South of the Border Casserole-A long Time Family Favorite-Updated a bit

         When I was growing up, my mom made the best tacos ever! She made dozens of them because that is how many everyone would eat because they were so good.  My skinny brother-in-law, Joe, once ate 11 of them!  Well, the next day or two later, we would eat all of the left over taco ingredients in this casserole.  It is such a delicious thing.  I have made it many times for my own family, and I have taken it to potlucks and fed families that needed a meal with this casserole and have always received rave reviews.  The way I make it has evolved over the years, but it has that same basic goodness that I remember from when I was a kid.
           I made tacos on Sunday, so yesterday I made South of the Border Casserole.  This is how it went together:   

In a skillet, brown a pound of ground beef and I threw in the left over onions from taco night. (or 1 small onion.)

     After the ground beef is browned, drain off the fat, then add 2 T. of taco seasoning, 1 tsp. chili powder, 1 tsp. garlic powder, 1 can diced tomatoes, (plus the leftover diced tomatoes from taco night), and half of the tomato can of water.  Stir and heat all together.  Finally I threw in a half a bunch of cilantro, chopped. 

This is the sauce. It is so good!

       If you want, you can even throw in a can or corn or some sliced olives.  I have done the corn, but I don't like olives, so I leave those out.
         Now, you need to get out your casserole dish and your leftover corn tortillas.  I wasn't sure if I had enough tortillas left, so I also pulled out some left over Fritos.  
       *Spray your casserole with non-stick spray.
      *Put a little sauce in the bottom of the casserole and spread it around.  Not too much, just enough to cover.
     *Tear the tortillas into quarters and lay them over the sauce to cover with one layer.  
      *This is where I like to add a layer of sour cream or cottage cheese.  I used cottage cheese this time, like you might do in a lasagna.  But, you don't have to put either one if you don't want to or don't have any.
        *Now, spread a layer of shredded cheese over the cottage cheese.
       * Repeat the layers as follows: Tortillas (and a sprinkling of Fritos if necessary), sauce, cheese, tortillas, sauce cheese. It will look like this:  

      I have had this casserole dish my entire married life.  But, when I had all of my kids at home, I made this in a larger dish.  Now, I am not cooking for an army, so I have cut back a little.  The struggle is real.
         Put the casserole into a 350 degree oven and bake it, uncovered, for 30-45 min.  It will smell so good!

Here it is, hot out of the oven! Trust me, it has that delicious Mexican Food flavor!

I haven't made this in the crock pot, but I am sure it would work well.

Scoop through all of the layers to serve.

My husband wasn't feeling very well, so he took this small serving. Guess what! He want back for seconds.

This is such an economical, delicious dish. I hope you give it a try!

  South of the Border Casserole
   Sauce:
1 lb. ground beef
1 small onion, chopped
2 T. taco seasoning
1 tsp. chili powder
1 tsp. garlic
1/2 bunch chopped cilantro
1 can chopped tomatoes (and any extra fresh leftovers you may have).
1/2 tomato can of water
   Brown the beef with the onions.  Drain. Add the seasonings and tomatoes, water and cilantro.  Blend all together and simmer while you get your other ingredients ready:
About 6 or so left over corn tortillas, quartered
2-3 c. shredded cheese
Sour cream or cottage cheese (optional)
      Spray your casserole with cooking spray.  Spread some of the sauce in the bottom of the dish.  Place a layer of tortillas on top of the sauce.  Add the sour cream or cottage cheese if you are using it.  Next, put a layer or the shredded cheese.  The next layer is tortillas again, then sauce, then cheese.  Repeat until you are out of everything, or the casserole is filled up.
​          Bake at 350 degrees for about 30-45 min.

 

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