Foodie Friday - Chili Stacked Casserole

I made some chili recently that seemed to  take forever to cook as the beans just didn't want to get soft. 

 I put the chili in containers and froze it thinking perhaps that might help, and it did! We have an abundance of flour tortillas as well so I  decided to use up some leftovers and create an easy dish that would be tasty as well. Served with a nice green salad and salsa, this was a hit! Herewith my Chili Stacked Casserole.

CHILI STACKED CASSEROLE

2 - 16 oz. cans chili

2 cups cooked rice

1- 15 oz. can corn, drained

1- 8oz. can tomato sauce

1 small can sliced olives

1/2 cup chopped onion

4 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese

flour tortillas

In a large bowl mix all ingredients except 1/2 cup of tomato sauce, tortillas and cheese. On the bottom of a 9"by 9" casserole dish, or a round one if you have it, spread 1/2 cup tomato sauce. Lay tortillas to cover, cutting edges off to fit. Spread half the chili mixture over the tortillas. Sprinkle half the cheese over that. Then add another layer of tortillas, and spread the rest of the chili. Top with torn tortilla pieces and cheese. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes.

Serves 6

Chili Green Beans

You read right, Chili Green Beans is a wonderful concoction Mom came up with when we had an over abundance of green beans one year. I don't often have fresh green beans so I haven't made this much over the years, but we had a few in our Oregon garden and bought some from our favorite produce stand on the way back to Utah last week. Kent was a bit leery of the whole idea, we were too when Mom first served them to us, but he ate 4 bowls of it and wanted more. I loved it when Mom made it, but have had to come up with my own version as we don't have her recipes. So here's my version. Hope you enjoy it as much as we do!

Chili Green Beans

1 lb. burger
2 c. chopped onion
1 c. chopped celery
1 bell pepper, chopped
4 c. fresh green beans, cut into bite size pieces
2 t. each seasoning salt and cumin powder
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 t. each italian seasoning and dried basil
3 T. mild chili powder
1/4 t. cayenne pepper
1 bay leaf
1 pint canned tomatoes
1 pint tomato sauce
1 6 oz. can tomato paste
1 c. water
1 chopped jalepeno, if desired

Brown burger and then add chopped onion, celery, bell pepper and garlic, saute until soft. Add the rest of the ingredients, cover and bring to bubbling over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Turn down to a simmer and let cook until green beans are done. Serve with corn bread.