Enchilada!

Has anybody else watched those new Taco Bell commercials about their “Smothered Burritos” and thought to themselves “isn’t that just an enchilada?”

I’ve seen that commercial about 5 times in one night and was sold. Not that I was going to rush out and buy a smothered burrito. But rather I was going to make my own enchiladas. Luckily for me I had half the ingredients I needed in my fridge as leftovers.

1 pound of ground beef

2 cups of cooked rice

1 can of red kidney beans

2 diced tomatoes

1 cup of cilantro, chopped

1 jar of tomato sauce or pasta sauce

1 jalapeno pepper, finely chopped (more if you like the heat)

1 tbsp oil

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp chili powder
Pinch of salt

Pinch of freshly ground black pepper

1 package tortillas

½ cup shredded cheddar cheese

1. Cook the rice. Once cooked, mix in the chopped cilantro and set aside.
2. Cook the ground beef in a skillet. Add the pinch of salt and pepper. Drain and set aside in a large bowl.
3. To make the enchilada sauce, sauté the chopped pepper in the oil in a saucepan until fragrant. Add the tomato/pasta sauce, the cumin, and the chili powder. Heat until warmed through.
4. Spread two ladles of enchilada sauce mixture on the bottom of your baking pan.
5. Microwave the tortillas covered with a wet paper towel for 30 seconds to make them for pliable.
6. In the middle of each tortilla, add a spoonful of the kidney beans, a spoonful of rice, a spoonful of beef and then the chopped tomatoes. You can either roll from the bottom until you get a long package with open sides like a fajita or you can fold the sides in to get a neater package like a burrito.
7. Arrange them in the baking dish as you make them.
8. Ladle on the remaining enchilada sauce.
9. Sprinkle the cheddar cheese on top.
10. Bake for 20 minutes at 350 degrees F.
11. Serve with a dollop of light sour cream and freshly cracked black pepper.