Mexican Lasagna

Source: Joelen's Culinary Adventures

Not sure what to say about this recipe. I've followed Joelen's blog for awhile, and lot of her stuff I usually pass on. But when I saw this recipe I knew it was something that was both manageable to make and H and I would really like it.

I accidentally grabbed a can of diced tomatoes with chiles. I've never had them before, and I don't think I'll buy them on purpose. They gave quite a bit of heat, and the sour cream that's suggested as a garnish was nice to cool off that heat.

Ingredients

• 12 corn tortillas
• 1/2 lb ground beef (85/15)
• 1/2 soft Mexican chorizo (used all ground beef, no chorizo)
  
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 small onion, finely diced
• 1 tablespoon taco seasoning (+ 1/2 tsp)
  
• salt & pepper to taste
• 2 cups refried pinto beans
• 1 tub ricotta cheese
• 1 egg
• 2 cup Mexican cheese blend
• 2 cups diced tomatoes, pico de gallo or your preferred salsa
• sliced green onions (for garnish)

Preparation

• Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
• In a saute pan over medium high heat, crumble in your ground beef and chorizo; brown. Add the minced garlic and diced onion. Stir and cook until softened. Add the taco seasoning, and salt & pepper to taste. Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly.
• In a small bowl, combine the ricotta cheese and egg until incorporated. Season with salt & pepper, and 1/2 tsp taco seasoning. Set aside.
• In a 9x13 inch baking pan, lightly butter the bottom of the pan. Place 6 corn tortillas on the bottom of the pan, overlapping as needed.

Top the corn tortillas with 1/2 of the refried beans.
Top the beans with 1/2 of the ricotta cheese mixture.
Top the ricotta layer with 1/2 of the beef and chorizo mixture.
Top the beef and chorizo layer with 1/2 of the shredded Mexican cheese.
Top the shredded cheese layer with 1/2 of the diced tomatoes, pico de gallo or your preferred salsa.

• Repeat the process again with the corn tortillas, adding a little more cheese on top for good measure; bake in the preheated oven for 30-35 minutes until cheese is melted.
• Garnish with sliced green onions and serve up with sour cream and guacamole.

Next Time- This was fantastic. Great flavor. Nothing needs to be changed.