Papa's Pepper Enchiladas
(Courtesy of Spencer from @spencerthecook from Instagram ... )
These enchiladas are really my favorite Mexican food. I love everything about them. The corn tortilla surrounding that savory wonderful beef topped with the flavorful and spicy red sauce, it is just perfection! Just when you thought it could not get any better, then comes the white cheese sauce and WOW! To be honest, the white cheese sauce is our go-to sauce for nachos in this house as well. It is really good on anything! Okay okay okay, I know that traditionally the tortillas should be dipped into the sauce and then stuffed but I don't do it that way for two very good reasons. First, it's just plain messy! Dipping the tortillas in the sauce and then rolling them creates a mess like no other, trust me, I've done it! Secondly, I love the crispy edges of the tortillas when the sauce is ladled over the tortillas, and so will you! Another tip, I steam my tortillas for two reasons. It makes them very pliable and it helps to "seal" them once you roll them into an enchilada. Add about two inches of water to a frying pan over high heat and cover with a splatter screen. Once the water is boiling just put a corn tortilla (it works great with flour tortillas for burritos as well!) on the splatter screen for about 10 seconds and then remove, steamed side up, on a cutting board, add filling and roll. I've tried it about every other way and this way has been the easiest for me. Once you get fast at it you can place a tortilla on the splatter screen when you take one off and it becomes very fast and effective! I also let the beef shine in this recipe by not adding a lot of spices to the beef. That allows you to get the savoriness of the beef, the spicy tang of the sauce and rich smooth taste of the cheese sauce in one glorious bite!
For the sauce:
6C Beef broth
6oz. Tomato Paste
5T Chili pow
2t Granulated garlic
2t Cumin
1/2t Coriander
1t Cocoa powder
2T Corn starch
3T Butter
1t Smoked paprika
1/2t Salt
1&1/2t Papa's Pepper Premium Spice Blend
Combine all the dry spices and cornstarch in a small mixing bowl. Melt the butter over medium heat in a saucepan . Once the butter is melted and hot add spice mixture and whisk until cooked and fragrant, about 3-4 minutes. Whisk in beef stock, tomato paste and simmer until sauce thickens, about 10-12 minutes
For the beef:
3lbs. Ground beef
4 Jalapenos, seeded and finely diced
1 onion, finely diced
1T Fresh ground pepper
10oz. Tomato paste
Brown Ground beef until just cooked through. Place finely diced jalapenos, onions and tomato paste in the bowl of a stand mixer (or just a regular mixing bowl if you do not have a stand mixer). Drain grease from ground beef and pour ground beef into the stand mixer bowl with the onion/jalapeno mixture. Using the paddle attachment mix the ground beef with onion/jalapeno mixture on low speed.
For the cheese sauce:
3T Butter
2T Cornstarch
1C Milk or cream
16oz. White American Cheese
2 4oz. cans for diced green chilis
2t Papa's Pepper Premium Spice Blend
Salt to taste
Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Once butter is melted and hot, whisk in cornstarch and whisk until cooked 2-3 minutes. Add milk and stir until it thickens slightly, do not boil. Add cheese a little at a time, stirring to melt cheese. Add diced green chilis, Papa's Pepper and salt to taste.
Assembly:
You'll need 20-30 steamed (or cooked) corn tortillas
Spray a baking dish with non-stick cooking spray. Add beef mixture to the center of the steamed corn tortilla and roll the tortilla around the beef. Place the tortilla seam side down in a baking dish, Repeat until the baking dish is full. Ladle the enchilada sauce very generously over the enchiladas. Place enchiladas in a preheated 450 degree oven for 10-12 minutes until they are hot and the tops begin to get brown. Remove the baking dish from the oven and put three enchiladas on a plate and spoon cheese sauce over the enchiladas. Garnish with fresh jalapenos, cilantro or a garnish of your choice.