We’re going a little out of order here, because I was missing a few ingredients for the last gratin and the recipes after that. But you don’t mind, right? Let’s liven things up with some Tex-Mex Cheese Enchiladas! Spoiler alert: these were GREAT!
The surprise to me was that there’s absolutely no tomato in this recipe. I love tomatoes but they’re in almost everything I make. Usually red sauces call for tomatoes. This red sauce is made completely from vegetable broth, dried chiles, and spices. It’s ridiculously easy to prepare and so flavorful and delicious.
You need to put together a spice blend (always kind of fun, and it involves a spice grinder for the dried chiles),
whisk it together with some flour and vegetable broth, and cook it for 5 minutes or so. You season it, and pretty much, that’s your sauce.
You brush the tortillas with a little bit of oil, heat them in the microwave, roll them with cheese inside, and bake for a mere 15 minutes. The recipe calls for sprinkling a little diced onion on top and serving.
I can’t praise this recipe enough – it was easy, interestingly flavored, and satisfying. My one suggestion is that adding pico de gallo and maybe some chopped cilantro to the top would have made it more colorful and better.
The bottom line:
Difficulty: Easy-peasy. Minimal chopping, some spice blending and rolling tortillas. You do need a spice grinder. 1 chef knife out of 5. 🔪
Kid-friendliness: Pretty damned kid-friendly. We had a few pre-emptive complaints about “spiciness”, but once the kids actually tried the enchiladas, they happily ate them up. 4 out of 5 yummy faces. 😋😋😋😋
Time: Super quick. Prep time was maybe 10 minutes, and the enchiladas baked for 15. Of all the dinners I’ve made, I can’t think of a decent one that took less time to prepare. 1 out of 5 snails. 🐌
Mess: Again, not a big prep involved, so not a big mess. You do have to have a spice grinder (or a mortar and pestle, I guess?) and a pan and baking dish; minimal prep bowls. 1 out of 5 dirty dishes. 🥣
Overall: 👍🏽
Try this dish for your family! Even if it turns out they’re not that into the flavor of ancho chile peppers, it’s easy to prepare, hearty enough for a main dish, and very tasty. Just add some pico de gallo to the dish to make it feel a little more well-rounded. The recipe is linked below (substitute vegetable broth for chicken broth to make sure it’s vegetarian!):
700 Vegetarian Recipes 