I often refer to myself as a throw together chef. I love to grab a bunch of ingredients from the pantry, and just throwing together a good casserole. So many of our busy evenings have been saved by this simple method of cooking, and most recently being last week, when I made this delicious Beef Enchilada Pasta Casserole.
Our whole family loves Mexican food, and a meal time favorite is my Ground Turkey Deconstructed Enchiladas. Last week I read a recipe on the Table For Two blog HERE, and decided to see what version I could create. I substituted a few ingredients based on what my husband forgot to pick up at the store I had on hand in the pantry, and adjusted a few others based on my own family’s flavor preference.
When I make a casserole, I don’t like it to fall flat in the texture category. If all the ingredients are one texture, to me, it always tastes like it’s missing something. If there are veggies, I like them to remain firm, not over cooked. For most Mexican themed dishes I make, my daughter and I love the addition of fresh toppings. For this dish, we chose a little sour cream, chilled sliced grape tomatoes, and black olives. The cool contrast of the toppings complement the warm casserole nicely. Plus since the main ingredient is pasta, to add a little crunch, I made a quick mixture of bread crumbs, crushed tortilla chips, and melted Country Crock to bake on the top. Not only did the crumb topping succeed in adding variety to the texture, the tortilla chips put the layers of flavor over the top.
Is there a casserole you make that your family just loves? If so then you should enter the Country Crock Stars Contest! You don’t want to miss out on winning some incredible prizes, plus it’s so easy to enter! You just share a photo of your favorite casserole, and describe in 100 words, how you demonstrate creativity and resourcefulness in the kitchen. See. I told you it was easy! So get to making your favorite casserole and snapping some pics! I can’t wait to see what you share!
I was selected for this opportunity as a member of Clever Girls Collective, and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.
- Casserole
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 package Taco Seasoning
- 4 ounces cream cheese
- ½ cup sour cream
- 1 can (10 oz.) enchilada sauce
- 1 cup shredded cheddar jack cheese
- 1 can creamed sweet corn
- 12 ounces egg noodles
- Sour cream
- Crumb Topping
- 2 Tablespoons plain dry bread crumbs
- ½ C crushed tortilla chips
- 2 Tablespoon Country Crock® Spread, melted
- Optional toppings for serving
- Sliced grape tomatoes
- Sliced black olives
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees
- In a large pot, bring water to boil and cook egg noodles according to package instructions.
- When noodles are done, drain and set aside
- Use same large pot to brown ground beef
- Add the taco seasoning to browned ground beef and thoroughly combine
- Add the cream cheese to taco meat mixture, stir until melted and combined.
- Add in sour cream, creamed corn, and enchilada sauce, stir to combine
- Add thoroughly drained noodles back into pot with ground beef mixture, stir to coat
- Add shredded cheese and gently fold to combine.
- Cheese will melt quickly as you stir, transfer entire mixture to lightly greased 9X13 baking dish
- Combine bread crumbs, crushed tortilla chips and melted Country Crock Spread in small bowl
- Sprinkle crumb topping over top of casserole
- Bake in oven until crumbs are toasted, about for 20-25 minutes
- Remove from oven and serve topped with sour cream, sliced tomatoes and olives if desired
LOVE this idea. I agree with you and I often feel like something is missing if my dishes don’t have textures! So happy to hear I’m not crazy for thinking that way. We just made a beef enchilada lasagna last night–now I’m wishing I would have seen your post earlier. I’ll just have to save this for later.
I like the Pasta Casserole idea i am going to try this a the weekend.
We love mexican food.
The pasta was a great change for us too, since I usually make many of my casseroles with rice.
[…] family loves enchiladas, so combining those flavors and pasta to make this Beef Enchilada Pasta Casserole knocks their socks off without even breaking a sweat in the […]