Turkey Enchiladas w/Black Beans & Caramelized Onions

I put on my domestic hat this weekend and made dinner for some crazy, loud, obnoxious Laker fans this weekend [I kid guys]. The fellas requested enchiladas, and I obliged. This was my first time making enchiladas this way [I made the recipe up as I went along], but I will definitely make them this way from now on! Caramelizing the onions is optional, but it's lends such a sweet flavor to the enchiladas from the sugars in the onions [it does add on to the cook time; it took me about 30-35 minutes to fully caramelize my onions], it's delicious.

You may notice that I used "black bean soup" instead of black beans, this is because the regular black beans are a bit hard for my liking. In the black bean soup, the beans are a lot softer.

Turkey Enchiladas w/Black Beans &  Caramelized Onions
1/2 cup cilantro, roughly chopped
1 large onion, julienned
2 roma tomatoes, diced
1lb of ground turkey
1 large can of red enchilada sauce [I use Las Palmas]
1 cup of grated extra sharp cheddar cheese
1 cup of grated mexican "enchilada cheese"
1 can of goya black bean soup [drain the juice]
2 tbsp of olive oil [for onions]
5 tbsp of olive oil [for tortillas]
1 garlic clove, minced
1 tbsp of chili powder
1 tbsp of ground cumin
1 tsp of dried bay leaves

Mix the cilantro and tomatoes together. Set aside in the refrigerator.

Caramelize the onions first, as this will most likely take the longest. To cut down on time, I caramelized the onions while I was prepping the other ingredients [you must move fast though].

Add about 2 tbsp of olive oil to a medium saute pan, allow the oil to get HOT. Add your onions, then stir to coat them with oil. Stir occasionally, lowering the temp if necessary. You will have to stir these occasionally for about 30-35 minutes, as these will burn easily if they are left unattended for too long.

Brown ground turkey in the same saute' pan you used to caramelize the onions in. Add garlic, spices, and bay leaves. Then add salt & pepper to taste. Set aside.

In a large saucepan, slightly warm the enchilada sauce. Pour into a bowl once warm, and set aside.

In a small saute' pan, pour about 5tbsp of olive oil in a pan. Allow oil to get hot, then add your tortillas [one at a time of course] until each tortilla is soft [not too soft to the point that it is falling apart, just enough to make it pliable.

Spoon about 1/4 of the enchilada sauce on the bottom of a large casserole dish. Dip each tortilla in the BOWL w/the tortilla sauce, place it in the casserole dish. Fill your shells with meat, tomato mixture, black beans, onions, and cheese.

Once you have filled all of your shells, sprinkle remaining cheese mixture on top of the enchiladas. As well as the leftovers from the tomato mixture.

Lightly spoon 1/3 of the enchilada sauce over the enchiladas. Cover with foil, then bake for about 20-25 minutes on 350.

After about 20-25 minutes, uncover. Let cook for another 5 minutes or until cheese is bubbling. 

Allow to cool for about 10minutes to "set" everything so that it isn't falling apart as you serve it.