Black Bean Enchiladas (Cheesy, Gooey, Meat-Free Goodness)

I can honestly say I have a giant, ever-expanding scrapbook of recipes from various cooking magazines. One of my favorite food-related magazines used to be "Every Day Food", a Martha Stewart magazine. Unfortunately, it's been out of print for quite a while now (only tiny pocket issues are available inside Living magazine now). This recipe is based off of their Bean and Cheese Enchiladas, except I tweaked a few things to suit my own personal tastes and methods.

So, if you're looking to cut calories, just use about 2 cups ricotta or cottage cheese instead of the cream cheese/pepper jack mixture. Or, if you simply don't care for my version and method, you could always go with the original version of the recipe in the link given above.

Black Bean Enchiladas

Prep Time:15 minutes Cook Time: 15 minutes Total Time: 30 minutes Makes:6-8 Enchiladas

Ingredients:
For the Enchiladas:

6-8	whole wheat soft tortillas
1 can	black beans, drained
8oz	cream cheese, softened to room temperature
½ lb	pepper jack cheese, shredded
cilantro, for garnish (optional)

For the Sauce:

½	medium onion, chopped or diced (plus some reserved for garnish, if desired)
1 Tbsp	vegetable or olive oil
1 8oz can	tomato paste
2 cups	beef broth (or vegetable or chicken broth)
1 Tbsp	chilli powder
1 Tbsp	garlic powder (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 350F. In a small saucepan, heat oil until hot, about a minute. Swirl pan to coat. Cook onions until translucent, then stir in tomato paste and broth until well combined. Spray a baking dish with oil, then spoon a small amount of enchilada sauce on the bottom of a baking dish; just enough to create an even, thin coat. Set remaining sauce aside.

2. In a large bowl, using either a spoon or your hands, combine cream cheese and pepper jack cheese. Gently fold in the black beans.

3. Working with one tortilla at a time, spoon cheese mixture into middle of tortilla, and gently but firmly roll each tortilla, placing them seam-down into prepared baking dish. Pour enchilada sauce evenly over the tortillas. Bake for about 10 minutes, or until warm and gooey in the center. Serve immediately. If desired, serve garnished with onions and cilantro.

Tip:
If you don't have any broth on hand, or don't feel like buying broth just for a sauce recipe, just use water instead. It won't be as rich in flavor, but the seasonings and tomato flavor will do well enough.