One of my favorite recipes to make for my vegetarian friends are these Spinach and Mushroom Enchiladas served with Not Refried “Refried” Beans. It is great for company because you can assemble the enchiladas and refrigerate or freeze until ready to bake. The enchiladas are smothered in a creamy cilantro sauce, and are fantastic for vegetarians and omnivores alike. It’s been awhile since I made this recipe so when I invited my non-meat eating friend, Jean, to dinner, I knew it was the perfect opportunity to resurrect it. Unfortunately, I did not know that Jean’s brother, also invited, hates mushrooms. He concealed what I am sure was his vast disappointment at the dinner menu until after he tried the enchiladas. After a couple bites, he revealed his true feelings about the mushroom. I tried to hide my embarrassment at serving such a poor choice to him when he continued that this was the first time he’d ever enjoyed mushrooms. I wondered if he was just being polite. However, several hours and several glasses of wine, beer, moonshine etc. Joe told me again how much he enjoyed dinner and wanted to try to make the enchiladas himself. He also suggested incorporating shrimp into the dish. If you do, Joe, let us know how it turns out.
WINE: 2008 Ventana Chardonnay, Arroyo Seco (Monterey)http://www.ventanawines.com/Ventana_Estate_Wines
A half cup of white wine goes into this recipe. I cannot in good conscience recommend “cooking wine” (though I will often recommend cooking with something cheaper if a large quantity goes into the recipe and you want something special with dinner). Anyway this pairing is easy, drink what you put into the recipe. In this case, Ventana is having an awesome sale on their Chardonnay ($60 a case), so you can put something cheap and yummy into your dish. This Chardonnay is lightly oaked so has a nice creamy mouthfeel balanced with some wonderful tropical fruit flavors. A terrific pairing for the enchiladas. In addition, my husband opened a bottle of Kukkula’s IPO, which is a Cab/Syrah/Zinfandel blend. I only had a sip, but the berry and cola notes paired fine with the dish. If you want to go red with the enchiladas, I do think a Zinfandel would be a good bet.
RECIPE: Spinach and Mushroom Enchiladas
Servings 4 (2 big enchiladas per person)
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 small onion, minced
• 3 garlic cloves, minced and divided (or more…I love garlic)
• 1 lb baby bella mushrooms, chopped (or whatever mushrooms you like)
• 1/2 cup white wine, divided
• 1 lb fresh spinach
• 11/2 tsp season salt or season salt, divided
• 8 flour tortillas (you can use corn but may need more, I find corn tortillas are often smaller)
• 2 cups shredded monterey jack cheese, divided
• 3/4 cup chicken broth
• 1 clove minced garlic
• 1/2 cup finely chopped cilantro
• 1 cup sour cream
1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a 9’ x 13’ pan.
2. Begin the filling. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat and sauté onions, 2 garlic cloves and mushrooms until onions are translucent and mushrooms are cooked. I cover skillet so mushrooms steam allowing me to use less oil.
3. Remove half of the mushroom, onion, garlic mixture and set aside for the sauce.
4. Add ¼ cup wine and cook for about two more minutes.
5. Add spinach and 1 tsp season salt/salt. Cook and toss spinach in pan until spinach is wilted and liquid has evaporated.
6. At this point, I assemble the enchiladas first as the sauce comes together very quickly. You can warm tortillas in microwave. I however, like to heat them one at time on a flat skillet. This is just a personal preference so I can control how warm each one gets. It is also easy to heat one tortilla while assembling another enchilada.
7. Divide filling into eights. Put one eighth into warm tortilla. Sprinkle with a little cheese, roll and place seam side down in 9” x 13” dish. Repeat eight times. (Adjust as needed if using small corn tortillas).
8. Make the sauce. In a small sauce pan combine chicken broth, wine, ½ tsp salt or seasoned salt, and 1 minced garlic clove.
9. Stir to dissolve before adding sour cream and cilantro. Stir to combine.
10. Add the rest of mushrooms etc. Reduce heat to simmer until sauce just begins to thicken. This will happen pretty quickly. I recommend stirring throughout this process.
11. Pour sauce over enchiladas, top with the rest of shredded cheese and bake 15-20 minutes, or until cheese is bubbly and beginning to turn brown.
Not Refried “Refried” Black BeansServings 4-6
• 2 tsp olive oil
• 1 finely chopped jalapenos (2 if you want it spicier)
• 2 medium finely chopped onions
• 4 minced garlic cloves
• 2 (14 ounce) cans black beans
• 1 can/bottle beer (You can play with different types of beer to see what you like best. My favorites are Dos Equis Amber and Honey Brown. Of course, you want to buy beer that you or, in my case, my husband likes.)
• 1 tbsp lime juice
• Salt, to taste
1. In a medium pan, sauté the onions, jalapenos and garlic over medium heat until soft.
2. Rinse one can of beans, but leave one with juice. Add to pan.
3. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for at least ½ hour up to an hour and a half. If you have time to babysit this, the longer it simmers the better the flavors. You stir in a little beer at a time as it simmers to prevent beans from drying out. How much beer you use will depend on
4. OPTIONAL: You can use a potato masher to mash some or all of the beans if you want a creamier texture.
5. When done stir in 1 tbsp of lime and salt as needed. The beer will add salt, so only salt when beans are finished
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