Recipe: Asparagus and Portabella Enchiladas

I wanted to break out of stereotypical Mexican dishes. While perusing Cook's Illustrated I saw a recipe for Chicken Enchiladas with Verde Sauce. It sounded interesting, but for vegetarians what else could I put in the enchiladas other than beans? Asparagus is in season, and I found portabella mushrooms selling for a little less than a few months ago. I decided to try putting the two together for the filling.

The Cook's Illustrated recipe was mainly about the sauce. I wasn't about to go there since I don't think I can find tomatillos here. Perhaps canned. But the main thing for me was to try to figure out the filling.

I used store purchased, canned, green enchilada sauce for the bulk of the sauce. I also got some canned verde salsa that actually did use tomatillos which I used to top off the enchiladas. Also, even though enchiladas are supposed to use corn tortillas, I didn't have any at home so I made do with flour (soft taco size) tortillas. So I guess these were more like baked burritos.

I should also add that because our kids don't like mushrooms, I had to cook the mushrooms and asparagus separately in two pans and make part of the enchiladas with just the asparagus filling.

Asparagus and Portabella Enchiladas

Serves about 6
Total prep and cook time about 1 hour

Ingredients

• 1 bunch (about 2 lb.) fresh asparagus, trimmed and cut into 1-1/2 inch lengths
• 2 portabella mushrooms
• 1 tbsp. Canola oil
• 1 yellow onion, diced medium
• 3 cloves garlic, crushed
• 1/2 tsp. ground cumin
• 1/2 cup chicken or vegetable broth (there is usually enough salt in commercial broth that additional salt isn't necessary)
• 1/2 cup loosely packed chopped cilantro
• 2 cups grated pepper jack cheese, divided
• 3 cups green enchilada sauce or verde sauce (see discussion above)
• 15 to 20 corn tortillas
• 2 green onions, thinly sliced

Directions

1. Boil water in a large pot. Blanch prepared asparagus in boiling water for 2 minutes. Drain and rinse under cold water until cool. Set aside.
2. Wipe portabellas with paper towel, remove stems, and slice into about 2 x 1/4 inch strips. Set aside.
3. Preheat oven to 450F.
4. In a large saute pan heat oil over medium heat. When hot, fry the onions, stirring frequently until golden, about 6 minutes. Add garlic and cumin, stir to mix and fry for 30 seconds. Carefully add broth. Add mushroom slices and cook until soft, 4 to 5 minutes. If there is too much liquid in the pan, increase heat and boil off excess liquid until just a little remains. Reduce heat to low. Add asparagus and continue to stir and cook another minute. Remove from heat and transfer to a large bowl. (If using homemade or low-sodium broth, you may need additional salt in the filling.)
5. Add 1-1/2 cups cheese and the chopped cilantro to the bowl. Mix well.
6. Prepare 13x19 baking dish by pouring 1 cup of sauce in bottom of dish.
7. Heat frying pan (large enough to heat tortillas) over medium-low heat. When hot, heat each tortilla for a few seconds as you work with them to make them easier to roll.
8. Place 1/4 to 1/3 cup asparagus-mushroom filling on tortilla. Roll tightly and place in baking dish, seam down. Repeat until dish is full.
9. Pour in remaining sauce and spread evenly over enchiladas. Sprinkle remaining cheese evenly over the enchiladas.
10. Bake, covered with foil, for 15 to 20 minutes. Remove from oven, uncover and sprinkle green onions on top. Serve immediately.