Chicken and cheese enchiladas

I love Mexican food. Love it, love it, love it. You'd think I'd be able to find decent Mexican food in my area (being in California and all...) but no. Sadly, all the good ones have shut down in the recession. Damn you, economy!

Regardless, I've drowned my sorrows in homemade enchiladas. Actually, I'm not really sad the restaurants are gone. My enchiladas are delicious. They just take a while (warning!), and they're definitely comfort food (code for "not healthy"). If you're imagining the wimpy enchiladas in the restaurants (you know, the ones that you can easily scarf down 3 or 4 of... don't lie, I'm watching you) then you are WRONG! The family calls these mini-burritos. I concur. I can normally take 1.5-2 each meal. :)

Side note: I just realized that my recipes- especially recent ones- usually serve 8-10. As you can tell, I usually make enough for dinner plus seconds (leftovers). Meh. The more the better.

Chicken and Chees

e Enchiladas (serves 8-10)

• • 4-5 skinless, boneless chicken breasts, sliced (or if you're lazy like me, I buy pre-cooked, sliced chicken breasts from Costco that are ready to eat!)
• 1 chopped onion
• 1/2 cup non-fat sour cream
• 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
• 1 TB dried parsley
• 1/2 tsp dried oregano
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 1 (15 oz) can tomato sauce
• 1 TB chili powder
• 1 chopped bell pepper, green (or any color of your choice)
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 10 flour tortillas
• 3/4 c shredded cheddar cheese
• 1 small jar enchilada sauce (notice I didn't add salt earlier. I get enough from the sauce, honestly)

1. Preheat oven to 350 F.

2. Cook chicken in a skillet thoroughly (until meat is no longer pink and juices are clear) with 2

TB oil if using a non-stick pan. Drain the excess fat and liquid from the meat. Or if you're lazy,

like me, and used pre-cooked chicken slices, saute for a bit to warm them up. Return to heat and

add onions, sour cream, cheese, parsley, oregano, black pepper. Stir and heat until cheese melts

and the sauce combines.

3. Stir in tomato sauce, chili powder, green pepper, and garlic. Heat for a few minutes.

4. Prepare your 9x13 baking dish. For easy clean up, I line the dish with aluminum foil. From experience, the tortillas usually stick to the pan, so spray the dish with non-stick spray (or you can use some of the enchilada sauce and spread it out on the bottom before adding enchiladas).

5. Add even amounts of the mixture into the tortillas (typically 3/4 - 1cup??) and roll up tightly. Arrange them carefully in the dish. Pour enchilada sauce over the top and the cheese.

6. Bake uncovered in the oven for 20 minutes. Serve. Yum!

Curried Carrot Squash Soup

Happy 2010, everybody! Sorry for the delay. I realize I've already promised so much... oh the enchiladas, the soups, the cakes! To make up for it, I'm posting it all today so keep your eyes peeled =)

A soup that I've been making quite often lately is my favorite carrot soup... but with a kick. Spiced up with curry powder and combined with squash, this hearty soup is perfect for cold weather. With nothing but vegetables, broth, and milk (if you're feeling luxurious), it's healthy and delicious and INCREDIBLY easy to make. Most of the work is in the prep! I've seen recipes that call for yellow squash over zucchini. Honestly, I don't taste the difference, though yellow squash will probably have a more mellow flavor in the soup. I personally love using a combo of both yellow squash and zucchini, because zucchini leaves nice little specks of green color in your soup when you blend it. It's a beautiful sea of orange and green!

• 
  

Curried Carrot and Squash Soup (Serves 8-10)

• 2 TB EVOO
• 5-6 cloves garlic, roughly minced
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 6-7 whole carrots, peeled and thinly sliced (or 4-5 if big sized carrots)
• 3 yellow squash OR 3 zucchini OR 1 yellow squash + 2 zucchini (my favorite!), thinly sliced
• 1-1.5 tsp. curry powder (if you like your soup 'spicy', try 1.-2 tsp., but i prefer a nice kick and not too spicy)
• 1/4-1/2 tsp garam masala (optional - it rounds out the flavors)
• 3 14.5 oz cans of chicken broth
• salt and pepper to taste

This soup recipe is insanely good for you. Squashes have been found to have anti-cancer effects, while carrots are a great source of vitamin A and antioxidants. Overall, caloric estimation is less than 100 calories per serving (bowl size), even with the milk included!

1. Heat oil in a big pot over medium. Add your curry powder and garam masala to the oil and stir to cook for about 30 seconds. You want to heat up your spices so the flavors come out before you add everything else!

2. Add garlic and onions and cook until soft (but they don't need to be fully caramelized as they will continue cooking). About 3-4 minutes.

3. Add carrots and squash. Cook for another 10 minutes until they are soft. Salt and pepper to taste.

4. When all of your vegetables are soft, add chicken brother. Bring to boil and then reduce to a simmer. Cover your pot and simmer for 35-45 minutes, stirring occasionally.

5. Using an immersion blender, puree soup to a consistency of your choice. I personally like little chunks. You can also use a regular blender, but blend in batches and be careful.

6. In my opinion, the soup is already good... but the real kicker is adding 1/2-3/4 cup of milk. I like skimmed milk, but reduced-fat milk or heavy cream are incredibly delicious as well (duh). Add milk to taste, depending on how creamy you want your soup to be.

7. Heat for another few minutes so the milk is fully incorporated.

8. Enjoy!