Buffalo Chicken Enchiladas

Mexican food and I have a love/hate relationship.  I love the food, hate the calories.  However, Emily Bites had the super brilliant idea to combine Mexican food + Buffalo chicken and create the perfect marriage!  I have to tell you that these were WAY better than I thought they would be and I knew that they would be pretty darn good.  The hot sauce really gives this dish its flavor so use it at your discretion.  The amount that I used made this medium-spicy in my opinion so adjust accordingly.

Source: Ever so slightly adapted from Emily Bites

Ingredients:

6 oz. buffalo wing sauce (I used Frank's)*
10 oz. canned tomato sauce*
1 clove garlic, minced
2 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp cumin
¼ tsp sugar
2 tsp extra virgin olive oil
1 small onion chopped
1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts
3 oz. shredded part skim mozzarella cheese
¼ cup diced celery
1 jalpeno, minced
6 TBSP light blue cheese dressing (I used OPA)
10 (6 inch) corn tortillas
2 scallions, sliced (green parts)

*This is my recommended ratio for medium spice, but you can adjust it to your taste. If you think you’d like it hotter I encourage you to start with the ratio above and taste test while mixing so you can adjust the ratio to your liking. Between the tomato sauce and wing sauce you just want to make sure you end up with around 16 oz total. 

Directions:

1. Pre-heat the oven to 425. Lightly mist a 9x13 baking dish with cooking spray and set aside.
2. In a medium bowl, mix together the wing sauce, tomato sauce, garlic, chili powder, cumin and sugar until thoroughly combined and set aside.
3. In a large skillet or sauté pan, bring the oil to medium heat. Add the chopped onions and cook for a couple minutes until they start to soften and become fragrant. Add the chicken breasts in a single layer and cook for 3 minutes on one side, flip them over, and then continue to cook for 3 minutes on the other side. Add the sauce mixture to the pan and bring it to a boil. Lower the heat to medium-low and cover the pan. Simmer for about 20 minutes until the chicken is fully cooked through.
4. Remove the lid from the pan and transfer each breast to a cutting board, shredding it using two forks. Transfer the shredded chicken to a large mixing bowl. Add ½ cup of the sauce from the pan to the chicken along with the shredded cheese, jalapeno, diced celery and a tablespoon of the blue cheese dressing. Mix everything in the bowl together until well combined.
5. Microwave the tortillas for 30-60 seconds on high until warm and soft. Spread 1/4 cup of the chicken mixture onto a tortilla and tightly roll it up. Place the rolled tortilla seam side down in the prepared baking dish and repeat with the remaining tortillas. I fit them perfectly by placing 8 in a row and then placing two Spray the tops of the rolled tortillas with cooking spray above them, perpendicular to the others. Bake in the oven for 8 minutes until tortillas are slightly crispy.
6. Reduce the heat to 400 (don’t forget!) and pour the remainder of the sauce evenly over the tops of the enchiladas. Place back in the oven for an additional 18-20 minutes. Remove from the oven and drizzle a half a tablespoon of blue cheese dressing over the top of each enchilada. Sprinkle the sliced scallions over the top of the entire dish and serve!

Yield: 5 (2 enchilada) servings

NUTRITION INFORMATION:
314 calories, 27 g carbs, 11 g fat, 30 g protein, 4 g fiber (from myfitnesspal.com)