I remember my mom used to make this simple/intuitive supper often when I was young. It is warming, filling, and can be as packed with vegetables as you want it to be! Now we make it relatively often, especially in the winter months. For my filling, I usually do roasted butternut squash, pinto beans, onion, garlic, kale or chard, cheese, and top it with a load of cilantro…but you can add/substitute whatever you have on hand or want to include: mushrooms, potatoes, broccoli, etc. I’ll also put a link for a great vegan sub for the cheese filling below.
I use about 1 medium butternut squash, one onion, 2 cloves garlic, 1 can or 1 1/2c. cooked dried beans (I like pinto or anasazi),4-5ish leaves of chard or kale, cheddar cheese, 1 packet of your favorite tortillas (I like to switch it up between corn and wheat), and 1-2 packets/jars or enchilada sauce (or make your own!). If you can find a local or POC-owned sauce/tortilla company- even better!
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 400*. Chop up squash, onion, and garlic into small pieces. I like my squash chunks to be about 1/2in cubes. Coat with olive oil and salt and pepper (and any other spices- like chili powder or paprika or whatever sounds good!) and roast until everything is soft (about 40m). Check often and move everything around so it cooks evenly. While that is roasting, you can shred cheese if you’re using it or chop the kale/chard, and get everything else ready.
Once the squash is nice and soft, take it out and put it into a bowl. Add chopped up kale/chard and beans/whatever else. If you’re adding something like broccoli or that would benefit from being cooked down a little more- you can add it to either be roasted with the squash, or add it to the squash mixture after it’s soft and cook on the stovetop for a little bit assuming you’re a cast iron pan.
Take the vessel you are going to cook the enchiladas in and spread a little sauce on the bottom. Then you’re ready to start assembling! You can either make one big layered casserole or role them and sit them next to each other. I find that if you’re using corn tortillas out of the pouch if can be easier to just make a layered casserole. To do that, start with a layer of tortillas, then add a layer of the squash mixture, then cheese, then sauce- and repeat as many times as you’d like, ending with a layer of tortillas/cheese/sauce. If you’re wrapping them up, just add the squash mixture + cheese, place them in the pan tightly beside one another, and coat with the sauce. I also like to put some cheese on the top of that too. **For my friends who aren’t wanting to add cheese, I recently made this vegan tofu ricotta (for this really delicious chiles rellenos recipe!) that would be lovely inside the enchiladas. Or you can use any cheese sub you prefer- or none at all!**
If you have any leftover squash mixture, save it! You could put it in the freezer to use another time, or crack an egg on top for breakfast or lunch the next day.
Now you can put that vessel in the oven and cook until bubbly and hot. Serve with some fresh cilantro on top! You could pair it with this awesome mexican rice, a salad, or (as we usually do) have them on their own.
Enjoy!!
