Take-out Tuesday, Chicken, Corn and Black Bean Lasagna and Autumn Snack Mix

the Painted Apron

6 years ago

Sunday the weary hurricane warriors returned

and I wanted to reward them in some way,

they worked all weekend cleaning up our beach house,

property, plus helping neighbors,

in the aftermath of Hurricane Sally

There was no water the first two days

and no power until after they left on Sunday…

hot, humid, buggy, smelly, awful conditions!

The first thing I did was make a big batch

of Autumn Snack Mix,

their favorite Chex mix

with the addition of peanut M & Ms,

sesame sticks, and pumpkin seeds

I sent a big bag home with my sweet and salty loving son-in-law

HHjr had been cooking and feeding 5 hungry men all weekend

All meals had to be prepared outside on the grill

He even figured out how to cook a huge pan

of frozen macaroni and cheese on the grill…

He deserved someone making him dinner for a change!

Not feeling real peppy myself,

I decided to make a simple Tex-Mex lasagna

and started by cooking the chicken on Saturday

After 3 1/2 hours of cooking

in green enchilada sauce in the slow cooker,

the chicken is so tender it practically shreds itself!

I put the chicken and sauce into a plastic container

covered, in the refrigerator overnight

On Sunday morning,

it only took a few minutes to put this dish together

First rinse and drain the black beans and drain corn

Put the beans and corn into the container

with chicken and green enchilada sauce

Mix the red enchilada sauce with the Cream of Chicken soup

for a creamier finishing sauce,*

{I only used about 2/3 of the chicken soup}

*this is optional, you can just use the red enchilada sauce if preferred

All that you have to do now is layer,

First a layer of creamy red enchilada sauce, about 1/2

I used a deep 8″ square baking dish

It was pretty full so I put a sheet pan under it while baking

Next a layer of tortillas, tearing into pieces to fit

Next layer 1/2 of chicken and vegetables on top of tortillas

and sprinkle with 1/3 of the cheese

{forgot to photo the cheese, pretend you see it on top of the chicken}

Repeat layers, ending with tortillas on top,

then pour remaining red enchilada sauce over all

and sprinkle with remaining cheese

At this point you can cover it and put it in the refrigerator

for 24 hours if desired, before baking

This is a moist lasagna,

I recommend serving it with some rice to soak up the extra sauce,

and a crisp green salad

Chicken, Corn & Black Bean Lasagna

Southwestern ingredients and tortillas layered and baked like lasagna

Course Main Course

Cuisine American, Tex-Mex

Keyword black beans, casserole, chicken enchiladas, chicken thighs, corn, do ahead, enchilada sauce, lasagna, slow cooker

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 45

slow cook chicken 3 30

Servings 6

Ingredients

1 1/2 lbs boneless skinless chicken thighs or breasts
1 can 15 oz. black beans
1 can 15 oz. corn
1 can 10 oz green enchilada sauce
1 can 10 oz. red enchilada sauce
1 can 10 oz.Cream of Chicken Soup
Flour tortillas { I used 6 8 inch tortillas}
6 oz grated sharp cheddar

Instructions

Place chicken in a sprayed or lined slow cooker and pour green enchilada sauce over it. Cover and cook on high for 3 1/2 hours
Shred chicken in the sauce with 2 forks {this can be done a day ahead and refrigerated}
Drain black beans and rinse well. Drain corn. Combine beans and corn with chicken in sauce
Mix red enchilada sauce with Cream of Chicken soup. Spread a layer of this sauce on the bottom of baking dish
Top sauce with a layer of torn tortilla pieces
Top tortillas with 1/2 chicken vegetable mixture and sprinkle with 1/3 of cheese
Add another layer of tortilla pieces, the rest of the chicken mixture and another 1/3 of the cheese
Cover top with tortilla pieces, pour remaining sauce over all to cover and sprinkle with remaining cheese.
Bake at 350 degrees until hot and bubbling, about 45-60 minutes

Notes

A deep 8 inch square baking dish is a good size for this recipe

Autumn Snack Mix

Sweet and salty with unexpected flavor

Course Appetizer, Snack

Cuisine American

Keyword cashews, chex mix, M & Ms, peanuts, pumpkin seeds, sesame sticks

Prep Time 5

Cook Time 40

Ingredients

12 oz chex cereal, corn or rice 1 large box
1 cup dry roasted peanuts
1 cup roasted and salted cashews
1 cup sesame sticks
1/2 cup olive oil
1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
seasoned salt to taste
1/2 cup roasted pumpkin seeds
2 cups peanut M & Ms

Instructions

Combine cereal, nuts, and sesame sticks in a deep full size roasting pan
Mix Worcestershire sauce and olive oil and pour over ingredients in pan
Sprinkle cereal mix with seasoned salt
Gently fold ingredients over and over to coat with seasonings and spread into an even layer
Bake at 275 degrees for 20 minutes, stir well and continue to cook for another 15-20 minutes
Turn mixture out onto paper towels to cool
Evenly sprinkle mix with pumpkin seeds and M & Ms
Once mixture has cooled completely, transfer to large ziplock bags or plastic containers to store.
This makes 2 large ziplock bags of snack mix, about 12-14 cups