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Cheesy and Creamy Valentine Enchilada Casserole

Delicious enchilada recipe you can make especially for Valentine's Day!
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Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour
Servings: 8 -10 servings
Author: The American Patriette

Ingredients

  • 15-20 red corn tortillas divided
  • 5 tbsp butter divided
  • 1 lb raw chicken breast cut up into bite-sized pieces
  • Dash of salt & pepper
  • Juice from ½ lime
  • ½ c diced yellow or sweet onion
  • 1 jalapeno pepper diced with seeds removed
  • 2 c chicken broth divided
  • 3 c shredded/finely chopped fresh spinach leaves
  • 2 c sour cream
  • 3 tbsp flour
  • ½ c heavy cream
  • 2 tsp cumin
  • 7 oz can of green chiles undrained
  • 1 15 oz can pinto beans drained
  • 2 c Monterrey jack cheese divided

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 350.
  • Cut red tortillas into heart shapes using kitchen shears or a heart-shaped cookie cutter, reserving 1-2 tortillas for later. Try to get at least 3 heart shapes out of each tortilla. Save the scraps from cutting out the heart shapes, and set them, the heart shapes, and the remaining tortillas aside.*
  • Melt 2 tbsp butter in large skillet over medium heat.
  • Add chicken to pan. Sprinkle with salt and pepper on both sides.
  • Squeeze lime juice on top of chicken.
  • Cook the chicken until golden brown and no longer pink in the middle.
  • Remove from heat. Transfer chicken from skillet to a glass plate or bowl and shred chicken using two forks.
  • In the same skillet you used to cook the chicken, melt 1 tbsp butter. Add onion and jalapeno. Saute until soft (about 7-10 minutes), intermittently adding chicken broth (about ¼ c total) as needed for moisture.
  • When veggies are soft, add additional ¼ c chicken broth to skillet. Stir. Add spinach and saute until wilted (about 3-5 minutes).
  • Remove veggies from pan and mix with shredded chicken.
  • In the same skillet you used to prepare the chicken & the veggies, melt 2 tbsp butter.
  • Once the butter is completely melted, add 3 tbsp flour and whisk immediately and constantly.
  • While continuously whisking, slowly add 1½ c chicken broth and continue whisking until all of the lumps of flour dissolve (maybe about a minute).
  • Add ½ c heavy cream and whisk.
  • Add sour cream & mix.
  • Add 2 tsp cumin and chiles (do not drain the can) and stir creamy mixture until well-blended.
  • Add ¾ c cheese and stir. Turn off heat on stove top and set skillet aside.
  • In a 9x13 baking dish, spread 1/2 of the chicken and veggie mixture on the bottom. Pour 1/2 can of pinto beans evenly over chicken mixture. Tear up the tortilla scraps from cutting out the heart shapes and sprinkle them evenly across the top of the beans and chicken. Pour 1/2 of the cream and cheese mixture over the tortillas, and then sprinkle 1/2 of the remaining Monterrey jack cheese on top of the cream mixture.
  • Spread remaining chicken and veggie mixture across baking dish, remaining can of pinto beans, and then line up the heart shaped-tortillas evenly across the pan, slightly overlapping the edges as you lay them down.
  • Pour remaining cheese and cream mixture on top of heart-shaped tortillas. Reserve and set aside about 2 tbsp of Monterrey jack cheese, and then sprinkle remaining cheese (minus the 2 tbsp) on top of the creamy mixture.
  • Place baking dish in oven and bake for 30 minutes at 350.
  • Remove from oven and allow to sit for about 5-10 minutes before serving.
  • Just before serving, sprinkle remaining 2 tbsp of Monterry jack cheese across the top of the casserole (this will help the small heart shapes to stick to the pan), cut small heart shapes out of remaining tortillas and sprinkle them across to decorate the top of the casserole.**

Notes

*This step is OPTIONAL. If you'd rather not take time to cut hearts that are going to bake into the casserole, don't do it! Just use torn-up tortillas - maybe about 5-6 - and layer them instead of the heart shapes. If you're making these with kids, cutting out the hearts will be a fun step! But if not, skip it and just cut out hearts LATER for the top of the casserole. [br][br]Another note: If you do cut larger heart shapes out to bake inside the casserole, keep the remaining tortillas (the ones you didn't cut) in the package until you use them. Corn tortillas tend to buckle fairly easily. When you cut the tortillas, DO NOT bend them in half to cut a heart shape. You know how you fold a piece of paper in half and then easily make one cut to get a heart shape? You can't do that with corn tortillas - they'll break in half. You can easily cut these with kitchen shears, or you can use a metal heart-shaped cookie cutter and cut them that way. [br]**Wait until you're almost ready to serve the enchilada casserole to cut out the small heart shapes out of the tortillas to decorate the top. You'll want to preserve their shape, so wait until closer to serving time to spread them across the top of the casserole.