Enchilada Bake

I created a version of this dish for the first time a few years back when I started doing the Quantum Wellness Cleanse created by Kathy Freston (link here to read all about it http://www.kathyfreston.com/kathy_freston_intro_to_quantum_wellness_cleanse.html ).

It was back in 2010 when I first did the cleanse which really got me thinking about the things we put in our bodies and how they specifically correlate with how we feel or in general, our lifestyles.

Backstory for a moment...I was a vegetarian from the age of 10 until 21 so I have always loved fruits and vegetables of all kinds!  I thought this cleanse would be easier on me since one of the things you get rid of in your diet for 3 weeks is all animal products, thats right...go vegan! Well, after I got married I convinced my carnivore, meat obsessed (sorry hunny!) husband to do the cleanse with me.  He agreed, however it was my job to create and prepare all of his meals since he had no idea how to cook meatless.  His worry was that in doing this cleanse, all tasty and flavorful food was out the window.  My mission was to prove him wrong...and mission accomplished, especially with this dish!

Another quick funny but TRUE story...this dish (vegan style) set me into labor with my son!  No joke, I made this for dinner for my husband, brother and I and might have made it extra spicy, which may or may not be the reason my son Dean was born a few hours after eating it!  All you pregnant mamas out there who are overdue, give it a shot and see how it works! Anyways, back to the recipe...

There are two variations to this dish; the vegan one (which is spicy with the soyrizo) and the rotisserie chicken one.  Everything else in this dish is the same!



This dish is kid friendly (minus the soyrizo which again is spicy!), vegan friendly, gluten free and downright delicious!  You will not miss the added fats that you usually get with a dish like this.  Cheese and sour cream...see you on another dish my friends!

Preheat oven to 375 F Degrees.

Start with slicing your onion, peppers, zucchini and garlic.  Sauté over medium high heat until they start to brown on the edges.  Add the frozen corn and broccoli and sauté for another 3-4 minutes.  Sprinkle the taco seasoning (see below for homemade taco seasoning recipe) onto the vegetables, mix and stir for another 2-3 minutes until all incorporated. Turn the burner off and let the mixture cool enough to the touch.

While the vegetables are cooking, make the rice.  You can use spanish style, mexican style or plain brown rice, totally up to you which you prefer.  For this one I used a spanish rice pilaf.  Cook as directed on the box.

Since this dish is supposed to be quick and easy to assemble, I bought a cooked organic rotisserie chicken from Whole Foods and just shredded about 1 1/2 cups and saved the rest for lunches during the week!  If you are going the vegan route...remove the veggies from the sauté pan and put in a bowl.  Cook the soyrizo over medium heat 5-8 minutes continuing to turn and chop until it browns on all sides.

Ok, time to put everything together.  Start with a little enchilada sauce on the bottom of your casserole dish then layer with corn tortillas, black beans, rice, chicken or soyrizo, vegetable mixture, fresh chopped cilantro and then more enchilada sauce.  Repeat one more time and then top that layer with tortillas, sauce and cilantro.  Cover with foil and cook for approximately 30 minutes or until the sides bubble.  It assembles and cooks like a lasagna.

The good thing about this dish since there is no dairy that can go bad, you can make it days ahead and then pop it in the oven when you are ready to cook it.  If you are like me and like to prep a lot of the weeks stuff on Sundays this is a great one to get out of the way and then you will have a healthy simple dinner on the table in 30 minutes with little to no clean up any day of the week!  YES!!!

I like to plate individual portions and top with avocado, because in my opinion avocado goes with everything!  Serve with a side of corn tortilla chips and fresh salsa.

Freezes well.  Cool overnight, cut individual servings, wrap in foil, label and date.

INGREDIENTS

10-15 corn tortillas
1 28 oz can Enchilada Sauce (I used Las Palmas)
1/2 yellow onion sliced thin
2 garlic cloves chopped
1/2 organic red pepper sliced
1/2 organic orange or yellow pepper sliced
1 organic zucchini quartered and sliced
3/4 cup frozen organic corn
3/4 cup frozen organic broccoli chopped
1-2 cups of shredded chicken (depending on how much you want per layer) or
   1 cup of cooked soyrizo
1 can (15 oz) refried black beans (I used Amy's organic vegetarian refried black beans)
2 cups Cooked Rice (I used Near East Spanish Rice but feel free to use any rice you like)
1/2 cup freshly chopped cilantro
1 Tbsp taco Seasoning

Taco Seasoning Ingredients
2 tbsp chili powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp paprika
1tbsp cumin
2 tsp salt (I use pink himalayan salt)
2 tsp group pepper

Garnish Options
Avocado slices
Fresh Salsa
Taco Sauce

Servings- 8

From my family to yours... We hope you enjoy this dish over conversation, laughs, firsts for your babies and creating memories around the kitchen table! Buon Appetito!



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