Black Bean Enchiladas
with Green Romesco and Cucumber Salsa Fresca
If you’ve ever had or heard of romesco before, you might be surprised by this green twist. It’s a traditional Spanish sauce normally made from nuts and red peppers. For our Mexican twist we went with charred poblanos and serrano, which, combined with the cooling cucumber salsa, give these enchiladas a spicy and refreshing spin. If you don’t do well with heat, you can always leave the serrano out of your sauce!
INGREDIENTS
- 2 poblano peppers
- 1 serrano pepper
- 2 garlic cloves
- 2 tbsp sliced almonds
- 3 oz baby spinach
- 1 pack black beans
- 0.25 oz fresh cilantro
- 1 ½ tsp sherry vinegar
- 1 lime
- 6 corn tortillas
- 3 oz roasted red pepper
- 1 Persian cucumber
- 2 tsp vegetable oil*
- 2 tbsp olive oil*
- Salt and pepper*
- *Not included
INSTRUCTIONS
Rinse, destem, and de-seed poblanos and serrano. Roughly chop. Heat 2 tsp vegetable oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Slice garlic into 3 pieces each. Add garlic and peppers to skillet and let char, turning occasionally, 5 to 6 minutes. Cover with a lid, reduce heat to low, and let cook until softened and well charred, 4 to 6 minutes. Remove lid, add almonds, and toast for 1 to 2 minutes.
Transfer the charred pepper mixture to a blender and let cool slightly. Add half of the spinach to the blender. Return the skillet to the stove over medium-high heat. Drain and rinse the black beans and add to the skillet. Season with salt and pepper and cook until warm, about 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in the remaining spinach and remove from heat.
Preheat your oven to 400°F. Rinse and halve the lime. To the blender with the spinach and peppers, add the juice from half of the lime, half of the cilantro (stems are ok), the sherry vinegar, and 1 tbsp olive oil. Blend on high until smooth, adding water by the tablespoon as necessary to create a pourable sauce. Season the romesco sauce with salt.
Spread ¼ cup of the romesco on the bottom of your baking pan. On a cutting board, lay out the corn tortillas and divide the black bean and spinach filling between them. Roll each tortilla up, and place seam side down in the baking dish. Top the enchiladas with half of the remaining romesco (reserve the rest for later), and cover with foil. Bake enchiladas for 15 minutes.
Finely chop the roasted red peppers. Place in a medium bowl. Rinse, dry, and finely chop the cucumber. Add to the bowl. Rinse and dry the remaining cilantro leaves (discard stems). Add to the bowl. Cut the remaining half lime into 3 wedges and squeeze one of the wedges into the salsa (reserving other two for garnish). Add 1 tbsp olive oil and a pinch of salt and pepper to bowl. Stir to combine.
Smother the enchiladas with the remaining green romesco sauce and divide between your plates. Top with the cucumber salsa fresca and serve with the lime wedges as garnish. Enjoy!
SIMILAR RECIPES
Roasted Red Pepper And Spinach Quesadilla with Refried Red Lentils & Lime Crema
Red & Green Quesadillas with Refried Lentils & Lime Crema
Corn & Poblano Quesadillas with Black Beans & Peppadew Salsa
