3rd House Party
    The 3rd house in astrology is associated with writing, conversation, personal thoughts, day-to-day things, siblings and neighbors.

 

This is great comfort food for me. I usually have all the ingredients on hand - frozen spinach and corn, jars of red peppers, cheeses. I also keep tortillas and good New Mexican chili powder in the freezer for extended shelf life.

 

Spinach, Roasted Red Pepper, and Corn Enchiladas

Adapted from Jeanne Lemlin’s Simple Vegetarian Pleasures ©1998

 

The Filling:

1 cup low-fat cottage cheese

1 (10-oz) box frozen chopped spinach, thawed

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 medium onion, minced

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1 1/2 cups frozen corn, thawed

1 (7-oz) jar roasted red peppers, patted dry and diced (1cup diced)

2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

1/4 teaspoon salt

freshly ground pepper to taste

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

 

oil spray for dish

8 flour tortillas (I use organic traditional tortillas from Whole Foods Market)

 

*The Sauce: 1 batch (about 2 – 2 1/2 cups) red chile sauce. (This is different from Lemlin’s recipe, but this sauce makes the recipe.)

 

1 1/4 cup grated Monterey Jack cheese (or to taste)

 

*Sauce Directions (from Chimayo Chile Powder package)

Prepare the red chile sauce sauce: Brown 3T flour in 2T cooking oil (I use olive). Blend in 4T chile powder. Slowly add 2 1/2 c. water and stir until lumps are removed. Add 2 cloves garlic (chopped) and 1 1/2 tsp. salt. Simmer 10-15 minutes on medium heat. Delicioso!

 

Enchilada directions:

1. Puree the cottage cheese until smooth. Scrape into medium-sized bowl.
2. Place the spinach in a strainer and press out all liquid with back of a spoon. Set aside.
3. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and sauté, stirring frequently, until golden brown and soft, about 10 minutes. Add the cumin and cook 2 minutes to “toast.” Stir in spinach and cook 2 minutes, tossing frequently. Let the mixture cool, then stir it into the cottage cheese, along with all the remaining filling ingredients. (The filling may be prepared and chilled up to 24 hours in advance.)
4. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Spray a 9 x 13-inch baking dish with cooking oil, or 2 smaller baking dishes. Spoon a thin layer of sauce to cover the bottom.
5. Divide the spinach mixture into 8 portions and place a portion along the bottom of each tortilla and roll tightly. Place enchiladas seam side down on the sauce. Spoon more sauce over the tops of the enchiladas. Sprinkle grated Jack cheese along each enchilada.
6. Cover with foil and bake 25 minutes. Remove cover and bake 5 more minutes or until golden and bubbly. Let sit 5 minutes before serving.