Black Bean Chilaquile Casserole

Another Friday, another meatless meal.  The part of me that grew up Catholic finds it kind of ironic that our meatless meals always seem to land on Friday.  Guess it's in my genes...

The original recipe for this dish came from the book Moosewood Restaurant Low-Fat Favorites.  I modified it to spice it up a bit, use pantry staples instead of fresh produce, and, well, fatten it up simply because I didn't have the fat-free/low-fat ingredients on hand.

10 small corn tortillas
oil for frying
1 T. olive oil
1 cup chopped onion
2 cloves minced garlic
1 jalapeno, seeds and ribs removed, chopped
1 15-ounce can diced tomatoes, drained
1 15-ounce can whole kernal corn, drained
1 15-ounce can black beans, drained
1 10-ounce box frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained
2 T. fresh lime juice
1 t. salt
black pepper, to taste
8 ounces cheddar cheese, grated
2 cups salsa, plus extra for serving
sour cream

In a small skillet, heat one inch of oil over medium heat until shimmering.  Fry tortillas, one at a time, until crisp and light brown.  Drain on paper towels.

In a large skillet over medium heat, saute onion, garlic, and jalapeno in olive oil until onions are soft.  Add tomatoes, corn, beans, spinach, lime juice, salt and pepper.  Simmer 15 minutes or until thickened. 

Crush tortillas and spread half of them in the bottom of a greased 8x8 pan.  Pour vegetable mixture over, then spread half the salsa and half the cheese over the top.  Top with remaining tortillas, then spread remaining salsa and cheese over. 

Bake at 350 degrees until hot and bubbly, about 45 minutes.  Serve topped with sour cream and salsa.

Black Bean Lasagna

We're trying something new in our house - meatless meals once a week.  This is mainly for budget reasons, but we also eat (in my opinion) far more meat than necessary.  This was good, but my husband told me I'm only allowed to make it again if I promise to never, ever refer to it as lasagna.  In his mind, lasagna is Italian, and this is definitely not Italian!  I think I'm supposed to call it "Layered Mexican Casserole".

I actually made this with no-boil noodles, because that's what I had in the pantry, but it came out a little dry so next time I'll definitely use regular noodles And the leftovers were even better than the initial dish, after the flavors had had a chance to meld.

Serves 4

6 lasagna noodles
1 15-ounce can black beans
1 T. canola or olive oil
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped green pepper
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 15-ounce can tomato sauce
2 t. chili powder
1 t. ground cumin
1 t. salt
1/2 t. black pepper
1 cup cottage cheese
4 ounces cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup sour cream, plus extra for serving
salsa

Boil the noodles according to package directions.  Drain and set aside.

In a large skillet, saute the onions, peppers, and garlic in the oil until the onions are soft.  Add the beans, lightly mashing them with a fork.  Stir in tomato sauce and seasonings.

In a small bowl, combine cottage cheese, cream cheese, and 1/4 cup sour cream. 

Lay two noodles in the bottom of a greased 8x8 casserole dish.  Spread 1/3 of the bean mixture over the noodles, then spread 1/3 of the cheese mixture over that.  Repeat layers again, and then a third time, stopping at the bean mixture.  Save the rest of the cheese mixture for after baking.  If baking later, cover and refrigerate or freeze at this point. 

Bake, covered, at 350 degrees for 1 hour.  Remove from oven and spread remaining cheese mixture on top.  Let stand 10 - 15 minutes, and serve with salsa and sour cream on top.

Cheesy Chicken Spaghetti

I must admit that, since hubby got all wrapped up in a project and forgot to put it in the oven for dinner, this recipe is, at this moment, untested.  So I may come back and edit it tomorrow.  We shall see...

Cheesy Chicken Spaghetti

2 T. olive oil
2 ribs celery, diced
1 small onion, diced
1/2 red bell pepper, diced
8 ounces dry spaghetti, broken in thirds
3 ounces cream cheese
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup sour cream
1/4 cup white wine (could substitute milk)
2 cups cooked chicken (I used ground)
1 t. Italian seasoning
1/2 t. garlic powder
1/2 t. season salt
2 c. grated cheddar cheese, divided

In a skillet over medium heat, saute the celery, onions, and bell peppers in the olive oil until onions are translucent, about five minutes.  Meanwhile, cook spaghetti according to package directions, leaving it a little more al dente than usual. 

In a large bowl, combine next 7 ingredients (cream cheese through season salt).  Add vegetable mixture once it has finished cooking.  Stir in one cup of cheese.  Finally, mix in the spaghetti once it is cooked.

Pour mixture into a greased 8x8 baking dish.  Sprinkle remaining cheese over the top.  Bake in a 350 degree oven for 30 - 40 minutes, until hot and bubbly.