Black Bean, Veggie and Goat Cheese Enchiladas

Greetings, POMAC followers...all 29 of you!  Almost a month has passed since my last post and I'll admit that cooking has not been on the forefront of my activities.  Aside from a delicious Lentil and Sweet Potato Stew that I have yet to write about, I haven't done much cooking.  I've been feeling a bit uninspired and lethargic and have been internalizing the onset of my 29th birthday a bit too much.

Over the past few days, I experienced one of the worst illnesses I can remember.  I was completely wiped out, called out of work and slept for a personal record of 13 hours.  While some of this is unavoidable I believe that my sub-par diet played a huge role in my weakened immune system.  Once I started feeling better, my inspiration returned and I renewed my commitment to healthy eating.

My starting point?  These delicious vegetarian enchiladas.  Filled with sweet potatoes, carrots, onions and yellow squash, they contain a ton of fresh ingredients to get me back on track.  They're topped off with cilantro and avocado and a homemade tomato-based enchilada sauce.  If you're a fan of leftovers, this recipe makes enough for at least three meals.  Here's to your health!

Black Bean, Veggie and Goat Cheese Enchiladas

Enchilada Filling
1/2 yellow squash, cut into quarter inch pieces
1 carrot, sliced
1 sweet potato, cut into quarter inch pieces
1 yellow onion, cut into quarter inch pieces
Zest of one lemon
2 tbsp olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
15 oz can of black beans
5 oz goat cheese

Enchilada sauce
2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 yellow onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp cumin
Dash cayenne pepper
15 oz tomato sauce
1/4 water

6 soft tortillas
Cilantro
Avocado

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.  Mix all chopped vegetables from the Enchilada Filling list with olive oil, lemon zest, salt and pepper.  Spread out vegetables on a baking sheet and roast in the oven until vegetables are soft, about 15 minutes.  Once vegetables are done, mix with black beans and goat cheese.

Meanwhile, heat olive oil from the Enchilada Sauce list in a frying pan.  Add the onion and garlic and saute until onions are soft and slightly brown, about five minutes.  Next, add sugar, cumin and cayenne pepper and saute for another minute.  Stir in tomato sauce and water and bring to a boil.  Once boiling, reduce heat to a simmer and continue this act until sauce has thickened, about 10 minutes.

Reduce the oven heat to 350 degrees.  In a 13x9 casserole dish, cover the bottom of the dish with the enchilada sauce.  Next, roll up the tortillas with the equally distributed vegetable mix.  Once rolled, place the open side down to ensure the vegetables stay inside the wrap.  Cover the tortillas with remaining enchilada sauce and cook for another 15 minutes.

Remove the enchiladas from the oven and top with chopped cilantro and avocado, if using.