Not Enchilada "Enchiladas"

I'm not sure how this is possible, but the Sunday following Thanksgiving I found myself desperately wanting to eat more turkey. Too much of a good thing perhaps? Could turkey be addictive, was I jonesin'? Personally, I think this is the most likely answer.

At any rate, I had a pound of ground turkey in the freezer just begging (gobbling?) to be cooked up. Since I'm not eating red meat anymore, I use ground turkey as a substitute for most "ground beef" recipes: meatballs, meatloaf, meat sauce, burgers, most Mexican dishes, etc.

Growing up, my mom made these all the time, and they have come to be one of my favorite comfort meals. We called them "enchiladas", which is just totally culinarily and culturally incorrect, but that's what we called them sogetoverit. It's essentially an inside out burrito: meat and cheese wrapped up inside and all the rest of the guts on the top. Eaten with a fork & knife (I'm sure I'm committing some kind of burrito sacrilege with that, but whatev). They are damn tasty. You should make them. IMMEDIATELY.

In digging through one of my mom's cookbooks recently, I came across a recipe for Easy Refritos (refried beans). I love refried beans but the canned versions at the store are often incredibly fatty and salty, and have little to no taste or texture aside from that of almost-dried-out-craft-glue. We never used to add beans to our enchiladas, but I knew immediately that it really would add another dimension to the dish, so I figured I'd try the recipe. Had to be better than canned, right??

Easy Refritos (modified from the Moosewood Restaurant Cooks at Home Cookbook)

1 medium yellow onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, grated
1 1/2 TBL olive oil
2 tsp ground cumin
1 jalapeno, deseeded and diced
1/4-1/2 cup veggie stock
2 cans black or pinto beans, drained and rinsed, liquid reserved
Salt & ground black pepper to taste

In a heavy skillet, saute the onions and garlic in the oil on medium heat for 3-4 minutes or until the onions begin to soften. Add the cumin and the jalapeno, and continue to saute until the onions begin to brown. Add the veggie stock, scraping up and brown bits, and simmer until all the veggies are tender. Add the beans to the skillet and cook for a few more minutes, stirring until the beans are hot. Remove the skillet from the heat. Using a potato masher, thoroughly mash the beans while adding as much of the reserved bean liquid as necessary to reach a soft, spreadable consistency. Add black pepper to taste, serve hot.

Momma's Enchilada's
1 pack whole-wheat flour tortillas

FILLING:
1lb lean ground turkey
1 medium onion, chopped
1 large clove garlic, grated
2 TBL canola oil
2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp. chili powder
1/2 cup salsa
Salt & black pepper to taste
6 oz. shredded extra sharp cheddar cheese

TOPPINGS:
Shredded iceberg lettuce
Diced tomatoes
Sliced black olives
Salsa
Reduced-fat sour cream
Optional: jalapenos, minced onion, guacamole, cilantro

In a skillet over medium-high heat, saute the onions and garlic in the canola oil until softened. Add the ground turkey to the pan, breaking it up as it cooks. Cook for about 5 minutes until turkey is no longer pink. Add cumin, chili powder (you could use more, but I'm not a huge fan, so...) salsa and black pepper. Stir to combine and simmer for about 10-15 minutes until turkey is cooked through and most of the liquid has evaporated. Meanwhile, prepare your toppings.

To prepare an enchilada: spread refried beans down the center of a tortilla (as much as you like), top with turkey mixture, top with shredded cheese, and roll, turning seam side down. (You can throw them in the microwave at this point for about 30 seconds if you like to make sure the cheese is totally melted) Top with salsa, lettuce, sour cream, tomatoes and sliced olives (and any other toppings your little heart desires). DIG THE HECK IN, ALREADY!

I swear the next day all I could think about at work was the leftovers. The beans were delightful--really great depth of flavor despite how quick and easy they were (my apartment still smells slightly of cumin!) and really gave some UMPH! to the heartiness-factor of this otherwise fairly healthy "enchilada." The best part about these is, that they really are fairly healthy (well, MINE isn't, I put half a tub of sour cream on top), so you can eat voraciously with little to no guilt!

Buon appetito!