Every 6 months I do a purge of my kitchen. I go through and clean out the fridge, the freezer, and the pantry. Expired foods go bye bye. Anything else either gets donated (canned food drives love me) or is used in a new creation. That is how my
Chicken Enchiladas were born. When I was dating The Hubs, I raided his kitchen one night to make him dinner. He was a true bachelor and rarely ate a home cooked meal. I found chicken, tortillas, cheese, corn, black beans, enchilada sauce, and cream cheese. And a meal that we love was created.
So this time around, when I found chicken, corn, black beans, enchilada sauce, diced chilies, cheese, cream cheese, avocado, cilantro, and egg noodles, I took it to the next level. Behold, Chicken Enchilada Casserole. All the same yummy ingredients, tweaked. I also ground the chicken using my Kitchenaid mixer attachment. It was creamy, cheesy, and my kids actually liked it better this way. And yes, I baked it with the avocado chopped on top. It really finished it off nicely. If you want, you can add a dollop of sour cream to cool off the spices a bit.
Chicken Enchilada Casserole
Ingredients:
8 oz. egg noodles (about 1/2 bag)
1 lb. ground chicken
1 tsp. chili powder
1/2 tsp. cumin
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. ground black pepper
1/4 cup (4 oz.) cream cheese
1 can (10 oz.) verde enchilada sauce
1 can corn, drained
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1/2 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
1 cup shredded colby jack cheese
1 small container plain Greek yogurt
1 can (4 oz.) diced green chilies
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 cup shredded colby jack cheese
2 avocados, diced
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease bottom of 9x13 pan with cooking spray.
2. Prepare egg noodles according to package instructions.
3. While egg noodles are cooking, brown chicken over medium high heat. Add cumin, chili powder, salt and pepper. Remove from heat. Add cream cheese and stir until melted.
4. In a large bowl, combine enchilada sauce, corn, black beans, sharp cheddar cheese, 1 cup of the colby jack cheese, yogurt, chilies, and cilantro. Stir to combine. Add chicken. Add noodles and fold gently into mixture. Pour into 9x13 pan. Top with remaining cheese and avocado.
5. Bake for 20-30 minutes or until cheese melts and starts to bubble. Serve immediately.
Serves 6-8
