Sweet Potato and Black Bean Enchiladas

In my never-ending quest to find meatless meals that my family won't complain about missing meat from, I have started meandering around some new and different blogs.  I stumbled upon A Couple Cooks, a husband and wife food blogging team with lots of Asian recipes because of their frequent philanthropic trips to Cambodia.  They have quite a few vegetarian recipes too.  The one I came across was actually Mexican, but meatless, so I was excited: sweet potato and black bean enchiladas.  Sonja and Alex wrote that this is one of their favorite recipes ever, which is pretty important for someone who blogs about food.  Plus, sweet potato and Mexican food is an insanely amazing combination.  There is a place in Keene, NH, called Armadillo's, that has a sweet potato burrito that has been one of my all-time favorite foods since high school.  So I knew this was a recipe I had to try.

The filling of the enchiladas is sweet potato, black beans, diced green chiles (I used half the amount because I didn't buy enough!), red onion, and cheese (it called for colby jack but I used monterey), spiced with cumin, chili and garlic powders, and salt and pepper.  They are topped with whatever you would like - salsa, salsa verde, enchilada sauce - I went with salsa because I had it- and served with cilantro and sour cream. 

These enchiladas are to die for.  I might literally die if I don't get to eat them soon.  The filling is a delicious mixture of slightly-sweet-and-savory-and-salty with all sorts of flavors going on; the sweet potato and the chiles and the red onion... topped with tangy sour cream and chunky salsa... oh my lord.  Mom even told me she was "in love with this meal," which is no small compliment coming from her!  I was more than happy to eat it for dinner and then again for lunch the next day, and by the day afte that when I went to the fridge for a third one, they were gone!  So my whole family clearly enjoyed it.  Alex was the only one to whine about wishing there was chicken in it, which there never will be, because there was no need. The black beans gave lots of protein and flavor, and they are filling; I was only able to eat one, and so was Mom. 

My final comment?  Make this meal.  These enchiladas are delicious, healthy, and need to be on your kitchen table ASAP.

Recipe:

sweet potato and black bean enchiladas

from A Couple Cooks

 

Ingredients:

2 medium to large sweet potatoes (3 cups diced)

15 oz. can black beans

8 ounces canned diced green chilies (about 1 cup; I used half of this)

1 medium red onion

½ tablespoon cumin

1 tablespoon chili powder

½ teaspoon garlic powder

½ teaspoon kosher salt

Fresh ground pepper

~2 cups salsa verde (or regular)

8 oz. Colby jack cheese, shredded

8 8-inch whole wheat flour tortillas (or 10 6-inch)

Sour cream

Fresh cilantro, to garnish

Instructions:

 

1) Preheat the oven to 350°F.

 

2)  Peel and dice the sweet potato. Place in a pot and cover with water; add a pinch of salt. Bring to a boil and cook until tender, around 12 to 15 minutes.

 

3) Finely chop the red onion. Drain and rinse the black beans.

 

4) In a large bowl, combine the cooked sweet potato, black beans, red onion, green chilies, ½ tablespoon cumin, 1 tablespoon chili powder, ½ teaspoon garlic powder, ¼ to ½ teaspoon kosher salt, and fresh ground pepper. Mix to combine.

 

5) Warm the tortillas for a minute in the microwave, or in a pan for a few seconds per side. In a large baking dish, spread ¾ to 1 cup of the salsa verde. Fill each tortilla with a heaping ½ cup scoop of the filling, add a handful of cheese, and roll it up. Place the enchilada seam-side down in the baking dish. Repeat for the remaining tortillas. When all enchiladas are in the dish, top with the remaining salsa verde (about ½ cup or so) and the remaining cheese.

 

6) Place in the oven and bake for 20 minutes, until the cheese is melted.

 

7) Serve, garnished with sour cream (mixed with a tiny bit of water to loosen it) and chopped cilantro.