Enchilada Casserole

     Although I love Mexican food, I have never been too keen on enchiladas.  But since I was struggling to decide what to make for dinner this week, I handed my husband a cookbook and told him to pick something that looked good.  When he selected the enchilada casserole recipe I sort of wanted to cringe, but getting his input on what sounds good for dinner is usually difficult and I was just happy he was making a decision (one less I have to make)!  So after I slightly adapted the recipe from my Taste of Home cookbook, here is what we had for dinner last night!

1½ lbs. ground beef

1 large onion, chopped (I shouldn't even need to say this anymore, but I left this out!)

¾ cup water

1 package taco seasoning

¼ tsp. garlic powder

2-3 cups salsa, divided

10 flour tortillas (8 inches), cut into ¾ inch strips

1 cup sour cream

2 cans corn, drained

4 cups Mexican blend cheese

     In a large skillet, cook beef (and onion) over medium high heat until no longer pink, then drain excess fat.  Stir in water, taco seasoning, and garlic powder.  Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer uncovered for 10 minutes.  Place ½ cup of salsa into the bottom of a 9 x 13 baking dish.  Layer with ½ the tortilla strips and then another ½ cup of salsa.  Next layer 1 can of corn, the meat mixture, and then the other can of corn.  Top with sour cream.  Place the remaining tortilla strips over the sour cream.  Next spread the remaining salsa (about 1 cup) over the tortillas.  Lastly, top with 4 cups of cheese.  Cover with foil and bake for 35 minutes at 350°.  Uncover and bake for 5-10 more minutes.  Makes 10 servings.

   Note: The original recipe suggests making this recipe in two 8 x 8 baking dishes, one for now and one for later.  Before cooking, you can cover and freeze for 1 month, then thaw in the refrigerator for 24 hours.  Remove from the refrigerator about 30 minutes before baking.  Use the above directions for cooking.