What's for Dinner? - Chicken Enchilidas

I recently began looking through our recipes for something different to make.  So many times I find myself making the same thing over and over.  Sometimes it is because it is a dish that we are really enjoying, and we just can't get enough of it.  Other times I just "repeat" dishes for lack of time or creativity at the moment to come up with something new.  But probably the most frustrating times are those "I am hungry for something but don't know what it is" moments. Those are the times that I like to get out my recipe notebook and peruse through my recipes.


On this particular occasion, I found a recipe that I had not made in probably close to a year.  I decided to make Chicken Enchiladas.  Yes, once again I find myself gravitating to the Mexican dishes.  My entire family loves to eat Mexican, and it is easy and full of flavor making it a great anytime meal for us.  The following recipe is the way I usually make enchiladas.  We like this recipe especially well because we are partial to the white sauce on top instead of the red.

Chicken Enchiladas

Ingredients: 

• 1/2 pound grated cheese
• 12 tortillas
• 3 cups shredded chicken (about 2 large chicken breasts boiled and de-boned)
• 2 cups salsa
• 2 cans cream of mushroom soup
• 1 cup milk
• 1/2 cup sour cream

Directions:

Mix the shredded chicken with 1 ½ cup salsa or enough to get the chicken fairly moistened.  In each tortilla shell, place about 4 Tbsp. of chicken and top it with shredded cheese.  Roll the tortilla tightly and place each prepared tortilla in a 9x13 pan and repeat until all the shells are used.  Mix cream of mushroom soup, ½ cup salsa, milk, and sour cream.  Pour mixture over the prepared tortillas.  Cover with foil and bake at 350° for 1 hour.  During the last 10 minutes of the baking process, remove the foil and add cheese liberally to the top of the enchiladas.  Return the pan to the oven and bake for remaining 10 minutes or until bubbly and lightly browned.  Remove from oven and allow to sit for about 5 minutes to set.  Serve with lettuce, chopped tomatoes, guacamole, pico de gallo, Spanish rice, and refried beans.


Tips:

1. This last time I made the recipe, I added mild banana peppers to the top.  We had just picked our first peppers from our garden and wanted to give them a try.  I only put them on half of the dish since my son will not eat peppers.  They turned out very tasty and added a whole new flavor to the recipe.  
2. I usually vary this recipe according to whatever I have on hand.  For instance, I do not always use 2 cans of cream of mushroom.  Sometimes, I will use one can of cream of mushroom and use extra sour cream to make up the difference.  Or, you can add extra salsa to the top and have a spicier sauce.  This recipe is fairly forgiving so you can play around with the ingredients.  
3. We have tried a variety of cheeses with this meal.  While they all work great, I prefer the Monterrey Jack or Mexican blend cheeses.  They seem to add more flavor to the overall dish.  
4. For those who do not like cream of mushroom, you can try a cream of chicken as a substitute.
5. For a stronger Mexican flavor, add chili powder, cumin, garlic, and onion to the chicken while boiling.
6. I have also used chicken broth instead of milk, and it works well also.  

One final note, I made this dish several years back for some friends that were visiting.  The wife had told me (while we were finishing up preparing dinner) that her husband could not stand sour cream.  We decided to leave the "sour cream" fact out of the equation when discussing dinner.  We continued with dinner, and he ate the enchiladas and liked them.  He never even noticed the sour cream.  I said this to say...give it a try.  There are many flavors added to dishes that you don't actually notice when used in combination with other flavors.  This recipe is very versatile and forgiving.  Go ahead and add your hot peppers if you want more heat in your dish.  Tweek the recipe to fit your needs!