Enchilada Sauce

I always thought I didn't like red enchilada sauce, turns out I don't like canned enchilada sauce. I found a recipe on about.com.


Quick and Easy Mexican Enchilada Sauce
About.com

Ingredients:

2 tbsp vegetable oil

2 tbsp flour

2 tbsp chili powder

1/2 tsp cumin

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper, or to taste

2 cups water

1 8 ounce can tomato paste

1 tsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp onion powder

1/2 tsp salt

Preparation:

Heat the oil, flour and chili powder together in a large pot. Allow to cook for a minute or two.

Add the remaining ingredients and bring to a slow simmer. Stir well to combine and dissolve tomato paste in water. Allow to cook for at least 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add more spices as desired. 

My notes:

I didn't change this at all, it was great as is! Also made the house smell warm and spicey.

Enchilada Pasta Casserole

 I stumbled on this recipe by accident on Pinterest (where else?). I wasn't looking for recipes and I hadn't been on Pinterest in quite some time.


Enchilada Pasta Casserole
By: Table for Two
Serves 6

1 pound ground beef
1/2 tsp. chili powder
1/4 tsp. cumin
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
5 ounces cream cheese
1/4 cup light sour cream
1 can (10 oz.) enchilada sauce (I used the red sauce)
1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese, divided
1 cup shredded monterey jack cheese, divided
1 cup frozen corn kernels, thawed
1 can (4 oz.) diced green chiles
12 ounces egg noodles
Salt & pepper, to taste

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a large pot, bring water to boil and cook egg noodles according to package instructions.
3. In the meantime, in a very large skillet, brown your ground beef then drain the fat. Then add the chili powder, cumin, and cayenne pepper. Stir to combine.
4. Add in the cream cheese until melted and combined.
5. In a large bowl, combine sour cream, enchilada sauce, half the cheddar cheese, half the monterey jack cheese, corn kernels, and diced green chiles. Stir to combine.
6. Pour mixture over the beef and let simmer for 2-3 minutes.
7. In the meantime, drain your pasta. After you’ve drained it, add the pasta to the beef mixture. Make sure everything is coated in the sauce.
8. In a large casserole dish, pour in the pasta mixture and top with the remaining cheese.
9. Bake for 15 minutes or until cheese has completely melted.
10. Serve hot. Keep in airtight container for up to 1 week.

My Notes:

 I didn't have diced green chiles, monterey jack cheese, or enchilada sauce. I made some enchilada sauce from scratch, substituted mozzarella for the monterey, and left out the green chiles. Instead of just corn I tossed about 2C of mixed frozen vegetables in the mix.

I doubled the recipe and used 1/2 ground turkey and 1/2 ground beef. Everyone liked this dish, pretty sure it's going to go on the regular rotation. I also have decided from now on I will be making my own enchilada sauce, it's just waaaay better.