Smoky Chicken Enchiladas

The picture doesn't do it justice.

Total time:  Approximately 1.5 hours.

Sauce
* 1 tbsp olive oil
* 12-14 Roma tomatoes, quartered
* 1 large onion, sliced
* 9 cloves garlic, peeled
* 2 tsp chili powder
* 3 tsp ground cumin
* 1 tsp ground chipotle powder (1/2 if you don’t like it too hot)
* 1 tsp salt

Enchiladas
* 1 tsp paprika
* 2 tsp chili powder
* 2 tsp ground cumin
* 1 tsp olive oil
* 4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves, fat trimmed
* 12 medium (about 6-inch) corn or flour tortillas
*  3 cups shredded cheddar cheese
* 1/2 cup diced green chile (Anaheim chile- fresh roasted or canned)
*  garnish: sour cream, cilantro and scallions

For sauce (NOTE: I BBQ-roasted/smoked all these items with Mesquite wood to get an extra smokey flavor, but you can also use your oven).  Preheat oven to 400°F. Lightly coat a baking sheet with oil so veggies stick less. Place tomatoes, onion and garlic, Anaheim chilies on a baking sheet. Roast 20 minutes or until onion and garlic turn golden brown with a little charring. Remove vegetables from oven. Cool. Place in a blender along with chili powder, cumin, chipotle powder, salt, and puree until smooth. Set aside.

For the enchiladas, combine paprika, cumin, and chili powder in a small bowl. Add oil and 2 tsp water and mix to form a paste. Pat all of spice paste on chicken. Grill or broil chicken 5 minutes on each side or until juices run clear when pierced with a fork. Pull chicken apart into shredded strips. Pour 1/3 sauce in bottom of a 9″ x 13″ baking pan. Lay tortillas on a flat surface. Place shredded chicken, 1- 2 tbsp cheese, and 1 – 2 tbsp of the green chiles on each tortilla, roll and place in the pan. Cover with rest of sauce. Sprinkle remaining cheese covering the top of the enchiladas. Reduce oven heat to 350°F. Cook enchiladas 20 minutes or until sauce is bubbly. Garnish with sour cream, cilantro and scallions on each serving!!

I served these with black beans and Spanish rice, guacamole, and chips and salsa at Jan’s aunt & uncle’s last week. They raved about them and said they were “the best they ever had” (and they’re all Mexican food addicts who grew up in CA).  Give ‘em a try!   Love,  Liz

Finally got around to trying these. Wow. Amazing!!!

– We grilled the vegetables the night before and stored them in the refrigerator.

– I put all my raw chicken in a bowl and then just smeared the paste all over them with my hands. Messy, but very effective.

– When I pulled them out of the oven, my initial reaction was “Oh, no! What happened to all the sauce!?”, but when we sat down to eat them, there was more than enough for me.