Post bachelor party fare - tomatillo enchiladas

Today Justin returned from his bachelor party weekend at the beach.  I promised I would greet him and his hangover with something delicious. Sunday afternoon is the best time to cook and worst time to be hung over!

Anyways, I found a great chicken tomatillo enchilada recipe online (where else?) One of my best friends (Keri) has said she hated cooking with these sticky things, but I don't mind. They're so cute!

Be warned, this isn't the most delicious (i.e. calorie bomb) enchilada recipe you've ever tasted, but it's a good compromise. I would make it again, which is my criterion for taking the time to include this on my blog. My favorite easy side is a can of black refried beans. Add juice from half a lime and some sour cream.

Here are those cute little tomatillos. The selection at Harris Teeter was pretty poor, but I was able to find a few nice specimens.

And the payoff below, photo courtesey of Justin. Yes, he can do more than just eat and look cute!

And the recipe, courtesy of foodnetwork.com

Ingredients

Roasted Tomatillo Chile Salsa:

• 1 pound tomatillos, husked
• 1 white onion, peeled, sliced, quartered or whole
• 4 garlic
• 2 jalapenos
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup chopped cilantro leaves
• 1/2 lime, juiced

Enchiladas:

• Extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/2 medium onion, diced
• 3 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/4 cup flour
• 2 cups chicken stock
• Chopped cilantro leaves
• 1 deli roasted chicken (about 3 pounds), boned, meat shredded
• Salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 10 large flour tortillas
• 1/2 pound shredded Monterey Jack cheese
• 2 cups sour cream
• Chopped tomatoes and cilantro leaves, for garnish

Directions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

For the salsa:

On a baking tray, roast tomatillos, onion, garlic and jalapenos for 12 to 15 minutes. Transfer the roasted vegetables and any juices on the bottom of the tray to a food processor. Add the cumin, salt, cilantro, and lime juice and pulse mixture until well combined but still chunky.

Enchiladas:

Meanwhile heat a 2 count of olive oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until soft and caramelized - this should take 5 to 7 minutes. Add the garlic and cumin then cook for a further minute. Sprinkle on the flour and stir to ensure the flour doesn't burn then gradually add the chicken stock to make a veloute. Continue stirring over a low simmer until the flour cooks and the liquid thickens. Turn off the heat, add half of the roasted tomatillo chile salsa, some additional fresh chopped cilantro and fold in the shredded chicken meat. Season, to taste, with salt and pepper.

Change the temperature of the oven to 350 degrees F and begin assembling the dish. Take a large baking dish and smear the bottom with some of the reserved tomatillo salsa. Now take the flour tortillas and briefly flash them over the stove-top flame (or put them briefly under the broiler if using an electric stove). Using a shallow bowl, coat each tortilla lightly with the reserved salsa mix. Put a scoop of the shredded chicken-enchilada mix on top of the tortilla followed by a sprinkle of the shredded cheese. Fold the tortilla over the filling and roll like a cigar to enclose it. Using a spatula place the tortillas in the baking dish and continue to do the same with all the tortillas. Finally pour over some more of the salsa and top with the remaining shredded cheese. Bake uncovered for about 30 minutes until bubbly and cracked on top. Garnish with cilantro and tomato.