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Cauliflower Enchiladas

Pumpkin is a prime candidate for cool-weather enchiladas—another crowd-pleasing main dish that turns one of winter’s most popular veggies into dinner. Canned pumpkin purée saves time and gives this sauce a consistent, creamy texture. The filling—onion, cauliflower and curly kale braised with spices and orange zest and juice—is equally straightforward to make. Just before serving, dry-toast the pumpkin seeds (pepitas), then top the enchiladas and enjoy!
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Ingredients
  

For the Sauce

  • 2 large garlic cloves
  • 1 small onion, quartered
  • 2 to 3 chipotle peppers in adobo
  • 1 can (15 ounces) pumpkin purée
  • 1 cup shaken heavy cream
  • ½ cup water
  • 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lime juice
  • 1 tablespoon pure maple syrup
  • 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
  • ½ teaspoon ground cumin

For the filling

  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • Fine sea salt
  • 2 large cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 large head cauliflower, cut into ¾-inch florets
  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1 heaping teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1 teaspoon ancho chile powder or chili powder
  • 1 teaspoon finely grated orange zest plus 3 tablespoons orange juice
  • 1 bunch curly kale, stemmed and chopped
  • 1 can (15½ ounces) black beans or pinto beans, rinsed and drained (optional)
  • Freshly ground black pepper
  • 12 (5- to 6-inch) mixed corn-and-wheat tortillas
  • 1½ cups grated cheddar, jack, or cotija cheese (about 3 ounces)

For the filling and topping

  • 1 medium onion, halved and thinly sliced

For the topping (any or all)

  • 1 heaping tablespoon toasted pepitas
  • Thinly sliced radishes
  • Chopped fresh cilantro
  • Quick-pickled onions

Instructions
 

  • Make the pumpkin-chipotle sauce

    In a food processor or blender, process the garlic until finely chopped. Add the onion and chipotle peppers and pulse until coarsely chopped, about 5 times. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add the pumpkin purée, ¾ cup of the cream and the water, lime juice, maple syrup, salt and cumin. Blend on high until completely smooth. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, add the remaining ¼ cup of cream, and blend until incorporated.

    Make the filling

    Heat the oil in a large, deep sauté pan or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the onion and ½ teaspoon salt; cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes, until the onion begins to soften and appear golden in places. Stir in the garlic, cauliflower, ½ teaspoon salt, the cumin, oregano and chili powder and cook, stirring occasionally, for about 3 minutes, until the cauliflower just begins to soften.
    Stir in the orange zest and juice, then add the kale, a bit at a time if needed to fit the pan. Turn up the heat to medium-high and cook for another 3 to 4 minutes, until the liquid in the pan has cooked off and the cauliflower is tender, but not soft, and the kale is tender. If you are adding beans, move the cauliflower mixture to the sides of the pan and add half of the beans to the center of the pan. Use a potato masher or fork to mash the beans in the pan. Add the remaining beans and stir to incorporate the smashed and whole beans into the mixture. Season with more salt and add pepper to taste. Remove from the heat and stir in ½ cup of the pumpkin sauce, then let the mixture sit until cool enough to handle. it shrank during transfer and stretching and pushing the dough to 11½ to 12 inches.

    Assemble and bake the enchiladas

    Heat the oven to 450°F and set a rack in the middle position. Place the tortillas on a microwave-safe plate and cover them with a second plate of the same size. Microwave for 60 to 90 seconds, until the tortillas are warm and pliable without breaking. Alternatively, brush the tortillas with a thin coating of olive oil. Spread them out on an unlined sheet pan and place in the preheated oven until just warm and pliable.
    Cover the bottom of a 9- by 13-inch baking dish with ¾ to 1 cup of the sauce. Position the dish lengthwise on your work surface. Working quickly while the tortillas are warm, place a heaping 1⁄3 cup of the filling in the center of each tortilla and roll up the tortilla to keep the filling in place. Place the rolled tortilla, lengthwise and seam side down, in the upper left corner of the dish. Repeat, working left to right, and make two rows of rolled tortillas pressing them together as needed to fit 6 in each row. Tuck one more tortilla crosswise along the bottom. Cover the tortillas with the remaining pumpkin sauce and sprinkle them evenly with cheese.
    Cover with foil and bake for 15 minutes, until the cheese is beginning to melt. Uncover and cook for another 10 to 15 minutes, until the enchiladas are warmed through and the cheese is completely melted and golden in places. Let the enchiladas cool for at least 10 minutes to set before serving. Top with the just-toasted pepitas and radishes, cilantro and/or pickled onions if you wish.
    Excerpted from The Vegetable Eater: The New Playbook for Cooking Vegetarian by Cara Mangini. Copyright © 2024. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

Notes

NOTE: Feel free to use spinach or Swiss chard in place of the kale; or 2 cups of puréed roasted pie pumpkin or butternut squash in place of the canned pumpkin. With the chipotle peppers in adobo, you can adjust the heat by using more seeds (for more heat) or fewer seeds (for less heat).
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