Time-Crunch Chicken-Hatch Chile Enchiladas...Featuring a Frieda's Speciality Produce Giveaway!

One of the food companies that I partner with on an ongoing basis is California-based Frieda's Specialty Produce. They send me all sorts of in-season produce to play around with in my kitchen and share with you. I'm wrapping up 's Third Blog Anniversary celebration with a spicy bang...and a fabulous giveaway, both courtesy of my friends at Frieda's! Frieda's recently sent me a package of New Mexico Hatch chiles to experiment with in my kitchen. If you've never tasted these seasonal chiles before, now is the perfect time to find them in your local farmers market or grocery store. They're only available in August and September, so you'll have to act fast unless you want to wait until next year.

Hatch chiles are long, slender green peppers that range from mild to quite spicy. They are grown exclusively in the Mesilla Valley just outside of Hatch, New Mexico, and they're ideal for roasting. It's very simple to do, and the roasted peppers can be used in all sorts of Mexican and Tex-Mex dishes. I wanted to make a quick weeknight version of chicken enchiladas featuring spicy roasted Hatch chiles. What I came up with are my Time-Crunch Chicken-Hatch Chile Enchiladas. By using convenience products like deli roasted chicken and pre-made pico de gallo, I had these enchiladas on the table in less than an hour...and that included roasting and chopping the Hatch chile!

If you've never roasted Hatch chiles, it's really easy! I simply rub the outside of each chile with a bit olive oil and sear it on all sides in a skillet over med-high heat. It takes about 10 minutes to cook the chiles until blistered on all sides. Then, you pop the chiles into a zip bag to steam while you prep the rest of the filling. The steamed chiles are skinned and chopped just before being added to the filling.

Time-Crunch Chicken-Hatch Chile Enchiladas

a Weekend Gourmet Original

Ingredients:

• 6 flour tortillas
• 1 cup shredded co-jack cheese
• 1 cup green chile enchilada sauce [I used Frontera Green Chile Enchilada sauce in a pouch]
• 2/3 cup prepared pico de gallo
• Enchilada filling:
• 3 cups shredded roasted chicken, preferably a mixture of white and dark meat
• 1 cup shredded co-jack cheese
• 1/3 cup prepared pico de gallo
• 1/2 cup additional green chile enchilada sauce 
• 1/2 cup Philadelphia Santa Fe Cooking Cream [If you can't locate, use whipped cream cheese instead.]
• 1 roasted, chopped Hatch green chile

Directions:

1. Place a non-stick skillet over med-high heat. Rub the Hatch chile with olive oil and place in the pan; cook until seared and blistered on all sides. This takes about 10 minutes. Place the chile in a plastic zip bag and seal; let steam while you assemble the rest of the enchilada filling.
2. Add the enchilada filling ingredients to a mixing bowl, up to the roasted Hatch chile. Remove the chile from the zip bag, peel off the skin, remove the stem and sees, and chop. Add the chile to the bowl and stir to combine the ingredients.
3. Preheat oven to 375. Place approximately 1/2 cup of the enchilada filling into each flour tortilla. Roll the tortilla snugly and place seam-side down into an 8x8 pan sprayed with non-stick spray. 
4. Pour the 1 cup of enchilada sauce on top of the enchiladas and sprinkle the cheese on top. Bake until the cheese is melted and the filling is bubbly, about 15 minutes. For even cooking, turn the pan around halfway through baking. 
5. To serve, use a spatula to place two enchiladas on each plate. Spoon the rest of the pico de gallo over the top. These enchiladas are filling on their own, but Mexican rice or borracho beans would be good partners.

These enchiladas are a snap to make, and they taste great! The inside is creamy, with a nice amount of heat from the Hatch chiles. They have cheese inside and out, making them gooey and rich. Because they're made with flour tortillas in place of the more traditional corn tortillas, they're more filling. 

To help celebrate my third anniversary of blogging, Frieda's sent me a very cool gift box of items that I hand-selected from their large catalog. It included ready-to-use crepes, vanilla beans, dried mild New Mexico chiles, sweet Maui onions, pomegranates, Key limes and purple potatoes. I've had a great time cooking with these ingredients this month...and one of you is going to receive the very same Weekend Gourmet signature box from Frieda's too!!

To enter the contest, follow the instructions in the Rafflecopter below. I will accept entries though Labor Day, and the winner will be selected and notified via e-mail next Tuesday. This box includes my very favorite Frieda's items, and I'm so excited that Frieda's partnered with me to give one of you a gift box as well. I can't think of a better way to wrap up this month's celebration!!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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