BAKED BLACK BEAN AND SWEET POTATO FLAUTAS
What you need:
9 corn tortillas
1 cup black beans (drained + rinsed if using canned)
1 cup mexi-corn (corn + red/green peppers)
1 small/medium sweet potato
1/4 cup diced onion
1/2 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp dried or fresh cilantro
1/2 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp ground cayenne pepper or red pepper flakes optional
2 oz full-fat or 1/3 fat cream cheese room temperature (optional but tasty!)
4-6 ounces grated cheese* plus extra to taste
1-2 TBSP taco sauce, enchilada sauce, or salsa plus extra to taste
salt and pepper to taste
all-natural olive oil spray or plain oil
parsley or cilantro + fresh veggies to garnish
For The Dip:
salsa
sour cream or Greek yogurt
guacamole
How to make it and prep:
Pre-heat your oven to 425F.
Poke a few holes in your sweet potato, wrap it in a slightly damp paper towel, and microwave on high for about 6-8 minutes. The paper towel trick keeps the potato moist
While you wait, combine corn, diced or minced peppers, and diced or minced onion with your black beans, garlic powder, chili powder, cumin, cilantro, cayenne, and taco sauce/salsa. If you prefer very tender veggies, feel free to saute the vegetables first in a little butter or oil to tenderize. Your cayenne and red pepper flakes will control the spice-factor; adjust those to taste.
Once your sweet potato is cooked, fluff the inside with a fork and add the flesh [minus the skin] to the rest of your veggies and mix thoroughly.
Add salt, pepper, and any additional seasoning to taste. I usually add a little extra sprinkle chili powder, cumin, and garlic!
Next, working in small batches of maybe 3-4 tortillas, wrap corn tortillas in a damp paper towel and microwave on high for 30 seconds. Follow it up with an additional 30 seconds, if needed. The goal here is to steam the tortillas so they roll into perfect flautas without breaking or cracking.
Immediately spray or rub one side each tortilla with oil and add "line" of veggie filling to the center of the "dry side" of each tortilla, about 1-inch thick.
Top it off with a layer of cheese and roll the tortilla.
Place on a wire baking/cooling rack and seal with a toothpick, if needed.
Repeat these steps until you have a rack full of flautas.
Give them one more teeny spritz of olive oil to get them extra crispy, and set the rack baking sheet lined with aluminum foil. The wire rack elevates the flautas and allows them to get nice and crispy on both sides. If you don't own a wire rack, simply place the flautas on aluminum foil after spraying and turn over halfway through cooking so both sides will get a chance to crisp up.
Bake on the middle rack, at 425F, for 15 minutes.
At the end, set to broil on HIGH for just under a minute to crisp the tortillas into a perfectly golden, crunchy shell.
Pile high with any and all veggies you have on hand and serve with plain greek yogurt, salsa, and guacamole for dipping! You can even whip up a small bowl of jalapeno ranch for dunking too! If you have any fresh lime or cilantro both will make a tasty garnish!