Monday, January 14, 2008

Enchilada Lasagna

1 1/2-2 pounds ground meat (or equivalent in shredded chicken, or textured tofu, sauteed mushrooms would work too)
18 soft corn tortillas, taco size (the small ones)
1 Large can (~28oz) Enchilada Sauce (I like Las Palmas red (good for kids, mild flavor) or green)
3 cups shredded cheese (Mexican blend works well, or you can use one smaller bag cheddar, one monterey jack)
1/4-1/2 red onion, chopped (optional)

Seasonings for the meat:
Use either a package of taco seasoning or

1/4 Cup Salsa (whatever you have in the fridge)
Hot sauce to taste (I like Tapatio, and use about 5 hearty shakes of the bottle)
Salt (shake a light covering over the pan)
Pepper (grind until you're happy)
Crushed/chopped garlic (optional, 1-2 cloves)
1/4-1/2 Cup water to dissolve salsa, etc. into the pan and meat

If you are going to cook chicken (2-3 large breasts or equivalent in dark/light meat) and then shred, add
1 can tomato sauce
and omit the water (don't use taco seasoning)

Brown/cook the meat, draining any excess liquid.

Preheat oven to 350F.

Grease or PAM the bottom and sides of a 9x13 baking dish.

Pour a bit of the enchilada sauce (ES) in the bottom to cover lightly.

Layer, overlapping, six tortillas into the bottom of the pan.
Apply a layer of meat for even coverage.
Top with an even layer of cheese to cover. (Insert sprinkling of onions here, if desired -- not so great with kids.)

Add six more tortillas, and cover with some of the ES, spreading out with the back of a large spoon (or spatula, whatevs).
Repeat meat and cheese layer.

Top with final six tortillas and remainder of enchilada sauce. Cover with a light layer of cheese (enough that it doesn't burn in the oven, but not so much that it's thick and goopy -- you want to see the edges of the tortillas and some sauce along the outside edges of the pan).

Bake for about 20 minutes (heated through) and the the dish is bubbling and cheese is melted.

Leftover meat and cheese can be used for taco night, burritos, etc.

You can do a version with black or pinto beans as part of the layers, but be careful that the layers don't get too thick, or you will overfill the pan.

Serve with [black beans and corn] Jennifer's Black Beans and Green Chiles and Mexican rice on the side.

Serves 6-12, depending on hunger, age/sex of guests, and pie slice size.

Let's all give VDog a hand for that tasty recipe! *a roar of applause from the crowd is heard*

1-2-3 Cookies

Impostor Mom sent this recipe forever ago. I finally got these made and they are indeed delectable. And easy.

1 cup of oil
2 boxes of cake mix with pudding in the mix (I use a yellow cake mix or butter recipe)
3 eggs

Mix all ingredients together and add anything you want to flavor the cookies. (m&ms, chocolate chips, white chocolate and macadamia nuts, cinnamon chips, also makes great snickerdoodles) Roll the dough into 1 inch balls and place on a lined (I used Reynolds Release wrap) cookie sheet. The dough will be greasy and it will seem too greasy but its not, I promise. Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 11 minutes. Mmmmm so yummy.

Tuna Salad

3/4 C fat free Italian Dressing
1 can cannellini beans (though any white beans will do)
1 can (6 oz) albacore tuna
1/2 C sliced green onions
1/2 c chopped red pepper

Mix all ingredients together and serve over a bed of lettuce.

Heather sent this recipe. She has served it at several past playgroups. This recipe is certainly NOT the reason our playgroup no longer exists!

Easy Broccoli Quiche

This recipe is brought to you by Lisa from Sweet Home Alabama! Sorry it took me so long to post it, Lisa!

2 cups milk
4 eggs
¾ cup Bisquick
¼ cup butter, softened
1 cup Parmesan cheese
1 (10 ounce) package chopped frozen broccoli*, thawed and drained
1 cup cubed cooked ham*
8 ounces shredded cheddar* cheese

*I also like using Spinach and Bacon with Swiss Cheese
(you can be really creative and throw in whatever you like)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees
Lightly grease a 10 inch casserole dish
In a large bowl, beat together eggs, Bisquick, butter and Parmesan cheese. (Batter will be lumpy)
Stir in broccoli, ham and cheddar cheese.
Pour into casserole dish.
Bake in preheated oven for 50 minutes, until eggs are set and top is golden brown.
Enjoy!

This is definitely not figure friendly but good for breakfast or brunch on a cold day! I serve with fresh fruit to counter the richness of this dish.

Italian Beef

1 Roast (Rump, Top round...whatever)
1 jar of Pepperocinis (mild if you don't want your guts to catch fire)
1/2 yellow onion, sliced

Put the roast in the crock pot. Pour the jar of pepperocinis over the roast. Cook on low for 8-9 hours or on high for 5-6 hours. When there is about an hour or two left of cooking time, add sliced onions.

Yes. That's really it.

And dayum is it ever good.