Chicken Enchiladas Suizas

These enchiladas are the BEST!  My sister made them for me and Paul the first time she came to visit us in Auburn and I absolutely fell in love.  Since then, it has become my go-to dish to make when we have company.  The recipe comes from a cookbook called Colorado Collage which is from the Junior League of Denver.

Chicken Enchiladas Suizas
(8 servings)


6       boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (about 1.5 lbs total)
1       tablespoon butter
1       cup chopped onion
1       green bell pepper, cored, seeded, and chopped
1       red bell pepper, cored, seeded, and chopped
8       ounces grated cheddar cheese
1       4-ounce can diced green chiles
1       cup purchased green chile salsa
1/2    cup chopped fresh cilantro
4       teaspoons cumin
2-3    canned chipotle chiles in adobo sauce ( I usually don't put these in because I don't like the flavor)
         salt and freshly ground black pepper
12-15   7-inch flour tortillas 
10     ounces Monterey Jack cheese, grated
1       cup whipping cream
1/2    cup chicken broth
         Garnish: 

         chopped avocado
         chopped tomato
         chopped fresh cilantro


Place chicken in pan of rapidly boiling water to cover, and simmer 15-20 minutes.  Remove from heat, drain, cool, and shred chicken.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  In a medium skillet, melt butter over medium heat.  Cook onion and bell peppers until just soft, 5-8 minutes.  Transfer to large bowl.  Add chicken, cheddar cheese, green chiles, salsa, cilantro, cumin, and chipotle chiles, if desired.  Season with salt and pepper to taste and mix well.


Grease 10x15x2-inch baking pan or 2 smaller pans.  Place one flour tortilla on flat surface and place about 1/3 cup chicken mixture along 1 edge.  Roll up from filling side, and place, seam side down, in prepared pan.  Repeat process with remaining chicken mixture.  Sprinkle Monterey Jack over enchiladas.  (May be prepared to this point up to 1 day in advance.  Cover and chill.)


Combine cream and chicken broth and pour over enchiladas.  Cover pan with foil and bake 30 minutes.  Remove foil and continue baking 10 minutes or until thoroughly heated.  Place 1 or 2 enchiladas on individual serving plates and garnish with avocado, tomato, and additional cilantro, if desired.


Enjoy!

Feeding the Team

Last week we had Paul's players over for dinner.  When discussing what to serve, Paul requested that I make Chicken Enchiladas Suizas.  I happily obliged, as I've made these enchiladas for guests in the past and they're always a hit.

But then I started thinking about how many enchiladas I would need to make.  We had 20 people coming over, so I figured 2 enchiladas per person.  That would be 40 enchiladas total.  That's a lot of enchiladas.  Or, at least I thought that was a lot, until Paul reminded me that these were not normal people coming over for dinner, they're college football players.  College football players who rarely get home-cooked meals and who would be coming straight from a long day of practice.  He suggested that I plan for 4 per person.  I quickly did the math...

20x4=

80


Um, 80?   yikes!

I was terrified a little nervous.  I mean, I consider myself to be a fairly good cook, but making that much food is just intimidating.  Especially since I only have one oven.  But, I am happy to report that after 2 straight days of cooking, the whole dinner went off without a hitch!

Here's the full menu:

Chicken Enchiladas Suizas
Green Salad with Beans, Corn, Tortilla Strips and Spicy Ranch Dressing
Tortilla Chips with Salsa, Guacamole and Queso
Monster Cookies

Unfortunately, I don't have a ton of pictures because I was too busy running around, but here are a few that I did snap...

At exactly 7:30 pm, a herd of defensive linemen busted through my front door and headed straight for the kitchen.  Thank heavens the food was ready or we would have been in a world of trouble!

I had so much fun meeting all of these guys!  I've been hearing about them for 6 months now, so it was nice to finally put faces with names.  They were all so polite and sweet.  One guy even told me that I needed to stop by the school and teach the people that work in the cafeteria how to cook :)  Love!

These guys really are Paul's world right now.  He spends so much time with them and sincerely cares about each and every guy.  It made me happy to see what a great group of guys he's working with!  I can't wait to cheer them on this season :)

Happy First Day of Football!

Fall practice camp started for the Thunderwolves today, which means football season has officially arrived.  I celebrated the occasion by bringing these red and blue treats to Paul's office this evening :)

As I've mentioned before, this time of year is always a little bittersweet for me.  While I love football season, it also signals the end of summer which makes me sad. 

This year will be interesting because we're at a new school in a new town and I can't wait to see what game day is like down here.  It will definitely be different as this is Paul's first year coaching at the Division II level rather than Division I.  I think one of the biggest challenges for me will be getting used to the fact that there is no instant replay during the games haha!  Oh man, I'm really gonna have to pay close attention.  I'll have to limit myself to three beers before games instead of my usual four.

I can tell you that I've been to games all over the country, from the SEC to the Big 12, high school to NFL, and everything in between, and one thing I know for sure is if it involves football, it's a good time!

This year I'm looking forward to...

* Watching my first game in the Thunderbowl.  It's a red-out and they're going to have fireworks.  I LOVE fireworks.

* Tailgating-always a favorite of mine.

* Cooking dinner for the D-line and really getting to know all of Paul's players.

* Watching College Game Day on Saturday mornings.  There's really nothing better.

* Friends and family coming to visit on home game weekends.

* Traveling to some road games.

* Hopefully winning the RMAC.

Tell me, what are you looking forward to this football season?  Do you have a go-to tailgating recipe?  Where do you like to shop for game day attire?