Vegetable and Cheese Enchiladas with Ancho-Tomato Sauce

Name: Vegetable and Cheese Enchiladas with Ancho-Tomato Sauce
Yield: makes 4 servings
Ingredients: 1 large dried ancho chile; 1 medium white or yellow onion, cut into 1/4-inch slices; 4 garlic cloves, unpeeled; 1 teaspoon red wine vinegar; 8 roma tomatoes; Salt; 1 tablespoon olive oil; Water, Chicken Stock (p. 206), or Vegetable Stock (p. 204), for thinning the sauce; 3 tablespoons vegetable or olive oil; 1 medium white or yellow onion, thinly sliced; 1 poblano pepper, thinly sliced; 2 portobello mushroom caps, wiped clean with a damp cloth, gills scraped (see technique, p. 55), and cut in 1/4-inch strips; 1/2 teaspoon each dried Mexican oregano and ground coriander; Salt; 2 medium zucchini (about 8 ounces), cut lengthwise in 1/4-inch pieces, then crosswise into 1/4-inch dice; 4 scallions (green and white), chopped; Black pepper; 1/2 bunch cilantro, cleaned and chopped (about 1/4 cup); Vegetable oil, for greasing dish; Ancho-Tomato Sauce; 8-12 corn tortillas; Vegetable Filling; 2 1/2 cups shredded white melting cheese (such as queso fresco, mild white cheddar, Monterey Jack, whole milk mozzarella, or asadero); 1/2 cup chopped onion, for garnish; Chopped cilantro, as desired, for garnish; Sliced jalapeños, fresh or pickled, as you prefer, for garnish

December 14, 2011

While these are definitely a contemporary take on a Mexican classic, vegetable enchiladas are as satisfying and flavorful as any meat version. The preparation takes some time, but they’re a cinch to assemble. My advice is to make the sauce a day in advance or to start this early in the day before you get too hungry. The only difficult part about this recipe is deciding what vegetables to leave out. There are countless choices, but I’ve narrowed it down to a tasty combination that works well with the mildly spicy sauce. Substitute or add your seasonal favorites, including—but not limited to—chayote squash (known as mirliton in New Orleans), corn, yellow squash, pumpkin, eggplant, and so forth. If you want to fire up the grill, that’s another great way to prepare the vegetables. Just keep the veggies in large pieces, brush them with a little olive oil and seasoning, and grill a few minutes on both sides; then cool them and cut into smaller pieces. You also have a number of cheeses to choose from, such as white cheddar, Monterey Jack, and pepper Jack.

Recipe notes

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