EASY Chicken Enchiladas Verdes

I LOVE these enchiladas. They are rich and gooey and cheesy and so quick and easy to get together on a weekday evening. Like everything I make the recipe can always be made healthier by simply making healthier choices. I use all white meat, boiled chicken breast, low fat sour cream and low fat cream cheese. You could also use, and I plan to next time, low carb/multigrain tortillas for added nutrients. The Mission brand of tortillas makes all kinds of "healthier" options, including low fat, whole wheat, carb balance and a product called "Life Balance" that has added vitamins and minerals. I have not seen these at my local Kroger but I am going to look for them elsewhere because my family eats a TON of tortillas and the healthier the better, natch.

This recipe is great because it is very forgiving. If you are low on chicken, cheese, sour cream, what you have will probably be enough...you can make it stretch. I add the olives and green chilies when I have them and don't worry about it if I don't. If you like the enchiladas creamier and fuller, use the entire block of cream cheese instead of half. If you have fresh cilantro, definitely add it. (on a bummer note, of all my container herbs on my porch the cilantro is completely dead.) I am including amounts in my recipe but feel free to adjust according to taste and availability.

Chicken Enchiladas Verdes

1/2 onion, chopped
1 pound chicken breasts, boiled and shredded
4 oz. cream cheese
4 oz. green chilies, chopped
4 oz. black olives, sliced
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 TB cilantro
1 tsp. lime juice
1 jar (16 oz.) salsa verde, divided
8 oz. sour cream
2 cups jack cheese (I used a pre-shredded Mexican blend)
Flour tortillas, room temperature (I used 7 large tortillas in a 9x 13 Pyrex baking dish)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Grease a baking dish. Saute onion in olive oil until soft. Add the chicken, cream cheese, chilies, olives, garlic, cilantro, lime juice, and half of the salsa to the saucepan and mix over medium heat until thoroughly blended. Add 1/4 cup of the mixture to each tortilla and roll up. (Less if using small tortillas.) Place each rolled tortilla in baking dish, seam down. Mix the other half of the salsa and 8 oz sour cream together. (If you are low on sour cream, add a little milk to fill out this sauce.) Pour sauce over the enchiladas and cover generously with cheese. Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes or until cheese is brown and bubbly.
Enjoy!

Ingredients ready for preparation!

 I have a big helper in the kitchen!!

Enchiladas rolled, sauced, cheesed and ready for the oven.

Fresh out of the oven.

Ready to devour.

Baby Meatballs

These meatballs aren't necessarily smaller, but I did make them for the baby, so you get Baby Meatballs.

I thought of putting these ingredients together to make a baked meatball as a way to introduce ground beef to Everleigh. After doing some surfing on wholesomebabyfood.com I came across a similar recipe. I figure I'd come across this recipe in the past and that is where I got my idea. Just giving credit where credit is due.

Since it was the first time I was offering ground beef, I didn't want to make an entire pound of meat worth of meatballs yet. I used about 1/5 of the total package of meat, the rest I used for chili. I also didn't measure any amounts, but the portions of each of the ingredients are pretty much equal.

I think this is a great way to "sneak in" vegetables for older children also. In fact, keeping frozen cubes of vegetable purees is really handy for other recipes as well. You can throw them in meatballs, meatloaf, soups, stews, crock pot recipes, casseroles, hamburgers, omelets, stocks, taco meat, all kinds of things. Its a quick and easy way to add extra vitamins and veggie goodness without having to eat a load of vegetables.

For these meatballs, I considered adding an egg yolk, but since I was making such a small portion I didn't and I think they still came out pretty good. (I didn't want to mess with portioning out 1/5 of an egg yolk). Since I have to cut them up to serve them to Everleigh I don't mind that they are a little crumbly. This recipe tastes pretty good but they are not super flavorful. To adapt for older children and adults I would think adding an egg and plenty of salt and pepper and other seasonings you like will do the trick.

Also, you can add probably ANY kind of veggie puree you want. Sweet E has taken a stand against zucchini, so this is a great way to use mine up. (She'll never know the difference!) She really likes her little meatballs and I am one proud mama watching her enjoy something I put heart and effort into to create for her.

Baby Meatballs:

Equal parts:
Ground beef (I use ground sirloin 90/10)
Baby rice cereal
Veggie puree (I used half peas and half zucchini)

Mix well. (It's best to use your hands when mixing ground beef for meatballs, meatloaf or hamburgers.)
Form into 1 inch meatballs.
Bake in oven at 350 degrees for 20 minutes or until done.

These freeze well also. They are easy to store and remove one at a time for quick thawing.

 Simple ingredients.

Equal portions. Ready to mix together.

Meatballs!

Ready to bake.

All done!

Getting the Hang Of It!

So, as expected, as Everleigh is getting bigger, older and more active, she is much more into the finger foods! She still likes to be spoon fed, for the most part, and I am all too happy to oblige. But we mix it up now. I am also much more liberal with what I offer her and allow her to have. I hate to think that something she has eaten will make her feel bad later or upset her tummy, so I still introduce pretty slowly, one new food at a time. But since she is 9 months and 2 weeks old now, I know that there are only a few foods that are off limits. I try to keep salt and sugar out of her diet as much as possible. I try to be sure she eats fruits, vegetables, grains, proteins, and dairy every day. She eats three meals a day and sometimes a snack before or after dinner. It's really fun to see her try a new food and like it. It's really fun to create little baby friendly meals. For the most part, I don't need to puree anymore, but I know she still enjoys purees too, so I haven't put away the food processor. I have decided that 9 months is my favorite age so far. She is incredibly active and literally learns something new every day. She has so much personality and she has such a sweet heart.

I posted recently about the spinach and asparagus puree and thought it would make a nice sauce. Since E is eating pasta and chicken now I decided to try it out and created a complete wholesome little dinner for her. I just thawed out some of the green puree and tossed it in warmed rotini pasta and chicken. She also had cottage cheese for the first time that night so that was mixed into her pasta a bit as well. I will continue to prepare and adapt this dish for her as she gets older.


Looks like pesto! Add some salt, garlic, and Parmesan cheese,
and you have a great quickie mommy and daddy dinner too!