Saturday, March 17, 2012

1,000 Treats, Five Alarms, and The Threat of Salsa

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

*****

Today has been INSANE!  As I mentioned yesterday, last night I was cooking for a party for about 15.  Everything went really well with the food, but during the course of the evening, one woman mentioned that an organization she is affiliated with was doing gift bags for about 100 people on Monday and did I want to donate my organic dog treats and could I do it in about 18 hours?  Well, of course, I do!  I rallied the troops, went to the supermarket when it opened, and we cranked out just under a thousand dog treats in about six hours.  My own dogs have greatly enjoyed cleaning up the floor and I'm out to deliver them in a few minutes.  While this certainly isn't the most intellectual thing I've ever done, I have to admit, it is really, really fun.  AND you feel like you really accomplished something when it is finished.



We might have had a couple of these to keep the assembly line flowing smoothly.



*****

Tonight, post-St Patrick's Day dinner and the delivery, I'll be working on finalizing an application we are submitting to The Food Network!  While I realize this is a long shot, just working on it and dreaming about it is so, so good for what ails me.  We do have a team tag-line:  We are five-alarm badasses.  Five.  

*****

Okay, tomorrow we will do some recipe-ing.  There is salsa in our future.


Friday, March 16, 2012

Hi, "My Drunk Kitchen," and Live Action Cooking

Just really quickly wanted to drop in and say hi, so "Hi!!!!"  ((Waves vigorously.))  That's another dumb joke that originated on FB that I no longer remember the details of.  I really should look into whatever that herb is that improves your memory but I can't remember what it is called.  Argh.

I'm off to do a party for ((I think)) 15 or 20.  And we are doing it LIVE.  Meaning, I am cooking there and people will theoretically be watching.  Don't tell the host or any of the guests, but I've never attempted any of the three dishes I am doing.  It is not terribly unusual for me to take things to events or serve things in my own home that I've never attempted before without an opportunity for a do-over, but typically then there are no witnesses to the various, "OH SHIT"'s, "Oh well"'s, and the "WHOOPS, eff it"'s.  This could be very entertaining.  I'll be sure to make the wine pours heavy just in case.  Someone should really take video.  It might look a lot like this:



Anyway, I'm making baked artichoke cups ((involves wonton wrappers which I predict I will have a terrible time separating, just a hunch)), three cheese roasted veggie pizzas, and a strawberry amaretto pastry.  We shall see how they turn out.

Wish me luck!  

Thursday, March 15, 2012

Guinness, Cupcakes, and Well, Guinness Cupcakes

I was asked yesterday if I have any recipes for St. Patrick's Day.  I am pretending that I was not racially profiled based on the fact that I can get sunburned from a 40 watt bulb.  That's okay.  I wear SPF 1,000,000.  It sort of helps.  But not really.

The first thing that came to mind was corned beef and cabbage, but let's face it, most people are going to head right for the beer...  I was tempted to write up my green beer recipe which is very intricate.  It involves one beer and a few drops of green food coloring and then a long discussion about how the food coloring gets everywhere and generally creates a big Irish temper tantrum-worthy mess...  But let's go right for the Guinness, shall we?  We shall.  No playing around.



A lot of people, mainly chicks ((I can say that, I am one)), think Guinness is too strong.  Well, even if so, when added to chocolate, it is completely and totally and utterly and some other superlative YUM.

What you need:

1 12 oz bottle of Guinness Stout ((you may drink the rest of the bottles, you're welcome))
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
3 large eggs
3/4 cup sour cream
3/4 cup unsweetened dark cocoa
2 cups sugar
2 1/2 cups flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

What to do:

CHUG.

Preheat the oven to 350.

Prepare your muffin tins either by buttering them, spraying them with cooking spray, or using paper liners.  I prefer to butter them.  The easiest way to do it is to take a paper towel, drag it through the butter and then rub it around on the tin.  I'm not saying it's pretty, I'm saying that's how I like to do it.

In a large bowl, mix together all the wet stuff:  the Guinness, milk, oil, and vanilla and then beat in the eggs one at a time.  ((I have decided I am going to emphasize the egg beating in one at a time thingy each and every time.  If I weren't so lazy, I would google why this is important because all these recipes I read make a big deal out of it.  Consequently, so will I.  For no apparent reason.))  Finally, mix in the sour cream.

In a separate large bowl, mix together the dry stuff: cocoa, sugar, flour, and baking soda.

Gradually add the dry to the wet and combine well.

Scoop the batter into your muffin tins using a 1/4 cup measuring cup.  Fill them about 2/3's of the way full.

Bake for 25-30 minutes OR until they rise and are "set" in the middle, but not as hard as rocks.  ((Meaning, it shouldn't look like pudding any more.))

Let cool completely before removing from the tins or you will have a bunch of broken cupcakes and be really unhappy with yourself.

FROSTING!  ((The best part))

1 stick of SALTED butter at room temp
1 stick of UNSALTED butter at room temp ((this is low-cal, huh?))
1/2 cup shortening ((OhmyGod, sorry))
1 tablespoon vanilla extract ((it would be splendid if you had the clear kind, but if not, no biggie))
1 1/2 pounds powdered sugar
4 tablespoons of fricking cold milk.  Not just cold.  Fricking cold.

Cream the butters ((plural)) and the shortening in your mixer.  Add the vanilla and combine it well.  Add the sugar in small amounts and mix thoroughly after each addition.  ((You can try to add a whole bunch of it at once, but you will have a sugar explosion and one very, very sticky kitchen.))  Once all the sugar is in, start adding the milk, one tablespoon at a time until you get to the consistency you like.

Then pipe it on or use a knife.  It would make me happy if you added some chocolate sprinkles or MAYBE you shaved some dark chocolate on the top.  You could also do green sugar if you want to be sure your theme gets across, but I prefer to go for subtlety.  Obviously.  ((Is that how you spell that?  I'm so not subtle I can't even spell it.))  I also saw some pictures where the bottle tops were stuck in as toppers.  Seems dangerous what with all the drunk people around.

This makes 24 cupcakes and you may well have left-over frosting if you don't go batshit crazy decorating them.

Nutritional info?  Not going to talk about it with 2 sticks of butter and shortening in the frosting.  That's another rule.

This recipe is adapted somewhat from Dave Lieberman.  I confess, I did not make these today, but if I am able to tear myself away to get to the St P's party I'm invited to, I will bring them.  I made them a few years ago ((3? 4?)) and they were damn good.  Here's a picture posted by Ashley's Bakery ((ashleybsbakeshop)) which seems like a lovely place where they are way better at decorating than I am but maybe that URL could use some work.  Just saying.  


Happy Day When Everyone Is Suddenly Irish!
  

Wednesday, March 14, 2012

Keats, Reunions, and Stuff I Can't Talk About

I set the above as my goal for the day and I can safely say all that was accomplished from that list is the fine weather part.  However, it is Arizona in mid-March, so I must say that was much akin to hoping that today would be a day ending in "y."   However, if you count textbooks, Two Buck Chuck, and my neighbors and their mid-80's rock blasting, I may be able to count today as a success, but I'd rather aim higher.  Oh well, something to aspire to.

*****

It has been a very interesting couple of days.  And I mean interesting in the least "oh my God, take cover" kind of way.  Last night I attended a campaign party, and outside of the heavy metal band playing next door and recruiting a kid with a pink mohawk who seemed like a lot of fun to walk my mother and her friend to their car, the ODDEST thing happened.  I was standing outside, keeping the methheads at bay, when this guy walked up.  I did a double and realized it is a friend of mine who is a career/professional bartender who I have not seen in YEARS and didn't have any way of contacting.  I told him about my new ventures, and I can now happily say, I have an official staff bartender!  It had previously been suggested the page needed a mixologist.  I just took that to the next level.  Full service, I tell you.

In other news, I have also booked another cooking gig in a couple of weeks which makes me very, very happy.   I also have put myself into a position to be planning some events in the very near future.  And finally, I chopped quite a bit off my hair.  Hey, I'm a girl.  Stop it.  Hair is important.

*****

I will be back with more good eats tomorrow but until then, I realized I had failed to illustrate just how well some of my lovely friends know me.  Check out a portion of the birthday goods:


That would be one exceedingly large crystal serving platter, a menu planner/idea notebook, and a very, very lovely gift card to Williams Sonoma.  Not pictured, a LOT of wine, a mosquito net for a wine glass, and various other gift cards.  It's like they know me.

*****

I'm off to celebrate what I consider to be exceptionally fracking good news that I can't share quite yet.  All I can say is ....  oh hell.  I can't say that.  Sorry!  Until tomorrow...




Tuesday, March 13, 2012

Mayan Fudge Cupcakes, Living Lettuce, and Gratuitous Pictures of Myself

In the final, seemingly never-ending, installment from the New Mexican Food Fest last Saturday, we have Mayan Fudge Cupcakes with Cocoa-Cinnamon Butter Cream Frosting.  I have previously said that baking is not really my thing.  I'm going to amend that to say that baking is in fact at least *one* of my things, but more accurately dessert isn't really my thing because I don't really eat it so I'm not independently motivated to make it.  But.  Let me tell you.  People went ape-shit for these cupcakes and I am at least partially responsible for several children having a complete sugar freak-out which included one of the little darlings ((ahem)) running around with a chair on his head into several freshly painted walls.   Just precious.  Cough.  Cough.

ANYWAY, here's the back story...  My original plan was to do mini-cupcakes because these are really, really sweet and I thought for a big crowd that might be better: more treats, less waste.  After doing four dozen of the mini ones I decided I was going to lose my freaking mind if I kept that up AND would be at it for hours so I went to the regular size.  I also had grand plans of beautifully piping on the frosting and being all damn fancy about it, but well, reference the losing my mind part.



What you need for the cupcakes:

1 box Devil's Food cake mix ((you could also make this from scratch but let's not get crazy))
1 cup buttermilk
1/2 vegetable oil
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
4 eggs

What you do:

*Right now* pull out one stick of butter to get it to room temperature for the frosting.  You will thank me later.

Preheat your oven to 350 and line your muffin tins or spray them with a cooking spray.

Add the first six ingredients (everything but the eggs) and using an electric mixer, beat at a low or medium speed for about 30 seconds or until everything is moistened.

PAY ATTENTION!  Add the eggs, one at a time, until the batter is well mixed.  No, I don't know why but it seems important.

Crank up the speed and beat for two minutes until the batter is thick.  And yes, it will be really, really thick.

Using a regular old spoon ((well, not an old one per se, just meaning a regular one)), scoop the batter into the lined muffin cups until they are 2/3's full.  This will be annoying because the batter will not release from the spoon and you will end up having to scrape each one in individually.  You will, in fact, be totally covered in chocolate by about .... now.

Bake for 15-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle of the fattest one comes out clean.  Remove them to cool on a wire rack.

For the frosting:

1 stick of butter at room temp  ((together now:  Thanks, Jules.))
1/2 cup unsweetened dark chocolate cocoa powder
1/4 cup milk
1 teaspoon cinnamon
Approximately 2 1/2 cups of powdered sugar

Start by creaming the butter in the mixer by beating it on medium speed for 3 minutes.

Add the cocoa and cinnamon and mix on low until they are combined.

Alternating, add a little bit of milk and a little bit of powdered sugar until you say screw this, and just dump it all in like I did.  At least I'm honest.

Once combined, beat on medium for 5 minutes until it is light and fluffy.  If it seems too thin, runny, watery, what have you, you can add more powdered sugar.

At this point, your cupcakes should be cool and you can be fancy and pipe them or smear a knife-full of frosting over them and call it good.

If you want to be DOUBLE FANCY, you can also crack sea salt over the top of them.  I know.  Fracking fancy.   Frackancy?  Yes.

This makes 24 regular cupcakes.  Recipe adapted from "Hello Cupcake."

I wondered if kids would like these with the heat in them.  They were so busy inhaling them that I'm not sure any of them even noticed.  It is a very mild little, tiny kick.  Don't be scared.

Nutritional Info:  I have a rule that if something has buttermilk or heavy cream in it, it is a lost cause so don't even worry about it.

*****

Whew.  Done.  Okay.  Let's talk about something different.  How cool is this?

Living Lettuce
Yes, this is a stock photo because I suck too much to take a picture of mine before chopping into it.  Recently, we have gotten what they call "Living Lettuce" from the co-op.  It comes with the root ball still attached and oh my God, it is so good and stays fresh forever.  No, you don't have to water it or plant it or any bullshit like that.  Mine stayed perfectly fresh for over three weeks.  THREE WEEKS!!  ((My level of dorkdom just went through the roof.  Gah.))

Anyway, I made this salad.  Isn't it pretty?

Damn.  That's a pretty good picture.  For me.

All it is is the butter lettuce with grilled chicken, cilantro, lime, salsa, and shredded cheese.

No, I'm not going to turn into those, "Here's What I Ate Today!!!" people.  Well, I might.  Sorry.  I'll try not to and you can be sure that at some point there will just be a picture of 17 cans of diet coke in that event.

*****

Okay, gratuitous pictures of myself time.  These are from the Mardi Gras party.  If anyone is good with photoshop and wants to fix the one with the open door, I will reward you with the meal of your choice upon receipt.

I bought this apron because it was the ugliest one in the store.  True story.

Me with the party host.  I love his cabinets.  And the lighting.  And my hair looks good there.  
*****

Anyway, I must get back to work on the fitness studying.  Everyone try to use "erector spinae" in a sentence at least once today.  Preferably completely out of context, or perhaps as a spell you are casting on someone.  It just sounds ominous.

Later!


Monday, March 12, 2012

Spanish Rice, Another Fattening Salad, and Gazpacho

Today we will finish up the dishes from Saturday's party and then we will talk some nonsense, because it is important for one ((meaning me)) to go with one's strengths ((meaning nonsense.))

*****

First, the Spanish rice.  I have tried countless of the "box" versions of Spanish or Mexican rice and always found them to be totally blah.  This, however, was miles apart from that and tastes like the stuff you get in a Mexican restaurant.  A real one.  Not some homogenized chain which relies on overly loud "festive" music to distract you and/or drive you to drinking twelve dollar margaritas.

Arroz ((your Spanish lesson for the day))
What you need:

2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons chopped onion
1 1/2 cups uncooked long grain rice
2 cups chicken broth
1 cup chunky salsa ((I used Trader Joe's chunky medium salsa))

What you do:

This is easy...  Just heat the oil in a heavy pan and sautee the onion until it is translucent and soft, about 5 minutes.  Mix the rice into the skillet and allow the rice to start to brown, stirring frequently.  Stir in the chicken broth and bring it to a boil.  Reduce the heat, add the salsa, cover, and allow the rice to absorb the liquid.  This will take about 20 minutes.  Give it a stir every few minutes to be sure that it isn't sticking to the bottom.  Taste test liberally...  You can always top this with some shredded Mexican cheese, a squeeze of lime, some cilantro, or a dollop of sour cream.

I made a quadruple batch of this and it disappeared very quickly.

Nutritional Info:  260 calories and 6 grams of fat ((without add-ons like cheese, sour cream, etc)) for about a 1/3 cup serving.

This recipe is also slightly adapted from Allrecipes.com.

*****

How about a fattening salad?  I say, why not?

Fiesta Non-Salad Salad

What you need:

1 head of romaine lettuce, chopped
1 can of pinto beans, rinsed and drained
2 Roma tomatoes, diced
1 can of black olives, sliced
1 cup of shredded cheddar cheese ((I won't tell if you use 2 though))
4 tablespoons of cilantro, chopped
1/3 bottle or so of Hidden Valley Ranch dressing with bacon
1 cup of corn tortilla chips, smashed

What you do:

Throw all of the above in a bowl.  Shake the living hell out of it until it is thoroughly coated.  Hopefully you covered the bowl prior to the shaking.  

Nutritional Info:  Don't tell your trainer you had a salad.  They won't believe you.  Approximately 300 calories and 8 grams of fat for a 1/2 cup serving.

This recipe came out of my own noggin.  You can say you knew me when.

*****

Finally, the gazpacho.  Let me say this.  Gazpacho is not photogenic.  But it is really good and some people might have taken off on a wild hair and started dipping their chips in it.  Just go with it.

WTH is gazpacho, anyway?
Gazpacho is technically a tomato-based vegetable soup which is served cold.  I will confess that I had only maybe had it once before deciding to make it, but it turned out just lovely, if I do say so myself, and I do and I just did.

What you need:

1 cup of tomato juice
2 tablespoons wine vinegar
3 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 medium onion, finely chopped
*Some* black pepper
4 large tomatoes, peeled and chopped
1 large cucumber, finely chopped
2-3 tablespoons green chiles, chopped

What you do:

First, you think, "Huh.  That doesn't seem like it going to be very soup-like with only 1 cup of tomato juice."  Decide to cast that thought aside and have a little faith.

If the idea of peeling tomatoes leaves you cold, you can use a can of stewed tomatoes, if you must.

Basically, again, just throw everything in a large glass bowl, cover, and refrigerate for *at least* one hour, although overnight is better.  You can serve it in cups or bowls lined with lettuce leaves if you want to be fancy, and I'm sure you probably do.

Finally, think, "I guess it turns out to be a lot more than I thought it was going to.  Damn.  I shouldn't have doubted Jules."  Make mental note to send a nice gift of some sort.

This recipe came from a site called vivanewmexico.com and is filed under "caldos."  They claim this serves 10-12.  I'm not so sure about that.  I would say more like 8 with 3/4 cup servings.

Nutritional Info:  Sainthood:  Approximately 70 calories and maybe 1 gram of fat per 3/4 cup serving.  

*****

NONSENSE TIME!  I have a had a busy morning already with work-work and running some errands. This afternoon, I MUST get back on track with the studying for my certification exams.  What certifications you ask?  Oh, since you asked, I'm working on my certification to be a personal trainer and in fitness nutrition.  Once I have completed those, then it is on to the yoga/pilates certification.  The material is MUCH more dense than I had anticipated.  I really kind of thought the test might be how to count to 15 reps.  ((I'm joking, obviously.))  However, in the first ten pages when they started discussing mitochondrial functions in ATP/Creotine metabolism and I read the phrase "endoplasmic reticulum" for the first time in at least 15 years, my head about exploded.

Anyway, I'll be back later with the info on the Mayan Fudge Cupcakes with Cocoa-Cinnamon Buttercream Frosting because that ought to offset all my thinking about clean living.  Balance, friends, balance.  

Sunday, March 11, 2012

Beef Enchiladas, Mean Girls, and More Paula

The beef enchiladas were also a big hit at the event I catered last night.  That sounds so official!  Oh wait.  I feel a tangent coming on...  I cannot even say how much I enjoyed doing this party.  I CANNOT get over the fact that people will pay me to go shopping ((my second favorite thing)) and cook stuff for them ((my favorite thing)) and then tell me how awesome it all is ((ALL RIGHT, yes, that is my overall favorite thing ever.))  What a great country.  However, I have to say, if someone with a crystal ball had told me three years ago that people would pay me to cook for them and I would love it, I would have asked if it was a contest for who can mess up a Lean Cuisine the most impressively.  Seriously.  I was tragic.  <End tangent.>

In trolling the internet for sugar daddies enchilada recipes, I saw two words which made me stop in my tracks.  Paula. Deen.  I simultaneously love her and loathe her.  I find her incredibly annoying, I have strong opinions ((shocking, I know)) on her cooking techniques and her undisclosed for two years diabetes, and yet, I can't quit her.  The original recipe was in her magazine and I have slightly modified it.  

Oh Paula.  
What you need:

2 tablespoons butter ((duh, Paula, duh))
1 large onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 lb super-lean ground beef
1 tablespoon chili powder
1/2 tablespoon crushed red pepper
1 teaspoon kosher salt
2 cans cream of chicken soup
4 roasted and diced green chiles ((or one can))
18 corn tortillas
2 10 ounce cans of red enchilada sauce  ((I used Trader Joe's))
1 16 ounce can of refried beans
4 cups monterey jack cheese, shredded

What to do:

Start by melting the butter in a saute pan, then add the onion and the garlic.   Cook them for about 5 minutes or until the onion is translucent and soft.  Add the beef, chili powder, and crushed red pepper and brown the beef, breaking it up as small as you can as you go.  

Technically, I suppose you should drain the beef at this point, but if you use a super-lean type, it probably won't be necessary.  I just tilted the pan so any fattiness would run to the side and used a baster to get it out.  There was very, very little and I probably didn't need to worry about it.  

Transfer the beef to a large bowl and stir in the two cans of soup and the green chiles.  ((I discussed roasting green chiles in the previous post.  DO IT.  It is so worth it.))  The original recipe called for chicken verde soup, but I couldn't find anything that even remotely resembled that, so I just used cream of chicken.  Cream of mushroom would probably work well and I seriously considered using that nacho cheese soup that I loved when I was about 9 years old.  I'm definitely doing that next time.  This was perfectly good, but why not have more cheese?  ((Says the woman with lactose intolerance.  Brilliant.))  

Spray an 11 x 17 pan with cooking spray and then layer 6 corn tortillas in the bottom.  

In a medium bowl, stir together the refried beans and one can of the enchilada sauce.  

Spread the bean mixture over the tortillas.  Sprinkle on one cup of the cheese.  Add another layer of six tortillas.  Cover that with the beef mixture.   ((Beef mixture sounds gross.  Sorry.))  Cover that with another cup of the cheese and then add another 6 corn tortillas.  Dump the entire remaining can of enchilada sauce on top and then sprinkle on the two remaining cups of cheese.  

Bake it uncovered at 350 for 30 minutes or until it is hot and bubbly.  

Allegedly, you can make this ahead and freeze it too.  

*****

In honor of all things Mean Girls...


I'd be more of a Paula convert if she swore a lot.  

*****

I suspect the sides are coming up next!  Or they may not.  I can't be boxed in.  Not without serious physical injury.  


Green Chile Chicken Enchiladas, Lazy Susans, and Mexican Groceries

What a weekend!  My birthday was fantastic, thanks for asking.  I had a lovely happy hour at Durant's and then ventured on to meet up with a friend in Tempe that may or may not have resulted in us being asked in the kindest and mildest version of Cantonese to "hurry up and get the hell out."  ((At least that's what I got from what the 5'1 man was yelling.  It turns out lazy Susan's in the middle of the table are not there for sport.  Whoops.))  Friday was dedicated to shopping for the event I cooked for on Saturday and doing a few of the make-ahead style dishes prior to venturing out to a concert.  Saturday was sixteen glorious hours on my feet and I loved every minute of it.

The menu ((which I got to plan)) for my lovely friend Kristina's housewarming consisted of charred salsa, tomatillo salsa, guacamole, deviled crab dip ((with one full pound of crab claw)), gazpacho, green chile chicken enchiladas, beef enchiladas, Spanish rice, green chile corn muffins with honey butter, and Mayan fudge cupcakes with chocolate-cinnamon buttercream frosting.  Within two hours, there were nothing but crumbs and empty platters spinning on the counter remaining.  Everything was a big hit.

The enchiladas were undoubtedly the most popular ((although 8 dozen cupcakes disappeared quite handily too.))  I made double batches of both and probably could have made a triple or a quad.  Next time.

Green Chile Sour Cream Chicken Verde Enchiladas and Beef Enchiladas
Let's start with the Green Chile Chicken ones, shall we?  This is from a recipe I found on Allrecipes which is a really solid site.  I modified it very slightly just to be contrary.  I'll give the proportions for a single batch.  I'm sure you are better at doing math to double it than I am.

What you need:

3-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts or rotisserie chicken
1/2 teaspoon of ground cumin
6 tablespoons of fresh cilantro
1 15 oz can of black beans, drained and rinsed
4 green chiles roasted and diced ((or you can use one can if you must))
1 10 oz can of green enchilada sauce
12 6-inch corn tortillas
2 cups of shredded Mexican cheese  ((or more))
1 8 oz container of sour cream

What you do:

Start with the chicken.  You have options.  The best way to do this would be to throw 3-4 chicken breasts in a slow cooker with just a little bit of cumin and maybe a small amount of the enchilada sauce and green chiles for several hours so that you can shred them.  ((Shredding is easy.  Just take 2 forks and start pulling the meat apart.))  The second best way is to put your chicken breasts into a saute pan with a little bit of olive oil and the cumin until they are cooked through.  Remove to a cutting board and slice them into smallish pieces.  ((That's what I did.))   Or you could get a rotisserie chicken from the market and use that.  Whatever floats your boat.  

Whatever you use, once your chicken is cooked and either diced/shredded, move it to a medium bowl and add the cilantro, black beans, and green chiles.   Mix it around to combine. 

((Roasting green chiles is really easy and it smells DIVINE.  I simply throw them on the grill once it is really effing hot.  Let the skins get black and blistery and bubbly on all sides.  Remove them to a plate, throw a dish towel over it, and walk away for ten minutes.  When you come back, the skins will be easy to remove just by pinching them.))  

Take an 11x17 baking dish and spread in about half a can of the enchilada sauce.  ((To pick a good sauce, go to the ethnic foods aisle at the supermarket or to a Mexican grocery store if possible ((much, much easier for those of you in the Southwest)) and pick the can that has the most words in a language you maybe only moderately understand.  That's my strategy and it worked.))   Layer 6 of the corn tortillas over the sauce, overlapping them and attempting to get them up the sides of the dish by "glueing" them with the sauce.  Spoon half of the chicken mixture over the tortillas, then add half the cheese, and half the sour cream.  Dump on the rest of the sauce, add another layer of 6 tortillas and the rest of your chicken mixture.  

Cover with foil and bake at 375 for about 30-40 minutes.  Then remove the foil, add the rest of the cheese and dot sour cream all over the top and bake uncovered for an additional 10 minutes until the cheese is bubbly and the sour cream is melty.  Let it stand for 10 minutes prior to serving and garnish with more fresh cilantro.  

  
Nutritional info:  ((assuming this is 8 servings))  Time for the elliptical.  Approximately 375 calories and 24 grams of fat.  It could certainly be reduced by using fat free cheese and fat free sour cream although that just doesn't sound as fun.

*****

I'll be back after bit with the info for the beef enchiladas and maybe a few other items.  As always, thanks for reading along and sharing.