Chickpea and Sweet Potato Enchiladas with Roasted Tomato Sauce

After making the Pesto Hummus the other day I had some chickpeas left in the refrigerator. I've also been craving enchiladas lately. After staring long and hard at some sweet potatoes from the farmer's market, I came up with the idea for these unconventional enchiladas.

I know the "2 cups cooked sweet potato" is an odd measurement - I would normally use a quantity of potatoes themselves. The sweet potatoes I had, though, are tiny - like little fingerlings...I got a bushel of them from a farmer for only $2! They're pretty much impossible to peel while raw, so I simply boiled them and then slipped them out of the skins after they cooled. I roughly chopped the cooked flesh and measured it after that. I am going to estimate that two cups of cooked sweet potato would equal one or two large to medium sized sweet potatoes.

These enchiladas were filling and delicious. I served them with simple steamed broccoli seasoned with salt and pepper.


Roasted Tomato Sauce

• 4 ripe tomatoes
• 4 cloves garlic
• 1/2 or 1 jalapeno, stem removed
• 2 tablespoon olive oil
  
• 1 tablespoon dried oregano
• 1 tablespoon ground cumin
• 1/2 tablespoon chili powder

Preheat the oven to 400°. Roughly chop the tomatoes and mince the garlic cloves. If you'd like, remove the ribs and seeds from the jalapeno (for a milder taste - I like things spicy so I didn't). In a medium bowl, combine the tomatoes, garlic and jalapeno with the olive oil and oregano.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Lay the tomatoes in a single layer on the paper and bake in the oven for about 15 minutes, until the tomatoes are shriveled and the garlic is golden brown. Let sit for fifteen to twenty minutes.

Place the tomatoes in a blender or food processor and add the cumin and chili powder. Blend until smooth. Either use immediately or refrigerate for future use.

Chickpea and Sweet Potato Enchiladas

• 2 cups cooked chickpeas
• 2 cups cooked sweet potato
• 1 jalapeno, stem removed
• 1 tablespoon ground cumin
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 1/4 cup minced garlic chives
• 12 corn tortillas
• olive oil
• 8 ounces shredded cheese (I used sharp cheddar)
• more green onions and garlic chives for garnish
• 1 recipe Roasted Tomato Sauce (above)

Preheat the oven to 350° (or, if you just made the Roasted Tomato Sauce, lower the temperature to 350°).

In a large bowl of a food processor, place the chickpeas, sweet potato, jalapeno (remove the ribs and seeds if you like a milder taste), cumin and chili powder. Mix until the consistency is that of thick hummus or mashed potatoes. Fold in about 1/4 of the cheese.

Spread some sauce onto the bottom of a large baking dish, just enough to lightly cover the bottom. Heat a small skillet over medium heat. Brush a very small amount of oil onto the skillet. Fry the corn tortillas, one at a time, on each side until they are soft and pliable - about 5-10 seconds per side. You should start to see the texture change and brown spots appear on the surface. As each tortilla is finished, fill it -

Spread a couple tablespoons of the filling in the center, all the way to the edges. Roll up and place, seam side down, on the sauce in the baking dish. Place each enchilada right next to each other. When they're all rolled, cover the tops with the remaining sauce and the rest of the cheese and bake in the oven until the cheese is melted and bubbly, about 20-30 minutes. Top with chopped green onions and garlic chives before serving.