Vegetarian Enchiladas? Yes, please!

When I had been working for Great News! for about a month, I decided to be adventurous and try something new. We had leftover enchiladas that looked scrumptious. I know what you are thinking. Enchiladas? New? In San Diego? You are right. Although I have had more than my fair share of this Mexican food staple in San Diego, I had never had vegetarian ones with no cheese or sour cream. In fact, these had none of the ooey-gooey qualities that we have come to cherish in our enchiladas. When I re-heated it, there was no tell-tale grease trail. I was skeptical, but it smelled delicious, and I forgot my lunch that day so I figured I had nothing to lose.
 I took a bite and instantly forgot everything I had ever known about enchiladas. This one, albeit different, had the best flavor and the perfect spice. The sweet potato, black bean, and corn filling was so complimentary to the pico de gallo I had spooned over the top. It was this afternoon that I resolved to pull the recipes, invite friends over for a weekend dinner, and show off the benefits of my new job.
In my head I pictured effortless chopping and dicing, moving about the kitchen with grace, all while entertaining my friends and dazzling them with my prowess. I imagined my friends and myself laughing and talking while I donned my best apron and wielded my slightly sharp knife. After cooking, we would sit, eat, and drink wine, marveling at how delicious everything was. I was two for three.
 Shopping was a disaster. How was I supposed to know that a list, divided into sections mirroring that of a grocery store, is the quickest, most efficient way to shop? I took the recipes, and got each item one by one, in the order they appeared on my paper, darting back and forth from produce to dairy, and canned goods. I was a hurricane with a grocery cart. Once I got home and surveyed the damage, I realized I would be chopping forever, so I enlisted my favorite sous chef, my fiancée, to assist me in making the pico de gallo. He took one look at the sweet potatoes, and after seven years, told me that the one vegetable he hates sweet potatoes. I had only one choice.
 

I went back to the store to get him some chicken.
 

            I returned home to take charge again. My fiancée was exactly where I had left him- still chopping and dicing the tomatoes for the pico de gallo. Slowly. Very slowly. I thought I would speed up the process, so I grabbed the serranos to mince them. I chopped away, and if I say so myself, mined those suckers like a pro. And then I felt a burning sensation from a paper cut I had gotten earlier that week. That’s correct you queens and kings of the kitchen, I forgot to wear gloves. The oils burned my skin, and I even touched my face at one point. My eyes watered so much I had to go wash my face, and remembered I am still amateur status. But, after the enchiladas finally went into the oven, and all was said and done, the end result was a platter of deliciousness. It was completely worth the entire afternoon of prepping, chopping, burning my skin, and rolling those suckers.
            As my friends and I gathered around my table, eating, and at least one part was correct- they all raved about the food, telling me never to leave my new job. Even my fiancée, the sweet potato hater, said that he could eat them again… as long as they had the chicken and minimal sweet potato influence.

            So, I guess the moral of the story is to get into the kitchen and try something new. As difficult as anything may seem, in the end, a good meal brings people together. For me, that’s what makes the time and the clean-up worth it.

  ~Great News! Kitchen Mistress

Introductions

When I was 14, I let a pot of water come to a boil, and boil… and boil. When I finally checked on the pot after about 30 minutes, the water had evaporated, and I had ruined my Mother’s copper core pot. This was my first experience cooking. To this day, the story is re-told as family legend, like a good fishing story that your Dad always tells on Labor Day weekend.