Chicken Enchilada Pasta

Yep... this is way out there and funky; but it's also kinda fun!  I was in the mood for the big bold flavors of Mexican, and the two little ones wanted nothing more than buttered noodles...so this took care of everyone. 



Chicken Enchilada Pasta



Prep Chef

1/2         Rotisserie chicken, pulled from the bones
handful   chopped sweet onion
handful   pepper strips (red, green, yellow)
4 oz       light cream cheese
4 oz       canned chopped green chilis
1 cup     mild jarred picante sauce
6 oz       dried fettuccini noodles
1/2 cup  sweet corn niblets
1/2 cup  drained, rinsed black beans

Garnish:

• roasted salsa verde (green salsa)
• light sour cream
• fresh chopped cilantro leaves
• chopped tomatoes
• tortilla strips

Method:

• Saute pepper strips in 1 Tbsp oil or butter until almost soft.
• Add chopped chilis, corn, black beans, cream cheese and picante sauce.
• Gently stir in chicken pieces and turn off heat.  Stir in half of the cilantro.
• Meanwhile have water boiling and cook fettuccini according to package directions (about 11 min).
• Drain pasta and top with sauce and garnishes to plate.
• Garnish with:  salsa verde, sour cream, chopped tomatoes, cilantro leaves, and tortilla strips.  A squeeze of lime over the whole dish would be great, too!

Notes:

• To turn your leftovers into baked chicken enchilades, just roll up the leftover sauce in flour tortillas, top with grated cheddar cheese and heavy whipping cream, and bake at 325 F for 25 - 30 min.... That gives you two meals for one cooking/cleaning time!
• Wow... if the folks at Food Network could see the knife cuts on the tomatoes, they would surely have something to say.  But considering a 3 year old cut them for me - they're not too shabby!
• My biggest discovery with this was the Roasted Salsa Verde.  I had never purchased this before, but it was really great!