Breakfast Enchiladas

Confession:  I hardly ever cook breakfast…especially not at breakfast time.  I do, however make breakfast for supper a lot.  Why?  Because I love breakfast food but I do not love mornings.  I am not, nor ever shall I ever be, a morning person.  I’m a night owl by nature…I come by it honestly.  I don’t think my mother has ever been in bed before midnight in her adult life.  She always said when we were kids that it was the only time she could get anything done.  I get that, for sure!  I think all moms do.  Anywho, these are the reasons that, if we have a homemade breakfast-type meal, it’s usually in the P.M. 

If, on the rare occasion, I want to make something special for breakfast, I look for things that can be prepped in advance – like after the kids go to bed the night before.  That led me to these enchiladas.  I loved the idea of Breakfast Enchiladas but I wasn’t crazy about the couple of recipes I tried.  So, I did what I often do, and made up my own version.  It’s superb, if I do say so myself.  Packed with taters, veggies, sausage, and cheese, then covered with a creamy “sauce,” these Breakfast Enchiladas will fill you up, yet leave you wanting more.  Enjoy!  ~Erin

Ingredients

  • 4 c. frozen O’Brien hash browns with onions & peppers (the cubed kind – not shredded)
  • 2 c. cooked turkey sausage (I used Jimmy Dean Fully Cooked Turkey Sausage Crumbles.)
  • 4 oz. (about 1 ½ c.) reduced-fat shredded Mexican cheese (I used Kraft 2%), divided
  • 5 green onions, chopped
  • 8 large eggs
  • 1 c. fat free half & half
  • 1 tsp. salt
  • ¼ tsp black pepper
  • 8 whole wheat tortillas (I used La Banderita Carb Counter Whole Wheat Wraps but any 1-point tortilla will do.)

Preheat the oven to 400°F.  Spray a sheet pan with non-stick cooking spray, and spread the hash browns in an even layer. 

Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until they just start to brown.  Set aside to cool.  Turn off the oven.  This step can be done in advance and hash browns refrigerated until ready to use.

Once cool, transfer the hash browns to a medium bowl and combine with the turkey sausage, 1 cup of the shredded cheese and most of the green onions (reserve ½ c. cheese and some green onions for topping).

Spray a 9×13 casserole dish with nonstick cooking spray.  Assemble the enchiladas by filling each tortilla with a heaping half cup of the mixture, until all the filling has been evenly distributed among the 8 tortillas.

In the same, now-empty bowl, beat the eggs with the half & half, salt, and pepper.  Pour the mixture over the tortillas evenly and cover with foil. 

At this point, preheat the oven to 350°F while the enchiladas soak up the egg mixture for at least 15 minutes; OR these can be refrigerated overnight and cooked in the morning.  If refrigerated overnight, set the enchiladas out to come to room temp while the oven preheats.

Bake 30-32 minutes, until egg mixture is set; remove the foil and top with remaining cheese and green onions.  Bake 2-3 more minutes, uncovered, until the cheese is melted.

WW Freestyle Info.:  This recipe makes 8 enchiladas.  Each enchilada is 6 SmartPoints.

Chicken Tortilla Chowder

When the temperatures in our neck of Oklahoma dip into the area where the meteorologists start using snowflake and icicle graphics, I look for any excuse to stay cuddled up by my fireplace. I want to sip coffee and cocoa all day long and eat nothing but steaming hot bowls of soup. What I do not want to do is spend a lot of time in the kitchen, so this recipe for a creamy and hearty Chicken Tortilla Chowder is perfect! I use pre-shredded rotisserie chicken that I always keep in my freezer so the prep time is super short, but you can use any white meat chicken (boiled, grilled, or open a can if you’re really in a hurry). Not only is this soup really good, it’s only 4 Weight Watchers Freestyle Points per cup, without the cheese. Makes 12, 1 cup servings. ~Tracy

TortillaChowderLogo

Ingredients:

  • 3 cups canned chicken broth
  • 2 cans (10 oz. each) cream of potato soup
  • 2 cans (10 oz. each) healthy request cream of chicken soup
  • 2 cups low fat milk
  • 2 cups shredded white meat chicken
  • 1 can (11 oz.) Mexicorn, drained (regular corn is fine too if you can’t find Mexicorn)
  • 2 cans (4 oz. each) chopped green chili peppers (we like it spicy so I use ½ jalapenos)
  • 6, 6” fat free flour tortillas, torn into bite size pieces
  • Optional garnishes: your favorite shredded cheese and some chopped green onions to taste

Instructions:

Combine broth, soups, and milk in large soup pan. Heat on medium low temp until all combined. Add the chicken, corn, chili peppers, and mix well. Simmer for 10-15 minutes.

Add the torn pieces of tortilla and heat on medium heat for approximately 20 minutes until tortillas become somewhat softened.

Serve topped with green onions and a little of your favorite shredded cheese. We also like ours with a big slice of corn bread!

Weight Watchers Info.: This recipe makes 12 1-cup servings. Each cup is 4 Freestyle SmartPoints.