No Whine with Dinner: A Recipe for Light Chicken Enchiladas

by The Meal Makeover Moms on May 23rd, 2010

Raise Healthy Eaters is a blog where parents can go to get credible nutrition advice for their families. Maryann, a registered dietitian and mother of two, started the site to give parents peace of mind in the areas of what to feed their children, how to feed them, and how to be a healthy role model. We’ve been reading Maryann’s blog for a long time and enjoy her articles and recipes.

When we  invited Maryann to contribute a recipe and some mealtime tips for our monthly No Whine with Dinner post, she chose one of her kids’ favorites: Light Chicken Enchiladas … a dish her children happily eat.

Light Chicken Enchiladas

Makes 4 to 6 Servings

  • 1 pound chicken tenders
  • 8 ounces light cream cheese (1/3 less fat)
  • One 10-ounce can enchilada sauce
  • 1 medium onion, finely chopped
  • 5 to 6 large whole wheat flour tortillas (or smaller ones if you prefer)
  • About 3/4 of a 15-ounce jar of taco sauce (mild, medium or hot — your preference), plus 1 tablespoon
  • 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese (reduced-fat, optional)
  • One 15-ounce can black beans (use 2 if serving more than 4)
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon ground cumin
  • 1 large avocado (or 2 small ones)
  • 1 tablespoon light sour cream

1. Spray a skillet or pan with canola cooking spray and place over medium to high heat.  Place chicken strips in skillet and keep turning over until the outsides turn white.  Take a fork and knife and shred the chicken allowing it to cook at the same time. Continue until meat is shredded and cooked through.

2. Preheat oven to 350°F.  Add chopped onion, cream cheese, and enchilada sauce and stir to combine.  When the mixture starts to boil, turn off the heat and set aside

3. Spray a 9×13-inch baking pan with canola cooking spray.  Fill tortillas with mixture and fold each side over and place on the pan.  I usually get 5 to 6 big enchiladas. Cover with taco sauce.  Top with shredded cheese.  Cover with foil and cook 20 minutes.  Remove foil and cook for an additional 10 (for a total of 30 minutes).

4. When enchiladas are almost done you’ll want to quickly prepare the beans.  Put olive oil in a small pan and add garlic until it sizzles.  Drain black beans and add to pan (leave some juice).  Add cumin and mix together.  Cook on medium heat until fully heated.  Set aside.

5. Make the guacamole last.  Scoop out avocado into a bowl.  Add sour cream and taco sauce (about 1/2 to 1 tablespoon).  Mash together and add salt to taste.  Serve with tortilla chips (for dinner we each get a handful of chips with the meal).

Print Recipe

Q: Where did you get the recipe?
A: This recipe was inspired by a Cooking Light recipe I found online years ago.  I can’t find the original recipe but I made several changes.  This is one of the first meals I made when I started cooking 10 years ago.

Q: What do you like about this recipe?
A: I like that it can be made earlier in the day only to be popped in the oven closer to meal time.  I enjoy making Mexican food because everyone in the family loves it and it always includes whole wheat tortillas, black beans (high fiber and nutritious) and avocados.  The variety of food on the table ensures that everyone will be satisfied.

Q: What do your kids think about this recipe?
A: I have a picky three-year old, but if you put Mexican food in front of her she attacks.  During this meal she’ll say, “I love beans, I love guacamole, I love enchiladas.”  This is a girl who won’t even eat spaghetti, so I think we found a goldmine here.  My son is in a stage where he’ll eat almost anything, but he does seem to love beans, cheese, and chicken

Q: Other than the fact that this recipe makes everyone in your family happy, do you have any other tips you’d like to share with fellow parents for taking the “whine” out of dinner:
A: Putting different food items on the table is key. At dinnertime I make sure there are at least two foods my daughter will eat.  So if she doesn’t love the main entree, she can have some carrots and bread.  When it’s a meal I know she likes, I’ll try some new sides or ones she usually doesn’t eat. She’s more likely to try new foods (and not complain) when familiar items are close by. I provide more tips on the following article: How to Make Family Dinners More Kid Friendly.

I do not make the meal about how much or what she is eating.  Even if she doesn’t want to eat, we ask her to join in the conversation and tell us about her day.  Keeping the dinner table enjoyable is the most important thing to me.  It makes her excited to come back night after night.

Q: Please provide a brief description of your blog:
A: As a dietitian, writer and mom, I felt compelled to develop a credible online resource for parents.  I provide simplified, research-based nutrition and feeding advice for busy parents who don’t have the time to research all the issues.  The articles and resources on my site  cover the three essential factors for raising healthy and happy eaters: providing children with good nutrition (the “what”) utilizing a positive feeding strategy (the “how”) and being a healthy role model (the example).  I share my own struggles and challenges raising healthy eaters.

Thanks Maryanne for a great guest post!

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2 Comments | Filed Under Beans, Dinner, NoWhineWithDinner, PickyEaters, Poultry, Vegetables 

2 Responses to “No Whine with Dinner: A Recipe for Light Chicken Enchiladas”

  1. FoodontheTable on May 25th, 2010

    This looks great. I have enchilada sauce on hand, so I might try that as a sub for the taco sauce.

  2. Family Dinners: Chicken Enchiladas on May 25th, 2010

    [...] recipes sent to you, for free!ShareIf you haven’t seen it already, check out my guest post over at Meal Makeover Moms. Every month or so they invite a food blogger to host their No Whine [...]

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