Cheesy Enchilada Casserole

Last night, I caught up on a television series that seems to be taking the world by storm. I was NOT happy with how the season ended (and I’m even less happy that we all have to wait until next January to see the next season), and I’ve been feeling in desperate need of comfort food ever since. I really wanted to make something warm and homey, such as a good broccoli cheddar soup, but it started snowing like crazy on the way home from picking my kids up from their various afternoon activities. Since visibility on the roads was almost non-existent, I decided it would not be a wise decision to make a pit stop at the grocery store for broccoli, and it would make more sense to make due with what was already available in my refrigerator and pantry. I had corn tortillas and a nice big block of Monterrey jack cheese in the fridge, and suddenly a cheesy enchilada casserole sounded like just the thing to get me out of my post-costume-drama slump!

The nice thing about this casserole is that you get all the wonderful flavors of homemade enchiladas without all the fuss and mess of rolling each enchilada individually. You can keep it simple, such as this recipe calls for, or you can mix it up and add ground beef or chicken, black beans, and even some green onions and cilantro for garnish. If you feel like the enchilada sauce is too spicy on its own (I used canned sauce for this recipe, but sometimes that can be a bit spicy), feel free to add a nice dollop of sour cream.

Cheesy Enchilada Casserole

• 12 corn tortillas,  with 8 of the tortillas cut in half
• 2-3 cups Monterrey jack cheese
• 1/2 (or more if you like a lot of cheese) cheddar cheese
• 1 10 oz can red enchilada sauce
• 1 10 oz can green enchilada sauce
• Cotija or feta cheese for garnish
• Green onions, black olives, cilantro, and sour cream (optional) as additional garnish

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9 inch square baking dish with cooking spray. Combine the red and green enchilada sauces in a bowl.

Pour a small amount of enchilada sauce in the bottom of the baking dish. Arrange 3 tortillas on top of the enchilada sauce, with the straight (cut) sides lining the edges of the pan, and an entire round tortilla in the middle. Pour more enchilada sauce over the tortillas, and top with a layer of Monterrey jack cheese. Repeat the layering process until you have used all the tortillas. Top the last set of tortillas with remaining enchilada sauce, and then sprinkle with the cheddar cheese.

Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes until the cheese on top is bubbly. Remove from the oven. Allow to sit for 10 minutes before serving.