Cooking with Chef Jo: Unmexican Casserole

Some of my most delicious recipes come from cleaning out the refrigerator and substituting what I have on hand. Such is today's recipe. Originally, I had planned a fusion take on Mexican Quesadillas for supper. I had leftover pot roast in the refrigerator. I wanted something quick and easy for supper, and really feel like cooking. Quesadillas take a little of this or that for a meal. An excellent way to clean out your refrigerator of those leftovers.

How do you know it's time to clean out your frig? Well for me, it's a lack of Rubbermaid storage  containers. I bought a set of containers, just one. When they are all full, it's time to clean out the frig. Nothing is over a week old.

My rule of thumb for leftover is a maximum of two meals as it's originally prepare, and then making some new with it. It was time to create a new dish with the pound of leftover beef. I had pinto beans, rice, some chopped onions and celery,  black olives,and corn relish in the containers left in the frig so I pulled it all out. I had about 1/4 of a bag of of stale tortillas chips from the pantry that I could rejuvenate in the microwave. I had about an ounce of extra sharp cheddar and 1/4 bag (about an ounce) of mozzarella cheese leftover too. The only thing I was lacking was flour tortillas. They are easy enough to make. Did I mention that I really didn't want to cook? Okay, scratch the quesadillas.

What could I use in place of the flour tortillas. I'm searching the refrigerator. Leftover pie crust? No, it would be too heavy. Ah, phyllo dough leftover from when I made peanut butter and jelly baklava. That would make a light, crispy additions.

I grabbed my chili powder and a pint of tomato salsa from the pantry. While the beef was shredding via the Kitchenaid mixer, I sprinkled some onions and chili powder on the leftover pinto beans. I microwaved them for 3 minutes. These I'd hit with my immersion blender for "reftied" beans later. I took the leftover corn relish and mixed it with the leftover rice.

The Casserole
I emptied the 16 oz jar of my basil tomato salsa into a baking pan. I brushed two layers of phyllo dough with melted butter and laid it on top of the salsa. Next came a thick layer of shredded beef, onions, celery, olives, a mixture of grated cheeses, and all topped with a sprinkling of chili powder. I continued layering this way until all the ingredients were used up. I topped it all with 2 layers of butter brushed phyllo.

I baked it at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. When the time was up, the phyllo dough was a crispy golden brown. I flipped the casserole out onto a serving platter so the salsa was on top. It was an unmexican feast fit for a king... unmexican casserole, unrefried beans and the sweet and savory corn with rice with rejuvenated tortilla chips. It got the Mel's seal of approval to definitely make it again.

Y'all have a blessed day!

Jo