Black Bean Turkey Enchiladas

"Families are much more than groups of individuals. They have their own goals and aspirations. They also are places where every child and adult should feel that he or she is special and be encouraged to pursue his or her own dreams; a place where everyone's individuality is permitted to flourish."

I found this quote on healthychildren.org and it really struck a cord with me.  I couldn't agree more EXCEPT for when it comes to food.   I wholeheartedly believe that children need to be exposed to all sorts of different types of foods and NOT just given what they would choose to eat.  (If left to their own devises, my kids would eat chicken nuggets and hamburgers every day.)

Other parents used to tell me that exposing kids to new foods will turn them into great eaters.  (A fact that I have proven wrong.)  I have offered my kids all kinds of different food and I have the worlds pickiest eater  No matter what I make, I cannot seem to please them.  That doesn't stop me from offering them foods that I know that they will refuse to eat. 

Enchiladas are so great for picky eaters because they're completely customizable. I made mine without enchilada sauce - which probably takes away it's enchilada status but I don't know what else to call them.  My family is super sensitive to spicy foods so I toned my enchilada heat down quite a bit to make them a little more "family friendly."

I adapted this recipe from a Cooking Light recipe.
 

Turkey Enchiladas
1 pound ground turkey
1 small onion, chopped
1 teaspoon reduced sodium taco seasoning
11/2 teaspoon cumin
1/4 teaspoon pepper
8 ounces reduced fat cream cheese
1 cup shredded Mexican blend cheese
15 ounce can black beans
1 1/2 cups frozen corn
14 1/2 ounce can fire roasted tomatoes
1 can chopped green chilies
1/4 cup salsa
14 whole wheat tortillas

Preheat oven to 375.  In a skillet, cook turkey, onion and seasonings.

Stir in cream cheese and 1/2 cup Mexican blend cheese and cook until melted.

Stir in beans, corn, tomatoes, chilies and salsa.

Place 1/2 cup mixture on top of each tortilla and roll up.  Place side by side in a baking dish.

I am seriously, the WORST tortilla roller ever! I need some lessons because these are some pretty sad looking enchiladas.









Sprinkle with remaining cheese.

Bake 15 minutes until cheese is melted.

 Sprinkle with cilantro and serve to your happy family.

My family REALLY liked these quick and easy enchiladas.  The original recipe called for a red enchilada sauce but I know this family well enough to know that I should serve them without sauce.




I only bought 1 package of whole wheat tortillas so I had a lot of filling left over.  I put the leftovers in a bowl and put it on the table alongside a basket of baked scoops.  The kids liked eating the filling as a dip with the chips as much as they enjoyed their enchiladas.

As for the dip that was leftover after dinner, that is going in the freezer.  I'm thinking that it will make a super quick and easy meal for another night.  Yea!  Gotta love having emergency meals in the freezer for hectic days.

Ciao!