Butternut Squash Enchiladas with Chipotle Cream Sauce
This is one of our family's favorite recipes. If you are looking for a healthy plant-based comfort food then this is it.
The chipotle cream sauce is to die for. You'll want to try it on everything!
Butternut squash is an excellent source of many vitamins and minerals.
A one-cup serving of cooked butternut squash provides more than 450% of the RDI for vitamin A and over 50% of the RDI for vitamin C .
It’s also rich in carotenoids — including beta-carotene, beta-cryptoxanthin, and alpha-carotene — which are plant pigments that give butternut squash its bright color.
These compounds are provitamin A carotenoids, meaning your body converts them into retinal and retinoic acid — the active forms of vitamin A.
Vitamin A is essential for regulating cell growth, eye health, bone health, and immune function.
Butternut squash is also rich in vitamin C — a water-soluble nutrient needed for immune function, collagen synthesis, wound healing, and tissue repair.
Both vitamins A and C work as potent antioxidants in your body, protecting your cells from damage caused by free radicals.
Vitamin E is another antioxidant in butternut squash that helps protect against free radical damage and may reduce your risk of age-related conditions, such as Alzheimer’s disease (SOURCE).
This winter squash is also packed with B vitamins — including folate and B6 — which your body needs for energy and red blood cell formation.
It’s also high in magnesium, potassium, and manganese — all of which play important roles in bone health (SOURCE).
Butternut Squash Enchiladas with Chipotle Cream Sauce
Ingredients:
Enchiladas:
2 ½ cup butternut squash (cubed)
1 tablespoon tomato paste
3 cups kale (chopped)
1 15oz can pinto beans (rinsed & drained)
6 tortillas (gluten free)
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cumin
2 tablespoon cilantro (fresh and chopped)
Sauce:
2 cup cashews (raw) *
2 chipotle peppers (dried)
2 cloves garlic
2 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon salt
Directions:
Sauce:
- Place all ingredients into a high speed blender.
- Blend on high until creamy.
Enchiladas:
- Combine all enchilada ingredients into a large bowl and stir to combine.
- In a large skillet over medium heat, saute the vegetable mixture for 7-10 minutes. You may have to add a little water to the skillet to prevent sticking.
- Heat the tortillas in the oven for a few minutes to make them more pliable.
- In a large baking dish spread some sauce mixture evenly on the bottom.
- Assemble enchiladas: Place a few spoonfuls of vegetable mixture into the center of the tortilla and roll it up. Place seam side down in baking dish.
- When baking dish is full of enchiladas, pour remaining sauce mixture on top.
- Cover dish and bake in the oven at 375 degrees for 15-20 minutes.
- Remove from oven and top with cilantro. Sprinkle some smoked paprika on top.
- Adjust salt and pepper to your liking.
- Serve with fresh fruit and salad.
Notes:
- You can buy your butternut squash already cubed in the store to save time.
- You can replace the cashews with raw pumpkin seeds.
- You can replace the corn tortillas with cassava tortillas or almond flour tortillas. These two options do not need to be heated first because they are already very pliable.
- If you want to know how to cook a butternut squash CLICK HERE.
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