Nebraska Enchiladas

So I've been making these enchiladas from a modified recipe in my Grandma's church cookbook since I was in HS. I call them Nebraska Enchiladas since they are only sort of like enchiladas (like the authentic kind I LOVE here in LA)...and they don't usually have enough kick behind them to be considered spicy in any way/shape/form. But here goes the recipe:

Nebraska Enchiladas
by: Michelle Fox

Ingredients:
3-4 oz cream cheese
1 1/2 - 2 cups Mexican cheese
1 cup salsa/picante sauce
1/2 - 3/4 pounds of ground beef/turkey
Burrito-sized tortilla shells
Spices

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400. Brown the beef/turkey with your choice of spices. I like the Mrs Dash spice mix, couple with some onion (dried is OK, the real stuff is better), garlic salt, etc. Meanwhile, soften the cream cheese in the microwave if you need to. Place 1 cup of the Mexi cheese and the cream cheese in a mixing bowl, along with 1/4 cup of the salsa/picante. Drain off any fat from the beef/turkey, and add to the mixing bowl. Mix it all up with a spatula (it will look sort of gross, and make squishy noises) until fully combined.

Coat Pirex 9x13 dish with Pam. Take a tortilla, and spoon the mixed cheese/beef/salsa in a line down the middle of the shell. Then roll it up, and place in the Pirex. I use tortillas that are probably close to 13" in diameter, so I lay them long-ways in the Pirex. This usually yields about 5 tortillas used. Once full of the tortillas, cover the tops with the remaining 3/4 cup of salsa and 1/2 cup of Mexi cheese. Bake for about 10 minutes in the oven, long enough that the ends brown a little (love the crunch on the end of the tortillas!). Serve & enjoy.

Tips: Philly makes perfect little 3 oz squares of cream cheese - these work great. However, they don't come in reduced fat. Lately, I've been using the whipped reduced-fat cream cheese. Feel free to experiment with the measurements of the ingredients - I don't use measuring cups anymore, I just put in what feels right. There's nothing offensive about the ingredients that too much of one thing will ruin the dish. These enchiladas also make great leftovers - they almost taste better reheated than the initial pull-out-of-the-oven stage...almost!

These things taste great with Diet Pepsi, which I haven't had for 10 days now. The withdrawal symptoms are starting to wane - the headaches are only mildly annoying, rather than completely distracting.