Enchilada casserole also known as Mexican lasagna is an easy alternative to making the more time consuming traditional, filled and rolled enchiladas. The delicious components such as beans, onions, corn, bell peppers, jalapeno peppers, garlic, salsa, tomatoes, seasonings and corn tortillas are instead layered in a baking dish and topped off with your favorite enchilada sauce before baking. I do love me some Mexican food and this dish was everything I had hoped it would be.
The original recipe was found on Pinterest and when I read where several people said it was one of their favorites I knew I had to make it. It’s a recipe from Fat Free Vegan blog which I happen to like a lot. A quick scan of the ingredients and I knew I had everything to pull it together right there and then. Of course I had to add my own touches and up the seasonings, after-all we do like bold flavors and a little heat to our Mexican entrees. Although I did have fresh tomatoes on my counter they were being saved for another recipe so I subbed a can of drained, fire roasted tomatoes with green chilies. Another can of green chilies were added to the layer of re-fried beans. Like I said we like our Mexican food to be bold!
The servings are huge! The casserole is baked in a 9 x 13 pan and divided into 8 hearty, belly filling, satisfying entrees.
Black olives sprinkled over the top are optional but I like the flavor they add as well as a good dusting of thinly sliced green onions and freshly chopped cilantro. Son David was home visiting and as he was devouring his portion I mentioned that this dish contained no meat but was still full of protein. To which he exclaimed,”What, there’s no meat in this?” He had no idea, so I didn’t bother to mention that it also had no cheese! This recipe is company worthy and will be a regular menu item at our house. Trust me, you won’t miss the meat or cheese.
Vegan Enchilada Casserole 0r Mexican Lasagna
My changes are in red
- 1/2 large green bell pepper, chopped – yellow pepper
- 1/2 large red bell pepper, chopped
- 1/2 jalapeño pepper, finely chopped – 1 jalapeno
- 2 cloves garlic, minced – 4 garlic cloves
- 1 large onion, chopped
- 3 cups cooked black beans (2 cans rinsed and drained)
- 2 medium tomatoes, diced – 1 can fired roasted diced tomatoes with green chilies, drained
- 2 cups frozen corn, thawed
- 1 tsp. chili powder – 2 tablespoons
- 1/2 tsp. cumin, – 1 tablespoon
- corn tortillas–at least 12 –Whole Foods 365 Corn Tortillas
- 3 cups (28 ounces) fatfree refried beans
- 1 – 4 ounce can green chilies
- 1 cup salsa – Kirkland Organic Medium Salsa
- 1 can enchilada sauce (or 1 1/2 cups homemade) – Trader Joe’s Enchilada Sauce -not fat free but it’s what I had.
- 2 tablespoons sliced black olives (optional)
- optional- sliced green onions, chopped fresh cilantro, shredded romaine, avocado slices and fresh lime slices, for garnish
Preheat oven to 375 F.
In a non-stick pan with a little water (1 tbsp.), sauté the peppers, garlic, and onion for about 3 minutes, or until softened. Add the black beans, drained canned tomatoes, corn, chili powder, and cumin. Set aside.
Spray a 9 X 13-inch baking pan with non-stick spray – I forgot to do this but it didn’t stick. Line the bottom with a layer of tortillas (you will have to cut some of them to fit). Make sure to cover the entire bottom of the pan.
Combine the refried beans, salsa and can of green chilies, heat until bubbly – heating the beans makes them easier to spread. Spread half of them evenly over the tortillas. Cover the refried beans with half of the black bean mixture.
Add another layer of tortillas and repeat the layers of re-fried beans and black beans. Cover with the final layer of tortillas, pour the enchilada sauce over the top, and sprinkle with black olives. Cover casserole with foil and place on a baking sheet, bake for about 40 minutes or until hot throughout. The sauce should be a little bubbly around the edges. It will be easier to cut if you allow it to cool for 10 minutes before serving.
Serving Suggestions: Serve over a bed of shredded romaine lettuce and sprinkle each serving with sliced green onions, chopped cilantro, a few avocado slices, a squeeze of fresh lime juice and a little more salsa.
Yield: 8 huge servings
*Nutritional Information including the black olives
Per Serving: 325 Calories, 3.1g Fat, 0mg Cholesterol, 897 mg Sodium, 424 mg Potassium, 61.5g Carbohydrates, 16.4 g Fiber, 8.7g Sugar, 15.1g protein, WWPP 8
Recipe adapted from Fat Free Vegan blog.
Notes: The leftovers reheat well and it was just as tasty on day two. Next time I might add some canned Chipotle peppers for a smoky flavor.
*The nutritional information and WW PP values posted on Nutmeg Notebook are my best estimates based on the brands of products I use and the software programs used to calculate them. If you rely heavily on the nutritional information and WWPP values I encourage you to double check the values given, using the brands of products you use. If you find big differences feel free to email me or leave me a comment letting me know.
Nutmeg Notes
Thank you to everyone who replied to my If you and I were on my patio chatting I would tell you… post! That was so much fun and I enjoyed reading what you would say to me. We will have to have another virtual chat soon.
I’m having a good time using my new food processor – it makes easy work of chopping, shredding and slicing. I acquired a couple more new kitchen appliances and am experimenting with them for some future blog posts. Lots of fun is going on in the Nutmeg kitchen – wish you were here to help me sample!
Blog Changes
Now that summer is here my college student son has time to do some work here on Nutmeg Notebook. We plan on making a new separate recipe navigation page for all the new Vegan recipes. The intention is to leave all the archives of regular recipes here so those of you who use them still have access. Over time I would like to create new Vegan only product shopping lists as well. It takes a great deal of time to do these projects so I’m not sure how long it will take to accomplish everything.
Weighing In
I have hit a small plateau in my weigh loss – have only lost .2 in the past week with plenty of bouncing up and down.This usually happens as I get close to my goal weight. The last 4 pounds are the hardest ones to lose but they also make the biggest difference in how clothes fit. I know it will happen in it’s own time but many of you know how frustrating this is!
Happy Cooking!
Tami
Thanks for taking the time to read this post. Feel Free to leave a comment or ask a question.
Did anyone try the Thai Slaw recipe? I’m thinking of making it again today – it’s so good!
What do you do when you hit a weight loss plateau?
I usually have to up the intensity of exercise and sometimes, as counter intuitive as it sounds – if I eat more – yes, more not less – it seems to kick in the weight loss again.
I really want to make at least one night a week a meatless night for our family… This recipe looks like a great place to start! Love when you can find meatless options that are still low in WW Pts and delicious so even picky eaters will enjoy!
I agree this would be a great recipe for introducing your family to a meatless meal! You can control how “hot” and spicy it is to please your family and make it kid friendly too. Please come back and let me know how works for you. Happy Cooking Kim!
Usually when I hit a plateau I just wait it out. I know it’s temporary so I try not to panic and make any drastic changes. Thankfully, I haven’t had any problems with a plateau lasting for weeks or months like some people do. I think often a plateau is just our body “resting” and resetting itself before continuing on.
Yes I agree Sharon I do think sometimes a plateau is our body taking a rest from losing and gearing up for the next round!
This sounds so good I pinned it before I even got to the bottom! LOL! Unfortunately I haven’t been cooking so I haven’t made the slaw yet but I plan to. And once I hit a plateau, nothing has worked for me except extreme measures that I wouldn’t repeat. But the plateau happens at a healthy weight for me so I usually just stop there-lol.
LOL that you pinned it before you even made it down to the recipe Veronica! It’s a keeper for sure. I usually hit a plateau at the same weight – and if I hang in there it will eventually drop. 🙂
Were making the slaw this week . Looking forward to it. Thanks for posting it. 🙂
Let me know how it works out for you! Happy Cooking. 🙂
I just wanted to tell you how much I enjoy your blog. I am new to this whole healthy eating concept and have really appreciated all that you have shared.
Thank you Kristi! I hope you will come back often. 🙂
I love enchiladas, but I do loves me some cheese, so I would have to put that in there 😀
I have been on plenty of plateaus and the worst one was for about 6 months. I cried a lot LOL! I broke out of it by gaining back some weight and then losing again. Not the recommended course, but I never gave up.
Well we do what we have to do Lori to get the scale moving in the right direction! 🙂
This sounds simply amazing. I love all the sauce! I’m such an “Extra sauce” girl, I ask for it on everything (Well, red sauce, that is). If I was a man I’d be lucky because my lycopene would be stellar! 🙂
Ha ha! You made laugh with that lycopene comment! 🙂
Great recipe! I pinned it for after the cleanse. 🙂
I’m sure you’ll get through your weight loss plateau!
I think you will really enjoy this recipe Andrea. 🙂
I make something somewhat similar to this (no refried beans for this gal!) that I call an enchilada stacker. It sounds so decadent and fast-foody that way. 🙂 Since I’m usually dining solo and I don’t have unlimited calories, I cut the tortillas in half. That not only helped with calories, but the stack fits nicely into one of my small, oblong baking dishes. LOL
I like your term, “fast foody” that made me chuckle!
I am soooooooooooooooooo far behind in my blog reading!!! Very cool that your son can so some work on your blog! I need a personal assistant! 😉
You will get to your goal weight & I so so so so understand how just those few pounds make a difference! 🙂
Just made enchiladas tonight and used your recipe as a guideline. Just pulled them out of the oven. They are cooling and are looking and smelling amazing! I’ll let you know how they turned out 🙂
I’m stuffed! My enchiladas turned out GREAT! I used two whole bell peppers (one green and one orange) and omitted the corn. I also used chipotle salsa – worked really well with this recipe! The best part – I made a refreshing avocado salad (avocado, tomato, red onion, jalapeno, garlic, lime zest and juice, cilantro) to serve as a topping/garnish – it was perfect! I also topped my casserole with a small amount of vegan cheddar cheese. Thank for this recipe 🙂
Angela your avocado salad sounds like the perfect side dish for the enchiladas! I’m delighted to know the recipe worked well for you. I appreciate that you took the time to come back and let me know how much you enjoyed the recipe. I need to make this again soon!
I made this tonight with your changes including the extra chili powder and cumin a major improvement. I couldn’t find the Trader Joe’s Enchilada sauce so had to use part of a 28 oz can of regular stuff that had salt in it. Oh well. This was great. I am looking forward to trying more of your recipes. I just started watching your YouTube videos etc. Thanks for all you do. You are so organized.
That’s wonderful Marie – I am so glad you enjoyed the recipe!
Hi Tami,
I have recently discovered your website and it is wonderful! I am trying some of your recipes this weekend, Can your vegan enchiladas be frozen? I recently purchased souper cubes and
am experimenting with batch cooking. Also trying your breakfast sausage.
Thanks,
Deb
Hi Deborah,
I haven’t tried freezing it but I think it should freeze just fine.
Happy Cooking,
Tami
Hi Tami,
Can your vegan enchiladas be frozen? They look delish!
Thanks,
Deb