I don't believe any cheese enchiladas that I have ever ordered and eaten at a Mexican food restaurant rises to the taste level of our very own enchiladas. This is a recipe handed down from my grandma.
I watched her put the ingredients together many times as a girl, and now my daughter and her son Kory make it, too. The recipe has passed down now, to four generations. Probably more.The best really does come from the legacy of tried and true.
Grandma's Legacy Cheese Enchilada Recipe
Ingredients:
3 cans Las Palmas Mild Enchilada Sauce
1 can tomato sauce
1/3 cup sifted flour
1/4 cup brown sugar or maple syrup
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
3 lbs grated cheddar cheese
3/4 of small can chopped black olives
3/4 medium onion, chopped
1 small can Crisco
24 corn tortillas
1 can whole black pitted olives
1 large carton Daisy sour cream
Sauce:
Add the enchilada sauce to a large pot and slowly heat. I use a deep stock pot because the red sauce splashes, and the deepness of the pot keeps the splatter to a minimum. Put the tomato sauce in jar with a lid and add the flour. Shake until thoroughly mixed. Strain into a bowl to remove any flour globs floating in the tomato sauce. Add the sugar, syrup, salt and peppers to the bowl. Stir well, and add to the enchilada sauce pot. Bring to slight boil, stir well. When the sauce thickens, turn down the heat and simmer taking care not to burn the sauce.
If the sauce doesn't thicken to a gravy-like consistency, add some water to a jar with more flour. Shake, strain, and slowly add to pot until the sauce thickens a bit more. The flour is the secret to getting the sauce to "stick" or bind to the tortillas enough to flavor the enchiladas properly for this recipe.
Filling:
In a large bowl, add 3/4 of the grated cheese, reserving the remaining amount to use as a topping. To the bowl, add the finely chopped onion and the chopped black olives. Fold ingredients to mix, but be careful not to turn mixture into mush.
Tortillas:
In a small frying pan which should be a tad bigger than a corn tortilla, add a couple of big scoops of Crisco to the pan. Heat to reduce Crisco to hot oil. The oil should fill about half of the frying pan when heated.
Add one tortilla at a time to the hot oil for 4 to 5 seconds, and turn tortilla over. Remove from oil and rest on paper towels. Blot top of resting tortilla with paper towel. Repeat until all 24 tortillas are bathed in the oil. Tortillas will be soft and pliable.
Add 3 to 4 ladles of the red sauce to a pie plate. Take one tortilla and bathe it in the red sauce. Lay a healthy scoop of the cheese filling mixture in a row down the center of the tortilla, and roll tortilla over. Do not skimp. The cheese melts and it will not be hearty enough if you skimp on filling.
Place on cookie sheet. Repeat until all 24 tortillas are assembled.
With a small spoon or ladle
, gently pour a spoonful or two of red sauce over each rolled enchilada to coat completely. Do now drown the enchiladas. Cover each rolled enchilada with grated cheese, keeping the separation of each rolled enchilada easy to see.
Add two whole black olives between each enchilada on cookie sheet. One mid way toward the top and one mid way at the bottom in the space between enchiladas. Optionally, add the olives to the top of each rolled enchilada.
One cookie sheet holds about a dozen, so you may need another cookie sheet or baking dish for remaining.
Serve:
Serve cheese enchiladas with Spanish rice, refried beans, and sour cream to garnish as desired.
It's best to make a day ahead. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.
Ingredients:
3 cans Las Palmas Mild Enchilada Sauce
1 can tomato sauce
1/3 cup sifted flour
1/4 cup brown sugar or maple syrup
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
3 lbs grated cheddar cheese
3/4 of small can chopped black olives
3/4 medium onion, chopped
1 small can Crisco
24 corn tortillas
1 can whole black pitted olives
1 large carton Daisy sour cream
Sauce:
Add the enchilada sauce to a large pot and slowly heat. I use a deep stock pot because the red sauce splashes, and the deepness of the pot keeps the splatter to a minimum. Put the tomato sauce in jar with a lid and add the flour. Shake until thoroughly mixed. Strain into a bowl to remove any flour globs floating in the tomato sauce. Add the sugar, syrup, salt and peppers to the bowl. Stir well, and add to the enchilada sauce pot. Bring to slight boil, stir well. When the sauce thickens, turn down the heat and simmer taking care not to burn the sauce. If the sauce doesn't thicken to a gravy-like consistency, add some water to a jar with more flour. Shake, strain, and slowly add to pot until the sauce thickens a bit more. The flour is the secret to getting the sauce to "stick" or bind to the tortillas enough to flavor the enchiladas properly for this recipe.
Filling:
In a large bowl, add 3/4 of the grated cheese, reserving the remaining amount to use as a topping. To the bowl, add the finely chopped onion and the chopped black olives. Fold ingredients to mix, but be careful not to turn mixture into mush. Tortillas:
In a small frying pan which should be a tad bigger than a corn tortilla, add a couple of big scoops of Crisco to the pan. Heat to reduce Crisco to hot oil. The oil should fill about half of the frying pan when heated. Add one tortilla at a time to the hot oil for 4 to 5 seconds, and turn tortilla over. Remove from oil and rest on paper towels. Blot top of resting tortilla with paper towel. Repeat until all 24 tortillas are bathed in the oil. Tortillas will be soft and pliable.
Assembly:
It only takes a few minutes for the tortillas dipped in the hot oil to cool enough to touch. Add 3 to 4 ladles of the red sauce to a pie plate. Take one tortilla and bathe it in the red sauce. Lay a healthy scoop of the cheese filling mixture in a row down the center of the tortilla, and roll tortilla over. Do not skimp. The cheese melts and it will not be hearty enough if you skimp on filling.Place on cookie sheet. Repeat until all 24 tortillas are assembled. With a small spoon or ladle
, gently pour a spoonful or two of red sauce over each rolled enchilada to coat completely. Do now drown the enchiladas. Cover each rolled enchilada with grated cheese, keeping the separation of each rolled enchilada easy to see.Add two whole black olives between each enchilada on cookie sheet. One mid way toward the top and one mid way at the bottom in the space between enchiladas. Optionally, add the olives to the top of each rolled enchilada.
One cookie sheet holds about a dozen, so you may need another cookie sheet or baking dish for remaining.
Bake:
When ready to serve, heat oven to 350 degrees, and bake uncovered for 20 minutes until heated hot to eat.Serve:
Serve cheese enchiladas with Spanish rice, refried beans, and sour cream to garnish as desired.
It's best to make a day ahead. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.
Tip: One year, I decided to vary the cheese. I used a mix of Monterey Jack and Cheddar because it comes in a pre-grated bag in the grocery store. This was a huge mistake. Not only is the finely grated cheese totally wrong, but the Jack cheese changed the taste in a not-so-good way. Be true to this recipe. Only use real cheddar cheese and hand grate it so the grated cheese is nice big shavings (not a fine grated size).
This is an amazing taste delight. No Mexican dish is so admired in our family. Enjoy!
Well, blog, that's it for now. I'll pack the enchiladas I made along with the cheese enchilada recipe for my son, Steven, who with the help of his gorgeous wife, gave their time and talent to install our garage door opener a couple of weeks ago. Thanks kids.