Make Ahead Chicken Enchiladas (straight from the freezer)

Enchiladas ready for the quick freeze!

Forgot to take a pic before we started to serve - we just couldn't wait!

Ingredients
*2   28oz cans tomato sauce
* 1  12oz can chipotle chile in adobo sauce
* 1 cup chicken broth
* 1 onion, chopped
* 6 garlic cloves
* 2 tsp ground cumin
* 2 tsp ground coriander
* 1/2 tsp salt
* 2 tbsp vegetable oil
* 6 cups of cooked bite size or shredded chicken (from 2 rotisserie chickens or cooked yourself)
* 4 cups (from 2  8oz blocks) of Monterey Jack cheese, shredded (divided)
* 2/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro
* 1/3 cup minced jarred jalapeños (or less if you'd like less heat in your final dish)
* 20-24 corn tortillas (6 inch size)
* vegetable oil spray


Directions
1. Combine the tomato sauce, chipotles and adobo sauce, broth, onion, garlic, cumin, coriander and salt in a bowl.  Working in batches, process the mixture in a blender until smooth (40-50 seconds).  Transfer the pureed tomato mixture into a separate bowl.  (I put about a quarter of the mixture in the blender at a time)
2. Heat 1 tbsp of oil in a 12 inch nonstick skillet over medium heat until shimmering.  Add half the pureed tomato mixture to the skillet, bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 8-10 minutes.  Transfer the cooked sauce to a bowl or very large measure cup bowl.  Repeat with the remaining half.  You should end up with at least 7 cups of sauce.   Set aside 1.5 cups of the sauce and let it cool for at least 10 minutes.
3. In another bowl, combine the chicken, 2 cups of the cheese, cilantro, jalapeños, and 1.5 cups of sauce.
4. Heat the oven to 300 degrees.  Place 5 tortillas on baking sheet and spray both sides lightly with cooking spray.  Bake the tortillas until pliable, about 2 minutes.
5. Working quickly, transfer 1 tortilla at a time to a cutting board or work surface, fill with 1/3 cup of the chicken mixture and roll tightly.  Transfer to a baking sheet.  Repeat until you have filled 20-24 tortillas with chicken mixture.
6. Place plastic wrap over the baking sheet and quick freeze the enchiladas.  When frozen, use a spatula to pry the enchiladas off the sheet and store them in zipper storage bag.  Freeze for up to one month. You must freeze these enchiladas before cooking and serving!
7. Store the enchilada sauce in the fridge for up to 4 days, or freeze for up to one month.  You will need 2.5-3 cups of sauce per 10-12 enchiladas.  If you will be using only part of the enchiladas for a meal, freeze your sauce in partial quantities as well.  For example, I made 24 enchiladas, but planned to only serve 12 at a meal.  I froze my sauce in 2 containers so I would only thaw the amount of sauce needed for one meal.
8. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.  Spray glass baking dishes that you will be using.  Arrange the frozen enchiladas in a single layer in the dishes. 10 enchiladas fit well in one 9 x 13 dish.  You may be able to squeeze in 12.  (When I was cooking 12 enchiladas, I used one 9 x 13  and then a smaller pyrex for the additional 2).  Spray the tops of the frozen enchiladas with additional cooking spray.
9. Bake the enchiladas for 30-35 minutes, until the tops of the tortillas are just beginning to flake.
10. Remove the dishes from the oven and top each 10-12 enchiladas with 2.5-3 cups of enchilada sauce.  Bake for 10 minutes.
11. Remove the dishes from the oven and top with one cup of cheese for every 10-12 enchiladas.  Bake for 5-10 minutes or until the cheese melts.  If desired,  broil the enchiladas for the last 1-3 minutes to get the cheese golden.
12. Serve and enjoy!

Notes
WOW!  We were so impressed by the flavor of these enchiladas!  They were better then most we'd eaten out at restaurants!  I will say that they are fairly spicy, but you can alter that by decreasing (or even omitting) the jarred jalapeños if your family does not enjoy spicy dinners; the meal was too spicy for Liam, but the rest of us LOVED it!  Owen and I each enjoyed some as leftovers the next day for lunch as well.

While these enchiladas do take a some time in the kitchen to make, I would say they are well worth the effort.  And the fact that we got 2 dinners worth out of it again was a pro in my book.  Using rotisserie chicken for the chicken definitely saves you time.  I bought 2 from Costco, and they yielded much more than the 6 cups of chicken I needed to make this recipe.

Also - next time I make them I will add a silpat to my baking sheet before quick freezing the enchiladas.  When I took them out to place into zipper freezer bags, I initially had a hard time getting them off the baking sheet!  But, in the end, I did get them off, but next time I will use a silpat and hope to save myself a few moments of panic!

We are excited that we can eat them again next week without much effort at all, I am definitely adding this recipe to the rotation of meals I can make ahead!  They are outstanding - and if you at all are interested by the recipe, I absolutely suggest you make them.  You will not be disappointed!