We made it folks! It is finally Friday Eve! As I mentioned in my last post, this week has just been dragging on and on for me. So, I am sure it comes as no surprise that I am extra excited for the end of the work week to be here. Do you know what else I am excited about? This recipe!
I absolutely adore Mexican food, and one of my favorite Mexican entrees is cheese enchiladas. However, enchiladas smothered in cheese don’t exactly make for the healthiest of meals (but trust me, they must be eaten from time to time! ;)). In an effort to satisfy my enchilada craving, I decided to attempt a healthy vegan version of one of my favorite dishes. I combined several healthy, delicious, and simple ingredients, and here is what I came up with:
Lentil and Vegetable Enchiladas
Servings: Makes 2 enchiladas
Ingredients
olive oil cooking spray.
1/4 cup dry lentils + water for cooking
water, for cooking
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 yellow onion, diced
8 oz sliced baby bella mushrooms
2 TB diced green chilies (I used canned chilies)
2 cups fresh spinach, roughly chopped
1/4 cup + 1/2 cup enchilada sauce*
2 tortillas
nutritional yeast, optional
*I used this enchilada sauce as I preferred the ingredients list over most of the canned varieties. It is super tasty, too!
Directions
1. Cook lentils according to package directions.
2. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Spray a small baking dish with olive oil cooking spray. Set aside.
3. Line a medium skillet with a thin layer of water. Heat over medium-high heat until very hot. Once hot, lower the heat to medium and add garlic, onions, and mushrooms. Cook for approximately 10 minutes, or until softened. Add additional water, as needed.
4. Lower the heat to medium-low. Stir in green chilies and spinach. Cook an additional 3 minutes, or until the spinach has wilted.
5. Stir in lentils and 1/4 cup of the enchilada sauce. Cook for approximately 3 to 5 minutes, or until all of the ingredients are warm.
6. Fill each tortilla with half of the lentil and vegetable mixture and roll into the shape of an enchilada. Place the enchiladas seam-side down into the baking dish. Top the enchiladas with 1/2 cup of the enchilada sauce.
7. Bake the enchiladas for approximately 15 minutes, or until they begin to get crispy.
I served my enchiladas with a garnish of lettuce and tomatoes, and topped them with nutritional yeast for some cheesy flavor.
Not only was I pleased with the outer appearance of the enchiladas, but when I cut into them I was beyond excited to dig right in. These enchiladas looked and smelled great, and the taste was even better!
Make these enchiladas and then please try to tell me that vegan food is not absolutely delicious ;). I did not miss the meat or cheese one bit!
Have a fabulous Friday and a wonderful weekend!
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Oh, these sound really good! I have been loving lentils recently. I hadn’t cooked with them much before making my stuffed peppers but now they are becoming one of my favorite proteins.
Lentils are one of my favorite foods to use as a substitute in recipes that normally call for meat!
Oh em gee, I would definitely want to dig right in too!!! They sound absolutely delicious, love enchilladas!!
Thank you!! Enchiladas are amazing :).
I can’t get enough enchiladas in my life, and these sound fabulous!
I can’t get enough of Mexican food..period, haha.
Mmm, these look so good! I love that they are vegan and full of veggies!
I try to sneak lots of veggies into pretty much everything that I can! 😉
These sound so good. I LOVE mexican food too. I have an uncle who hates it, so I refuse to take his advice on anything — clearly he can’t be trusted.
Haha! Yes, clearly! Not liking Mexican food seems unreal!
I almost bought that sauce the other day! Now I really want to try it!
Oh, you definitely should! It was really great!
Interesting! I often make black bean enchiladas but have never tried lentils.
I love black beans in enchiladas, too, but I wanted something different. These turned out really great!
I love enchiladas, but haven’t made them in forever! I think I will put them on the dinner plan for next week 🙂
I think that you definitely should! You cannot go too long without them! 😉
Now this is an enchilada recipe I can get behind! I LOVE lentils, and someone just informed me that he “doesn’t mind them every now and then” which means he’s getting bombarded with them soon 😀
Haha, that is SO awesome. He is going to learn to LOVE them!! 🙂
Oh. My. Yum. Enchiladas are literally my favorite Mexican food ever (with extra cheese and sauce). YUMMMMMMMMM!
They are my favorite Mexican dish, too! I don’t know how they are SO good, but they are!
Enchiladas are so easy and so versatile. They are a meal we make often at our house. I switch up the beans and veggies so we don’t get bored.
Awesome idea! It is amazing the different combos that you can come up with. Gotta keep it interesting, right?
If I had to choose one style of food to eat for the rest of my life, it would be Mexican. I just can’t get enough. These enchiladas look amazing!
Mexican food is SO good. It would probably be a tie for me between Indian food and Mexican food.
I’ve been on such a huge mexican food fix. I need to make these!!!
Yes, you do!! Please let me know if you try them :).
Have you tried using cashew nuts for cheese? I tried it at a vegan Mexican restaurant and it was awesome.
I have not (surprisingly), but I REALLY want to! I will have to do that soon.
I agree that well-made vegan enchiladas can be just as delicious (if not more) than the non-vegan varieties! 🙂 I’ll have to look for that enchilada sauce. I’ve never seen it before!
They are so good! And yes, you should definitely check out that sauce. I really enjoyed it a lot more than canned versions.
i love anything everything with Mexican flair in it. I will have to try these vegan one soon
Please let me know if you give them a try!
Mmmm, my belly doesn’t like lentils, but it looooves enchiladas!
What a bummer that it doesn’t like lentils :(. I am sure that you could make some delicious ones using beans or something else that you body likes! 😉
THANK YOU for making a recipe that makes only 2 enchiladas!! Whenever I make Mexican I feel like I am eating it for weeks on end. You’re the best 🙂
Haha, I SO agree!! I often feeling lazy trying to “convert” recipes into single servings. So I made sure to make this recipe just one serving!
I love Mexican food but is it crazy that I have never had an enchilada before? Seriously. I know. Don’t yell at me 🙁 This looks awesome!
REALLY?? I so want to yell at you right now! Haha, jk! 😉 But in all seriousness…you need to make some!
I’ve never made enchiladas before! This looks like a great first recipe for them!
Oh, you definitely should make them! They are super easy :).
I love health-ifiend Mexican food! It is my favorite cuisine. Next to Indian. 🙂
We should probably go out to eat together because Indian and Mexican are my two favorite cuisines!
I love Mexican food, too! These look really good. I’m glad I’m not the only one feels like this week dragged on forever!! TGIF 🙂
Thank goodness for the weekend! 🙂
Holy yum. They look delicious! I’ve been wanting to incorporate more lentils into my diet 🙂
xo.
I LOVE lentils. This would be the perfect way to get more in!
These look absolutely amazing! Might just beat the 2 cheese enchiladas I had at amigos last Friday night;)
Hah, yeah right!!
You already know this, but I LOVE the Frontera sauces! The chicken taco sauce is amazing as well; I bet it would be fantastic mixed into tofu, or even on veggies. 🙂
These enchiladas look absolutely wonderful! I’d probably sub cheese for the lentils since I adore cheese in enchiladas (and my tummy doesn’t love legumes), but that’s a super easy swap! Thanks for sharing! Mexican cravings are in full force now! <3 xoxo
Yes, cheese can be a must sometimes, huh?? What a bummer that your tummy doesn’t like legumes :(.
You’ve now made me crave mexican for dinner 🙂
Well I hope you get some!!
Good thing I just ordered lentils for the first time in my next vitacost order =)
p.s. I need a good tofu recipe. Any ideas??
Yay for lentils!!
Here are a few of my favorite tofu recipes:
http://cleaneatingveggiegirl.com/2013/03/10/bbq-pulled-tofu-sandwich-with-spicy-sriracha-coleslaw/
http://cleaneatingveggiegirl.com/2013/02/07/bourbon-tofu-and-vegetables-over-whole-brown-rice/
http://cleaneatingveggiegirl.com/2013/02/18/tofu-breakfast-scramble/
I love finding new veggie-full ways to make enchiladas. How have I never thought to throw lentils into the mix before?! So good.
I was definitely LOVING the lentils in these. I will be adding them to my enchiladas from now on!
yum yum yum! I haven’t had lentils forever. Thanks for the reminder, these look fantastic!
Oh, well you must have them again ASAP. They are too good to not eat for long periods of time ;).
These look SOOOO good. Like, my mouth is watering right now! haha
Haha, thank you! Please let me know if you try them :).
i adore mexican food too. really i could everday…i am sure of it. i haven’t had enchi’s with lentils before and boy i’ve been missing out. thanks for sharing!
You are welcome!! 🙂 And yes, Mexican food could definitely be a daily occurrence for me too!
Girl every single recipe I make of yours is delicious. I wish I would have commented on all the others I have tried. Just made these and they are getting filed under my favorite recipes in my cooking binder 🙂 thanks again!
That is so great to hear! I am glad that you enjoyed them! 🙂