I am very happy to be back home after a long weekend with family. The weather was fantastic with only one evening of torrential rains. I was able to meet my father-in-law’s extended family and enjoyed meeting them since most of them had not been able to make it to our wedding over 2 years ago. I especially was happy to see Ryan’s grandmother again. She gave me a huge hug around the neck. It sure does feel good to feel loved and to give love. She put me in charge of taking family pictures at the end of our last day in Chi-town so that she could have updated pictures of her grand-kids. An additional picture was taken with grandma with the significant others. It was also the perfect sunny day in Chicago too!
On our way home we realized we left at the right time since we lose an hour going to Michigan. We made a quick stop at Whole Foods since I had my list of items that I needed to replenish. Whole Foods is still cheaper to me than our health food stores in East Lansing,so a girl has to take advantage, you know? I grabbed dessert on the way out that looked quite interesting. I like parfaits so I decided to grab this one:
Now that I have been back home, it meant I could cook again. I was probably more disciplined on this trip than in others and was happy I was able to be strict with myself. This only meant that I could not wait to make something homemade and delicious at home.
Last night I decided to make a Southwestern dish using a green chili sauce that my friend in New Mexico had sent me for my birthday back in March. I had used another bottle to add to tofu scrambles so I was glad I had one more to make other dishes.
I used this to make a Green Chili Hummus and I also added it to my Tomatillo Sauce. It really gave both dishes a nice touch without being overwhelming at all.
I do not know about you, but when I go to Mexican restaurants I get tired of getting the SAME veggie fajitas. All owners seem to call each other to find out what veggie fajitas look like. They consist of very few mushrooms and tons of green peppers and onions. I think that kind of stinks. If I am spending almost the same amount of money for fajitas as chicken fajitas then I should be getting zucchini and other veggies. Ir enchiladas. Vegan or vegetarian enchiladas are usually potatoes or spinach. How BORING is this?
This is why I decided to make this enchilada dish because there needs to be some sort of creativity with chefs and cooks out in the foodie world. I decided to add 1 Tbsp of hummus to a corn tortilla and then fill it with sauteed veggies. I rolled them up like taquitos and then poured some tomatillo sauce over them and sprinkled pine nuts on them. I have to say that this dish was SO GOOD! I was pleased with the creation. You can use any veggie mix you want so be creative.
Green Chili Hummus and Veggie Enchiladas with Tomatillo Sauce
serves 4 (3 to 4 tortillas per person)
Green Chili Hummus
(makes 1 1/2 cups)
1 12-ounce can chickpeas (reserve 1 Tbsp)
1 Tablespoon raw tahini paste
1 Tablespoon lime juice
2 cloves garlic
4 Tablespoon green chilis
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cumin
2 Teaspoons olive oil
Blend in a Vitamix or in a food processor until creamy. You will have leftover hummus to snack on for the rest of the week.
Tomatillo Sauce
1 1/2 lb. fresh tomatillo (green tomatoes with husks)
2 serrano peppers, seeded
6 Tablespoons green chili
2 cloves garlic
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup rice vinegar
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 cup cilantro, chopped
Salt to taste (1 tsp)
2 Tbsp lime juice
1 tsp sugar
Rinse tomatillos under warm water. Core the tomatillos and cut in quarters. Slice and partially seed serrano peppers. In a food processor or Vitamix, liquefy tomatillos, garlic, jalapeno, and green chiles.
Heat olive oil on medium skillet. Add sauce to hot oil and add lime juice, water, salt, sugar, vinegar and cumin. Boil the sauce for 10 to 15 minutes minutes. Add cilantro at the end and set aside.
Veggie filling (Use your own veggie mixture and be creative)
1/2 zucchini, diced
1 cup mushrooms, diced
1/2 red onions, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 yellow bell pepper, diced
2 Tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
Heat olive oil in medium skillet and place veggies and spices and saute’ for 5-7 minutes. Remove from heat.
Assembly
Warm tortillas. An average serving would be 4 enchiladas per person. Place 1 Tablespoon of hummus in the middle of the tortilla and spoon 1 1/2 Tablespoon of the veggie mixture and roll.
Pour 1/4 cup to 1/2cup of sauce over enchiladas and sprinkle with pine nuts. Serve with a side green salad.
