Friday, August 28, 2009

Cheese and Chicken Enchiladas

This is an old favorite that my mom has been making for years. Chuck loves them, and anyone my mom has made them for loves them. To me, it is a delicious, easy way to make enchiladas for a weeknight. And trust me, I am by no means under the impression that these are anywhere near "authentic" Mexican enchiladas, but man are they good!

For some reason, the number of enchiladas this makes varies every time for me. So have about 8 tortillas ready to fill but you probably won't them all. And for that reason, your baking dish may change in size as well depending on how many enchiladas you have. You want them to be pretty tightly packed in there, but not overlapping.

Cheese and Chicken Enchiladas
from Jo's kitchen
Makes 6-8 enchiladas
1 medium onion, chopped
2 tablespoons margarine or butter
2 cups shredded cooked chicken (about 2 breasts or 1 pound)
1 jar picante sauce, divided
8 ounces cubed cream cheese
1 teaspoon ground cumin
2 cups shredded cheddar, divided
8 flour tortillas

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Coat an 11 x 7 or 13 x 9 glass dish with cooking spray.

Melt margarine or butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and cook until tender, 5-7 minutes. Stir in chicken and 1/2 cup picante sauce, cream cheese, and cumin. Cook until cheese is melted and everything is thoroughly heated. Stir in 1 cup shredded cheese.

Warm tortillas about 10 seconds in the microwave to make them easier to fold. Spoon 1/3 cup chicken mixture into the middle of each tortilla; fold in sides and roll up. Place seam side down in prepared baking dish. Continue with remaining tortillas and chicken mixture. Top with remaining picante sauce and shredded cheese.

Bake 15 minutes or until cheese is bubbly. (These can be prepared in advance all the way up to the baking stage.)

Not so pretty in the photo, but very delicious!

3 comments:

Bugaboo said...

So I don't like most enchiladas b/c they have that darn red "enchilada sauce" on them. Fabulous idea to simply use picante (something I love) instead. Can't wait to try these out --- thanks!

The Blonde Duck said...

I love chicken enchiladas! These look great!

Julie said...

These look wonderful..I love all things Mexican :)