Smoky Black Bean Enchiladas

I don't have a photo of the enchiladas. We ate them too fast. Instead, a little pic of Abby holding hands with daddy while we sing our pre-dinner gratitude song. I tried doing little readings before dinner, but Abby being the musical sort wanted to sing. So, I dug deep into the recesses of my mind and pulled up the old grace songs we sang at camp. Songs like: "In back of the bread is the flour. . . ", "Johnny Appleseed", "Thank you earth." She really likes doing it and I like pausing before we eat.So, even though this is not a picture of the enchiladas, the scene before we ate them was similar.
I love these enchiladas. I don't bother doing two pans and just throw them all into one pan. Sometimes I'll halve the recipe and put it in a brownie pan if it's just the 3 of us. Yum!

Smoky Black Bean Enchiladas
6 Servings
Beans
Mexican
Vegetarian Meatless Bake Main Dish

-- THE FILLING --
1 Chipotle chile in adobo sauce minced
1 tablespoon Olive oil plus extra for greasing
1 medium Onion minced
3 cans (14.5 oz) Black beans drained and rinsed
3/4 cup Orange juice

-- THE SAUCE --
1 cup Salsa (mild or medium)
1 cup Tomato sauce
1 teaspoon Dried oregano
1 teaspoon Ground cumin
12 Corn tortillas
6 ounces Neufchatel (or other light cream cheese) cut into 12 slices
2 cups Monterey jack cheese grated

1. Heat the oil in a medium-sized saucepan over medium heat. Saute the onion and chipotle pepper until soft, about 10 minutes. Stir in the beans and orange juice, and simmer 10 minutes. Using the back of a large spoon, mash half the beans by pressing them against the sides of the pan. Cook the beans a few more minutes, or until the texture of mashed potatoes. Let the beans cool.

2. To make the sauce, combine the salsa, tomato sauce, oregano, and cumin in a bowl.

3. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

4. Wrap the tortillas in foil and bake 10 minutes. This will soften them and prevent them from splitting when rolled. Let cool slightly. Keep the oven on.

5. To assemble the enchiladas, lightly oil 2 shallow 2-quart baking dishes, such as 12x2x7-inch Pyrex dishes (you don't want to crowd the enchiladas). Pour a thin film of sauce on the bottom of each dish. Divide the filling in half. Lay six tortillas on a work surface and place 6 spoonfuls of the filling on half of each tortilla. Top with a slice of cream cheese. Roll the enchiladas and place seam side down in the baking dish. Repeat with the remaining 6 tortillas and remaining half of the filling. Pour the sauce all over the enchiladas and sprinkle on the grated cheese. Cover the dishes with foil (the enchiladas can be prepared to this point and refrigerated up to 4 hours in advance; bring to room temperature before baking).

6. Bake, covered, for 25 minutes, or just until hot throughout. Let sit 5 minutes before serving.

Tip: Because the tortillas will absorb a lot of the sauce and become very soft, it's best not to assemble the enchiladas more than 4 hours in advance. If you want to do more advance preparation, prepare all the components separately (up to 2 days in advance) and put the enchiladas together a few hours before cooking.

From Vegetarian Classics by Jeanne Lemlin