Chicken and Cheese Enchiladas
1 can (20 oz) red enchilada sauce
1/3 cup sour cream
1 can (4.5 oz) chopped green chiles
1 teaspoon ground cumin
2 cups chopped cooked chicken (I buy chicken tenders)
1 1/2 cups shredded Colby-Monterrey Jack cheese blend
1/2 onion, diced and sauteed
fresh mushrooms, diced and sauteed
8 flour tortillas
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Start sauteing onions and mushrooms. Season chicken as you like and cook in pan. When it’s cooked, take chicken out of pan to cool and dice it up or shred it with your fingers.
In a medium bowl mix enchilada sauce, sour cream, chiles and cumin. In ungreased 2-quart shallow baking dish, spread enough of the mixture to cover the bottom on the dish. It doesn’t take much! Set aside about 1 cup of this mixture. Now add chicken, 3/4 cup cheese and sauteed onions and mushrooms to the enchilada sauce mix in the bowl.
Place about 1/3 cup of chicken mixture in each tortilla. Roll up and place seam side down in baking dish. Pour soup mixture you have set aside on top of enchiladas and spread it to cover almost the whole top of enchilada. It just needs to be wet, not really saucy on top. Sprinkle remaining cheese on top of enchiladas. Bake for 20 minutes covered with foil that has been sprayed with non-stick spray. Then uncover and bake 5-10 minutes.
Things I do:
– I use as much cheese as I feel like. My enchilada sauce mix isn’t too soupy. It’s kind of chunky b/c of the chicken, onion and mushrooms. And I think I use more cheese than this recipe calls for. I buy a 2 cup bag of cheese and use it as I like.
– I also add a few canned, diced jalapenos. Mike and I like our food spicy. The green chiles are not spicy, just tasty.
– You can sprinkle diced green onions on top of each enchilada before you serve, but I don’t.
– I serve these with fresh corn that I put butter and salt on then wrap them up in foil and bake for 1 hour in our toaster oven on 375 degrees.
Producer Emilie’s Layered Enchilada Bake
1 lb lean ground beef
1 large onion, chopped
fresh mushrooms
2 cups chunky salsa
1 can (15 oz) black beans, drained and rinsed
1/4 cup zesty Italian dressing
2 Tbsp taco seasoning
6 – 8 flour tortillas
1 cup sour cream
1 pkg (2 cups) of Mexican style finely shredded cheese
1 can Mexicorn
Top with shredded lettuce and diced tomatoes
Heat oven to 400 degrees. Brown meat. In another pan saute mushrooms and onions. When meat is browned drain of all fat and add sauteed onions and mushrooms to pan and mix. In a large bowl add beans, Italian dressing, taco seasoning, corn and salsa. Mix. Add meat mixture to large bowl. Spray a 13×9 inch glass dish with non-stick spray. Cut tortillas in half and cover bottom of pan. Add half of mixture on top on tortillas. Spread half of sour cream over meat/veggie mixture. Then top with half of bag of cheese. Then add more tortillas to cover cheese. Top with meat/veggie mixture. Spread rest of sour cream and top with remaining cheese. Spray aluminum foil with non stick spray and cover dish. Bake for 30 minutes. Uncover and bake another 8-10 minutes. Top with shredded lettuce and diced tomatoes if you like!
You can add or subtract more veggies, cheese or meat! Whatever you like in an enchilada or taco is good in this dinner!
Creamy Slow Cooker Chicken Fajita Soup
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2 (10.75 ounce) cans condensed cream of chicken soup
1 cup salsa
2 cups frozen corn
1 (15 ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed
1½ cups water
1 teaspoon ground cumin
½ teaspoon dried cilantro
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
Optional Toppings:
sour cream
diced tomatoes
green onions
cilantro
lettuce
diced avocado
tortilla strips
Spray your slow cooker with cooking spray. Add chicken to the bottom of the slow cooker. In a medium sized mixing bowl, mix cream of chicken soup, salsa, corn, black beans, water, cumin, and cilantro. Pour over the top of chicken. Cook on low for 4-6 hours. Remove the chicken and shred with two forks. Place back into the slow cooker and add shredded cheese. Continue cooking until cheese has melted about 15 minutes. Serve with your favorite toppings.
Sam’s Steak Fajitas for One
½ cup soy sauce
½ cup lime juice from 6 to 8 limes
½ cup canola oil (I used vegetable oil)
½ teaspoon liquid smoke
¼ cup packed brown sugar
2 teaspoons cumin
2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon chili powder
3 medium cloves garlic, finely minced (about 1 tablespoon)
2 pounds trimmed skirt steak (about 1 whole steak),
1 large red bell pepper, sliced for fajitas
1 large yellow bell pepper, sliced for fajitas
1 large green bell pepper, sliced for fajitas
1 white or yellow onion, sliced for fajitas
Fresh flour or corn tortillas, hot
Guacamole, pico de gallo, sour cream, shredded cheese, and salsa, for serving, if desired
Combine soy sauce, lime juice, oil, liquid smoke, brown sugar, cumin, black pepper, chili powder, and garlic in a medium bowl and whisk to combine. Transfer 1/2 cup of marinade to a large bowl and set aside. Place steak in a gallon-sized zipper-lock bag and add remaining marinade. Seal bag, squeezing out as much air as possible. Massage bag until meat is fully coated in marinade. Lay flat in the refrigerator, turning every couple of hours for at least 3 hours and up to 10.
While steak marinates, toss peppers and onions in bowl with reserved 1/2 cup marinade. Refrigerate until ready to use.
When ready, light one side of your grill…medium/high to high heat. Place cast iron skillet unlit side. When grill is ready place steak on the heated side and turn every couple of minutes until a nice char develops on both sides.
Remove cooked steak, place on plate and cover with foil.
Slide the cast iron to the heated side of the grill and add the marinated vegetables. Stir and cook for about 10 minutes, until vegetables are softened and charred in spots.
Thinly slice meat against the grain, warm tortillas and make your fajitas.
Fiesta Rice
1 can (10 3/4 ounces) Campbell’s Fiesta Nacho Cheese soup
1 cup water
1/3 cup milk
3/4 cup uncooked regular long-grain white rice *
Preheat oven to 375. Combine all ingredients and pour into a 9×9 pan. Cover with foil. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until the rice is tender. Stir rice before serving.
*(Emilie) – I used brown rice and it took close to an hour and a half to cook.
Sam’s Simple Ceviche
1 lb tilapia filets, cut into half inch pieces
1 green bell pepper, chopped
1 red onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 lemon
3 limes
1 Tablespoon olive oil
2 large or 3 small tomatoes, chopped
1 Tablespoon fresh cilantro, minced
1 Tablespoon fresh parsley, minced
1 jalapeno, seeded and diced
salt and pepper to taste
Squeeze the lemon and limes in a non-reacting (ceramic, glass, etc) bowl. Add the olive oil and mix. Add the chopped fish and cover. Place in the fridge for an hour.
Remove bowl from the fridge, all all the other ingredients and mix well. Cover and return to the fridge for as short as another hour or or as long as over night.
Serve on a bed of lettuce or each as a cool dip with chips.
**To save time you can add everything to the bowl at once: juices, oil, fish, veggies, and spices, mix well, stir and cover for an hour.
Pork Tacos
3-5 lb pork roast
1 (1.25 oz) package taco seasoning
1 cup water
1 (4 oz) can green chilies
Tortillas
Put pork roast, water, taco seasoning and green chilies in a crock pot on low for 6 hours. Once it’s cooked shred the pork with a fork and discard any fat. Add the shredded pork back to the crock pot to keep warm. Serve on tortillas with pineapple salsa, cheese and your favorite toppings!
Fresh Pineapple Salsa
2 cups diced fresh pineapple
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
1/4 cup finely chopped red onion
1 serrano pepper, stemmed, seeded and finely chopped
Juice of 1 lime
1/8 teaspoon sea salt
Toss all ingredients together in a large bowl. Serve immediately or cover and chill until ready to use.
Makes about 2 cups.
Producer Emilie’s Guacamole
5 fully ripe avocados
1/2 cup sour cream
Salt and pepper to taste
1 teaspoon garlic powder (or to taste)
1 teaspoon onion powder
1-2 teaspoons of hot sauce
3 – 4 tablespoons lemon juice (sometimes I use more…)
2 medium tomatoes, finely chopped and diced
Tortilla chips
Halve avocados lengthwise, twisting gently to separate halves. Remove seeds and peel avocado halves. Then mash the avocado meat or blend a few seconds in an electric blender. Mix with sour cream, onion powder, seasonings, 1 diced tomato and lemon juice. Taste the guacamole to see if you need to add more seasoning. Chill thoroughly. Sprinkle other tomato on top and serve with tortilla chips.
Murph-a-ritas (Margaritas)
1/2 capful Cointreau
1 oz tequila (mid priced, avoid the cheapo stuff)
Juice of 1 lime
Simple sugar mixture
Simple sugar mixture:
In a 12 oz cup (or larger) fill 1/3 of cup with sugar, rest with water. Taste should be sweet.
In highball glass rub the squeezed lime peel on rim. Salt the rim. Mix Cointreau, tequila and lime juice. Fill highball with ice and top with simple sugar mixture.
These can be made without alcohol. Just use a splash of OJ and no alcohol (clearly…).
Also, just make 1 margarita at a time to keep the quality of the margarita awesome!