Enchiladas with Pumpkin Sauce

Recently, Jill and I made these Enchiladas with Pumpkin Sauce.  Everything seemed to be going well, until we attempted to roll up the corn tortillas.

I should pause here for a second and let you know that I've never cooked with corn tortillas.  Flour, yep, but never corn.  I like tortillas.  I like corn.  So, I figured I was in business.  But I had no idea that when you roll up corn tortillas, they explode open, spilling their guts everywhere.

Jill and I exchanged quizzical looks the first time it happened.  We figured it was a fluke, and kept rolling.  Well, it wasn't a fluke.  All of our enchiladas burst open like little dinner pinatas.  But we weren't deterred; we simply loaded them into the pan, poured the sauce over top, and covered our mistake with lots and lots of shredded cheese.  Honestly, I haven't found a cooking mistake that can't be corrected with cheese.

The next day, I explained the corn tortilla situation to my friend, Therese.  "You didn't warm them up first?" she asked.

Oh.

So, apparently you're supposed to warm corn tortillas before rolling them.  I've included this important step in the recipe below.  If you give this a try, let me know how your tortilla rolling works out!

Enchiladas with Pumpkin Sauce
Adapted from Great Food Fast by Everyday Food
Serves: 6

1 roast or rotisserie chicken, skin removed, meat shredded
6 scallions, white and light green parts only, very thinly sliced
Salt and pepper
1 can (15 ounces) pumpkin puree
4 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
2-3 chipotle chiles in adobo sauce, minced
2 teaspoons adobo sauce
2 teaspoons chili powder
2 1/2 cups water
15 corn tortillas (6-inch)
1 1/2 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese
Salsa, for serving (I like to use peach mango salsa)
Sour cream, for serving

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  In a bowl, combine chicken and scallions.  Season with salt and pepper.

In a blender, combine pumpkin, garlic, chipotle chiles, adobo sauce, chili powder, water, 2 teaspoons salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper.  Hold the lid on tightly so it doesn't explode all over your kitchen, and puree the sauce until smooth.  Pour 1 cup sauce in the bottom of a 9x13 baking dish.  

Wrap half the tortillas in damp paper towels and microwave on high for 30 seconds to make them pliable.  Evenly divide half the chicken mixture between the warmed tortillas.  Roll them up tightly, and place seam side down in the baking dish.  Repeat with the rest of the tortillas and chicken mixture.

Pour the remaining pumpkin sauce on top.  Sprinkle with cheese.  Bake until the cheese is golden and the sauce is bubbling, about 25-30 minutes.  Let the enchiladas cool for 5 minutes before serving with salsa and sour cream.