Pinterest Review: Easy Mexican Casserole (or Mexican Chili, depending on how you make it)

I've been doing better at making dinner and using recipes that I've pinned on Pinterest.  I created a board on my Pinterest account called "2 try this week".  Then before I go grocery shopping, I find a couple recipes, move them to that board, buy the necessary ingredients, and it's easy to remember what I bought those mixed beans for later that week.  :-)

Last week I finally tried a Mexican casserole that I'd been looking at for a while.  We like Mexican food (or what passes for Mexican in the Midwest), and I like the word "Easy" in recipes.  It was called

Easy Mexican Casserole

1 pound lean ground beef
1 can Ranch Style beans
1 10-12 ounce bag tortilla chips, crushed (I didn't use the whole bag)
1 can Ro-tel tomatoes
1 small onion, chopped
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese, divided
1 package taco seasoning
1 can cream of chicken soup
1/2 cup water
sour cream and salsa for serving

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. In a large skillet, brown meat and drain off fat. Stir in beans, tomatoes, onion, taco seasoning, soup and water. Simmer over medium-low heat until everything is well combined and heated through.

Grease a 9×13 casserole dish. Put down a layer of crushed tortilla chips, followed by a layer of the meat/bean mixture, then half of the cheddar cheese. Repeat layers. Cover with foil and bake for 20-30 minutes, or until bubbly.

Let sit for 5-10 minutes before serving. Top with sour cream and salsa. 

(I got the recipe from plainchicken.com)

So, I'll be honest, I have no idea what Ranch Style beans are, and couldn't find any, so I bought a can of mixed beans.  And we didn't have taco seasoning, but we did have fajita seasoning, and I tell you all, that was the kicker!  We both loved it with fajita seasoning!  Jeff looked at me and said, "Remember... Fajita Seasoning."  Also, I didn't turn it into a casserole.  We didn't have chips (cause I thought we did so I didn't stop by the snack machine on the way out of work), so there was no point.  But you know what?  It worked.  I was kind of like a Mexican Chili, and we ate it all up!

Verdict:  Yummy!  So very much yummy!  You could easily change the flavor of this based on the kind of beans you use, the kind of seasoning you use, if you leave it be or turn it into a casserole...  I already know that I'm making it again tomorrow night...

This recipe was moved to my Pinterest board "Meals to make again".  And again and again and again...