Chicken Enchilada Bake
This chicken enchilada bake is layered with butternut squash, black beans, and whole wheat tortillas. It is then topped with cheese and baked to bubbly perfection.
I love incorporating vegetables into meals that I make.
Sometimes when your veggies are served on the side, like chicken and beans for instance, you can get a bit of resistance from picky family members.
Poor vegetables are just not that exciting.
A good strategy is making meals like this Chicken Enchilada Bake with Butternut Squash & Black Beans.
Chicken Enchilada Bake with Butternut Squash & Black Beans
The roasted squash is layered along with the chicken and creates a whole flavour combination that allows your vegetable serving just to blend on in.
Your family might only notice it if you point it out!
Butternut squash is so rich and, for lack of a better word, buttery. 😉 It simply melts on in with the other ingredients.
I used my homemade enchilada sauce also. It’s super easy and made it while my squash roasted. If you must buy, I like Herdez products. Maybe you can find their sauces and salsas on your store shelves.
I will warn you that this meal is a tad time consuming.
There is a bunch of peeling and chopping with the squash and I wouldn’t hate you for buying it already cubed. I’m doing that next time, for sure. Basically, you wouldn’t want to be making it on a busy work day when dinner needs to be on the table quick. I prepared it on a sleepy Sunday afternoon.
The positive spin on spending the prep time?
The leftovers!
They were a breeze to reheat and the bake was even more flavourful (spicy!). Add a dollop of sour cream or even sliced avocado on the side to balance the heat.
Enjoy. 🙂
MORE HEALTHY DINNER RECIPES:
*Originally posted September 16, 2015. Updated January 14, 2019*
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Chicken Enchilada Bake with Butternut Squash & Black Beans
Ingredients
- 4 cups cubed butternut squash
- 2 tbsp. olive oil
- 2 cooked chicken breasts chopped
- 1/2 onion diced
- 1 green pepper diced (keep a few tablespoons reserved raw for sprinkling on top)
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp chili powder
- 1 398 ml. can black beans drained and rinsed
- 1 cup salsa
- 3 10 inch sprouted grain tortillas
- 1 cup sour cream
- 1 cup enchilada sauce
- 2 cups shredded cheese
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 and line a baking sheet with parchment and grease it a bit with oil. Toss the cubed squash with 2 tbsp. olive oil and sprinkle with a good pinch of sea salt. Spread out evenly on the greased and lined parchment baking sheet and roast for 30 minutes, flipping them after 15. If you`re making the enchilada sauce now is a good time to do so.
- Remove the roasted squash from the oven and set aside
- In a large skillet heat 1 tbsp. olive oil over medium. Add the chopped onion and green pepper. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and stir well. Cook until softened, stirring occasionally, about 5-7 minutes. Stir in the cumin, chili powder, and minced garlic and stir for one minute. Add the roasted squash, black beans, cooked chicken and another sprinkle of sea salt and stir it all together
- In a 9×9 baking dish spread the salsa out evenly on the bottom. Add one of the tortillas. I cut it in half and layered it with the straight cut edge along the straight edge of the baking dish. Add 1/3 of the chicken/squash mixture and then top that with dollops of sour cream (1/2 cup) and 1/2 cup of the enchilada sauce. Top that with another tortilla, another 1/3 of the chicken/squash mixture and 1/2 cup of the sour cream, and 1/2 cup enchilada sauce. Then one more tortilla, the last 1/3 chicken/squash mixture and finally the grated cheese
- Bake in the 375 oven for 30-35 minutes, when the top looks nice and bubbly. Sprinkle with the reserved fresh chopped green peppers and serve immediately. Keep leftovers in the fridge for up to a week
