Sunday night is Mexican / Tex-Mex food at our house. I’d been craving one of my favorites for a while now, Spinach Mushroom Enchiladas. I don’t order this dish at restaurants very often because I usually don’t like how they make the filling. I prefer my way. There’s really not a ton of filling so you can wallow in the taste of the sauce, if you’re like me, anyway. My favorite part of enchiladas is the sauce over tortillas. Who needs a filling? Okay, so there has to be something in the middle. Spinach and mushrooms are my favorite choice for vegetarian enchiladas.
Earlier in the day, I clean one bunch of organic spinach and set it aside to dry.
When I’m ready to make dinner, I start by prepping the spinach. Roughly tear the spinach (not too small!) and tear off and discard the longer stems, placing the torn leaves in a 4-quart dish. Pour about 1 to 1.5 half Tbsp olive oil, sprinkle with salt and ground black pepper, then gently toss to coat all the spinach. Set aside.
Move on to the mushrooms. I bought cremini mushrooms in bulk, 2 – 3 handfuls.
Gently wipe the mushrooms with a paper towel, then chop.
Divide into two batches. Melt 1 Tbsp margarine in a medium deep skillet over medium high heat, then pour in the first batch of mushrooms. Toss to coat in the melted margarine and cook quickly over high heat until just browned and glossy, about 1 – 2 minutes. You don’t want to cook them down. Pour into a dish and repeat with second batch.
Set mushrooms aside. In the same deep skillet over medium heat, pour two 10-ounce cans of green chili enchilada sauce. Stir in 1/2 cup Mexican Crema (not as tart as sour cream – I find it in the cheese aisle between the shredded cheese and the Velveeta cheese. I use the Cacique brand). Sour cream will do as a substitute. Stir over medium heat until mixed well, then turn off heat and set aside. Time to assemble the enchiladas. Spray two 9 x 13 inch baking dishes with cooking spray; spray well so the tortillas don’t stick.
Then, stuff and roll the enchiladas. Take one whole wheat tortilla (I’m spoiled that my grocer sells fresh made whole wheat tortillas from the bakery every day – heaven!), fill with a bit of the spinach, a sprinkle of the mushrooms, and a sprinkle of shredded Monterrey Jack cheese.
Roll, and place in the pan.
Repeat thirteen more times. I fit seven per pan. Sprinkle with a tad of Monterrey Jack cheese.
Now, once both pans are full of rolled enchiladas, it’s time for the sauce. (Don’t worry if you don’t use all the spinach; I don’t. It’s great to saute the next night and serve with baked salmon. Now you know what we’re having tomorrow). Divide the sauce between both pans of enchiladas, covering the tops.
Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. Pull both pans out, and sprinkle with more Monterrey Jack cheese.
Bake for another 5 minutes or until the cheese is melted.
Serve with sides of your choice. I prefer salads with my enchiladas, but the rest of the family prefers rice and beans. I buy frozen already made and seasoned Spanish rice that only takes 5 minutes to steam in the microwave. If I don’t make a pot of black beans, I go ahead and use canned black beans and spice them up a bit with garlic powder, ground cumin, and chili powder – just a sprinkle of each.
SPINACH MUSHROOM ENCHILADAS
Wash and tear one bunch of organic spinach into a 4-quart bowl.
Pour 1 to 1.5 Tbsp olive oil over the spinach, sprinkle with salt and ground black pepper.
Gently toss to coat and thoroughly season all the spinach.
Set aside.
Gently brush about 3 handfuls cremini mushrooms to remove dirt.
Chop mushrooms.
In a medium deep skillet over medium high heat, melt 1 Tbsp margarine, add half the mushrooms, coat with the margarine, and cook over high heat 1 to 2 minutes until just browned and glossy.
Pour into a dish and set aside.
Repeat with second half of mushrooms.
Cooking the mushrooms in batches helps them brown evenly without steaming them and making them too soft.
In same medium deep skillet over medium heat, pour two 10-ounce cans green chili enchilada sauce (I used Old El Paso brand).
Stir in 1/2 cup Cacique brand Crema Mexicana (Mexican cream that’s more liquid and less tart than sour cream. Use sour cream as a substitute. I find the Crema between the shredded cheeses and Velveeta instead of where the sour cream and other dairy products are sold).
Stir until mixed well over medium heat, just a minute or two. Turn off heat and set aside.
Assemble enchiladas.
Take soft whole wheat tortillas (or your favorites), fill with spinach, a sprinkle of the mushrooms, and a sprinkle of shredded Monterrey Jack cheese. (Fill as full as you want the enchiladas. I don’t fill mine too much, using only half the bunch of spinach for 14 enchiladas).
Roll and place in 9 x 13 inch pan sprayed well with cooking spray.
Repeat until you fill two 9 x 13 inch pans.
If you don’t use all the spinach, refrigerate and saute for a quick side dish to another meal.
Sprinkle the rolled tortillas lightly with Monterrey Jack cheese.
Divide the sauce equally between the two pans, pouring to cover the top of both pans of enchiladas.
Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.
Remove and sprinkle both with more Monterrey Jack cheese.
Bake another 5 minutes or until cheese is melted.
Serve with favorite side dishes.
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