Chicken Enchilada Casserole

This recipe comes to us from frequent commenter and weigh-in participant, Anne! 

My new favorite recipe (because I crave tex-mex food like it’s my job) is this (from Cooking Light) — it can be made ahead and reheated, as well as frozen and then re-heated:

Chicken Enchilada Casserole

1 tablespoon canola oil

1 cup prechopped fresh onion (I used frozen chopped onion)

1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin

1 teaspoon chili powder

1/4 teaspoon garlic salt

Dash of ground red pepper

2 (15.5-ounce) cans Great Northern beans, rinsed and drained (I used black

beans)

2 cups shredded skinless, boneless rotisserie chicken

1 cup thinly sliced green onions, divided (I left these out….)

1/2 cup sliced ripe olives, divided (I also left these out, as I hate

olives)

18 (6-inch) corn tortillas, divided (you could possibly use the low-carb whole-wheat tortillas if on south beach…) Cooking spray

2 cups (8 ounces) preshredded reduced-fat (2% milk!) 4-cheese Mexican blend cheese, divided

1 cup 1% low-fat milk

1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro (I think I might’ve also left this out…)

1 (16-ounce) jar green salsa

10 tablespoon reduced-fat sour cream (I also left this out, since I don’t like sour cream) Cilantro sprigs (optional)

Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add prechopped onion; cook 3 minutes or until tender, stirring frequently. Stir in cumin, chili powder, garlic salt, and pepper; cook 1 minute. Stir in beans; cook 2 minutes. Remove from heat. Add chicken, 1/2 cup green onions, and 7 tablespoons ripe olives; stir well.

Preheat oven to 350°.

Layer 6 tortillas on bottom of a 13 x 9-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Spread 2 cups chicken mixture over tortillas; sprinkle with 3/4 cup cheese. (I’d recommend adding a layer of the salsa/milk mixture here, too, to keep it from getting dry) Repeat layers once. Top with remaining 6 tortillas.

Combine milk, chopped cilantro, and salsa in a blender, and process until smooth. (I think I did this with a whisk in a regular bowl…) Pour over top of tortillas. Cover and bake at 350° for 35 minutes. Uncover, sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup cheese, remaining 1/2 cup green onions, and remaining 1 tablespoon olives. Bake for 5 minutes or until cheese melts. Serve with sour cream. Garnish with cilantro sprigs, if desired.

Yield: 10 servings (serving size: 1 casserole slice and 1 tablespoon sour cream)

NUTRITION PER SERVING

CALORIES 353(30% from fat); FAT 11.8g (sat 4.2g,mono 4.2g,poly 1.8g); PROTEIN 23.5g; CHOLESTEROL 45mg; CALCIUM 396mg; SODIUM 734mg; FIBER 7.9g; IRON 2.5mg; CARBOHYDRATE 45.8g

Additionally, I’d recommend using twice as much salsa — to make it a little bit spicier (maybe also more of the spices), and to keep it moist, especially if you’re going to be re-heating it!)

Enjoy!!