Veggie Mexi Cassarole

ok, april, this one's for you! so anyone that knows me knows how much I LOVE mexican food... and lots of it! I decided to not eat meat for a week and wanted to make something mexican to eat! I was so happy when I came up with this recipe. The filling was so good we alsmost ate it in some tortillas like tacos!! who knew mexican food could be so yummy and with so little calories!!!

Veggie Mexi Cassarole (1478 calories total/4 servings at 370 calories each)

1 tablespoon EVOO*

2 cups diced onion/bell pepper/mushrooms*

2/3 cup corn *(220 calories)*

1 cup diced rotel tomatoes (40 calories)

1 19.75 ounce can whole black beans drained and rinsed (140 calories)

6 teaspoons taco seasoning (60 calories)

2 cups shredded cheese (660 calories)

8 corn tortillas (208 calories)

1 cup red enchilada sauce (60 calories)

3 pablano peppers seeded and cut in half (90 calories)

- preheat oven to 350 degrees.

- in skillet cook down onions, bell pepper, mushrooms, and corn in EVOO.

- combine cooked veggies in a bowl with diced tomatoes, beans, and taco seasoning

omg this stuff was good all by itself!!

- spray a 3 quart cassarole dish with nonstick cooking spray.

- spread 1/2 cup enchilada sauce on the bottom of the dish.

- cut 4 tortillas in half and dip them in the sauce and layer the bottom of the dish.

this part is a little messy

- on top of the tortillas, pour 1/2 of the bean and veggie mixture.

- layer the pablano peppers next and top with 2/3 cup shredded cheese.

if you don't like pablanos, you can use any pepper you like, or none at all!

- after the peppers and cheese, add the remaining bean and veggie mixture.

- cut the 4 remaining tortillas in half and top the bean mixture.

- spread the last 1/2 cup of red enchilada sauce on top of the tortillas.

- cover with the remaining 1 1/3 cup cheese.

- bake covered at 350 degrees for about 45 minutes, then uncover and cook an additional 15 minutes or until the cheese is nice and bubbly. everything is cooked, except the pepper. it was a little crunchy when I took it out after 45 minutes. you may try roasting the peppers before assembling the cassarole so it won't have to bake as long. then all you have to do is heat it through and melt the cheese!

mmmm... cheesey mexican goodness!!!!

Zuppa Toscana

This is for my sweet friend, Alissa. I'm sorry it took so long to post it for you!!! This isn't exactly the same because I don't use bacon and I try to make it a little lower calorie than the original. However, in my opinion, it tastes just as great!!!

Zuppa Toscana (Olive Garden Copycat)

1 tablespoon EVOO

1 pound ground turkey

3 tablespoons italian seasoning

1 large onion chopped

8 cups water

2 cans chicken broth

2 teaspoons diced garlic

1 cup cream

1-2 pounds washed and sliced potatoes (I use Russet and leave the skin on)

1/4 of a bunch of kale

- in a large soup pot brown onion and ground turkey in EVOO. season ground turkey with garlic and 1 tablespoon italian seasoning (this makes it more like italian sausage).

- add water, chicken broth, and sliced potatoes and bring to a boil. cook about half an hour or until potatoes are soft.

- add cream and kale and simmer for another 30 minutes.

- serve with parmesan cheese and breadsticks

I don't have the calories for this but I do know that it is lower in calories and fat due to using ground turkey instead of pork sausage and omitting the bacon.