Enchiladas with Mole Sauce
This recipe gets to the essence of a great enchilada, where the flavors build from the inside out. This enchilada begins with a black bean filling, which is wrapped in a corn tortilla and smothered with a simple yet decadent mole sauce blending sweet and savory flavors. You’ll never return to a red enchilada sauce again!
Prep time: 30 minutes
Cook time: 25 minutes
Serves: 4-6
Ingredients
Mole Sauce
- 1 large onion, diced
- 4 garlic cloves
- 1-15 ounce can tomato sauce
- 1 cup water
- 3 tablespoons chili powder
- 3 tablespoons cocoa powder
- 2 tablespoons all natural peanut butter or almond butter
- 2 tablespoons pure maple syrup
- 1 ½ tablespoons lime juice
- 1 teaspoon ancho chili powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/8 teaspoon allspice
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
Enchilada Filling
- 1 red onion, small diced
- 1 poblano pepper, small diced
- 1 red bell pepper, small diced
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 1-15 ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 teaspoon cumin powder
- ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
- ½ teaspoon salt, or to taste
- 2 cups fresh spinach or kale, chopped
- 10-12 corn tortillas (I prefer the Food For Life brand)
- 1 avocado, diced
- ¼-½ cup chopped cilantro
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- To make the mole sauce, in a large skillet, sauté the onions over medium-high heat until translucent and slightly golden and tender. Transfer the caramelized onion and remaining mole sauce ingredients to a blender and blend until smooth and creamy. Return the mole sauce to the same pan and simmer over low heat for 10-15 minutes.
- Meanwhile prepare the enchilada filling. In another large skillet, saute the red onion, poblano pepper, bell pepper, and garlic in a small amount of water over medium-high heat until tender. Add the black beans, lime juice cumin, smoked paprika, and salt and cook until heated through.. Add the spinach or kale and cook just until wilted. Turn off the heat.
- Wrap the tortillas in a slightly damp cloth or paper towel and microwave for 1-2 minutes or until softened.
- Spoon a layer of the mole sauce in the bottom of a 9 x 13-inch baking pan. Place a tortilla on a work surface and brush or coat with a thin layer of mole sauce. Spoon about 1/4 cup of the filling mixture on top and roll up tightly. Place the enchilada seam side down in the pan. Repeat with all the tortillas, placing the enchiladas side by side. If you have extra filling, simply add it between the rolled enchiladas and along the edges of the pan.
- Pour the remaining mole sauce over the top of the enchiladas and bake for 10-15 minutes or until the sauce is hot and bubbly. (If you like, you can save a small amount of the mole sauce to spoon over your enchiladas when serving.)
- Top the enchiladas with avocados and cilantro and serve warm.