Mexican Lasagna

MEXICAN LASAGNA

I couldn't think of anything to make today, so I turned to Matt. He first asked me to make lasagna. Then he asked if I could make a Mexican lasagna. I remembered seeing this recipe on Pioneer Woman's site and decided today would be the perfect day to whip this up.

We both LOVED this. The flavor was on point and it tasted like something you'd get at a fancy restaurant! Best part is, we'll have plenty of leftovers for a few days! I'm not complaining! I halved the recipe and baked it in my deep ceramic lasagna pan.

MEXICAN LASAGNA
(adapted from The Pioneer Woman Cooks)

INGREDIENTS:
2 cups unprepared rice
3-4 cups chicken broth
2-4 tomatoes, seeded and chopped
2 onions, chopped
6 cloves garlic, pressed
1 can black beans, undrained
taco seasoning (or chili powder, paprika and cumin)
1 ½ lb. ground sirloin
1 (16 oz.) jar salsa verde
8-12 small flour tortillas
2 cups shredded Mexican cheese
8 oz. enchilada sauce
1 can corn, drained
sour cream and cilantro, for garnish

DIRECTIONS:

Cook the rice according to package directions with chicken broth in place of the water. In a large skillet, melt a half tablespoon of butter over medium-high heat. Add the tomatoes, onion and garlic to the pan and sauté until onion is tender. Add in chili powder (approx. 1 ½ tablespoons), paprika and cumin (approx. ¾ tablespoon of each), to taste. Stir to combine. Add the can of beans and stir to combine. Transfer the mixture to a large bowl and add cooked rice. Stir to mix well.

In the now empty skillet, brown the ground sirloin. Mix with chili powder (approx. 1 ½ tablespoons), paprika and cumin (approx. ¾ tablespoon of each) and salt to taste, as well as 2 oz. of water to create the taco beef.

To assemble the lasagna, pour half of the jar of salsa verde in an even layer over the bottom of a casserole dish. Layer evenly with flour tortillas to cover. Spread approximately half of the rice mixture evenly over the tortillas. Sprinkle with a layer of shredded Mexican cheese. Add another layer of flour tortillas. Pour a thin layer of enchilada sauce over the tortillas. Spread taco beef evenly over the enchilada sauce. Layer one can of corn over the beef. Top with the remaining rice mixture in an even layer. Spread the remaining salsa verde evenly over the rice, and sprinkle with a layer of shredded cheese to finish.

Bake at 375° for 25-35 minutes, or until the cheese has melted and begins to brown a bit. Allow to sit 10 minutes before serving. Top individual servings with sour cream and fresh cilantro, for garnish.

Cheesy Sausage Lasagna

CHEESY SAUSAGE LASAGNA

Lasagna is one of my favorite things to make. It's relatively easy and leaves us with some great leftovers.

This turned out so well. The recipe is very versatile. Sometimes I use 1/2 ground sirloin and 1/2 sausage, or all ground sirloin and sometimes I even use ground turkey. The possibilities are endless!

INGREDIENTS:
1 package no-boil lasagna noodles
1 pound sweet Italian sausage
6 ounces fresh spinach
1 small onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, pressed
1 15-ounce ricotta cheese
4 cups of shredded mozzarella, divided
2 eggs
1/4 cup Pecorino Romano
2 jars Kroger brand - Extra Tomato Spaghetti Sauce (or your favorite brand/flavor)

DIRECTIONS:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Spray a 13x9x3 pan with non-stick spray.

Place onions and sausage in a large skillet over medium/medium-high heat. Cook until the sausage browns. Remove skillet from heat and drain grease. Return skillet to heat and add garlic. Cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Reduce heat to medium, add spinach and cover, stirring occasionally until the spinach wilts, 5-7 minutes. Remove pan from heat.

In a medium sized bowl, beat the 2 eggs. Add the ricotta cheese, 2 cups mozzarella cheese and Pecorino Romano. Stir until combined.

Layer as follows:

Add 1 cup of spaghetti sauce to the bottom of your 13x9 pan

1 layer of lasagna noodles, 1/3 of the ricotta mixture, 1/2 of the sausage mixture, 1 cup sauce

1 layer of lasagna noodles, 1/3 of the ricotta mixture, 1 cup mozzarella, 1 1/2 cup sauce

1 layer of lasagna noodles, 1/3 of ricotta mixture, remainder of sausage mixture, 1 cup sauce

1 layer of lasagna noodles, 1 cup sauce, 1 cup of mozzarella cheese

Cover with foil and bake for 60 minutes. Remove foil and bake for an additional 5 minutes. Remove from oven and let stand for 15 minutes before serving.