Wild Veg: Yam and Black Bean Enchiladas

I made enchiladas for dinner last night, which has to be the most fun dish I've created in awhile. Stress is eliminated. There is no running from one pot to the next to check and see if water boiling, no urgency in stirring this or that so there's nothing sticking to anything, there's no worry of burning your foot on the George Foreman grill (name that show).

Enchiladas are a big ol' bang of repetitiveness, which is typically not my thing. I'm not a creature of habit, and like to constantly just make decisions depending on how I feel at that particular moment. My breakfasts vary from granola to bananas with peanut butter to plain coffee to leftover lasagna. Sometimes I eat it at home, something I eat it on the ferry...sometimes I eat it with a gnome, sometimes I eat it with my girl Carrie.

While I thoroughly enjoyed these enchiladas, they don't have a special place in my heart like other enchiladas in my life.

Approximately every weekend since as long as I can remember, my parents have made enchiladas.My brother and sister and I would find them in the kitchen, side by side, prepping all the ingredients. Fleetwood Mac or Tears for Fears would be in in the background while they dunked tortillas in oil and grated cheese from a thick block of cheddar (which I would continue to steal handfuls of throughout the night). To this day, if I call them on a Friday or Saturday night, 80% of the time enchiladas are what's happening on the homefront.

I am blessed to have a background filled with so much love (including 2.5 years of braces, which I have come to recognize as a definite sign of love). Growing up, our household was a constant, wild mess of heart and humor, and I thank my parents for that. Their ceaseless love and dedication to each other and their children is one of the reasons I am so excited to be married this year. I've grown up learning and believing that when you've found the love of your life, marriage is awesome!

Yam and Black Bean Enchiladas

Yields 12 enchiladas

-12 corn tortillas

-1 20 oz can enchilada sauce (I love the green)

-1 can black beans

-1/2 cup chopped cilantro

-1 cup green onions

-1 large yam or sweet potato

-1 tablespoon ground cumin

-1 teaspoon hot sauce of your choice (or more if you're feeling frisky)

-vegetable oil for frying

-cheese if you're going the "his" dish route

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Peel your yam and wrap in a damp paper towel; microwave for about 4 minutes or until tender; cut into bite-sized pieces.

In a bowl, mix together the cilantro, green onions, black beans, yam, cumin and hot sauce. Set aside.

Open your can of enchilada sauce and pour a little into a 9 x 13 inch casserole dish, just enough so the bottom is covered. Cover a plate with paper towels so you are prepped to drain some oil off as soon as they come out of the frying pan.

Heat up the vegetable oil in a frying pan over medium-high heat. Wait about 3 minutes and it should be good to fry.

Using tongs, place one tortilla in the oil for about 5 seconds, just enough for it to cook (you don't want it hard, chip-style). Flip it over and fry on the other side for about 5 more seconds, then place onto the paper-towel covered plate. Repeat with all tortillas.

Spoon a couple tablespoons of the black bean mixture down the center of each corn tortilla. Roll it up and place seam-side down into your casserole dish. Repeat with the remainder of the tortillas.

Once your enchiladas are all snug in the dish, pour the remaining enchilada sauce over the whole gang as evenly as possible.

Bake for about 15 minutes, until hot and bubbly.