Chicken Enchiladas

All right, all right, all right... I am a total slow poke.  It seems the last few months have just slipped out of my fingers, and into the great abyss of "History."  Have I made some meals?  Yes.  Have I had the time to make anything worth blogging about? Not so much.  (In fact, I have relied on many of my old recipes the last few weeks and months.)

But I just remembered that maybe a month or so ago, I did take the time to photograph the steps in making these yummy enchiladas, so now I'm going to backtrack and write up a recipe that is also loosely based on a recipe of my mom's.  So I'll do a little updating here, and at least you can also backtrack and go try some of my old recipes if this one doesn't interest you.

I'll make no claims to this being some authentic Mexican masterpiece.  But it sure is good comfort food! Mmmmmmmmmmmm.



INGREDIENTS:

8-10 White or Whole Grain flour tortillas (I usually get the 10-12" wide ones.)
1 lb boneless, skinless chicken (thighs, breasts, or whatever you like)
1 package cream cheese
1 small can (I think it's a 4 oz can?) sliced black olives
4 stalks of green onions
1 red, yellow or green bell pepper (diced)
1 package or 1-2 tbsp taco seasonings-- (in a pinch, you can just use 1 tsp cumin, 1 tsp paprika, 1 tbsp oregano, 1/2 tsp of salt, and 1/4 tsp cayenne)

1 small can of green enchilada sauce
1 cup grated Monterey Jack cheese

DIRECTIONS:

Dice, slice and chop the green onions and bell pepper into equal sized pieces, and set them aside for now.

If you use cast iron or stainless steel skillets, you can save yourself some prep time and clean up if you cook the chicken whole in the skillet and then slice or cut it with a knife or kitchen-scissors right in the skillet.  The cast iron won't take any damage, and it saves you from having to clean up a cutting board or handling any raw poultry needlessly. Obviously, do not use this method on a non-stick finish as it will scratch.  Otherwise, I would prepare it anyway you prefer-- cube it while raw, and then brown it in the skillet, or cook it and take it out and set it on a cutting board to be cut up, and then mixed back in with other ingredients.

Using my first described method also allows me to just add in the bell peppers, for a quick sautee. I like them a little crunchy still, before the enchiladas go in the oven, so they're not so limp.

Then, add cream cheese into the mixture of chicken and peppers, and allow the cream cheese to melt over medium heat, stirring frequently to distribute and not burn.  Sprinkle in seasonings, drained can of black olives, and green onions.  Turn off heat and remove skillet. 

Spoon about 1/4- 1/3 cup filling per tortilla; fold in the ends of the tortilla, and then roll it up. Place them in a row in a large lasagna-type pan.

Pour over enchilada sauce, sprinkle grated cheese on top, and then bake it all in the oven at about 375 for 20-30 minutes or until cheese is bubbly and browning a bit, and the sauce is simmering.