Creamy Poblano Enchiladas

Recently I saw a recipe floating around Pinterest for creamy chicken enchiladas.  It looked fairly good, but I knew I could make it better!  I made it a little healthier & more flavorful, and found a way to incorporate one of my new favorite foods- poblano peppers.  These large peppers are very tasty and not too spicy.  Did you know that the larger a pepper is, the less spicy it is?  So those tiny habanero & serrano peppers will burn your mouth, but these poblanos aren't bad at all.  They sometimes go by the name of pasilla peppers.  These are the star ingredient in this sauce!

For the salsa that I use in the sauce, I use this Easy Blender Salsa.  I always have a batch in my fridge!  I'm sure you could make adjustments to this recipe, based on what you have & what your preferences are, but this is the version that my family LOVES!  I hope you like it!

My first step was to make homemade tortillas.  This was the first time I made these, and we loved them!  It was this recipe, which I cut in half, used half
wheat/half white flour, and made into 8 tortillas.

Dice the poblano pepper & onions into medium-sized pieces; they don't need to be really small since you're pureeing them anyway.

I love these Pampered Chef Salad Choppers for shredding chicken!  I've never used them for salad, but I'm in love with using them to shred meat!

The finished dish!  This made the perfect amount for my family of 5.  I don't think they even need any more toppings, since there is already salsa and sour cream in them!






 Creamy Poblano Enchiladas
Printable version here

Sauce ingredients
2 tbsp. butter
1/2 of a large poblano pepper, seeded & diced
1/2 of a medium onion, diced
2 tbsp. flour
1 cup chicken broth
1/4 tsp. cumin
1/4 tsp. coriander
1/4 tsp. salt
1/3 cup salsa
1/3 cup sour cream

Enchilada ingredients
1 lb. chicken breasts, cooked and shredded
6-8 tortillas (depending on their size)
1 cup grated cheese, such as Monterrey Jack or cheddar

1. To make sauce: Melt butter in a 2 quart saucepan over medium heat.  Next add poblano pepper & onion, and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Add flour, stir, and cook for 1 minute.  Slowly whisk in chicken broth, stirring constantly until all the liquid is incorporated.  Add cumin, coriander (you may sub extra cumin if you don't have this ingredient), and salt.  Bring to a simmer, then reduce heat to med-low and cook a few minutes until sauce starts to thicken.  Carefully pour sauce into a blender.  Add salsa and sour cream, then puree until smooth.  (Note- while pureeing the sauce, keep the small center cap off your blender to let steam escape, and instead cover that hole with a napkin)

2. Pour a little bit of the sauce in a glass 9x13 pan, and spread it around so the bottom is mostly covered.  Place the shredded chicken in a bowl and stir in some of the sauce (just enough to moisten the chicken).  Assemble enchiladas by adding a scoop of chicken and a sprinkle of cheese to each one, rolling it, and putting it in the dish.  Pour remaining sauce evenly over the top of the enchiladas, then sprinkle with the remaining cheese.

3. Bake in a preheated 375º oven, uncovered, for 15 minutes or until cheese is melted and sauce is bubbly.  Enjoy!

Why I love it?  The sauce is TO DIE FOR!  As it, I could just eat it straight off a spoon! It's creamy (but not too rich or unhealthy), not spicy, just so flavorful!  The poblano pepper & onion, plus the other seasonings, give so much depth to the sauce.  It is so fresh and unlike anything you can get from a can!