I can't believe this day has come...my weekly recipe blog, #52! A year ago, we were getting ready to publish my first cookbook, A Perfect 10 Cookbook, and thought it might be a good idea to do some blogging about food. So, for the past year I've posted a blog every Thursday, detailing my adventures in the kitchen, with new recipes every week (and ones that are not in the cookbook!). It's been great - I hope you all think so as well. So, before I embark on Year #2 of blogging, I give you BLOG #52!.
This week, my daughter Cadey is home from college, and we are all trying to eat as healthy as possible (not so easy in this house). And we LOVE enchiladas - so, I made a lighter version of Cadey's favorite food, The family loved it. I hope you do too... and thanks for supporting me and my A Perfect 10 Cookbook over the past year!
Make the Enchilada Sauce: In your Vitamix/blender, throw in a cup of low-fat cottage cheese, a cup of nonfat plain yogurt, 2 teaspoons of chili powder, a teaspoon of cumin, 2 teaspoons of sugar, 1 teaspoon of corn starch, and a few cloves of minced garlic. Blend until creamy and smooth. Set aside. In a saucepan, melt 2 tablespoons of butter. Once melted, whisk in 1/3 cup water and 1/4 cup flour. Once combined, whisk in 2 cups of chicken (or vegetable) broth, and bring to a boil, stirring often. Remove from the heat, and let cool for a few minutes. Then whisk in the yogurt sauce, and a can of diced green chiles.
Make the Casserole: Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a 9 x 13-inch baking dish, spread a layer of the sauce to cover the bottom. Take 12 corn tortillas, and cut into about one inch strips. Layer half of them in the dish, as if you are making lasagna. Then cover this with about 2 cups of diced chicken, and about 1/2 cup of chopped onion. Sprinkle about 1/4 cup of pepper jack cheese over this. Then repeat the process all over again - the remaining tortilla strips, the rest of the sauce, and another smattering of pepper jack cheese.
Cook It Up: Cover with foil, and bake for about a half an hour. Then remove the foil, and cook for about 20 to 25 minutes until the top is bubbling and browned. Let sit a few minutes before serving.
We served with sliced avocados on top, and a sprinkling of chopped cilantro!