November 19, 2009

Mexican Lasagna

One of the next areas I want to cover is the concept of once a month cooking or make-ahead convenience foods. Whenever I get a good deal on ground beef or boneless skinless chicken breasts, I buy a lot, and I often prepare 10 lbs at a time of both.

For the quick recipe I made tonight, I used a portion of pre-made (by me) Mexican seasoned meat. I don't often use a lot of canned items, but I wanted something quick and easy tonight. My Grandma calls this "dump and pour" cooking.

Mexican Lasagna

1 lb taco meat
1 can fat free refried beans
1 can low sodium corn
1 can Ro-tel tomatoes
1 large can (it's larger than 15 oz, maybe 24) of enchilada sauce
1/2-1 cup sour cream or ranch dressing (i know! i used ranch dressing in a pinch once, and it cuts the heat and makes it creamy)

Lasagna noodles OR corn or flour tortillas
2 cups colby jack cheese

First grease the pan using your method of choice, then put just enough of the enchilada sauce in the bottom to barely cover it. Then mix together all the rest of the first set of ingredients to make the sauce. Layer noodles or tortillas (I've done it with all three with good results, I never cook the lasagna before I start). Then add meat mixture, 1 cup of cheese, then another noodle layer, then meat, noodles, meat, noodles, with cheese on the top. Bake covered at 350* for 1 hour. Remove foil and bake for 15 more minutes, then let sit for 10 minutes before serving.

I also make lasagna in two 8x8 pans and freeze one either before or after cooking. The leftovers rarely get eaten, but the extra pan will make a great meal for the next time. Often when I make lasagna, I will double the recipe and make 4 8x8 pans. Voila! The same amount of work gets us one meal to eat now, three for later.

No comments: