Vegan Enchiladas

Vegan Enchiladas with Violife cheese.
Vegan Enchiladas with Violife cheese. Violife doesn’t melt well at a low temp. Try Daiya. Pic by M.C.

I made an Enchilada sauce from a Vitamix recipe, found it called for too much water, and didn’t do well as a gluten free recipe. I went back to my mom’s Quick Chili Sauce for Enchiladas recipe that is probably from the 70s and made it gluten free. And I made the enchiladas vegan. I cooked the sauce in my Vitamix since that’s how I made the other recipe. The original recipe calls for one clove of garlic. I always add more. I also have been using water and not using veggie stock. I tried an enchilada pie. In the end, rolling the enchiladas doesn’t take much longer. It’s easiest to cut the pie in fourths, but with 10 tortillas the serving is two and a half enchiladas. I find the rolled enchiladas helps the food last longer. Two enchiladas is enough for one person. And depending on the size of your family, with 10 enchiladas there might be leftovers to make an easy dinner for the next night.

VEGAN ENCHILADA SAUCE
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1/2 cup onion, chopped or a small onion
3 garlic cloves, crushed
2 Tbsp. Bob’s Red Mill Sweet White Rice Flour
1/4 cup New Mexican chili powder
1/4 tsp. cumin, ground
1 tsp. sea salt
1/4 cup tomato sauce
1-cup water or veggie stock

Yield: 8 enchiladas

VEGAN ENCHILADAS
8-10 corn tortillas, non-gmo and gluten free
12-oz. vegan cheese (buy two 8 oz. bags)
1 can olives, sliced
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
2 green onions, chopped

For 10 enchiladas use 1/2 cup tomato sauce and 1 1/4 cup water or veggie stock.

Prep Time: 10-15 minutes for sauce. 5 minutes to fry corn tortillas. 5 minutes to roll cheese in tortillas and pour sauce. Total prep time is 20-25 minutes.

Directions:
Put everything in the Vitamix. I chop the onion first. Blend on high for 8 minutes. The Vitamix will cook the sauce. You can use a pot if you don’t have a Vitamix. Just mince the onion.

Meanwhile, have a dinner plate ready with paper towels and get out a cast iron griddle. I call it a tortilla warmer. Warm the griddle with a tablespoon of olive oil. I use the corn tortilla to spread the oil. Cook the tortilla on each side for 30 seconds. Use metal tongs to flip tortilla. Place the cooked tortilla on the plate with a paper towel. As you go place a paper towel between each tortilla. THE TRICK IS TO USE PAPER TOWELS TO SOAK UP THE EXCESS OIL. WITH ANOTHER PAPER TOWEL PAT DRY EACH TORTILLA THE BEST YOU CAN. NO MORE GREASY ENCHILADAS!

Heat oven at 375°.

Put some sauce in a 9” X 13” or a 10” X 14” glass-baking pan. Spread a thin layer of sauce on the bottom. I use Voilife Colby Jack shredded cheese. It doesn’t melt well on low heat. I would recommend Daiya. Roll the cheese on the plate with the corn tortillas. I throw away the paper towels as I go along. Place the rolled corn tortilla in the pan and stick a toothpick through it. Once the enchiladas are lined up pour sauce on top. I use a large spoon to evenly distribute the sauce.

Place sliced black olives on top or on the toothpick. Cover with foil.

Everything is cooked. You only need to put the pan of enchiladas in the oven to melt the cheese. Cook at 375° for 8-12 minutes.

Meanwhile, chop cilantro and green onion to top the enchiladas.

Vegan Enchilada Sauce
Frying corn tortillas
Frying corn tortillas. Pic by M.C.

<Vegan Enchilada Sauce. Pic by M.C.

Vegan Enchilada Pie
Vegan Enchilada Pie. Pic by M.C.

I usually eat a green salad with enchiladas, but there are other options below. You can add beans and Spanish rice on the side with salsa verde drizzled on top. And nopales make a nice salad substitute. Oh yeah and a margarita. ¡Salud!

And Happy Vegan!

Want more Mexican food?
Salsa Verde
Vegan Mexican Food
Vegan Margarita
Vegan Mexican Pinto Beans
Vegan Spanish Rice
Nopales

From blog of melissacrismon.com

Copyright 2022 Melissa Crismon

Salsa Verde

Salsa Verde with boiled pinto beans, Spanish rice, and a corn tortilla. Pic by M.C.

I love salsa verde on boiled pinto beans and Spanish rice. Renaissance Man likes me to blend a cup of salsa with half an avocado the way they do at a restaurant called SuperMex in Long Beach, CA. They put the guacamole in their burritos. He found the restaurant during his Navy days and became a super fan.

This recipe is not a family recipe. I remember years ago writing it down from a lady on a San Diego news food segment.

Salsa Verde
12 tomatillos, medium
4 serranos with seeds
1 white onion, sliced 1/4 inch thick
3 garlic cloves
1/2 cup water
1/3 cup cilantro, chopped with stems and leaves
1 tsp. sea salt

Yield: 2-3 cups, 12 Servings

Directions:
Raise the rack close to the boiler. Heat the broiler. Line a cookie sheet with foil. Take skin off tomatillos and garlic. Wash veggies. Cut off top of serranos. Line up tomatillos, serranos, onion, garlic on the cookie sheet. I don’t use two cookie sheets. Instead, I use one and watch the tomatillos and take them out using tongs before the onion is roasted. (The tomatillos may burst and make a mess of your oven.)

Roast veggies for 15-20 minutes. Sometimes the onion takes longer.

You can use a blender or food processor. I like my Vitamix because I can put hot food in the container. Then add all the other ingredients. I blend the cilantro too. If you want you can chop the cilantro and stir it into the salsa.

Happy Vegan!

Want more Mexican food?
Vegan Mexican Food
Vegan Margarita
Vegan Mexican Pinto Beans
Vegan Spanish Rice
Nopales

From blog of melissacrismon.com

Copyright 2022 Melissa Crismon