Two days. Two. Days. If baby has not made her debut by Thursday, she's scheduled to get a little encouragement in the form of some pitocin. We had an unplanned dry run on Sunday night when we went to the hospital with contractions . . . that stopped as soon as we got to the hospital. I'm not normally the type to overreact, but my doctor has drilled it in my head that due to our long drive to the hospital and this being my second baby I should waste no time getting there. True, better safe than sorry, but you can't help feeling dumb when you are explaining to the nurses that you were having contractions. You swear. 

The only kind of food being made at our house lately is either from a restaurant or super simple. With plenty of leftovers. This fits the second bill, but tastes like it fits the first, too. You can't go wrong with layers of seasoned meat, tortillas and cheese, cooked to gooey perfection in a 9x13 pan. It is relatively quick to make, and is one of those dishes where the leftovers taste as good or better than the original meal. The pepperjack and taco sauce give it a little kick, but not too much for my wimpy tastebuds. Glamorous, it isn't, but in terms of tastiness and ease, it ranks way up there. For busy weeknights or evenings where you just don't feel like doing much work, this is a great option. 

Mexican Lasagna

By Heat Oven To 350 Published 03/18/2014

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 pounds lean ground chicken or turkey
• 2 tablespoons chili powder
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1/2 sweet onion, chopped
• 1 (15 oz) can black beans
• 1 1/2 cups taco sauce (medium or mild heat)
• 1 cup frozen corn kernels
• salt
• 12-15 corn tortillas
• 1 1/2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese
• 1 cup shredded pepperjack cheese
• green onions, sliced

Instructions

1. Heat oven to 425 degrees. Heat a large skillet over medium heat and add 1 tablespoon olive oil. Brown ground chicken or turkey with chili powder, cumin and chopped onion.
2. When meat has browned, add taco sauce, black beans and corn. Cook, stirring often, until beans and corn are heated through, about 2 minutes.
3. Spread remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil in the bottom of a 9x13 baking pan. Add 1/3 of the meat mixture, then top with 4-5 corn tortillas. (tear the tortillas into half or thirds to make them easier to layer.) Top the tortillas with 1/3 cup of pepperjack cheese and 1/3 of the cheddar cheese.
4. Top cheese layer with half of remaining meat mixture, another layer of tortillas and cheese. Repeat layers one more time, ending with cheese on top. Cover pan with foil.
5. Bake lasagna 20 minutes, then uncover and bake an additional 5 minutes or until cheese has started to brown and lasagna is bubbly. Serve topped with chopped green onions.

Yield: 8 servings
Prep Time: 10 min
Cook time: 25 min

Recipe Source: adapted from Rachael Ray

Posted in: Main Dish