Yesterday I cried at Starbucks.
Not like a little whimper, I'm talking full on sob-crying with little pools of tears collecting on the lid of my coffee. Â It was not my finest moment, guys. Â Not my finest moment at all.
I'm pretty sure James was contemplating running for the hills and never looking back.
But really, it's his fault. Â Kind of. Â Well, actually, it wasn't really his fault at all, but pshhh, who has time for those kinds of technicalities?
You see, my cousin Ashley is getting married in less than a week, and she is my closest pal in the whole world. Â Just thinking about her makes me want to sing that best friend song from Rob & Big-- you know the one I'm talking about. Â Or maybe you don't. Â Either way...
James and I go to get our coffee fixes, and I'm blabbering away about Ashley's wedding, the bridal shower games I've planned, the songs she's chosen to play, etc. Â We order our drinks, and then James goes and says "Oh man, you're going to cry so much when she walks down the aisle."
And then it was silent for a second.
And then I was crying. Â A lot. Â To make matters worse, I got embarrassed about crying in public and felt the need to announce several times, "THESE ARE HAPPY TEARS! Â HAPPY TEARS!!! Â I'M REALLY HAPPY, PEOPLE! Please stop staring at me..."
It was bad.
But anyway, the point of this story is that sometimes you get so happy about things that you can't help but cry. Â These Baked Chicken Chimichangas with Monterey Jack Cheese Sauce might not make little April showers of joy spring forth from your tear ducts, but they totally could, so I recommend not taking your first bite in public.
Even though these Chimichangas are baked, they still have a great crunch to them that keeps you from missing the traditional fried shell. Â Healthier, easier, and just as tasty-- what more could a girl ask for?
On the inside, we've got some shredded chicken and spices, chopped tomato, black beans, sour cream, and cheese to fill you up and make your taste buds do a happy dance. Â On the outside, we've got some guacamole, more chopped tomato, cilantro, and of course, more cheese. Â You just can't go wrong here.
Not to mention, you can individually wrap and freeze the Chimichangas and warm them up in the microwave any time you need a quick meal. Â These got me through a week of "I'm far too lazy to cook after work today" days. Â My only regret is not making a bigger batch.
Cinco de Mayo is right around the corner, so I think you and I should both use it as a reason to make a ton of Baked Chicken Chimichangas with Monterey Jack Sauce!
PrintBaked Chicken Chimichangas with Monterey JackCheese Sauce
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 4 1x
Ingredients
- 2 cups shredded chicken (I used rotisserie chicken)
- 2 tablespoons oil
- ½ cup chopped onion
- 3 large cloves garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- Pinch of cayenne
- ½ 15oz can of black beans
- â…“ cup sour cream
- 1 tomato, chopped
- 1 handful cilantro, chopped
- 5 tablespoons butter, divided
- 4 (8 inch) flour tortillas
- 2 ½ cups Monterey Jack cheese, divided
- 1 cup milk
- 1 tablespoon flour
- Guacamole, to top
- Cilantro, to top
- Chopped tomato, to top
Instructions
- Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add in the onion and cook until soft, about 3 minutes.
- Add in the garlic and cook for an additional minute, and then add in the chicken, spices, and black beans. Cook for a minute.
- Add in the tomato, cilantro, and sour cream. Stir well to combine and cook for a minute more, or until warmed through. Remove the skillet from heat.
- Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.
- Melt 3 tablespoons of the butter in a microwave safe bowl.
- Scoop about ¾ cup worth of the chicken and bean mixture onto the center of each tortilla. Sprinkle with ¼ cup of cheese each. Brush the outside of the tortilla with butter and fold the tortilla (you may have to warm the tortillas in the microwave first so that they fold without ripping). To fold, bring in both sides, then bring the bottom upward, and then turn the whole chimichanga over, longways, to fold over the remaining top side. Move to a prepared baking sheet. Brush each chimichanga with the melted butter.
- Bake for 10 minutes, then flip and butter the other side of the chimichangas. Bake for another 8 minutes, or until golden brown and crisp.
- While the chimichangas bake, combine the milk and flour in a microwave safe bowl. Stir until smooth. Add 1 tablespoon of butter and microwave for 2 minutes.
- Stir well and add the remaining 1 ½ cups of cheese.
- Stir again and microwave for another minute. The cheese should be melted now. Stir until completely smooth. If your sauce is too runny, give it a few minutes to cool and it will thicken up.
- Serve the chimichangas with cheese sauce, guacamole, cilantro, and chopped tomato.
- Prep Time: 15 mins
- Cook Time: 30 mins
soupwich says
Made these today for a Cinco de Mayo party. They were a huge hit! Not too much prep either - definitely making them again. I made a double batch and used 6" tortillas so more people could have them... they flew off the plate. 🙂
Morgan says
Awesome! I love the idea of using smaller tortillas for party-sized chimichangas!
Openthedoorhal says
Hi there! This recipe looks awesome. Do you think these would reheat well and if so, any suggestions for how to best reheat it? I want to make these for my boyfriend to take to work for lunch, but I'd have to do it ahead of time.
Morgan says
Thank you! I do think the chimichangas would reheat well-- you can freeze them and reheat them by putting them in a 350 degree oven for about 20-25 minutes (without thawing them first). They also can be microwaved to reheat, but they will lose a bit of their crunch. As far as the cheese sauce goes, you can reheat it on a low microwave setting at short intervals, stirring in between until it reaches the desired consistency. If you pour the cheese on top of the chimichangas before you refrigerate them and then put the whole thing in the microwave, that will work as well, although it won't be as good as alternative methods.
I hope that helps!
Openthedoorhal says
Yes!!!! Thank you so much!