Add Dairy-Free to my list of High-Maintenance Needs

I’ve continued to try to figure out why my body seems to reject everything I eat, and while I’m officially not dealing with Celiac (thank god), it may in fact be dairy that’s been the culprit all along. I am on day 2 of a total dairy-free diet (10 days), which it turns out is a BIG deal for me. I always knew I had a love affair with dairy, but I had no idea! It’s still a little like a science experiment, and I am definitely in serious denial about the fact that I may never again eat triple cream brie on a french baguette. (dear god, I can’t believe I even wrote that sentence, let alone to bring myself to believe that it might be true….)

So in the true spirit of exploration and experimentation, I’ve done some quick substituting for the items on our menu for the week, and it turned out pretty well. Last night I did the mushroom risotto that was in our plan, but used olive oil instead of butter for sauteing the onions and mushrooms and just omitted the Parmesan since I wasn’t able to track down or concoct a substitute in short order. It was still pretty creamy (the rice does nicely on its own in that area) and in Brent’s words, “it didn’t suck.” (High praise!)

In all honesty, Brent is a saint in all of this. His attitude is pretty much to try anything I attempt in the kitchen, a premise that was tested tonight as I put tofu cream cheese in our enchiladas. They turned out great, and I share the recipe with you here. It originated in cooking light with a fully dairy version. Note that this recipe could be – as I understand it – vegan (don’t tell Brent), but I did one pan as noted here and a separate pan that had a little melted shredded cheese on top for him. Brent got the light sour cream that was in the original recipe for a garnish, and I used Tofutti’s “Better than Sour Cream” and it was pretty good on taste and texture.

2 teaspoons olive oil
1 teaspoon bottled minced garlic
½ teaspoon chili powder
½ teaspoon ground cumin
1 small onion
8 ounces mushrooms
8 ounces fresh spinach
¼ teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons light cream cheese with onions and chives (I used Tofutti’s “Better than Cream Cheese” and added some green onions)
16 ounces green salsa, divided
8 (6-inch) corn tortillas
⅓ cup (1 1/2 ounces) shredded Monterey Jack cheese (omit for vegan/dairy-free)
¼ cup fat-free sour cream (or Tofutti’s “Better than Sour Cream”
Cilantro sprigs (optional)

Preheat broiler.

Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the garlic, chili powder, cumin, and onion. Saute until onions are beginning to soften and add mushrooms; sauté 5 minutes more. Add spinach and salt; cook for 1 minute or until spinach wilts, stirring frequently. Add cream cheese; cook 2 minutes or until cream cheese melts, stirring frequently. Place the mushroom mixture in a bowl; set aside.

Heat 1 cup salsa in a saucepan over low heat. Dredge both sides of each tortilla in warm salsa using tongs, and stack the tortillas on a plate. Spoon 1 heaping tablespoon mushroom mixture into center of each tortilla; fold in half, and arrange in skillet, overlapping slightly. Top with remaining salsa, and sprinkle with cheese (or omit cheese). Top with remaining salsa. Wrap handle of skillet with foil, and broil enchiladas for 4 minutes or until the cheese melts. Top with sour cream, and garnish with cilantro sprigs, if desired.