In creating The Forest Feast Road Trip cookbook, I got lots of requests to include vegetarian main dishes. This is something I am always looking for as well, since we host a lot. I am happy eating a bunch of sides, but not everyone eats like that, and I think it’s nice to offer a warm and hearty main course sometimes.
California has amazing Mexican food, and while this is an homage to the enchiladas I grew up eating in California, it’s certainly not a traditional preparation of the dish. My mom made vegetarian enchiladas growing up and they usually included black beans and cheese. Inspired by the miles of nut groves we drove through while road tripping in California and also by the walnut tree in our front yard growing up, I added walnuts here. I love to protein crunch they provide.
Walnut Enchiladas (serves 4-6)
adapted from The Forest Feast Road Trip by Erin Gleeson
For the Filling:
1 c mushrooms, chopped
1 red onion, diced
3/4 c unsalted walnuts, chopped
1 can black beans (15-oz) drained
8 corn tortillas or small flour tortillas
1 (16-oz) jar/can red (mild) enchilada sauce
1 c grated cheddar cheese
Sauté the mushrooms and onion over medium-low heat with olive oil and a pinch of salt for 8-10 minutes. Then stir in the walnuts and beans until warm.
Next heat the tortillas briefly in a pan or over a flame (I do it over a stove flame) until they are soft enough to easily roll without cracking. Pour a bit of the enchilada sauce into the bottom of a 7x12-in casserole dish. Spoon the mushroom/bean mixture into the tortillas and roll them, placing each seam-side down in the dish. When all 8 tortillas are rolled up, feel free to add a couple more tortillas if there’s extra filling. Or just spoon the extra filling over the top of the tortillas. Next pour the remaining sauce over the whole casserole and sprinkle with the cheese.
Bake at 375F for 20-25 min until cheese is melted and it’s heated through. Top servings with sour cream, avocado, cilantro and hot sauce as desired.