Pumpkin Chicken Enchiladas

I found this recipe here.
We had a pumpkin ripen early from our garden and it's too hot (117 this weekend) to even think about making pumpkin rolls or pie.
So we tried these instead. I've got to admit, I thought for sure this would be a little too funky. We'd eat it once and never again. But, we were pleasantly surprised. These were awesome!

8 corn tortillas (the corn flavor goes really well with the pumpkin, I promise)
a few tablespoons of cilantro (I subbed this for the 6 scallions, diced-sometimes I add both)
leftover chicken, shredded (maybe a pound)
optional: roasted green chiles, chopped small
6 oz. of white sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
Sauce
1 can of pumpkin puree (15 oz)
3-4 cloves of garlic, peeled
1 jalapeno (remove seeds and membranes if you don’t need extra heat)
1 teaspoon chile powder
1/2 teaspoon cumin (I added this too)
2 teaspoons of salt
1/4 teaspoon of pepper
1 1/2 cups of chicken stock

DIRECTIONS:
Preheat your oven to 425 degrees. In a blender, puree pumpkin, jalapeno, chicken stock, garlic, chile powder, cumin, salt, and pepper. Place 1 cup of this sauce in the bottom of an 8 inch glass casserole dish. In a bowl, combine shredded chicken with green chiles, cilantro, and/or scallions and season with salt and pepper. Place some of the chicken mixture on each tortilla and then lay the tortilla seam side down in the casserole dish. Pour the remaining sauce over the enchiladas. Top with cheese. However, if you are casein-free, this recipe is fine without cheese. Martha recommends placing your casserole dish on a baking sheet in the oven to prevent any spills. Bake for 20-25 minutes until cheese is melted and casserole is bubbly.

I used fresh pumpkin in stead of canned. It was a small pumpkin, so I also added a small butternut squash. *You will need to cook your pumpkin first. I always do mine in the crock pot.
And I didn't need as much chicken broth.
Also, I didn't have any corn tortilla's so I just used flour. They turned out really great, but I can see how the corn would compliment the pumpkin. Next time I make them I will definitely use corn tortilla's.

**After making them with corn tortilla's, I actually prefer the flour. I just don't like the texture of corn.**

Creamy Chicken Enchiladas

1 can Cream of Chicken soup
8 oz. sour cream
1 cup pace picante sauce or salsa
2 tsp. chili powder
2 cups chopped cooked chicken
1 cup shredded cheese
10 fajita size tortillas
1 medium tomato, chopped
1 green onion, sliced
1 can sliced olives

Mix soup, sour cream, salsa, and chili powder. Mix one cup of the mixture with chicken and cheese. Spread about 1/4 cup chicken mixture down center of each tortilla. Roll up and place seam side down in 3 qt. shallow baking dish. Pour remaining salsa mixture over enchiladas and bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes.

Pork Roast Burritos

This was also a recipe I got when I had my baby. My good friend brought it to me for lunch and it was so delicious. This makes a ton of food so whatever you don't use can easily be kept in the freezer.

1 small porkroast (approx 5 lbs)
2 23 oz. cans tomato sauce
1/3 c. worchestershire sauce
2/3 c. sugar
1/3 c. ketchup
1 Tbsp. dried onion
salt to taste
1 squeeze of bbq sauce
mozarella cheese, shredded
flour tortillas (the uncooked ones from Costco or Sams are the best. You could also try the recipe Mel posted here.)
cooked rice (1 cup for about 4 burritos)
black or pinto beans
green chile enchilada sauce

Cook the porkroast on low for about 6 hours, or until cooked through. You can lightly salt and pepper it if you want, but it still tastes good without seasoning. Add about 1/2 cup water in the bottom so so it doesn't stick to the pot. It will produce a lot of juices on it's own. When it is fully cooked, discard the juice and shred the pork.

Just before the pork is done (or while you let it cool enough to shred it) combine in a large pot the tomato sauce, worchestershire sauce, sugar, ketchup, dried onion, salt, and bbq sauce. Warm over low-med heat and stir until the sugar is dissolved and it's all well blended. Add the shredded pork to it and let it all warm through.

While the pork sauce mixture is warming, cook the tortillas and rice. Layer in the tortillas the rice, beans, a little bit of mozarella cheese, a couple teaspoons of green chile enchilada sauce (reserve the majority for later) and the pork mixture. Wrap the tortilla and place in a baking dish. When you've prepared all the burritos you need, cover with the remaining green chile enchilada sauce and mozarella cheese. Bake for about 20 minutes at 350 degrees, just enough to warm it through and melt the cheese.

Bucky's Salsa

Another great recipe from Marcey... except her husband Bucky makes it! It was the inspiration to my salsa recipe... I just like to use fresh ingredients whenever I can.

2 large cans of whole peeled tomatoes
2 cans of diced green chilies
1 can of diced jalapenos
1 bunch of green onions
1 bunch fresh cilantro
cumin
garlic salt

Open the cans of tomatoes and drain juice into a large bowl. Then dump the tomatoes into the salsa maker. Chop them then dump into large bowl.

Add diced chilies, and jalapenos (we usually use 1/2 a can- depending on how spicy you want it).

Cut up green onions (large pieces) then put in salsa maker with cilantro and chop. Then add to bowl. Mix it good then add garlic salt (we have never measured it out so start with 1 teaspoon then add more to taste). Add cumin (again we don't measure so just start with 1/2 teaspoon and add more to taste.)

Mix it up good. It is best if it sits overnight in the fridge. This will make 2 quart jars.

Tortillas

2 cups flour
1 tsp salt
1/4 cup shortening
1/2 cup warm water

Sift together flour and salt. With a fork, cut in shortening. add water and mix with fork to make a stiff dough. Form a ball and knead on lightly floured surface. Divide dough into 8-10 pieces and shape into balls. Roll out to paper thin. Bake on very hot un-greased griddle until freckled, about 20 seconds on each side.

Mile-High Enchilada Pie

8 (6”) corn tortillas
12 oz salsa
1 can (15.5 oz) kidney beans, drained & rinsed
1 cup shredded cooked chicken
1 cup shredded Monterrey Jack cheese with jalapeno peppers

Prepare foil handles for slow cooker (see below); place in slow cooker. Place 1 tortilla on bottom of slow cooker. Top with small amount of salsa, beans, chicken, & cheese. Continue layering using remaining ingredients, ending with cheese. Cover; cook on LOW for 6-8 hours or on HIGH for 3-4 hours. Pull out by foil handles.

Foil Handles: Tear of three 18x2” strips of heavy foil, or use regular foil folded to double thickness. Crisscross foil strips in spoke design and place in slow cooker to make lifting of tortilla stack easier.

*This can also be prepared as a casserole in a 9x13" pan. Bake at 350 for 30-40 minutes*

Chicken Enchiladas

2 cups chopped cooked chicken
1 cup chopped green bell pepper
8 oz cream cheese, cubed
8 oz salsa, divided
8 (6”) flour tortillas
12 oz Velveeta cheese, cubed
¼ cup milk

Stir chicken, bell pepper, cream cheese, & ½ of the salsa in saucepan on low heat until cream cheese is melted.

Spoon 1/3 cup chicken mixture down center of each tortilla; roll up.

Place, seam-side down, in lightly greased 12x8” baking dish.

Stir Velveeta cheese and milk in saucepan over low heat until smooth. Pour sauce over tortillas; cover with foil.

Bake at 350° for 20 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Pour remaining salsa over tortillas.

Fresh Salsa

9 medium tomatoes (vine-ripened are best)
3 tomatillos
1 small white onion
3-6 jalapenos
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1/2 - 1 bunch cilantro, chopped
1 lime
Salt to taste

Chop tomatoes, tomatllos, onion, and jalapenos to desired consistency. Add garlic, cilantro, the juice and some zest of the lime, and salt to taste.

You can easily do this in an food processor. I like to use a knife and chop the ingredients to the desired consistency/thickness that I'm in the mood for. You may want to chop the tomatoes separately, draining off and reserving the juices. You can add it back in at the end if your salsa turns out too thick.

Chicken Chiles Rellenos

6 Boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup bread crumbs
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp ground red pepper flakes
1 egg
1 Tbsp milk
1 4 oz. can green chile peppers, rinsed, seeded, & cut in half lengthwise
2 oz Monterrey Jack OR Cheddar cheese cut into six 2 x 1/2 inch sticks
2 Tbsp butter or margarine, melted

Place a chicken breast half between 2 pieces of plastic wrap. Using the flat side of a meat mallet, pound meat lightly into a rectangle, about 1/8-inch thick. Remove plastic wrap. Repeat with remaining chicken breasts.

In a shallow dish, combine the flour, bread crumbs, salt, garlic powder, & red pepper flakes. Place egg in another shallow dish; add milk and beat lightly to combine.

For each roll, place a chile pepper half on a chicken piece hear an edge. Place a stick of cheese on the chile pepper near an edge. Fold in sides; roll up, starting from edge with cheese and chile pepper. Secure with wooden toothpicks.

Dip chicken rolls in egg mixture; coat with flour/bread crumb mixture. Place rolls, seam side down, in a shallow baking pan. Drizzle with butter.

Bake, uncovered, in at 375 for 25-30 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink. Remove toothpicks. Serve over rice and with salsa, sour cream, etc.