To Honor Catherine O’Hara’s Memory, I’m Making Enchiladas

If you asked me who was on my list of favorite actors, Catherine O’Hara would have a firm spot in the top five. I consider Beetlejuice to be one of the most classic films of all time, and my family watches Home Alone every December. But my love of her comedic style was cemented when I discovered the mockumentaries she starred in, directed by Christopher Guest—Waiting for Guffman, Best in Show and A Mighty Wind, to name a few.

So when Schitt’s Creek made it to American streaming services from Canada, I couldn’t wait to watch it. If you haven’t watched it yet (please take this opportunity to do so if you haven’t yet), it’s about a wealthy family that has almost everything seized by the government. One of the things they’re left with is a deed to the town of Schitt’s Creek. They move there to rebuild their lives.

One of my favorite episodes (and one that sparked a lot of conversation in EatingWell’s Test Kitchen) is “Family Dinner” in season two. In the opening scene, O’Hara’s character Moira Rose, her husband Johnny (played by longtime acting partner Eugene Levy) and their two adult children, Alexis (Annie Murphy) and David (Dan Levy), argue about which of them knows how to cook. Johnny, Alexis and David reminisce about one of their cook’s fabulous enchiladas. Moira declares that the enchilada recipe is actually her family’s. “I made it for you all the time,” she states. They all look at her incredulously. Not to be defeated, Moira announces that she will make the enchiladas tonight—and that David will help.

Later in the episode, we see Moira and David in the kitchen. David stirs a white sauce on the stove. When Moira tells him the next step is to fold in the cheese, he looks confused. “What does that mean? What does ‘fold in the cheese’ mean?” It’s a wickedly funny scene, with Moira refusing to tell David what it means (since she doesn’t know herself). “Do you fold it in half like a piece of paper and drop it in the pot?” he asks. “I don’t know how to fold in broken cheese like that!” David finally gives up and huffs off, leaving her to finish.

So I can’t think of any better way to honor her passing this weekend than to make enchiladas and rewatch Schitt’s Creek.

Chicken & Tomatillo Enchiladas is one of my go-to recipes. They take a little time, but your oven does most of the work. (You could save time by using prepared enchilada sauce, but I promise this extra step is worth it.) Chicken breasts roast in the oven on one baking sheet, while the veggies for the sauce—tomatillos, wedges of white onion, garlic cloves and jalapenos—roast on another.

The veggies go into a blender along with plenty of cilantro to make a bright and flavorful sauce. After shredding the chicken, roll it up with cheese in corn tortillas and arrange the enchiladas in a baking dish. Everything gets doused in the sauce and some more cheese, then baked until bubbling.

I usually heat up some seasoned black beans to serve alongside and put out plenty of toppings so we can customize our own plates. Radish slices and shredded cabbage add crunch, and you can’t go wrong with a dollop of sour cream.

While it’s true you won’t need to “fold in the cheese” to make this recipe, I think the sentiment is the same. I find as much comfort in watching Schitt’s Creek as I do digging into a plate of enchiladas. And if you happen to rewatch this episode while the enchiladas are in the oven? Well, that just feels right.