Saturday, February 16, 2013

Baked Southwest Egg Rolls


I made these for dinner last night. I was going to serve with a salad, but as soon as they came out of the oven we dove into eating them and forgot about the salad. They were really good. I have been meaning to try to make them for a long time, but for some reason I have always been a little intimated by egg roll wrappers. I make things with wonton wrappers - crab rangoon and potstickers, but not egg rolls. Recently I made regular Chinese egg rolls with broccoli slaw instead of cabbage as Michael doesn't like cabbage and realized that the wrappers were easy to roll.  So it was time to try the Southwest Egg Rolls. So glad I made them...they were a hit here and plan to make them again. I might even try to freeze them then pull from the freezer and heat for a quick dinner with a salad. Or to have as appetizer to bring to a party. 


2 cups cubed boneless skinless chicken  (I used one LARGE chicken breast and it was a little under 2 cups and still worked well)
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 cup of finely chopped red bell pepper (optional - I just wanted a little more color)
1 can (7 oz) green chilies
1/4 cup of finely chopped green onions
1 cup frozen corn
1 can (14.5-15 oz) black beans - drained and rinsed
2 cups fresh baby spinach
1 1/2 cups cheese ( I used half pepper jack and half cheddar - I think next time I will use 1 cup pepper jack and 1/2 cup cheddar)
1 package egg roll wrappers - 20 wrappers


Toss the chicken with seasonings. Make sure they are coated with the mixture. If  it isn't - add a little more cumin and chili powder.  In a large skillet, heat vegetable oil or olive oil on medium. Add in the chicken and saute for 5 minutes. Stir in the red pepper and cook until the chicken is cooked through.  Stir in green chilies, green onion, corn and black beans.  Add the spinach.  Cook until spinach is wilted. Remove from heat and add cheese..

Preheat over to 400 degrees. Coat baking sheet with cooking spray.

Using a spoon or scoop place a heaping tablespoon of filling onto the wrapper. Follow the directions on the back of the egg roll package for folding. Position an egg roll wrapper out like a diamond with one tip pointing towards you. Scoop the filling near the center of the egg roll wrapper. Pick up a corner on your left pull it over the filling. Pick up the corner opposite and bring it over the filling.  Take a corner pointing down towards you and start rolling it up around the egg filling.  Repeat with remaining wrappers and filling. Place on baking sheet seam side down, not allowing egg rolls to touch.  If you are having problems with them staying shut - slightly wet the edges with your fingers as you roll them.

Brush the egg rolls with olive oil or coat with cooking spray so that they crisp up in the oven. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes or until crispy.

Serve with or without a dipping sauce.  I used 2 different dipping sauces - Guacamole mixed with some sour cream and salsa mixed with sour cream. About a 1 to 1 ratio.

 

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