shrimp and cotija enchiladas with salsa verde and crema mexicana

never really liked enchiladas or had a craving to make them...UNTIL the june '09 bon appetit issue arrived in my mailbox. for a good month the very appealing photo kept enticing me with it's mutli-layers of luscious green textures but couldn't help thinking the results would be disappointing. so when the ideal recipe hadn't presented itself for this weekend's discovery, the shrimp enchiladas seemed fitting. handmade whole wheat tortillas from TJ's were substituted for corn tortillas and queso fresco replaced the cotija cheese due to availability. i must say these are quite delicious.

adaptation of bon appetit June 2009 recipe

• 4 tbsp olive oil, divided

• 2 1/2 pounds tomatillos, husked and rinsed

• 4 large fresh poblano chilies, halved lengthwise, cored, seeded

• 1 jalapeno, halved, seeded

• 4 unpeeled garlic cloves

• 2 cups of coarsely chopped fresh cilantro plus extra for garnish

• 1 cup chopped green onions

• 1 1/4 cups chopped red onion, plus thinly sliced red onion rounds for garnish

• 48 uncooked medium shrimp, peeled, deveined (1 1/2 pounds)

• 2 tablespoons fresh oregano

• 1 tsp ground cumin

• 12 6 inch handmade whole wheat tortillas

• 12 ounces fresh crumbled cotija or queso fresco or feta

• 2 cups grated pepper jack cheese

1. preheat broiler. line large rimmed baking sheet with foil. brush lightly with 1 tbsp of oil. arrange tomatillos, poblano chilies and jalapeno cut side down and garlic cloves on prepared baking sheet. broil until tomatillos and chilies begin to soften and blacken in a couple spots, watching closely to prevent burning, about 10 mins. do not turn. remove from oven and let cool until able to handle about 15 minutes. 

2. transfer tomatillos and jalapeno to processor. peel garlic and add to processor. coarsely chop chilies. add 1/3 cup chopped chilies to processor. reserve remaining chilies for the enchilada filling. add 2 cups of cilantro and 1 cup of green onions to processor. pulse until coarse puree forms. season salsa verde with salt and pepper. transfer 1 1/2 cups of salsa to shallow bowl.

3. heat 2 tbsp of oil in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. add chopped red onion and saute until slightly softened about 2 mins. sprinkle shrimp with salt and pepper. add shimp, oregano, cumin, and remaining chopped chilies to skillet; saute just until shrimp is almost opaque but not completely cooked through, tossing often, 3 to 3 1/2 minutes. remove shrimp from heat.

4. preheat oven 350 degrees. brush 15 x 10 x 2 inch glass baking dish with remaining 1 tbsp of oil. spread 1/2 cup of salsa verde from processor in bottom of dish. stack tortillas, wrap in damp paper towels and place on plate. microwave tortillas on high until soft and pliable, 1 to 1 1/2 minutes.

5. working with 1 tortilla at a time, dip tortilla into bowl with 1 1/2 cups salsa verde, turning to coat both sides evenly. transfer to prepared baking dish. place 4 shrimp and some onion-chili filling, top with queso fresco and pepper jack cheese. roll up tortilla, enclosing the filling and place seam side down in dish. Repeat with remaining tortillas, shrimp, onion-chili mixture and cheese. spread two cups of salsa verde from processor over enchiladas.Cover with grated pepper jack cheese.

6. bake enchiladas just until heated through and cheese melts about 20 minutes. using spatula, transfer 2 enchiladas to each plate. Spoon any remaining salsa verde over; sprinkle remaining cheese. drizzle with crema and garnish with red onion slices and additional chopped cilantro.