Eggplant Invasion Continues: Eggplant Enchiladas

The Great Eggplant Invasion of 2010 continues at my house with my two eggplants producing like gangbusters. Fortunately, my friends answered my cries for help with innovative recipes because I really don't think I can stomach much more ratatouille.

Stephanie McClenny, the canning genius behind Confituras, truly piqued my interest when she forwarded me an eggplant enchilada recipe from one of the Moosewood cookbooks.  I prefer veggie enchiladas, but had never considered using eggplant as the key ingredient.  

The recipe also called for using almonds which threw me for a loop.  Nuts in enchiladas? I'm already using eggplant, so why not.  I swapped the almonds for pecans that I picked up at the Round Rock Farmers Market, used a mix of peppers from my Farmhouse Delivery rather than the bell peppers originally listed and added cumin.

I was surprised how flavorful the enchiladas were.  The nuts added a layer of richness I wasn't expecting and the eggplant served as a perfect "meat" for the enchilada.  I'm so glad I let Stephanie nudge me to this new discovery.  Yum!

Eggplant Enchiladas

1 tbsp olive oil
4 cloves garlic, minced
6 cups diced eggplant, diced
4 sweet peppers, chopped (if you'd rather use hot peppers, feel free to mix it up - I added a few serranos)
2 tsps cumin
2 tsps salt
1 tsp black pepper
1 cup chopped pecans
1 cup grated Monterrey Jack Cheese + a handful of cheese to sprinkle on top of the enchiladas
12 corn tortillas
1 can green enchilada sauce (you can make your own sauce, but I was in a hurry and being lazy so I used canned sauce - it happens)

Dice the eggplant, sprinkle it with salt and let it sit in a colander for 30 minutes. Rinse and dry the eggplant.

Heat olive oil in a skillet. Add the eggplant, peppers and garlic and saute for about 5 minutes until the eggplant is partially tender. Add the cumin, salt and pepper, stirring well to coat the eggplant and cook for another 5 minutes or until the eggplant is almost soft.

Add the pecans cook for a few minutes, adjusting the seasoning as needed. Remove the skillet from the heat and stir in the cheese.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Wrap the tortillas in a damp napkin and put in the microwave for 15-20 seconds to moisten them so they don't crack as you roll the tortillas. Place a few large spoonfuls of the filling in the center of each tortilla, roll the tortilla gently and place it in a baking dish.

When you have rolled all of the tortillas, pour the sauce over the top and sprinkle with the remaining Jack cheese. Bake for 30 minutes, uncovered.