Black Bean Enchiladas with Warm Salsa Verde

Long time no post...holy hectic life, Batman! I know, I know, I totally fell off the radar there for awhile. What has it been, like three weeks since I posted? Sheesh-time flies. Rest assured, I am alive and kicking. As will be your taste buds after taking a bite of these delicious enchiladas (like my segue there?!). If you are not familiar with tomatillos, they look like small green tomatoes in a papery husk. They are a bit on the sour side with a hint of citrus flavor which adds a nice bright note to this dish. This dish incorporates 4 of the 7 "Latin Powerfoods": garlic, cilantro, avocado and tomatillos. Each of these four powerfoods have amazing health benefits. Garlic is a natural immune-booster and anti-microbial; cilantro is a detoxifying herbal plant; avocado has healthy monounsaturated oil; tomatillos have more nutrients than regular tomatoes and high in antioxidants. 

Enchiladas

8 soft corn tortillas

1 recipe Black Bean Filling

1 recipe Warm Salsa Verde

Black Bean Filling

1 tbs extra virgin olive oil

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 small white onion, minced

1 jalapeno, seeded and minced

2 15-ounce cans black beans, drained but not rinsed or 30-ounces homemade black beans

1 tsp ground cumin

Coarse salt to taste

Warm Salsa Verde 

12 tomatillos, husked and halved

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tbs extra virgin olive oil

1 small white onion, minced

1 jalapeno, seeded and minced

14-ounces vegetable stock

1 tsp ground cumin

Coarse salt to taste

1 ripe avocado

Chopped fresh oregano leaves from1 or 2 stems, optional

To make Enchiladas: Wrap tortillas in aluminum foil, and heat in oven at 275F until fillings and sauce are ready.

To make Black Bean Filling: Heat oil in large skillet, and add onion, jalapeno and garlic. Cook for 1 to 2 minutes. Add beans, and mash with back of a fork. Stir in cumin and season with salt. Reduce heat to low until enchiladas are assembled.

To make Warm Salsa Verde: Place tomatillos in a food processor, and pulse to a coarsely ground paste. Heat oil in large skillet, and add onion, jalapeno and garlic. Cook for 1 to 2 minutes and add ground tomatillos. Simmer tomatillos with onion for 5 minutes. Add stock and seasonings.

Halve avocado with skin on by cutting in and down to the pit all around avocado. Separate avocado halves, and scoop out pit with a large spoon. Scoop flesh out of skins and into pot. Mash with back of a fork. Stir avocado into sauce to thicken it. Return sauce to a gentle boil. Reduce heat to low until enchiladas are assembled.

Preheat broiler.

Scoop some sauce onto bottom of a casserole dish or shallow serving platter. To make an enchilada, place 1 to 2 scoops of filling down center of a tortilla, and roll. Place filled tortillas seam side down into sauce on platter or casserole. Line up tortillas, one next to another, and top with remaining sauce. Serve immediately with Warm Salsa Verde.

Shown above topped with homemade cilantro-lime-avocado sour cream and avocado slices.