas and cover with a damp paper towel; microwave on high for one minute to soften. Place 1/4 cup (or more if you choose) bean mixture along center of each tortilla. Roll up tightly and place seam side down in baking dish. Spoon remaining mixture on top. Pour Sauce over enchiladas, spreading to coat all of them evenly. 

Bake 25 minutes or until sauce is bubbly. Top with remaining cheese and bake for another 5 minutes or until cheese is melted.

So here are my amendments to this recipe. 

• Fire-roasted corn - I couldn't find this at the store, but I did find Green Giant's Honey Roasted Sweet Corn in the Steamer bag and I thought it tasted fine. This corn isn't "clean" so if you really want to be clean you could just use canned corn. But the frozen kind has some peppers mixed in, which tasted pretty good. I found this at Kroger, but it's Green Giant so it's probably anywhere. 
• Salsa - you can use any salsa, but I used an organic salsa that I also got at Kroger.
• Tortillas - Again, if you want to be "clean" then you can make your own tortillas or I buy Ezekiel Sprouted Grain Tortillas found in the freezer section.
• Enchilada Sauce - you can buy this canned if you want, the original recipe calls for one can. I make my own and then freeze the leftover for next time. That way you can use as little or as much as you want.

Here is the recipe for the enchilada sauce: (Link to original recipe)

Homemade Enchilada Sauce

• 4 Tbsp Chili Powder
• 1 tsp Cumin
• 1/2 tsp onion powder
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 2 Tbsp flour (I used White Whole Wheat flour - you can use GF flour, too)
• 1 14oz can tomato sauce (no salt added)
• 1 1/2 cups water

Mix all of the dry ingredients together in a small bowl. In a medium saucepan combine tomato sauce, water, and spice mix and stir until combined. Heat until the sauce is warmed through or as thick as you want it. To thin it out add more water. Use what you need for your recipe and then freeze any leftovers.

I hope your family like this recipe as much as mine does! Usually when I tell the girls we are having bean enchiladas I get the typical "I don't like those!", but then once it hits their plates...they eat it up.

 So try this out on your next Mexican night....Just remember to take it easy on the margaritas!