Quick Chicken Enchiladas

Things are getting busy around here. The Indianapolis Mini Marathon is coming up and training (for everyone but me) is really gearing up. Track season is here. Motocross races have started. So has soccer season. So there are practices and meets and races and games almost every day of the week. Quick and easy recipes are a must this time of year. These Chicken Enchiladas that Rachael Ray featured on her show recently could fit the bill. I say "could" because even though dh and ds ate several, there seemed to be something missing to me. Like there needed to be another layer of flavor or something. They weren't bland by any means but the flavor just seemed "off" to me. Sort of flat. Perhaps cooking the tomato mixture a bit longer would help, even if that meant it took longer than 30. minutes. Or using fire-roasted diced tomatoes rather than the diced tomatoes with chilies. I don't care for the flavor those green chilies impart. Maybe next time I'll use the diced tomatoes with jalapeno and cut back on the chipotle. Actually, I'd probably cut out the chipotle powder and add a chopped, canned chipotle with some of the sauce instead. Maybe I'll give this one another try. Or maybe I'll find a new quick and easy enchilada recipe. How about you? Do you have a good recipe for enchiladas? Send them my way please!


Chipotle Chicken Enchiladas
Recipe Courtesy of Rachael Ray

1 rotisserie chicken
2 tablespoons EVOO – Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 small onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, grated
1 to 2 tablespoons chipotle powder (depending on how much spice you like)
1/4 teaspoon (2 pinches) ground cinnamon
2 15-ounce cans chopped tomatoes with chilies
Salt
1/4 cup (about a palmful) cilantro, chopped
Juice of 1 lime
2 1/2 cups smoked cheddar cheese or any type of cheddar cheese you like, shredded
8 corn tortillas

Preheat oven to 375°F.

Remove the skin from the chicken and discard. Tear the chicken meat from the bones, shred it, using two forks or your fingers, and reserve in a mixing bowl.

Preheat a medium-size saucepot with the EVOO over medium heat and sauté the onions till soft. Add in the garlic and spices, and toast a few seconds until fragrant. Add in the tomatoes with chilies and season with salt. Cook for 10 minutes, until the flavors are well-married and the sauce is slightly thickened. Stir in the cilantro and lime juice, and remove from heat. Add a ladleful of sauce to the bowl with the chicken and toss to combine. Reserve the remaining sauce.

Heat tortillas by warming each side in a dry skillet over medium-high heat or by layering moistened paper towels in between them and placing in the microwave for about a minute.

Divide the chicken mixture equally among the warm tortillas and roll each one up. Add some of the reserved sauce to the bottom of a casserole or baking dish then line the dish with the rolled enchiladas, seam side down. Pour the remaining sauce over the chicken enchiladas and top with cheese.

Place in the oven and bake 15 minutes or so, until the cheese is melted, brown and bubbly.