Easy Black Bean Sweet Potato Enchiladas Recipe (Creamy)

• Food: Sweet Potato Enchiladas
• Writer: Lizzie Green
• Content-Type: Food Blog

Quick! I’m sharing these enchiladas with you as a post-Thanksgiving meal proposal for this weekend (don’t forget, I have plenty more vegetarian Thanksgiving options here).

The enchiladas are loaded with sweet potato that is creamy and hearty, as well as black beans, feta cheese, and seasonings.

Simply buy some mild salsa verde from the grocery to make the sauce. You can also make your own if you want to go the additional mile.

Most restaurant enchiladas leave me with a bloated stomach, but not these. They’re tasty and filling, and the leftovers are even better the next day.

These enchiladas are for you if you want to create a vegetarian supper and hear, “I don’t even miss the meat.”

These enchiladas taught me some valuable cooking lessons back then, and I’ve included my notes below.

Lessons learned to include:

• Substitutions are acceptable: I used Target’s salsa verde instead of Karina’s green chile sauce, and it was fine.
• It’s typically not a good idea to skip steps: I didn’t follow her advice to warm up the corn tortillas first, and they shattered when I tried to wrap them over the interior components. My enchiladas weren’t as attractive as they may have been as a result, but the flavor was unaffected. I have to trust that my fellow cooks would not suggest more procedures unless they are really necessary for the dish’s success!
• Additions are acceptable: I like spicy food, so I felt a jalapeno would be a nice addition. That was the case.
• Pay a premium for premium ingredients: Preservatives and superfluous additives are common in packaged bread, especially tortillas. At my local health food store, I paid more for these sprouted grain corn tortillas, and they taste better than the rest!
• Some flavors go together so well that you can’t go wrong: black beans and sweet potatoes are one of them. Despite all of my errors, I managed to prepare a lovely supper.
• Enchiladas are a type of Mexican dish that can be made in a variety of ways.

Enchiladas with Black Beans and Sweet Potatoes for Vegetarians

Enchiladas with black beans and sweet potatoes, slathered in salsa verde. A robust vegetarian entrée that is delicious and filling. This recipe makes 10 enchiladas, which serve around 5 people.

INGREDIENTS

Filling

• 1 ¼ pounds sweet potatoes (2 small-to-medium)
• 1 can (15 ounces) of black beans, rinsed and drained, or 1 ½ cups of cooked black beans
• 4 ounces (1 cup) grated Monterey Jack cheese
• 2 ounces (½ cup) crumbled feta cheese
• 2 small cans (4 ounces each) of diced green chiles
• 1 medium jalapeño, seeded and minced
• 2 cloves garlic, pressed or minced
• 2 tablespoons lime juice
• ½ teaspoon ground cumin
• ½ teaspoon chili powder
• ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)
• ¼ teaspoon salt, more to taste
• Freshly ground black pepper

Remaining Ingredients

• 2 cups (16 ounces) mild salsa verde, either homemade or store-bought
• 10 corn tortillas
• 4 ounces (1 cup) grated Monterey Jack cheese
• 2 tablespoons sour cream
• 1 tablespoon water
• ¼ cup chopped red onion
• ¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat the oven to 400°F and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper to make cleanup easier.
2. Cut the sweet potatoes lengthwise in half and lightly brush the flat sides with olive oil. Place the sweet potatoes on the baking sheet flat-side down. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until they’re soft and cooked through. Keep the oven on since the assembled enchiladas will be baked soon (no temperature adjustments necessary).
3. Meanwhile, pour enough salsa verde to lightly cover the bottom of a 9 by 13-inch baking dish (approximately 1/2 cup). Combine the remaining filling ingredients in a medium mixing basin.
4. Scoop out the insides of the sweet potatoes with a spoon once they are cooked through and cool enough to handle. Using a fork or the back of a spoon, lightly mash the sweet potatoes, discarding the potato skins.
5. Add the mashed sweet potato to the filled bowl and season with salt and pepper to taste (I used 14 tsp).
6. Warm your tortillas in a skillet one at a time or in the microwave all at once so they don’t break when you bend them. To keep them warm, wrap them in a clean tea towel.
7. Working with one tortilla at a time, put approximately 1/2 cup of filling along the center, then wrap both sides around the filling and set in the baking dish. Rep with the remaining tortillas.
8. Add the remaining salsa verde and cheese over top. Bake for 25 to 35 minutes, or until the cheese is gently browned and the sauce is bubbling.
9. Allow 5 minutes for the enchiladas to cool. To produce a drizzling sour cream sauce, whisk together the sour cream and water. Drizzle it over the enchiladas in a circular motion, then garnish it with cilantro and red onion. Serve.

NOTES

• USE CERTIFIED GLUTEN-FREE CORN TORTILLAS TO MAKE IT GLUTEN-FREE.
• TO MAKE IT DAIRY-FREE/VEGAN: Remove the cheese from the recipe. Stir a scant 1 cup of vegan sour cream into the filling, reserving a few tablespoons for drizzling on top. Once baked, thin the vegan sour cream with a little extra water to make it extra drizzly, and drizzle it on top as shown.