Enchilada Bake

I had so many enchiladas when I spent a month in Santa Fe last summer. The hatch chilis are spicy but delicious! During my trip I grabbed this jar of red hatch chili sauce (I recommend the medium, I can't imagine how hot the hot is haha) to make enchiladas back home and it was delicious! Enchiladas are a lot of work so I'm happy to use a high quality pre-made sauce to make this much easier. This recipe was intended for 4 servings so if you're feeding a larger group, I recommend doubling this. I feel like enchiladas taste so much better as leftovers so if you have time, I suggest baking your enchiladas ahead of time and then reheat for 20-25 minutes in the oven before serving. I like to serve this with a light salad. Hope you enjoy it as much as we did!

Enchilada Bake Ingredients

- 2 cups shredded chicken* (recipe below)

- 1 Tablespoon olive oil

- 1/2 medium white onion, diced

- 1/2 large red bell pepper, diced

- 1 can (15 oz) black beans, rinsed and drained

- 1 1/2 cup store bought red hatch chili sauce (or red enchilada sauce)

- 6 almond tortillas (could also use corn tortillas)

- 2 cups shredded Monterrey Jack cheese

- Optional toppings: thinly-sliced green onion, diced red onion, diced avocado or guacamole (I make my guacamole by combining avocado, lime juice, red onion, garlic powder, and salt, to taste)

Enchilada Bake Instructions

1. Heat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Spray 7x10 inch baking dish. I prefer avocado oil spray. If doubling this recipe, use a 9x13 inch baking dish.

2. Heat oil in large pan over medium-high heat. Add onion and red bell pepper and sauté for 7 minutes. Stir in shredded chicken, black beans, and 1 cup red hatch chili sauce. Turn off heat.

3. Heat tortillas on griddle or sauté pan until lightly toasted.

4. Pour 1/4 cup of red hatch chili sauce evenly to the bottom of your backing dish. Top with 2 tortillas so the dish is covered. Top tortillas evenly with 1/3 of shredded chicken mixture. Top shredded chicken mixture evenly with 1/3 of the shredded cheese.

5. Add additional layers of 2 tortillas, 1/3 shredded chicken mixture, and 1/3 shredded cheese.

6. Add final layer of 2 tortillas, remaining shredded chicken mixture, 1/4 cup of red hatch chili sauce, and top with remaining shredded cheese.

7. Cover dish with aluminum foil and bake for 20 minutes.

8. Remove aluminum foil and bake for 10 minutes.

9. Top with preferred garnishes.

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*Shredded Chicken Ingredients

- ~2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breasts or thighs

- Salt and pepper, to taste

- 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin (hot take: I'm not a huge cumin fan so I just did a little sprinkle)

- 1/2 red onion, thinly sliced

- 1/2 cup chicken broth

*Shredded Chicken Instructions

1. Season chicken with salt, pepper, and cumin and then add to crockpot.

2. Add red onion and broth and toss to coat the chicken evenly. Cover and cook for 3-6 hours depending on crockpot heat.

3. When the chicken is cooked through, remove the chicken from the broth/onion mix and use 2 forks to shred the chicken.

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