For dinner recently, I was in the mood for tacos, but didn’t have all the makings for them.  However, finding certain things around the house gave me the idea to experiment.  I saw a recipe recently for a mexican casserole that sounded so good, but I couldn’t find it with a search.  Since I had read the recipe when I found it, I could remember the basics of it, so decided to try and create something similar. I ended up with an amazingly good meal.  Even my semi-picky eater gave it a thumbs up! Here is what I did.

First I gathered what I had on hand. This included tortilla shells, refried beans, corn, chopped onions, tomatoes, Zatarain’s Black Beans and Rice, Mexican Blend shredded cheese, and a packet of taco seasoning. 

First I cooked the black beans and rice.  While that was cooking, I sauteed the onions in 2 tablespoons of olive oil.

After the rice was cooked, I drained the tomatoes and corn and added those to the mixture along with the sauteed onions.

I heated the refried beans and mixed the taco seasoning packet with them. 

I sprayed a baking dish with olive oil and then I layered everything in it.  Tortillas on the bottom, then a layer of the rice mixture, a layer of beans then cheese on top of that,  I made 2 layers in this way then put tortillas on the top. 

I covered it with aluminum foil and baked it at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.  I then removed the foil and baked it for another 5 minutes to brown the top. 

It turned out so well, I want to do it again soon.  I’m sure that you could also use beef for this if you aren’t vegetarian.  You might need a little liquid with beef, possibly taco sauce or just don’t drain the tomatoes, so it isn’t too dry.  If you try this, let me know how it turns out for you!