Chicken Enchilada Casserole ~~ Can you say YUM?!?!!

So I've made the CEC (Chicken Enchilada Casserole)'s with the Cream of _______ (ya know mushroom, chicken, celery, the whole Campbell's array), but when I make it like that I can't eat it, because of my whole severe aversion allergic reaction to MSG. It keeps me honest in my eating, very little preservatives etc. Note to self: Why is it you are NOT 120 lbs. if it's kept you honest in your eating.....true, bad choice of words.....anyway..... =) Get the feeling I talk to myself?!!! haha

I ran across this CEC recipe in my much loved "The Complete Cooking Light Cookbook", much loved.... a few years ago, and please let me share. Because we had it last night, and yes I shall be having it for lunch today,,, oh yummeeeee and YAY for leftovers!!!!!


CHICKEN ENCHILADA CASSEROLE (Revised and Resnookeld a bit =)

Cooking Spray
1 1/4 pounds skinned, boned chicken breast
1/2 large chopped onion (I use yellow, but whatever floats your boat will work)
2 tsp (or so) minced garlic (I eyeball it. It calls for 4 cloves, but seriously garlic overload for us, so I tone it down a notch)
1/2 cup chicken broth
1 (15-oz) can diced tomatoes
1/2 cup (or so, again I eyeballed it) Salsa (I used Pace Chunky Medium Salsa)
1/4 - 1/2 tsp chili powder (I use 1/4 ~~ what can I say, I am a wimp)
1/2 cup thinly sliced green onions, divided (yes it sounds like a lot, but yummoooeeee)
1 (2 1/4 oz) can black olives, drained (I leave this out because of Dak's aversion to them, come on son, but if you have no aversion please leave them in, they are yummeeoooo)
2 (4.5 oz) cans chopped green chile's, drained

White sauce ingredients:
5 TB all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp ground coriander
2 cups 1% low-fat milk Note: I had some shelf stable milk in my pantry and that worked great as well, so if you don't know what to do with it, this is a GREAT recipe to use it in.
2 large egg whites, lightly beaten

Rest of Ingredients:
3/4 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
3/4 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese
(I used the already mixed cheddar and Monterey Jack cheeses, but I am just cool like that =)
6 (6-inch) corn tortillas, cut in half
1/2 cup fat-free sour cream (optional)
1/2 cup bottled salsa (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Coat a large nonstick skillet with cooking spray; place over medium heat until hot. Add chicken; cook 6 minutes on each side or until done. Remove chicken from pan; cool. Shred chicken with 2 forks. You can also boil chicken with celery and onions for about 30 minutes and then cool and shred and have chicken broth left over ~~ yummmeeee ~~ this is usually what I do and it works great!!! But if you don't have time for that by all means whatever trips your trigger!!

3. Recoat pan with cooking spray; place over medium heat. Add chopped onion and garlic; saute 5 minutes or until tender. Add shredded chicken, chicken stock, red pepper, and tomatoes; cook 10 minutes or until liquid almost evaporates. Remove from heat. Reserve 1 tablespoon green onions and 1 tablespoon olives for garnish. Stir remaining green onions, remaining olives, and chile's into chicken mixture; set aside.

4. Combine flour, salt, cumin, and coriander in a medium saucepan. Gradually add milk, stirring with a whisk until blended. Place over medium heat; cook 7 minutes or until thick, stirring constantly. (It usually doesn't take the full 7 minutes to thicken.) Gradually add hot milk mixture to egg whites, stirring constantly with a whisk.

5. Place cheeses in a bowl; toss well. (Or just open the bag of already combined cheeses if you are a slacker like me =)

6. Spread 1/2 cup white sauce in bottom of a 2 1/2j-quart round casserole dish coated with cooking spray. Arrange 4 tortilla halves over sauce; top with 2 cups chicken mixture, 1/2 cup white sauce, and 1/2 cup cheese mixture. Repeat layers twice, ending with sauce ending with the delectable cheese mixture (combined or bagged =)

7. Bake, covered for 45 - 50 minutes. Remove from oven and top with reserved black olives and green onions (unless your 16 yr old doesn't like black olives, to which you will just top with green onions =) Let stand 10 minutes before serving. Spoon onto serving plates and top with sour cream and salsa if you so desire.

You can also make this ahead and put in fridge until ready to bake, in which case, you will bake it covered for 1 hour.

Whew, I know this one is a little work, but can I just say....... IT'S SO WORTH IT!!!!! YOUR STOMACH WILL THANK YOU!!!!!

And just so you're not freaking out on me, it is so much better for you than the kind with the Cream of _________ soups in them. This one only has 320 calories per serving and 11 grams of fat. Not back for a CEC!!!

Enjoy ~~ and Happy Eating,
Dawn