Recipe of the week

Many of you know that I love trying new recipes. I tried a few new things in the last week: salmon with wilted spinach, shrimp and broccoli stir fry, and black bean enchiladas. Of those three, I think the enchiladas were the best and so I'd like to share the recipe with those of you who are interested. I personally liked the stir fry a lot too, but learned that Noel just doesn't care for stir fry of any kind. So, between the two of us, the enchiladas won.

This recipe comes from the "Horn of the Moon Cookbook", which is one of my favorite cookbooks. As Noel said yesterday, "we're batting a thousand with this cookbook!". In other words, every single thing I've made from it has been a big hit.

Black Bean Enchiladas
1 1/2 cups uncooked black beans
6 cups water
2 Tbsp sunflower oil (I used canola)
3/4 c finely chopped onion
3/4 c finely diced carrot
1 tsp basil
1 tsp oregano
1 Tbsp minced garlic
3/4 c finely chopped green pepper
1/2 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp coriander
1 minced fresh jalapeno
1 1/2 tsp salt (I used only 1 tsp and might try even less next time, just don't think it's necessary)
12 corn tortillas
1 1/2 c salsa (recipe below)
2 1/2 c grated Jalapeno pepper Jack cheese

Soak beans in water for 8 hours. Bring to a boil and simmer, covered, 1 and 1/4 hours or until tender. Drain water.
Heat 1 Tbsp oil in fry pan and saute onions, carrots, basil, oregano, and garlic. After a few minutes, add peppers, spices, jalapeno, and salt. Cook a couple more minutes until vegetables are tender. Add vegetables to beans.
Preheat oven to 375. Brush each tortilla with remaining oil and salsa lightly on both sides. Set aside remaining salsa. Bake a few minutes until tender and soft (not crisp). Remove from oven.
Put 1/3 c bean mixture down the middle of each tortilla, and a line of cheese. You should have enough to fill all 12 tortillas (I ended up with extra filling). Roll up and lay seam side down on a cookie sheet. Brush with salsa and bake about 7-10 minutes, until tender and cheese is melted. Serve with sour cream on top and remaining salsa.

Salsa (if you care to make your own)
28 oz can whole or diced tomatoes
1 Tbsp minced garlic
1/4 tsp salt
2 tsp cider vinegar
2 tsp sunflower oil (I used canola)
2 tsp lemon juice
2 tsp cumin
1/2 c very finely chopped onion
3/4 c vry finely chopped green pepper
4 scallions, thinly sliced
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper (or more, to taste)
1 minced jalapeno

Crush tomatoes (I used a potato masher, but you could run them lightly through a food processor) to desired consistancy. Combine with rest of ingredients. Chill until ready to serve (I recommend a few hours at least to let the flavors blend).
Yields 3 cups.

I hope you enjoy it if you're inspired enough to try it! I'm sorry I didn't take a picture to post with the recipe...maybe next time.