Maternity leave has been the best time of my life. Spending 12 weeks, 24 hours a day, with my new son, Judah, has been such bliss that I can’t believe it is almost over. It’s flown by, and now I return to my full-time job this Thursday.
Not only does this mean less time with the love(s) of my life (my husband included), it also means less time to spend on cooking and baking! So, I have been thinking of meals that can be prepped ahead and frozen, or just thrown together quickly from the fridge or pantry. This is one of those meals, and I am thrilled I found it. These taquitos are delicious and extremely easy to assemble, and now I am afraid I will make them too often and get sick of them!! I’m even making them for our friends who just had their second baby last week (on Valentine’s Day!) so they can throw them in the oven whenever they choose. These are also great served as appetizers.
You’ll find the instructions for freezing and baking at the end of the recipe. My advice to you is to go ahead and make a TON of these one afternoon, so they’ll be ready for you in the freezer whenever you need that last minute meal. The best part? You do not even have to wait to thaw them before baking! Brilliant!
Baked Creamy Chicken Taquitos
Yield: 12 taquitos
3 ounces cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup green salsa
1 Tbsp fresh lime juice (juice from half a lime)
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp onion powder
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 Tbsp chopped cilantro
2 Tbsp sliced green onions
2 cups shredded cooked chicken
1 cup shredded Mexican flavored cheese
small flour or corn tortillas
kosher salt
cooking spray
Preheat your oven to 425˚F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
In a large bowl, mix the cream cheese, salsa, lime juice, ground cumin, chili powder, onion powder and garlic. Once combined, stir in the cilantro and green onions. Add the chicken and cheese; mix thoroughly.
(If you decided to prep this in advance, refrigerate the mixture at this point until ready to continue.)
Working with a few tortillas at a time, heat them in the microwave between two paper towels until they are soft enough to roll (about 20 – 30 seconds).
Spoon 2-3 Tablespoons of the chicken mixture onto the lower third of a tortilla. Roll the tortilla as tightly as you can.
Place the rolled tortilla seam side down on the baking sheet. Repeat with remaining tortillas until the mixture is gone. Make sure the taquitos are not touching each other. Spray the tops lightly with cooking spray and sprinkle with kosher salt.
Bake for 15 – 20 minutes or until crisp and golden.
Serve with salsa, sour cream or guacamole.
**To freeze: Before baking, flash freeze the taquitos in a single layer on a baking sheet then place in a labeled freezer bag and store up to 3 months. To bake a frozen taquito (no need to thaw first): Preheat oven to 425˚F and bake for 20 minutes.
Source: Adapted from Our Best Bites
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