Tuesday, October 13, 2015

Mexican Tortilla Casserole

I was trolling Facebook one day and noticed a recipe that a friend of mine had re-posted. It looked pretty tasty. I knew it was something I wanted to make for my family. 

However, I can NEVER make a recipe true to it's originality, so here is my version of the recipe. 

(The original recipe is included at the end of this post to give credit where credit is due.)

You will need a spring-form pan the size of your tortillas. Mine was a 10-inch. Or you could use a deep dish cake pan or other 10-inch round pan, but you need to make sure it's deep enough (at least 3 inches).


Didn't know ahead of time I was going to blog this, so not everything is pictured.


Ingredients: 

20 oz pkg ground turkey (Jennie-O Lean)
3/4 cup diced sweet onion
1 pack McCormack Chicken Taco Seasoning
2 1/2 cups shredded cheese (I used Kraft Mexican 4-cheese blend)
1 can Old El Paso Fat Free Refried Beans (warmed in microwave 30-40 seconds)
1 cup prepared rice (you can use any kind you desire, but I used Minute Multi Grain Medley)
11 oz can Meijer Baja Corn Blend
4 large flour tortillas 
16 oz jar thick & chunky salsa (I used Meijer Naturals Thick & Chunky)

Prep:

The Minute rice I used had microwave directions, so I cooked it that way. 1 pouch (1 cup) rice, with 1 cup water and 1 tsp oil in microwave rice cooker for 10 minutes.

While rice is cooking.... 

Brown ground turkey, with diced onions, in large skillet over med-high heat. I used setting number 7 on my electric stove. When turkey is cooked thru, add the chicken taco seasoning pkt and 1/4 cup water. No need to drain first. Continue cooking a few minutes until seasoning is well blended. Turn off heat. Let sit til ready to use.

Prepare for baking:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Spray the inside of your baking pan with non-stick spray.

Bottom Layer: tortilla, 1/3 beans spread evenly, 1/3 meat mixture, about 1/4 cup cheese

2nd Layer: tortilla, 1/2 the rice, 1/2 jar salsa, 1/2 corn, 1/4 cup cheese

3rd Layer: another tortilla with 1/3 beans (I spread beans on tortilla on cutting board then transferred to stack when spread evenly.), 1/3 meat, 1/4 cup cheese

4th Layer: tortilla with bean spread again, rice, meat, corn, salsa and about 3/4 cup cheese to cover everything.

HINT: If you are using a spring-form pan, it will leak from the liquid in the salsa. So, you must place it on a large enough baking sheet while cooking to prevent spillage in your oven. I also sprayed the baking sheet to ensure easier clean-up.

Cover dish with foil and bake in oven for 40 minutes.

Remove foil cover and bake an additional 10-15 minutes til cheese is brown and bubbly.

Let dish set for 5-10 minutes before cutting.


Serve with any or all of your favorite toppings: dice green onions, sliced black olives, sour cream, shredded lettuce, guacamole, etc.

I also have a bag of crispy tortilla strips I considered layering with the dish, but forgot, so we could add those as a garnishment if we want as well.

Hope you like it as much as we did! 




Here is the original copy and paste from the post so the original poster gets the credit for their recipe...


Kristine Peterson with Tammy Sanders and 2 others
MEXICAN TORTILLA CASSEROLE!
1lb. ground beef
1/2 cup diced onion
1 pack taco seasoning mix
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
1 can refried beans (they spread easier if you warm them in microwave)
1 cup prepared rice (I used Minute Rice)
1 can Mexican blend corn (DRAINED)will only use about 1/2 can
4-5 large flour tortillas
8 oz of thick chunky salsa (your choice mild or hot)
Spray a spring form, round cake pan or casserole with cooking spray
Brown ground beef ,and onion and drain
Add taco seasonings and cook according to package direction
Lay 1 tortilla in bottom of baking dish and spread 1/3 of bean on it ,top with 1/3 of the meat and sprinkle on some cheese .
2nd layer tortilla, 1/2 the rice, 1/2 salsa, 1/2 the corn and cheese
3rd layer tortilla, 1/3 beans ,1/3meat, cheese
4 layer tortilla . beans ,meat, corn, rice, salsa and cheese
Bake covered with foil at 350 for about 40 minutes uncover and bake 10-15 minutes longer. let sit 5 minutes before cutting . After baking top with sour cream,diced onion and shredded lettuce if desired.