Feed the Elders! Chicken Enchiladas

It's like clockwork. Every Tuesday, at six o'clock, missionaries show up at my kitchen door. Mark and I have been feeding the Elders once a week for years. We love it. It's awesome to have them in our home, setting an example for our kids. It's fun to joke around with them, and sometimes tease a little bit. It's nice to have them teach a lesson, because those Elders come up with some pretty nifty object lessons (like the one with the empty tea bag and the lighter, that was cool). It's very gratifying to make yummy, nutritious food and have someone - besides Mark - eat it with delight and sounds of bliss...as opposed the groans of agony that I get from my own children.

In fact, I look forward to Tuesday evenings, because anything I'm craving that I know my family will reject as cruel punishment, I know I can serve it to the Elders, and they will love it and ask how I made it, and request the recipe. It does my hausfrau heart a world of good.

Last night, I tried a new recipe I found for chicken enchiladas (the last try was...uhm, unsuccessful). Mark loved it. The Elders snarfed it up. Even Hyrum and Lucy cleaned their plates. The only child who absolutely refused to partake was Gabba. I hereby declare it a success! Therefore, I must share the recipe:

Chicken Enchiladas (as dredged up on allrecipes.com)

4 skinnless, boneless chicken breast halves

1 onion, chopped fine

1 C. (1/2 pint) sour cream

1 C. Shredded Cheddar cheese + 3/4 C.

1 T. parsley flakes

1/2 t. oregano

1/2 t. pepper

1/2 t. salt, optional (...I omitted because everything tastes too salty to me these days)

1 (15 oz.) can tomato sauce

1/2 C. water

1 T. chili powder

1/3 C. green bell pepper, chopped (I omitted since I didn't have any on hand)

1 clove garlic, minced

8 (10 inch) flour tortillas

1 (12 oz.) jar taco sauce (recipe to follow)

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• In a medium skillet, cook chicken over medium heat until no longer pink and juices run clear. Drain excess fat, cube chicken, and return to the skillet. Add the onion, sour cream, 1 C. Cheddar cheese, parsley, oregan and pepper. Heat until cheese melts. Stir in salt, tomato sauce, water, chili powder, green pepper and garlic.
• Roll even amounts of mixture in the tortillas. Arrange in a 9x13 baking dish (I greased mine first, mostly out of habit). Cover with taco sauce and 3/4 C. Cheddar cheese. Bake uncovered for 20 minutes. Coool 10 minutes before serving.

It really was tasty. We ate it with fresh sweet corn on the cob from the garden, and everyone was so full there was hardly room for the ice cream. But don't worry. We managed. The ice cream was required, as it was Elder Headman's last dinner at the House of Phogles. He is being transferred today. And Elder Fullmer goes home at the end of next transfer. Of course, this meant we had to take a picture after dinner:

I'm going to miss Elder Headman. He has been a lot of fun. And this set of Elders has been with us for quite a while. They knew the routine well. If they got here of a Tuesday evening, and we didn't have dinner all the way ready, they would wash their hands, roll up their sleeves and get to work setting the table and grating the cheese, whatever needed to be done. Guess we're gonna have to train new Elders, huh?

Oh, the taco sauce recipe. I personally think it's better than any store bought sauce. Let me know if you try it and how you like it!

Taco Sauce

§ 8 ounce tomato sauce

§ 1/4 cup water

§ 1/4 teaspoon chili powder (more if you want this hotter)

§ 1 teaspoon cumin

§ 1 tablespoon of onion, chopped

§ 1 tablespoon white vinegar

§ 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

§ 1/4 teaspoon salt

§ 1/4 teaspoon paprika

§ 1/4 teaspoon sugar

§ 1/4 teaspoon ground red pepper

Mix all together in a blender until smooth. Pour sauce into pan and cook over med-low heat for 15-20 minutes. Don’t skip the cooking part of this. You need to heat the sauce up to really blend the flavors together.