Enchilada's....My Way!

I seem to have a fridge full of vegetables! I was brainstorming trying to come up with a creative way to use some of them up and came up with a take on enchilada's.

I started off by placing chopped gold bell peppers, fennel, spring onions, asparagus and savoy cabbage into a large saute pan with about 4 tablespoons of butter and a tablespoon of olive oil.  This was sauteed until the peppers and the asparagus began to soften and the cabbage starting wilting, I then added the leftover chicken from my soup the other night, shredded carrots and some chopped arugula.  I continued cooking until the arugula was beginning to wilt and added a mixture of 1/2 cup of sour cream and 1/2 can of green chile enchilada sauce. Once the sauce was fully mixed with the vegetables and the chicken warmed through, I removed from the heat and began to assemble the enchiladas.

I placed a few spoonfuls of black beans (rinsed and drained) onto a large flour tortilla, added a few large spoonfuls of the vegetable and chicken mixture, topped with shredded sharp white cheddar and sprinkled some cooked shredded beets on top, rolled the tortilla to close and placed into a rectangular baking dish. I repeated this until I couldn't fit anymore filled tortilla's into my dish, which turned out to be about 4, however if you use a larger baking dish I'm sure that you could easily make twice that.  When the tortilla's were all filled, I poured a can of green chile enchilada sauce over top, sprinkled with aged white cheddar cheese and chopped spring onion (green parts only).  This was then baked in a 425 degree oven for approximately 25 minutes, until the cheese was melted and beginning to brown and the enchilada's were warmed through.  To finish this dish, I sprinkled some chopped fennel fronds on top, just before serving.

I have one word...Wow!  These turned out every bit as good as I imagined that they would! I had even hesitated on putting the shredded beets in, since I know not everyone in the house likes them, but I'm really glad that I decided to keep them.  Not only did they add a nice flavor, but they gave the dish a beautiful pink color too.  Everyone ate two plates full (well, except for Dylan, she had three!) and even my boyfriend who really dislikes beets loved it!  Although, he did ask what the special pink sauce was and I wouldn't answer him even though he already knew what it was (and he still went back for more). 

I've also decided that one photo just wasn't going to do this dish justice, so I had to include another!