Mexican Archives - The Food Charlatan

These Sweet Potato and Black Bean Enchiladas are the perfect weeknight casserole for the changing fall weather! They are hearty yet vegetarian, and full of tons of flavor without being overly spicy. Your family will love it!

Eric and I have this tradition where whenever one of us sees an incredible sunset, we text/call/holler to the other person, “Sunset alert!” That way we can both enjoy a pretty sunset, even if we’re in different places. The other night we’re sitting together in the living room and he calls out, Sunset alert! I’m a little confused because it’s completely dark outside. Then I realize he’s talking about the sunset that Link is viewing on Zelda (a video game). Are.you.kidding.me.

We are still in Richmond, Virginia this week visiting my brother Nathan. (The kids are at home with GG and Grandpa! Lucky kids! Lucky us!) Richmond is a SUPER cool city, have you been? Totally worth a trip.

Today we ate at this amazing restaurant called Mama J’s. Best fried chicken in Richmond, according to Nathan and half the town apparently. (It was totally delicious.) Anyway they had a Candied Sweet Potatoes side dish that was supposed to be one of the best items on the menu, so we ordered it. It really was so good.

Sometimes I try to finagle recipes out of restaurant cooks. It rarely works for me. In fact, it never does. I hear about other people getting recipes from restaurants but I literally have had zero luck with it. Have you ever asked? I don’t even mention the blog (I would if they gave me the recipe, just for full disclosure) but man! I guess I need to learn how to schmooze better.

I asked the waitress about Mama J’s Sweet Potatoes, and she told me that it’s a secret recipe. But I took notes and am going to try to recreate it in time for Thanksgiving, because it was worth the hype. It was very simple, the sweet potatoes really had a chance to shine.

These sweet potato enchiladas are not from a restaurant, but guys they are amazing! Sweet potatoes and black beans go together like salt and pepper. I smothered them with the Killer Red Enchilada Sauce That’s Done in 10 Minutes, which is a slightly smokey sauce with tons of flavor. If you are short on time, you can totally use a 28 ounce can. But if you have an extra 10 minutes, make your own sauce. It’s worth it.

I’m no vegetarian, but these enchiladas leave me feeling totally satisfied. I’m not going to lie, some vegetarian dishes I have (particularly in restaurants), I finish it and I’m like, okay where’s the rest of my food. (Sorry, vegetarians :) But not these babies. These enchiladas are completely stuffed and hearty, and you won’t miss the meat at all. It’s a good option for Meatless Monday, I’m trying to do at least 1 or 2 meatless meals every week lately. It’s cheaper and there are so many good options these days. (The access to produce we have is amazing, right??) Enjoy the enchiladas, let me know if you try them out!

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Sweet Potato and Black Bean Enchiladas

Serves 8-10 adjust servings

Ingredients

1 tablespoon olive oil
2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and chopped
1 teaspoon salt
1 large red bell pepper
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon oregano
1 can of black beans, don't drain it
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups spinach, chopped
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped (optional)
1 recipe for homemade red enchilada sauce*
10 flour tortillas
2-3 cups shredded mozzarella**
chopped cilantro, to garnish
chopped white onions, to garnish

Instructions

In a wide skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat.
Peel the sweet potatoes and chop them into 1/2 inch cubes. Try to make them somewhat uniform so that they cook evenly.
When the oil shimmers, add the sweet potatoes to the pan and cook for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Season with 1 teaspoon salt.
Add the chopped bell pepper and garlic.
Add the onion powder, cumin, and oregano.
Saute for another 8-10 minutes, until the sweet potatoes and bell peppers are tender.
Add 1 can of black beans, undrained.
Season with 1/2 teaspoon pepper and 1/2 teaspoon salt.
Add chopped spinach. You don't have to chop it if you don't want to, I just don't like big gloops of spinach in my enchiladas.
Add 1/4 cup cilantro. Of course the cilantro is optional for all you haters out there.
Add about 3 tablespoons of the enchilada sauce. You don't have to measure it, just eyeball it. We want to keep the filling nice and moist and get some more flavor in there.
Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F. Grease a 9x13 inch pan with nonstick spray.
Add a few tablespoons of filling down the center of 1 tortilla. Top with 1-2 tablespoons shredded cheese. Roll it up tightly and place it snugly on the edge of the pan.
Continue with the rest of the tortillas. I misjudged and put 8 enchiladas in a 11x8 inch pan, so your arrangement might not look as tight as the photos. I used 10 tortillas total, (8 in 1 smaller pan). If you use a 9x13 they will fit just fine.
Top the enchiladas with the enchilada sauce. Move the tortillas around a little bit so the sauce gets in between the enchiladas. I like to leave the edges of the enchiladas sauce-free so that they get a little crispy in the oven. I'm sure that's not authentic at all, but neither are sweet potatoes and black beans in enchiladas, so I'm rolling with it.
Top the enchiladas with remaining cheese. How much you put on is really up to you!
Bake the enchiladas at 375 for about 20-30 minutes. Take them out when the cheese is melted and the sauce looks a little bubbly. The edges of the tortillas will crisp up if you leave them in closer to 30 minutes. Keep an eye on it and take it out when it looks good to you!
Let the enchiladas cool down for about 5 minutes, then sprinkle a copious amount of cilantro (copious! Copious I say!) and white onions down the middle. Don't skip this step unless you are a true cilantro hater! That fresh garnish really does make a huge difference.
I would serve this with Tejano beans, or maybe this Spanish Cauliflower Rice if you are trying to low-carb it.

by The Food Charlatan

Recipe Notes

*The recipe that I just posted for homemade red enchilada sauce makes about 2 and 3/4 cup sauce, which is 22 ounces. A large can of enchilada sauce is usually about 28 ounces. So 1 (28 ounce) can will work great. You can leave out some of the canned sauce if it looks excessive. NOTE for vegetarians: swap out the chicken broth called for in the sauce for vegetable broth!

**You can also use Monterey Jack or a Mexican blend.

All images and text © The Food Charlatan