The Whole Enchilada

Go Light!

Okay so if this is date ranging between 1 and 5, chances are you still have a girl who is a bit reserved about what she "say's" she likes to eat. It would be careless to slap down a gut-bustin', carb-louded meal with a sauce that will likely stain any pretty blouse she is wearing.

You want your date to feel at ease about eating her meal and less concerned about whether she will be gassy once finished. Guys, do yourself and your date the same favor.

Go with a Chicken Enchilada with homemade verde sauce. It is so good and she will love the fact that you didn't just open up a can of store bought enchilada sauce. Here is what you'll need:

(1) Store Cooked Rotisserie Chicken
(12) White Corn Tortillas
(1 lb) Tomatillos
(1) Small Onion
(4) Cloves Garlic
(2) Red Jalapenos
(1-2 C) Cheddar or Monterrey Jack Cheese
(1 tsp ea.) Salt & Pepper
(1 TBS) Garlic Powder
(1 TBS) Cumin
(1 TBS) Corn Starch
Water

Preheat Oven to 325

Let's Begin by preparing our sauce:



Take the husk off of the Tomallitos. You will find the outside to be somewhat sticky! That is okay. Once the husks are removed, chop them into four quarters as seen below.



Chop your onion into quarters and remove the paper skins from of the garlic. Remove the stem from the jalapenos and slice in half long ways. *(If you want to keep the spice down, remove the seeds and ribs.) Place the tomallitos, garlic, onion and jalapenos in a sauce pot and fill with water until all veggies are submerged.

Add salt & pepper to taste and bring to a boil.



Once Boiling for approximately 1-2 minutes or the onion has become soft and translucent, place the veggies in a blender and add about 1/2 cup of the liquid to blender. Blend until smooth.

Take the excess water and pour into another container. (Do not throw away just yet)
Pour the sauce into the pan.



Take a portion of the water you reserved (about 1 cup) and add ice cubes to let it get cold. Then add the corn starch and quickly dissolve. Pour slurry into sauce along with another cup of reserved water and bring to a boil. This will thicken your sauce. *note if sauce does not get to desired consistency, take a ladle of sauce and allow it to cool. Then add another TBS of Cornstarch and add back to pot.

Now lets get the chicken and tortillas ready!

Remove all the meat from the chicken and chop as you see below. Season with salt, pepper, garlic powder and cumin.



Lightly flash fry your tortillas in about 1-2 TBS of oil or you can microwave them for about 1 minute. You want them to become pliable so they don't break when you wrap them.



At this point we are ready to assemble the enchiladas. It is important that you taste your sauce to see that it has enough flavor. If not, add more salt, pepper or some garlic and cumin to it. Those will increase your flavor.

Add one ladle of sauce to your 9x12 baking dish and spread across the bottom. Also add about one ladle to your meat mixture along with about 1/4 cup of cheese.



Fill the tortillas with a heaping spoonful of meat mixture and roll as seen. Place into the dish. Once complete, ladle plenty of sauce over the dish and top with remaining cheese.

Bake at 325 for about 20 to 25 minutes. (Uncovered)



Now fella's....this is the time where you either make it or break it. You've taken the time to make a nice homemade, scratch baked dish and the last thing you want to do is just dump this on a plate with a dollop of sour cream. No presentation my friends. That's what earns the extra brownie points!

Take a few enchiladas and serve them nicely on the plate next to a generous portion of Cuban Black Beans. (I get mine from Trader Joe's) Place a bouquet of cilantro on the plate and creatively add the sour cream. You should end up with something like this.......



Serve this with a nice glass of white wine and enjoy watching her seal the deal in her mind. A man that puts time into me when the alternative is cheaper and easier, says much about the heart. Enjoy my friends!