Happy Cinco de Mayo weekend! I thought this would be the perfect time to make my return after several months of hiatus because #LifeHappens. I have a new job assignment which is awesome and also a LOT of work, but I’m getting into the groove of things and reallocating my time so I can get back in the kitchen and back on the blog!

In honor of Cinco de Mayo, here is a unique version of my favorite Mexican dish – enchiladas! These are super easy, and they will last you several days so #MealPrep!!!

It’s all about the sauce. After tweaking it in several ways, I think J and I got this down to something that is pretty versatile. We actually used it to make chilaquiles last weekend!

First, roast all of the veggies. All of them!

Pictured are a bunch of tomatillos and a few jalapeños (seeds removed). This was the first version. But cutting the tomatillos down and adding poblanos, a cubanelle, and some Serranos for heat ended up being the way to go. And roast your garlic too!

Then you’re going to give the tomatillos and peppers a whirl in the blender with some chicken broth.

You’ll get a lovely shade of green with this sauce.

Then it’s time to add the extras – sour cream, the garlic (ignore the raw in the photo, roast it!!!), and parsley (if you do not have a deathly aversion to cilantro, you should probably use that instead…).

Once your sauce is done, you’ll shred some cooked chicken. By the way, shredding chicken is the absolute worst task ever.

Saute your mix-ins (the spinach and the mushrooms).

Then the chicken, the sauce, and some cheese get combined.

Add the spinach and mushrooms, then stuff the enchiladas! The key here is to dunk your tortillas in the sauce before filling them – this ensures that they will bake up nice and soft!

After you’ve stuffed and folded up your tortilla packets, cover this whole thing with more sauce and more cheese.

Because everything is cooked, you are essentially baking the dish until the cheese melts and the top starts bubbling. I hit with a little broiler action at the end as well to add some color! Then voila!

Spinach and Mushroom Enchiladas Verdes

Ingredients:

8 8-inch flour tortillas

12 oz shredded Monterrey Jack cheese

1 lb cooked chicken, shredded

15 oz mushrooms

10 oz fresh baby spinach

8 medium-sized tomatillos, husks removed

2 jalapeno peppers, seeds removed

2 serrano peppers, seeds removed

1 poblano pepper, seeds removed

1 Cubanelle pepper, seeds removed

1/4 cup chopped parsley or cilantro

1 head of garlic (roast the whole head, but you will only need 3 cloves for the recipe)

2 tbs olive oil

3/4 cup chicken broth

1/4 cup sour cream

Kosher salt

Fresh cracked black pepper

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
2. Place the garlic, the peppers, and the tomatillos on a foil-lined pan, drizzle with 1 tbs of olive oil, and lightly salt. Roast for 30 minutes, turning everything over once after 15 minutes.
3. Pulse the peppers, tomatillos, and chicken broth in a blender until smooth. Add the sour cream, roasted garlic, and parsley or cilantro into the blender, and pulse until smooth.
4. Add 1 tbs of olive oil to a pan over medium heat. Saute the mushrooms and spinach, season with salt to taste.
5. Mix the shredded chicken, half of the cheese, the mushroom and spinach mixture, and 1/3 of the sauce in a bowl until combined.
6. Spray the inside of a 9×13 pan with cooking spray, then lightly sauce the bottom with your enchilada sauce.
7. To build each enchilada, dunk a whole tortilla in the sauce, then place some filling in the center, roll up the tortilla, and place it in the pan. Repeat 8 times with the rest of the tortillas and filling until the pan is full. Top the rolled tortillas with the rest of the sauce, then top that with the rest of the cheese.
8. Bake the enchiladas for about 15 minutes, until the cheese is melted and the edges are bubbling. Broil for a few minutes (watching closely!) to lightly brown if desired.
9. Garnish with parsley or cilantro, and serve!