Enchiladas

Yesterday was Samuel’s 2 week check up, and he is definitely a growing boy!  He’s 8 lbs and 21 1/2 inches.  At birth he was 7 lbs 10 oz and 21 inches.  He’s long and skinny!  Definitely a trait from my side of the family.  I keep hoping his thighs chunk up a little bit soon, because I am anxious to get him into the cloth diapers.  Unfortunately they are still just a little too big.  The disposables seem to leak every. single. night.  So if you have tricks on how to deal with that send them my way.

Now, the recipe.

Back a few weeks ago, I was on a mission to make some dinners that would have easy-to-freeze leftovers.  I was going through my Junior League of Atlanta Cooknotes cookbook, and I stumbled across a recipe for enchiladas that even said “can freeze.”  JACKPOT.  I’d never made enchiladas before, but I figured it wouldn’t be too hard.

The only thing I changed about the recipe was omitting the hot sauce.  If you like more “kick” to your food just add 1/4 tsp hot sauce to the meat mixture.

Sidenote: don’t let the long list of ingredients intimidate you.  These were very easy to make.

Enchiladas {from JLA Cooknotes}

Ingredients:

For the meat filling:

• 1 1/2 lbs ground beef
• 2 tbs vegetable shortening
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp pepper
• 1 tsp oregano
• 2 tbs chili powder
• 2 garlic clove, minced
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 1 16 oz can diced tomatoes
• 2 8 oz cans tomato sauce

For the tortilla sauce:

• 3 tbs butter
• 1 1/2 tbs all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 tbs chili powder
• 1 1/2 cups water

For the enchiladas:

• 12 tortillas
• 1 lbs cheddar cheese, grated
• chilled sour cream

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a large skillet, brown beef in shortening; drain well.
3. Add seasonings, garlic, onion, tomatoes, and tomato sauce, mixing well.  Cover and simmer for 30 minutes.
4. Meanwhile, prepare tortilla sauce.  In a skillet, melt butter and blend in flour and chili powder.
5. Gradually add water, stirring constantly until thickened and smooth.
6. Remove from heat and cool slightly.  Dip each tortilla in sauce.
7. Fill each tortilla with two tablespoons meat mixture and one tablespoon cheese.
8. Firmly roll tortilla and place in an ungreased 9×13″ casserole.
9. When all tortillas have been filled, sprinkle with remaining cheese and top with remaining meat mixture and tortilla sauce.
10. Bake uncovered for 30 minutes.
11. Serve hot with sour cream.

Grade: A

Comments: These were AMAZING.  Better than any I’ve ever had in a restaurant even.  They are definitely NOT healthy, but quite frankly this is one of those times where I didn’t care at all.  Be ready for it to be messy!  Dipping and rolling the tortillas was definitely no clean feat.  My hands were covered in sauce afterward.  We haven’t eaten the ones that we froze yet, but I am hoping that they will be just as delicious the second time around too.  These would be a great pot luck or church supper dish.

Tagged as: family dinners, family meals, frozen meals, Junior League of Atlanta, main dishes, recipes