Mexican Casserole

My family loves Mexican food and I have found that this delicious, easy to make casserole is a real winner with them.  It is flavourful, doesn’t require any extra sauces or time consuming steps and turns out perfectly every time.  It is like a burrito in a bowl and the topping of crushed tortilla chips makes it a fun dish… a little “nacho-ish”.  This could also be served wrapped in a tortilla and turned into a burrito to take as a school lunch or an on the go meal as you head to hockey or dance practice!  This casserole is nutritious, filling, oil-free, gluten-free (for those who are sensitive), nut-free, soy-free and sugar-free, all while being super flavourful.  It’s the perfect meal.  As a time saving move, I always double the recipe and freeze one for another day.  Something to pop out on a day when you are just not feelin’ it. 😉

This is a great dish for growing bodies.  It is full of complex carbohydrates in the form of vegetables, corn and rice.  It also contains legumes, which are an excellent source of fibre and protein.  It’s pretty much the healthiest, well rounded, family friendly meal you can serve.  If your kids don’t like a certain vegetable, just swap it out for something else!

We probably all have New Year’s resolutions that we are trying to keep.  Mine is to make 2019 even healthier than 2018.  One of my goals in achieving that, is to change my mid-afternoon snacks to only fruits and vegetables and to try to not get sucked into the 3 p.m. Angie’s Popcorn vortex.  Honestly, those damn giant bags from Costco are the devil.  I literally have to throw the bag into the back of my vehicle so that I can’t reach it while I am driving. It’s like my hand, that continues to stuff my mouth full of popcorn, isn’t even part of my body!  Anyhoo… Another resolution I have made is to try to follow the 1/2 cup of legumes a day idea by Dr. Neal Barnard. It’s simple.  Add more chickpeas, beans, edamame beans, peas, any legume you like to your diet each day.  Legumes are filling, full of fibre to keep you full and chock full of B vitamins and minerals.

Here is a link to a really great Vegetarian Starter Kit that shows you how and why to successfully modify your lifestyle to be plant-based.  It is from the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, led by Dr. Neal Barnard.  It includes simple recipes, information on raising children on this diet, the reasoning behind why animal products are harmful, as well as facts on protein and calcium in the diet.  It comes packaged in a fun, well laid out format.  It’s free and it is real information.  Not propaganda with the intent that you buy something from their website.  Refreshing and simple to say the least.

This recipe was modified from the Mexican Casserole recipe in the Oh She Glows cookbook.  My kids found that recipe to be very spicy.  I made a couple of alterations to the spice mix, omitted the Daiya cheese, added nutritional yeast and changed out some of the vegetables.  I hope you try this version and add it into your weekday meal repertoire.  Please leave me a note if you do try it.

Mexican Casserole

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Serves: 8 Prep Time: 30 minutes Cooking Time: 25 minutes 25 minutes

Nutrition facts: 200 calories 20 grams fat

Ingredients

• Casserole:
• 2 tablespoons vegetable broth, or water
• 1 onion, diced
• 3 cloves garlic
• 1 red bell pepper, chopped
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1/2 cup peas
• 1/2 cup corn
• 1- 14 ounce can of diced tomatoes
• 1 cup tomato sauce
• 3 cups chopped kale or spinach
• 1- 15 ounce can of black beans, drained and rinsed
• 3 cups cooked brown rice or wild rice blend
• 1/4 cup nutritional yeast
• 2 handfuls of crushed tortilla chips
• Optional Toppings:
• diced avocado
• salsa
• crushed tortilla chips
• diced green onion
• Mexican spice blend:
• 1/2 tablespoon chili powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika or 1/2 teaspoon regular paprika
• 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground coriander (optional)
• If you don't want to make the spice blend, you can find Mexican spice in the grocery store.  Use approximately 5 1/2 teaspoons of spice in the casserole.

Instructions

1. Mix together spices into a small bowl and set aside.
2. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.  Oil a large 4-5 litre casserole dish, or two smaller casserole dishes.
3. In a large frying pan or wok, heat the vegetable broth or water.  (You can use oil here if you prefer.) Add the chopped onion, garlic and bell pepper and sauté for 8 minutes until softened.  Season with salt and pepper.
4. Stir in the Mexican spice mix, peas, corn, tomatoes, tomato sauce and kale.  Also add in the beans, rice and half of the nutritional yeast.  Sauté for a few minutes, seasoning with more salt and pepper if needed.
5. Pour the mixture into the casserole dish and smooth out with a spatula.  Sprinkle the remaining nutritional yeast and crushed tortilla chips.
6. Cover with a lid or foil and bake for 15 minutes.
7. Remove the cover and cook for 5-10 minutes longer until bubbly.

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