vegetarian

These vegetarian black bean and corn enchiladas can be made ahead and frozen. The flavours are intense in all the best ways. This hearty, family friendly meal will be one you will make again and again. When I’m making freezer meals, I like to use healthy ingredients. When I see bright colours, then I feel like I’m feeding my family well in recipes like the Chickpea and Vegetable Curry, Cilantro Lime Chicken with Corn and Black Beans, or Asian Rice Bowl. The filling in this recipe is so colourful. I know right away when I see that this is a dish I can be proud to serve my kids.

These have Mexican flavours and just the right ratio of filling to wrap. If you’re an enchilada fan, you’re going to fall in love with being able to take these out of the freezer and cook them whenever the craving hits.

Personally, I like using corn tortillas for a more authentic experience, but if you hate the texture of corn tortillas as some people are known to, you can substitute flour tortillas for the corn ones.I make most of my freezer meals in resealable freezer bags to save on space, but this is one that really needs to be made in trays. It takes up more room, but it’s well worth it.

We also made a few of these in small containers for individual freezer meals. We used microwave safe containers so that they could be heated that way. These are perfect for singles.

Black Bean and Corn Enchiladas Recipe:

Ingredients:

• 15 oz. can black beans, drained
• 15 oz. can kernel corn, drained
• 4 oz. green chilies
• red pepper, diced
• 1 tsp. cumin
• 1 tsp. lime juice
• salt and pepper to taste
• 2x 12 oz. cans of enchilada sauce
• 4 cups shredded Tex Mex cheese
• 24 corn  tortillas
• 2x 9×13 baking trays (you can use glass or foil trays)
• aluminum foil

Assembly instructions:

1. In a large mixing bowl, stir together the black beans, corn, green chilies, diced red pepper, lime juice, and seasoning.
2. Spoon some of the mixture into a corn tortilla. Wrap.
3. Place the tortilla seam side down in the baking tray. There will be 12 tortilla rolls in each tray when they are done.
4. Pour one can of enchilada sauce over top of the enchiladas in each tray.
5. Sprinkle 2 cups of cheese over each of the dishes.
6. Cover with two layers of foil. Freeze.

Note that this recipe makes two trays of enchiladas. You can either freeze both or serve one that night and freeze the other for another time. And of course, if you have a large family, you can serve both at once. If you would like to make just one tray, half the ingredients.

Cooking instructions:

1. Remove the tray from the freezer. Thaw.
2. Bake at 350° for 30 minutes.
3. Take out of the oven. Remove the foil. Bake for another few minutes until the cheese on top is melted.

You may also want to check out these Mexican inspired make ahead meals:

• Tex Mex Pasta Bake
• Spicy Slow Cooker Chicken Poblano
• Make Ahead Mexican Manicotti Bake
• Cilantro Lime Chicken with Corn and Black Beans

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Black Bean and Corn Enchiladas

Ingredients

• 15 oz. can black beans drained
• 15 oz. can kernel corn drained
• 4 oz. green chilies
• red pepper diced
• 1 tsp. cumin
• 1 tsp. lime juice
• salt and pepper to taste
• 2 12 oz. cans of enchilada sauce
• 4 cups shredded Tex Mex cheese
• 24 corn  tortillas
• 2 9x13 baking trays you can use glass or foil trays
• aluminum foil

Instructions

Assembly instructions:

1. In a large mixing bowl, stir together the black beans, corn, green chilies, diced red pepper, lime juice, and seasoning.
2. Spoon some of the mixture into a corn tortilla. Wrap.
3. Place the tortilla seam side down in the baking tray. There will be 12 tortilla rolls in each tray when they are done.
4. Pour one can of enchilada sauce over top of the enchiladas in each tray.
5. Sprinkle 2 cups of cheese over each of the dishes.
6. Cover with two layers of foil. Freeze.

Cooking instructions:

1. Remove the tray from the freezer. Thaw.
2. Bake at 350° for 30 minutes.
3. Take out of the oven. Remove the foil. Bake for another few minutes until the cheese on top is melted.

Recipe Notes

Note that this recipe makes two trays of enchiladas. If you would like to make just one tray, half the ingredients. 

These chickpea butternut squash fajitas are a vegetarian freezer meal. They are colourful. They are healthy. These are also gluten free if you use gluten free tortillas to wrap them in.

Chickpea Butternut Squash Fajitas Recipe:

• 4 cups butternut squash, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch cubes
• 19 oz. can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• 1 purple onion, sliced into 1/2 inch strips
• 2 red peppers, sliced
• 1 Tbsp. sugar
• 1 Tbsp. chili powder
• 2 tsp. cumin
• 1 tsp. paprika
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 Tbsp. olive oil
• 2 tsp. lime juice
• pinch of salt

For serving:

• flour tortillas
• Greek yogourt or sour cream
• avocado
• fresh cilantro
• salsa

Place the squash, chickpeas, onion slices, red peppers, minced garlic, sugar, spices, olive oil, and lime juice in a large resealable freezer bag. Give the bag a shake to mix things around. Seal the bag after taking out the excess air. Freeze.

On the day of cooking, take the bag out of the freezer to thaw. Spread the bag contents out evenly on a large baking sheet. Bake at 425° for 25 minutes, turning over with a spatula halfway through cooking time.

Serving suggestions:

Serve warm on flour tortillas with Greek yogourt or sour cream, diced avocado, salsa, and a sprinkle of fresh cilantro.

Check out these other delicious make ahead meals:

Chickpea and Vegetable Curry 

Beef Fajitas 

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Chickpea Butternut Squash Fajitas Recipe

Ingredients

• 4 cups butternut squash peeled and cut into 1/2 inch cubes
• 19 oz. can chickpeas drained and rinsed
• 1 purple onion sliced into 1/2 inch strips
• 2 red peppers sliced
• 1 Tbsp. sugar
• 1 Tbsp. chili powder
• 2 tsp. cumin
• 1 tsp. paprika
• 2 cloves garlic minced
• 2 Tbsp. olive oil
• 2 tsp. lime juice
• pinch of salt

For serving:

• flour tortillas
• Greek yogourt or sour cream
• avocado
• fresh cilantro
• salsa

Instructions

1. Place the squash, chickpeas, onion slices, red peppers, minced garlic, sugar, spices, olive oil, and lime juice in a large resealable freezer bag. Give the bag a shake to mix things around.
2. Seal the bag after taking out the excess air. Freeze.
3. On the day of cooking, take the bag out of the freezer to thaw. Spread the bag contents out evenly on a large baking sheet. Bake at 425° for 25 minutes, turning over with a spatula halfway through cooking time.

Recipe Notes

Serving suggestions: Serve warm on flour tortillas with Greek yogourt or sour cream, diced avocado, salsa, and a sprinkle of fresh cilantro.

You don’t have to be a Vegetarian to love this chickpea and vegetable curry recipe. It’s delicious. I usually make it as the main dish, but sometimes I use it as a side dish when I make Chicken Tikka Masala. This can be cooked on the stovetop if you prefer, but it makes a great freezer to crock pot meal.

I’ve been on a bit of a cauliflower kick lately and this meal just totally hits the spot. This chickpea and vegetable curry dish is a beautiful, colourful meal with vibrant flavours.

The curry flavours in this meal are not overpowering. They mix really nicely with the coconut milk. If you are not a fan of coconut milk (like a certain friend of mine who shall remain nameless but hates all things coconut!), then you can substitute heavy cream for the coconut milk.

Chickpea and Vegetable Curry Recipe:

• 1 onion, finely minced
• 1 small sweet potato, peeled and diced
• 2 cups small cauliflower florets (about 1/2 a medium head of cauliflower)
• 1 cup frozen peas
• 2x 15 oz. cans chickpeas (also called garbanzo beans)
• 3 Tbsp. curry powder
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 2x 13.5 oz. cans coconut milk
• 2 Tbsp. lemon juice
• 1 1/2 tsp. salt

As with most freezer meals, it’s just as easy to make multiple recipes at one time. That is certainly true of this one and since making a single recipe calls for using half a head of cauliflower, there’s no sense in having the other half go to waste. You might as well make at least two of these meals to put in the freezer.

This recipe makes quite a large amount, so if you have a smaller family, you may want to divide it into two large freezer bags. Since it is such a substantial meal, it’s a great one to have when you have company over.

To assemble the meal, put all the ingredients in a large resealable freezer bag and squish together. Remove any excess air and seal the bag. Lay flat and freeze.

On the day of cooking, remove the bag from freezer and thaw.

Stovetop instructions: Place the bag contents into a large pot. Over medium heat, bring it to a slight bowl before reducing the heat to low. Simmer on the stovetop for one hour.

Slow cooker instructions: Dump the bag contents into the crock pot and cook for 3 hours on high or 5 hours on low. 

Serve with jasmine or basmati rice. You can also top with a bit of fresh cilantro if you like.

This recipe is included in our Vegetarian Freezer Meal Menu Plan. The plan includes recipes, shopping lists, prep lists, and printable labels. 

Other freezer meals to check out:

Chicken Tikka Masala for the Instant Pot

Butter Chicken Freezer Meal