Earlier this year I talked about my visit to my friend Dana in Seattle, where we ate, drank and toured several local markets that at the time, were just beginning to show signs of spring fruits and vegetables. Not only is Dana a phenomenal cook (and Seattle dining tour guide: every restaurant we went to was more perfect than the previous) but she is a great cooking instructor, as well.
Dana teaches vegetarian cooking classes from her own kitchen and while I was there, she hosted a Mexican-themed class where we made smoky black beans, Mexican rice and roasted tomatillo guacamole, along with veggie-friendly, lighter-than-most enchilada. I’ve had the recipe flagged since the class and finally made them a few weeks ago.
In my opinion, the best part of this recipe is the enchilada sauce, which is tomato-based and creamy, different than most enchilada sauces. It’s so rich that you’ll almost want to toss in a handful of Parmesan cheese, mix it with pasta and shelve your dreams of enchiladas for another day.
Don’t do that though. If you forge on you’ll wind up with a hearty enchilada recipe that has a ton of flavor, fresh vegetables and protein. Enchiladas aren’t the prettiest dish, but you can add any number of fresh vegetables to the mushroom mix to adapt them to whatever season it is. Because the fresh corn at the farmers market looked great, I added a cup of corn kernels to the mushroom mixture for color, flavor and a little bit of crunch.
Mushroom Enchiladas
Recipe adapted from Dana Treat
Serves 4-6
What You Need:
For the Sauce
1 tablespoon canola oil
½ large yellow onion, finely diced
1 teaspoon dried oregano
2 teaspoons chili powder
1 28-ounce can tomato puree
1 teaspoon sugar
3 tablespoons heavy cream
¼ – ½ cup water (optional)
Kosher salt
For the Enchiladas
1 tablespoon canola oil
½ large yellow onion, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp. dried oregano
1 tsp. dried epazote (optional)
1 pound buttom, crimini or oyster mushrooms, thinly sliced (I used a combination)
1 15-ounce can pinto beans, rinsed and drained
1 cup cooked fresh corn
½ cup chopped cilantro
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
6 8-inch flour tortillas
1 cup (packed) grated cheddar cheese
How-To:
Make the sauce: Heat a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and a large pinch of salt. Saute until softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in the oregano and chile powder and sauté until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Carefully add the tomato puree (it will splatter) and the sugar. Give it a good stir and reduce the heat to medium-low. Pour in the cream and mix well. At this point, you might need to pour in some water. You want a nice thick sauce but if it is too thick, pour in ¼ cup water. Cook over low heat until thickened and the flavors meld together, adding more salt and/or sugar as necessary, about 15 minutes. If the sauce is too thick for your taste, add the rest of the water. Set aside. (Can be made a day ahead. Allow to cool completely, cover and refrigerate. Re-warm on the stove, adding more liquid to reach desired consistency.)
Make the enchiladas: Heat a large sauté pan over medium heat. Add the onion and a large pinch of salt. Sauté until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, oregano, and epazote and sauté until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Stir in the mushrooms. Don’t worry if the pan seems crowded, the mushrooms cook down considerably. Raise the heat to medium-high and cook until the mushrooms give off their liquid and the pan is mostly dry, stirring often, about 10 minutes. Stir in the beans and the cilantro. Stir in the corn during the last minute of cooking. Add another pinch of salt and a few grinds of pepper. Give everything a good mix, allowing the cilantro to wilt a bit, and turn off the heat. Taste for seasoning and adjust as necessary.
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Brush just a bit of sauce along the bottom of a 9×13-inch baking pan. Have the tortillas close by. Set one tortilla on a work surface and spoon about a tablespoon of sauce over the surface. Scoop roughly 1/6th of the filling into the middle of the tortilla and roll carefully and tightly. Repeat with the remaining tortillas. You may have a bit of filling left over.
Using a spoon, spread the rest of the sauce over the top of the enchiladas, making sure to coat the ends as well so they don’t dry out. Sprinkle the top with cheese and cover with foil. Bake for 30 minutes, then remove the foil and bake for another 5 minutes. Serve hot.
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{ 50 comments… read them below or add one }
Oh dear goodness! This is MY kind of meal. I just made some recently:
http://bevcooks.com/2011/07/spicy-chicken-and-spinach-enchiladas/
But you see, mushrooms own my heart, so I’m making your version next!
Mushroom enchiladas are delish! I haven’t had them since I was in TX maybe it is time to change that.
i love the idea of using the roasted tomatillo guacamole with mushroom enchiladas! this is seriously flavor party!
It’s so nice to have a friend who teaches a cooking class! I agree, the tomato-based creamy enchilada sauce is definitely different and I am curious how it tastes like. My kids and I might like this version as we love tomato base and creamy food… How delicious!
Uh oh, I recently made a heavier-than-most pan of enchiladas…. and since I was alone for the week, proceeded to eat the whole thing over the course of the next five frickin’ meals. It lasted forrrrrrrrrr…evvvvvvvv….ur.
If there had been mushrooms inside, though, eatin’ ‘em all up would have been a continual treat.
Great minds think alike – I posted enchiladas today too (chicken). These look really good!
These look and sound delicious! I’m always looking to bookmark savory meals that I think my novice cooking skills can handle.
Oh, gosh, I think I’ve just discovered my favorite enchilada ever!!!! How fabulous!!!
I’ve been wanting to make an enchilada dish for awhile now. This looks fantastic!
Love mushrooms, and this! Looks great.
Yummy – this recipe sounds so good! I think I need more Mexican food in my life
Your mushroom enchiladas look delicious, specially with corns and lots of cilantro.
Hope you have a great week ahead Maris
Yum, looks like the perfect meal for the next time hubby has a late night at work
That’s when I cook all my vegetarian recipes. I could probably eat a whole pan of these!
I will have to look her classes up! I’m thinking of signing up for some fun cooking classes and her’s sounds great. Yum!
Great writing as usual, Maris and these enchiladas sounds fantastic. I’m intrigued and wanting to try that sauce.
Yum and vegetarian! Love it! Actually…I love enchiladas anything
This recipe sounds delicious. I love it that you’ve made a healthier yet still tasty Mexican dish. I’m going to give this a try!
I seriously saved this recipe before even reading all of it, it sounded THAT GOOD. I think I’ll need to halve it, though – my husband is not a mushroom person, and I very much am, so this is an “only me” recipe!
Oh my goodness Maris, this looks incredible. Dana sounds like the best kind of friend!! Hope you have had a good Monday.
This is even easier than frying them all separately in a frying pan! Great idea Maris!
You aren’t kidding, that sauce sounds fabulous! I have some fire roasted ones I got on sale, hmm….
I love mushrooms and cheese and addition of more veggies is icing on the cake. Beautiful !!!
looks very tasty…i def want to try that rich sauce! we dont get a lot of mexican options here down under unfortunately!
I’ve been dying to make spinach enchiladas…I think mushroom enchiladas would be the perfect combination!
Sounds like a winner! My family loves enchiladas and are always wanting to go to Mexican restaurants. I’ll try them a home!
These enchiladas sound great – love that creamy sauce! Awesome that your friend teaches those classes
Ooh, I’ve never had mushroom enchiladas, and the sauce sounds great, Maris. These are on my to-do list. Thanks!
Yum, Maris. This is such a great dinner option for vegetarian friends; I usually fins myself playing safe with a basic pasta.
I haven’t had enchiladas in forever, but these sound wonderful! I may have a craving coming on…
These look and sound incredible. I’ve never had them made with these ingredients but I am game to try them. I hope you have a great day. Blessings…Mary
Although I am not a veggie by any means, I do eat a lot of vegetarian food just because it tends to be more healthy. I love the sound of your enchiladas, this would made an awesome dinner.
*kisses* HH
The weather getting a little cooler has got me thinking along these lines. I love enchiladas, but I usually make a fairly bland cheese and onion version. I can’t wait to try the sauce—I usually used the canned stuff. And I just bought a vintage baking dish at the thrift store that these will fit perfectly in…Thanks for the inspiration!
I am a big fan of enchiladas in any capacity
These look delish! I need to experiment with more veggie-centric meals.
These looks SO good. I think my kids would even like these. They love Mexican
Mmmm…these sound wonderful, I love the veggie option!
this looks so yummy!! *swoon* thank you for sharing this and have a great day.
Wonderful vegetarian option for meatless Mondays! Thanks for sharing and have a great day Maris!
These really do sound like phenomenal enchiladas. I usually use a sauce out of Cook’s Illustrated but yours sounds good enough to sway me away!
Maris, I haven’t ever eaten an enchilada, ever! This looks so good.
I think Mexican is such a natural cuisine for meatless meals ~ your enchiladas look fabulous!
Oh wow, mushroom enchiladas, they’re definitely going on the Friday night dinner list, if I can wait that long!!
Nice choice of filling….Added to my must try list
mushrooms in a-ny-thing is fabulous. I love that you used a combo of mushrooms. Definitely on my to-cook list!
Most of the time I think the dishes which doesn’t look that pretty turns out to be the yummiest!
Awesome enchiladas, I like the combination of mushrooms, beans and corn in the filling!
These sound wonderful, Maris! What a flavorful meatless meal.
what a great meal idea! I am always looking for “worknight” dinners!
Loving catching up on these yummy dishes I’ve missed out while I’ve been on a blog-break! Gorgeous enchiladas… Bookmarking them! I love mushrooms
Holy yum – that sounds amazing. i heart mushrooms so I would for sure love this dish!
I saw this the other day here and I’ve been wanting to come back and comment. I love that you posted a homemade enchilada sauce recipe, I’ve been wanting to make my own for a while. And I’m really loving these meatless enchiladas. Enchiladas are seriously one of my favorite dinners to make. I am all over these with the mushrooms!! I’ve never thought to put mushrooms in them, looks delicious!!
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