Mexican Lasagna

This recipe is a spin off from the regular Italian Lasagna most of us are used to eating. I enjoy making this recipe because I can adjust it to what I have on hand. For instance, once I had spicy salsa on hand and substituted it for the canned diced tomatoes. Peppers can be very pricy, especially when they are out of season, so I use celery. Sometimes, I choose to substitute chili peppers for a change of pace. My family prefers the taste and texture of the white tortillas over the yellow tortillas for this recipe.
Mexican Lasagna

• 1 T vegetable (or your favorite) oil
• 1 Large onion, chopped
• 1 med chopped green, red, or yellow pepper; or 2 stalks of celery
• 1 LG clove of garlic, minced
• 1 lb ground beef or ground sausage
• 1 t dried oregano leaves
• 1 can (16 oz) tomatoes, chopped, drained (you can buy them chopped)
• 1 can (8 oz) tomato sauce
• 1 cup sour cream
• 3/4 t Tabasco sauce (you could use whatever hot pepper sauce you have on hand, or one packet from a restaurant)
• 10 yellow or white corn tortillas  5" in diameter ( if you have tortillas with a larger diameter, quarter      them and use enough to cover bottom of pan and next layer)
• 1 can (16 oz) pinto, black or black beans (I used dried and soaked and cooked them myself)
• 2 cups shredded pepper jack, Monterrey jack, or cheddar cheese

In a large skillet heat oil; cook onion, green pepper, and garlic 3 min or til tender. Add ground beef/sausage and oregano, breaking up meat with fork as it cooks; cook until browned. Drain off fat; remove from heat.
In medium bowl combine tomatoes, tomato sauce, sour cream and Tabasco Sauce; mix well. cut each tortilla in 1/2. Arrange 10 halves in shallow 11x7-inch baking dish (something of similar size will due). Spread 1/2 of meat mixture over tortillas. Top with 1/2 the pinto beans, half the tomato mixture, and 1 cup of shredded cheddar cheese. Repeat with remaining ingredients. Bake 30 min at 350 degrees or til heated through. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.
I often double this recipe and use an 11x7 and an 8x8 pans. Then, I can freeze the 8x8 pan and have some left overs for lunch the next day. This is one of those recipes that tastes even better the next day. Have fun cooking!

P.S., I hope you'll give this one a try even though my photography skills do not do this dish any justice!

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