Vegan Enchiladas with Avocado Cream Sauce

I made these the other night for dinner and they were so good. My attitude while making them not so much. I wasn’t feeling very good and it was probably the last thing I wanted to do, but I made them anyway. I got this recipe straight from OhSheGlows, which is a great vegan blog with wonderful recipes.

Ingredients (4 enchiladas)
  • 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 onion, chopped (~2 cups)
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 cup sweet potato, chopped (or zucchini)
  • 1 bell pepper, chopped
  • 2 handfuls spinach, chopped
  • 1 can black beans (~2 cups), drained and rinsed
  • 2.5 cups pasta sauce, or enchilada sauce if preferred
  • 1 tbsp nutritional yeast (optional)
  • 1.5 tsp ground cumin
  • 1-2 tbsp fresh lime juice, to taste
  • 1/2 tsp kosher salt, or to taste
  • 1/2 tsp garlic powder
  • 1 tsp chili powder, or to taste
  • 4 whole grain tortilla wraps (I used Food for Life Ezekiel)
  • Cilantro Avocado Cream Sauce, to pour on top (recipe below)
  • Green onion & chopped cilantro, to garnish

Cilantro Avocado Cream Sauce

  • 1 & 1/4 cup avocado flesh
  • 2 tbsp water, or more as needed to thin out
  • 2-3 tbsp lime juice, to taste
  • 1 tsp apple cider vinegar (optional)
  • 1 cup packed fresh cilantro
  • 1 tsp kosher salt, to taste
  • 1/2 tsp garlic powder
  • 3/4 tsp ground cumin
  • Black pepper, to taste
  • Red pepper flakes or cayenne pepper, to taste
Instructions
  • 1. Preheat oven to 350F and grab a baking dish large enough for 4 enchiladas. Pre-cook the chopped sweet potato, by simmering it in a small pot of water for about 5-10 minutes until just tender. Do not overcook. Drain and set aside.
  • 2. In a large skillet or pot, add 1 tbsp oil and bring to medium to low heat. Add in the chopped onion and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring often, until translucent. Add in garlic and reduce heat to low and cook for a couple more minutes. Now add the chopped pepper, pre-cooked sweet potato, drained black beans, and chopped spinach. Cook for about 5-7 more minutes on medium-low heat.
  • 3. Now add in your enchilada or pasta sauce. Stir well, and add in your seasonings: nutritional yeast (optional), cumin, fresh lime juice, salt, garlic powder, chili powder- all to taste. Adjust seasonings if necessary. Stir well.
  • 4. Scoop about 3/4-1 cup of the mixture onto the bottom of your casserole dish and spread out in a thin layer. Scoop about 1/2-3/4 cup of the mixture onto each tortilla and wrap, placing the fold down on the casserole dish. Repeat for the remaining 3 tortillas and leave a bit of filling left to spread over the top. Sprinkle with vegan cheese if preferred.
  • 5. Bake tortillas at 350F for 18-20 minutes. Meanwhile, make your Cilantro cream sauce (see below). When enchiladas are cooked, remove from oven and pour the sauce over top. Garnish with chopped cilantro and green onion. Serve immediately. Makes 4 enchiladas.

Cilantro cream sauce

  • 1. In a food processor, process the avocado flesh and water until creamy. Now add in the rest of the ingredients and process until smooth and well blended. Use immediately for best results.
  • Note: Depending on what kind of sauce you use, you will have to adjust the seasonings to taste. I used a pasta sauce so I likely needed more seasonings to achieve the taste I desired.

Tips

  • Due to the avocado in the cream sauce, this sauce needs to be used immediately for best results. If you plan on having leftovers, my advice is to wrap the leftover enchiladas without sauce and store in the fridge. You can try storing leftover sauce in an air-tight container for up to one day or you can make a half batch and make fresh sauce as needed.

4 Comments

  1. This sounds so yummy! I love avocados… and I am making your coconut deodorant tonight! So many great, and healthy, ideas. Thanks! 🙂

  2. If you want a vegan cream sauce you can make in advance, try subbing 5 or 6 oz (150g) of cashews for the avocado. This works best if you soak the cashews in filtered water to soften them for 30 minutes to a few hours ahead of time (overnight works okay too, but leave them to long and they go kind of slimy- the seeds trying to germinate!).

    Use a good blender rather than a food processor. I do thirty seconds, stop and scrape down the sides, and repeat until it’s totally smooth.

    Really yummy and lasts about a week in the fridge in a sealed container. My standard recipe for dip/mayonnaise/salad cream is very similar to the avocado cream one but uses lemon juice, fresh garlic, and basil instead of the lime juice, garlic powder, and cilantro (coriander leaf). I think the Mexican version would taste fab too!

    1. I actually kind of tried this! Well not for enchiladas but for a dessert. It was mixed with tofu. It was ok since it tasted like tofu, not a fan but I will try it again for sure without tofu!

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