Mexican Beef and Bean Casserole

Recipe name: Mexican beef and bean casserole
Source: no idea
Servings: 4-6, depending on appetites
Cookbook date: June 18
Date prepared: June 15

1 pound ground beef (or turkey)
2 cans pinto beans
8 oz tomato sauce
1/2 cup salsa
1 tsp chili powder
1 cup shredded mozzerella cheese

Heat oven to 375
Cook beef over medium heat 8-10 minutes or until brown. Drain. Rinse and drain beans. Mix the beef, beans, sauce, salsa and chili powder in an ungreased baking pan. Cover with aluminum foil. Bake 20 minutes. Stir. Bake another 20 minutes. Uncover. Add the cheese and bake an additional 5 minutes.

My post must begin with an apology. I TOTALLY forgot to take a picture of this casserole. But I'm sure you can imagine this....think ground meat, sauce, lots of beans, topped with cheese. Yup, what you are imagining is pretty much what this meal looks like.

Overall, this dish was very tasty and actually easier than the instructions would have you believe. The shortcut that worked for us was to add the sauce, salsa, beans and chili powder to the cooked beef (turkey for us) and let it get hot in the pan, which took maybe 3 or 4 minutes instead of 20 in the oven. Then follow the rest of the directions. Serve this with tortilla chips for scooping.
Oh, our head chef Tim has one more important note: 1 cup of cheese is ridiculous. You definitely need to double that, and don't apologize for doing it!



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