Quesadilla Casserole

We're using up some pantry supplies tonight, whipping up a casserole of Tex Mex flavors and emptying the larder at the same time. I wanted to try a new salsa I found at Trader Joe's -- Salsa del Cabo. It's very different in appearance -- very dark brown (almost black, really -- my camera makes it more brown/orange than it actually is). Quite tasty, with a deeply "roasty" flavor, not very hot at all (which I prefer).

So this is what we're hacking tonight: A can of Amy's Organic Black Bean Chili, a bit of tomato sauce, some green chilis, and some canned black beans (not shown).

I wanted a refried bean texture, but had no refried beans, so I whirled the can of black bean chili in a bullet blender cup with about 4 oz of tomato sauce. as well generous amounts of cumin, cilantro, garlic, and chili powder, until I had a thick, creamy, spreadable "bean dip."

Meanwhile, I sprayed a deep cake pan with vegetable oil spray.

In the cake pan, I layered one flour tortilla (directly from my freezer, actually), spread it with my bean dip, scattered more black beans, and sprinkled it with cheese. Oh darn! Typing this, I see I forgot to use my fresh green onions. Oh well.

Repeat. Layered another tortilla, more dip, beans, and cheese, and repeated it for three full layers.

On the top layer, I scattered the most amount of cheese to create a crust.

I baked in a preheated oven for 30 minutes at 350 degrees.

Cut into wedges, topped with a dollop of sour cream, a dollop of guacamole, and a spoonful of Salsa del Cabo.

Quite tasty! The tortillas went in frozen, but cooked well and were crispy on the edges. I'm hoping this holds well for lunch tomorrow. This happens to be a vegetarian version. It would adapt well to add anything you wished, including rice, meat, avocado, and more.