Mexican Lasagna - My Way!!!

There has been a change in the air the last few days....and it's not just been my allergies telling me so!  

(They are finally better, thanks to the big shot I got last week, though.)  

Actually, it's felt a little more like Fall around here and the cooler temps and new slant to the sun are a welcome change.  Yes, indeed!  In fact, the change of season made me want to get in the kitchen and cook up a meal!

(Yeah, I know....you don't hear that much from me......)

I "pinned" a recipe for Mexican Lasagna a few days ago and have been itching to give it a whirl.  This evening was Show Time.

The "pin" led me HERE, to "Sugar & Spice by Celeste", a blog where I am sure I will be prowling around plenty in the future.  I took the basic recipe and did a little tweaking on my own, as you will see from my notes. 
 
So, from the top, here is how I prepared this dish: 

MEXICAN LASAGNA.....

Sauce:

• 1 onion, peeled and chopped
• 1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
• 1 small can of diced green chiles
• Freshly ground black pepper, to taste (and we like a lot!)
• 1/2 tsp. Mrs. Dash original seasoning
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped cilantro stalks
• 2 (14-ounce) cans "Mexican Style" diced tomatoes, plus about 1 cup water to rinse out empty cans
• 1 tablespoon ketchup 
• 1 lb. of 80/20 ground beef

In a large skillet, brown the ground beef, onion, bell pepper, seasonings and can of green chiles.  Let this simmer until meat is brown and veggies are soft.  Add the two cans of diced tomatoes, the water and ketchup.  Allow this to simmer about another 10 minutes while you prepare the Filling.

 

Filling: 

• 2 15-ounce cans black beans, rinsed and drained
• 3-1/4 cup super sweet corn (I used frozen, 1 small bag, thawed)
• 2-1/2 cups grated cheese (I used two bags of pre-grated cheese - one colby-jack blend and one cheddar - for a total of 4 cups; reserve the remaining 1-1/2 cup for topping.)

Mix these three ingredients and set aside to layer.

 

Instead of pasta, you will be using soft flour tortillas - I used about 9 soft taco size tortillas. 

In a 9x13-inch Pyrex baking dish, just assemble like a regular lasagna......

Small amount of SAUCE in spread in bottom of pan

Layer of TORTILLAS, torn and placed to make a fairly solid surface

Layer of FILLING, then SAUCE, then more TORTILLAS....

Layer of FILLING,  then SAUCE, then more TORTILLAS.....

Layer of FILLING, then SAUCE, then more TORTILLAS.....

and finally - last little bit of SAUCE.

Top with more grated CHEESE (I had about 1-1/2 cups left to go on top) 

 

(I admit, this was a little hard to eye-ball the amount to use in each layer, but it's not an exact science; just adjust as you go along!)

Place in preheated 400 degree oven, on a covered cookie sheet, in case of drips.  (Mine did not bubble over!)  Bake for about 40 minutes, until nice and bubbly.   

 

**I placed an inverted disposable aluminum cake pan over the dish after about the first 10 minutes to keep the cheese on top from overbrowning and drying out.  This worked like a charm!**

Remove from oven (carefully, this weighs about a ton!) and allow to stand for 10-15 minutes before slicing and serving.  

 

The original recipe called for an Avocado Salsa that sounds really yummy, but I was trying to keep this simple and the dish was very tasty without the salsa - plenty of flavors going on!  It served up beautifully.   

 

 

Also, check out the original post for some great tips for making this dish ahead, freezing and reheating.  

 

The recipe does make a lot - we will get another full meal and probably a couple of individual lunches out of it!

 

So, there you have it.  An easy, delicious dinner that is pretty quick to fix, makes plenty and is truly yummy!   My tummy is still feeling pretty full and it's been hours since we ate.....

 

Until next time, hugs!!!

 

Janie