Don’t even think about it…
Just tryyyy to take it…
It was hot outside but not Sahara-hot, so we were able to enjoy our walk around the lake near our apartment without sweating too much.
Victory!
Dinner
When we arrived back at our apartment, I got to work in the kitchen.
On the menu this evening: Pumpkin enchiladas.
Using a recipe I found on Janetha’s blog, I began making the enchiladas by chopping up an onion. I proceeded to break down in tears because onions always make me cry.
Usually onion chopping is Ryan’s job, but he was in the shower and I needed a chopped onion STAT!
Once the onion was sautéing in the pan, my tears subsided and I was able to continue with the recipe.
Janetha’s recipe called for turkey, but I substituted the meat for kidney beans.
I prepped a 9×9 pan and filled whole wheat tortillas with the pumpkin and bean mixture.
After placing the enchiladas in the pan and topping them with the pumpkiny filling, I sprinkled them with cheese and baked them for about 10 minutes, until the cheese melted.
The result was a flavorful, healthy, veggie-packed enchilada.
When I first told Ryan that pumpkin enchiladas were on the menu for dinner this evening, he seemed a little skeptical. I think he previously associated pumpkin with sweet treats like his favorite pumpkin spice cookies and didn’t realize it could be prepared in a savory way as well.
After asking his opinion on tonight’s dish, he replied, “They tasted like real enchiladas!” He also said he’d gladly eat them again, which is a good sign.
Oh how I love healthified Mexican food! 😀
Pumpkin Enchiladas (adapted from Janetha’s recipe)
Ingredients:
- 3/4 yellow onion, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- One 10 oz can of red enchilada sauce
- 1 can pure pumpkin (about 2 1/2 c.)
- 1 c. black or kidney beans
- Large bunch of cilantro, chopped
- 1 1/2 tbsp. cumin
- 1 tsp. chili powder
- 1/2 cup shredded cheese
- 5 ounces 0% greek yogurt
- 3 large whole wheat tortillas
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees
- Sauté onion and garlic in a pan sprayed with cooking spray
- Stir in enchilada sauce
- Add pumpkin and stir until combined
- Add cilantro, cumin and chili powder
- Spread a light layer of sauce on the bottom of an 8×8 or 9×9 pan
- Fill tortillas with an even amount of sauce and beans
- Roll tortillas and place in the pan with the folded edges facing down to keep them closed
- Top with remaining sauce and sprinkle with cheese
- Bake for 10 minutes or until cheese melts
- Serve with a dollop of plain Greek yogurt or sour cream if desired
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Here’s a quick tip I learned in a cooking class to keep you from crying when you cut onions:
Either:
1. Keep a class of water beside the cutting board
or
2. Stick your head in the freezer with your tongue sticking out *to open your eyes up wide* <– promise that's not a joke!
Use the second one if you are already crying. Apparently the chemicals in an onion that make you cry just want a moist spot to settle, and usually that means the eyes, but if you use the water trick, you should be good to go according to the chef who taught my class!
awesome tips! thanks!
Weee!!! This recipe gets me so excited for fall! Maybe if I disguise the enchilada’s with enough cheese my bf would eat these. I give it two thumbs up!
just don’t tell him about the pumpkin & use ground turkey or beef instead of the kidney beans. i promise he’ll like it if he’s a fan of enchiladas!
Aww, Julie, you’re tear face makes me want to give you a HUGE hug 🙂 So glad it’s just the onion & not because you are actually sad! 🙂
Before cutting onions, my mom always soaks them in a bowl filled with cold water. After some time she takes them out and starts chopping w/o tears! so I assume that may work…your delicious looked amazing by the way!
This looks so good, need to make it soon! I just wouldn’t tell my husband until after he ate it then “surprise” him. Works every time, the other night it was turkey bacon. Slowly turning him healthy!
Yum! These look so good! Thanks for spreading the recipe love. And I always cry when I cut onions, too.
wow, thats different!! onions make my eyes burn!! they are my least favorite thing to chop!
Ooo pumpkin!!!! I’m getting so excited for fall and the return of pumpkin. I always wear my chem goggles when I cut onions – nerd? Yes, but it is an effective method! :).
Mmm, I love pumpkin, this seems like a great fall recipe! Happy September 🙂
hooray for fall!
oh my goodness, i am making these as soon as i can find some pumpkin! yum!
Those look great! I especially love the bean swap.
These look awesome!
Those look so good! I must try them this weekend 🙂
More and more pumpkin recipes are popping up by the day!
My grocery store needs to get their pumpkin supply STAT! 🙂
Hi Julie,
That’s a cute picture of you!! And enchilada looks soooo good!
WIsh I had a dog could walk with me. My roommate has a bulldog, but she HATES walking. After like 24 inches walking, she’s done. : (
Vizslas are my most favorite dogs!! How awesome that you have Sadie!!
So nice meeting you!
yummay!! looks so good and I love that you subbed beans for the meat!!
Mmmm, total YUMM right there! Since it’s officially September, now I’ll let myself have some pumpkin (I was trying to hold out as long as I could)
I made a pumpkin lasagna recipe last fall that was amazing, but hubby couldn’t get over the fact that “pumpkin was in his lasagna” – I told him tough, it’s delicious. 😉
Yum! I LOOOVE enchiladas! I love onions in almost everything I cook, so thankfully they don’t make me cry. 🙂
OOOH do those enchiladas look and sound amazing – glad Ryan liked them too! 🙂
MMM, I am going to have to make these!
That looks so yummy! I gotta try this one 😀
Onions always make me cry too! That’s why I saved my lab goggles from my Chemistry labs! Putting em to a good use 😀
That sounds amazing! I must make these when I get back into town.
OOh. I’ve got to make this recipe. It combines two of my favorite things: pumpkin and mexican food!
Those look fabulous! I’ve only had savory pumpkin dishes a few times, but really enjoyed them.
Onions make me cry on occasion, too!
i loved the tweaks you made to the recipe! and i also love that you made it because i honestly forgot about my love for these enchiladas. but now that it is september.. bring on the pumpkin!
p.s. the ariel clutch all the way 😉 i really love B
Can’t wait to get my hands on some pumpkin, these sound delicious!
Those looks delish! Love the pup, so cute! 🙂
Those sound so good!
One of my favorite recipes! 🙂
I’m loving all these creative pumpkin recipes that are floating around the blog world. Fall is almost here! 🙂
wow, that looks fabulous! i want them now please 🙂
I am beyond sold..what a way to start September! I LOVE this ..yum yum yum!
this looks SO GOOD! Where did you find the pumpkin?! so hard to come by these days…
ryan’s mom actually had like 5 cans in her pantry & i took two the last time we were visiting her!
Onions used to make me cry too! I learned that if you store them in the fridge it doesn’t happen!
The enchiladas look outstanding!
oh those enchiladas look heavenly!
I’ve noticed Sadie smiles more in pictures than Koda… even though I’m sure Koda is just as bouncy (because she is REALLY bouncy)… I’m going to have to work on getting her to cheese it up for the camera 😉
the trick is taking 5 billion pictures of her & then only using the good ones. 🙂
Now at 6 something in the morning I’m craving enchiladas. haha. 🙂
Holy WoW – those enchilade look amazing JB! I need to make those ASAP.
P.S. Drinking my pumpkin spiced latte from SB’s as I type this…I LOVE PUMPKIN!!!
xoxo
Mer
I’m admit that when I first read the title of this post, I thought, “Ewww, sick!” And I even love pumpkin!! But they do look pretty good. I’ll have to try this recipe out. Plus, if Ryan liked it, hopefully my hubby will.
I hate chopping onions! The only thing that works for me is wearing swimming googles! But I get weird looks from my husband when I do that, so I just make him chop them instead.
That looks delicious & I really love the adaptation from Janetha’s recipe too. Love ’em both, actually! This has been on my list for a while 🙂 Can’t wait to try them out soon!!!
Oh my gosh onions ALWAYS make me cry. Even if someone else is cutting them I still cry, hehe I’m such a baby!
These look SO fantastic!! I love enchiladas, and anything with pumpkin or squash….YUM!!!
Amelia http://www.eating-made-easy.com
This sounds/looks delicious! I will definitely be trying this!
That dish does actually sound pretty tasty after reading the ingredients. I was a bit unsure at first. I’ve heard wearing sunglasses or chewing gum while chopping onions will help with the tears. But I don’t really have a problem with it. Maybe it is the light eye color that is more sensitive.
Hi Julie,
I just wanted to let you know that I made this dinner for my roommate and I for dinner tonight and it was an absolute hit! Thanks for the tasty and creative recipe! 🙂
Sounds great! I just came back from mexico last year and find myself addicted to these incredible enchilada recipes now!! Must go back next year sometime, I suppose, and this time head off of the beaten path a little. Looking to reading more!