Hey friends! We are back with a whole new arsenal of simply delicious, upgraded everyday eats like today's Loaded Veggie Enchilada Casserole. All the things you love about enchiladas in a healthier and ultra convenient new recipe.
Enchiladas are so understated yet utterly satisfying. If you think about, it they have a pretty basic base - cheese, tortillas, sauce, filling, more cheese - and yet they are so satisfying and crowd pleasing just the same. We wanted to take things just a step further and put these beauties into a casserole style meal for easy weekday meals. We also opted for a veggie loaded enchilada but you can throw in any preferred protein of choice. We promise you, this upgraded meal does not lack in the flavor department.
To start, get all of the chopping out of the way and dice up your onion, peppers, and olives.
Next, we want to lighty sauté our onions and peppers. We don't want to cook them down too much and create a soggy casserole, rather just enough so that we're not biting in to raw veggies at the end.
Once the peppers and onion are sautéed, we want to add our other filling ingredients,
and stir well to combine:
Now, it's time to assemble! Start by adding enchilada sauce to the base of your baking dish,
spreading the sauce evenly to cover the whole base.
Next, add a single layer of tortillas. Don't be afraid to slice tortillas if your baking dish does not fit them the way you need!
Add another light layer of sauce and half of your filling mixture.
Sprinkle with a light layer of cheese.
Add your next layer of tortillas,
and the remaining fillings and another light layer of cheese. Add a final layer of tortillas (we opted for just 2 tortillas but you can completely fill).
Cover with remaining sauce, cheese, and olives.
Pop into the oven and bake until golden and bubbly.
Loaded Veggie Enchilada Casserole
Ingredients
- ½ yellow onion diced
- 2 bell peppers any color, diced
- 1 tbsp. olive oil
- ⅛ tsp. salt
- ⅛ tsp. each, garlic and onion powder
- 1 cup yellow corn
- 1 cup pinto beans rinsed and drained
- ½ cup black olives sliced
- 8 small corn or flour tortillas
- 2 cups Mexican cheese shredded
- 1½-2 cups enchilada sauce store-bought or homemade
Instructions
- Dice onions, peppers, and olives and set aside.
- Heat olive oil in a large skillet. Add onions and salt and sauté for 3-4 minutes or until onions are translucent. Add bell peppers and cook for another 4-5 minutes. Bell peppers should be slightly tender but still have crunch.
- Remove from heat. Add garlic and onion powders, corn, beans, and olives to pepper mixture and stir well to combine.
- Pour a portion of enchilada sauce into an oven-safe 9x13 baking dish, spreading so entire base is covered. Lay a single layer of tortillas along the base of the dish, overlapping as necessary. Spread another thin layer of sauce on top of the tortillas. Portion half of the pepper mixture onto the tortillas and spread evenly. Sprinkle a light layer of cheese on top. Layer with another round of tortillas and repeat the pepper mix and cheese. Add a final layer of tortillas, and cover with additional sauce, cheese, olives, and any other preferred garnish.
- Bake covered at 350° for 25 minutes. Remove aluminum foil and bake for another 10-15 minutes or until cheese is golden and bubbly. Wait at least 10 minutes prior to slicing and serving.
- Note: Additional sauce may be used in the middle layer of tortillas, however, casserole may become soggy (although still delicious!). We found using sauce on the bottom and top layers only achieved our preferred result.
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