Vegetarian Crumble Enchilada

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Last Friday my friend Carolyn came over.  We had margaritas, chips & salsa and enchiladas.  Both of us love Mexican food!  It is Lent, and I know many of you may not be eating meat on Friday’s, so here’s one for later this week.  I thought it’d be fun to try out the MorningStar Farms Meal Starter Crumbles in an enchilada, and it was definitely worth it.

Want to try some other Mexican dishes from Fifth Floor Kitchen?  Here are some ideas: spring salsa, zucchini-chicken enchiladas, chile reyenos with rice, fish tacos, masa harina tacos with shrimp salad, Mexican meatballs with rice, Mexican tortilla cassarole, squash and bean burritos, tamale bake, zucchini enchiladas, or corn and zucchini burritos.  It’s clear I like Mexican!

Vegetarian Crumble Enchilada
Servings: 8

I’ve made so many Mexican dishes that I feel that I could make most of them in my sleep.  But I always like to play around with new flavors and textures.  The MorningStar Farms Crumbles definitely made this dish a lot lighter than when you make it with ground beef.  Feel free to add more heat or different vegetables.  Maybe change up the cheese? 

Filling:
1 tbsp olive oil
1 bag of MorningStar Farm Crumbles
1 onion, chopped
5 garlic cloves, minced
1 jalapeño, chopped (optional)
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
16oz black beans, rinsed & drained
8 flour tortillas (10-inch)

Sauce:
1 large onion, roughly chopped
5 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
1-2 jalapeños, roughly chopped (optional)
5-6 tomatoes, roughly chopped
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper

1/2 cup cheddar, shredded

To make the filling:
Spray a large baking pan (9×13 inches) with cooking spray.

In a pan, pour in the olive oil.  When it heats up, add the MorningStar crumbles.  Allow the meat to defrost, and heat up a bit.  Once it’s been defrosted, add in: onion, garlic and jalapeño.  Sauté the vegetables for about 5 minutes, until the onions become translucent.  Then stir in: chili powder, cumin, salt and pepper.  Stir the mixture around, until the spices are blended in.

Pour the meat crumble mixture into a large bowl, then add the black beans.  Stir everything well.  Then add in about 1/4 cup of into a tortilla, and then roll it up before placing it into the baking dish.  Continue to do this to the rest of the tortillas (I got about 8, but it could be more or less).

To make the enchilada sauce:
In a pan, add the olive oil.  Once it’s heated, then add the onions, garlic and jalapeños.  Allow them to cook until the onions are translucent, about 5 minutes.  Then add in the tomatoes.  Allow to cook for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally on low heat.  Once the tomatoes have cooked down, stir in: chili powder, cumin, salt and pepper.

Then pour in the vegetable sauce into a food processor or blender.  Pureé the sauce until it is smooth.  Pour it over the enchiladas in the baking dish.

Preheat the oven to 350ºF.  Then sprinkle the cheese over the sauce.  Bake the enchiladas in the oven for 10 minutes.  Allow to rest for 5 minutes before serving.

Enjoy this with some salsa or a margarita!