No-Roll Enchiladas

Easy to assemble, this layered casserole is a great dish to take to potlucks. People won’t believe how rich it tastes!

* 1 large bell pepper (red or green)
* 1 large onion
* 1 can refried beans (or homemade)
* 1 can enchilada sauce (or homemade)
* 1 cup salsa (homemade or otherwise, as spicy as you want)
* 1 can black beans, rinsed and drained (or other beans to your liking)
* tortillas (any kind, but corn tortillas work well)
* cooking spray
* optional: 1 medium tomato

Preheat the oven to 350 (F). Dice the onion, pepper, and tomato (if using). (You may at this point sauté the onion and pepper in a non-stick skillet to soften, if you want.) Spray the bottom of a casserole dish with cooking spray and lay down a tortilla (if your tortillas are smaller than your casserole, you can layer them — but be sure the bottom of the dish is covered or it’ll stick like crazy).

Spread a layer of refried beans on the top of the tortilla(s) — you may want to heat the beans first to make them spread more easily. Pour half of the salsa and half of the onions over the beans. Put another tortilla on top of this layer. Layer the black beans, green pepper, tomato (if using), and the rest of the salsa and onion on top of the tortilla(s). Put another tortilla on the top (your casserole should be pretty full by now). Pour the can of enchilada sauce over the whole thing and bake, covered, for about 35-45 minutes or until it’s hot and bubbly all the way through. Serve with vegan sour cream or all by itself. This freezes extremely well.

Of course, you can fiddle with this and add or take away ingredients. Experiment and enjoy!

Serves: 4-6, Preparation time: 1.5 hr