Layered Enchilada Bake

Ok, so most of the time when I post about a recipe, it's something that I'd made several days, or even a week prior but usually have leftovers lingering in the fridge.  This is not one of them.  Oh don't get me wrong, I made this less than a week ago, and I even made the full recipe instead of halving it as I normally do.  There is not one container of this left in my fridge.

Yes, it's that good.

Look at those layers.  What's not to love??

My mother-in-law introduced me to this recipe, and I have to say that I was initially skeptical.  Not because it was enchiladas or anything.  Are you kidding me?  I love Mexican food!!  But I noticed right away that there's Italian dressing in it.  Wha--?  Yeah, you read that right, Zesty Italian salad dressing.  In an enchilada recipe.  I'm not kidding.

Ok so this is the point where you just need to trust me on this one.  I am a huge fan of everyone tweaking and altering recipes to suit their own tastes.  However I will say that you neeeeeeeeeeeeeeed to keep the salad dressing in this one.  Believe me, you'll notice the lack of spark in this dish if you do.

Layered Enchilada Bake
Recipe from Jan Swafford, who got it from Kraft Foods

1 lb lean ground beef

1 large onion, chopped

2 cups salsa

1 can  (15 oz.) black beans, rinsed

1/4 cup Zesty Italian dressing

2 tbsp taco seasoning mix

6 flour tortillas (8 inch)

1 cup sour cream*

1 pkg. (8 oz.) shredded cheddar OR a Mexican blend

*Did you know that plain yogurt has a very similar tang to that of sour cream?  Also, plain Greek yogurt has that same tangy-ness as well as the consistency of sour cream. Mm hm.  All I'm saying is that if you wanted to make this a tad healthier, or if you didn't quite have enough sour cream and needed to supplement it with something else, that you have options.  And this is merely a suggestion; I am not admitting to anything as to how I may have previously prepared this dish so Rob you can quit looking at me like that. ;)

1.  Preheat oven to 400.

2.  Brown meat with onion in a large skillet over medium-high heat; drain.

Start with the basics: ground beef, onion.

 3.  Stir in salsa, black beans, dressing, and taco seasoning.

Save your packets! Instead buy the mix in bulk for recipes like this

4.  Using a 9x13 pan, arrange 3 tortillas so that most of the bottom of the pan is covered.  The cover tortillas with layers of half each meat mixture, sour cream, and cheese.  Repeat layers; cover with tin foil.

My secret to even sour cream distribution

5.  Bake, covered, for 30 minutes.  Then uncover and bake for an additional 10 minutes (total 40 minutes baking time).  Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

Melty, cheesy goodness

I like this recipe, not only for it's zippy taste, but also for the freezing options!  Oh you knew this topic was coming up right?  You actually a couple of freezing choices if you wanted to make this ahead of time:

OPTION 1:  My mother-in-law will put together the meat mixture and freeze that in small containers.  Then when she plans on having this for dinner she thaws the amount of meat she needs, assembles the casserole, and life is good.  This is a great way to prevent potentially soggy tortillas.

OPTION 2: Assembly is usually my time-consuming issue though so I will follow the recipe up through step 4.  Then wrap it extra well and freeze the entire thing.  Then I will just thaw the casserole and bake as directed.  I haven't noticed a soggy tortilla issue but then I haven't been looking for it.

Enjoy!!