Low-fat chili cheese and black bean enchiladas

 

These were really, really good, and very easy to make.

I love cooking with beans, especially black and kidney beans. They're filling, high in fiber and B vitamins, and low-fat. (These enchiladas were so filling that I only ate one; I was stuffed after that.) A lot of low-calorie Mexican recipes use beans in place of chicken, beef, or pork. 

Ingredients:

One 15-ounce can of black beans, drained and rinsed

1/3 cup of reduced-fat cream cheese

1 cup of reduced-fat cheddar cheese

1 teaspoon chili powder

2 minced garlic cloves

4 tortillas

One 10-ounce can of red enchilada sauce

Salsa (optional)

Reduced-fat sour cream (optional)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Heat a large nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat. Add chili powder, garlic, and beans, and cook 2 minutes, stirring mixture frequently. Add cream cheese and 1/2 cup cheddar cheese, stirring until cheese melts.

3. Pour 1/3 cup of enchilada sauce over the bottom of a baking dish. Spoon the black bean mixture down center of each tortilla and roll up. Arrange enchiladas, seam sides down, in the dish. (Don't line it with foil, because the enchiladas will stick to it.) Pour remaining enchilada sauce evenly over enchiladas, and sprinkle with 1/2 cup cheddar. Bake at 350° for 20 minutes.

4. Serve with sour cream and salsa, if desired.

I love Spanish rice, so I also made Zatarain's brand Spanish rice as a side dish. Rice can be very high in calories, but this brand has only 180 calories per cup, which isn't bad. Some frozen broccoli added a serving of vegetables to the plate.