Sunny's Quesadilla Casserole

Another yummy dish from our "Mexican" themed cooking club dinner. There was not a single item that was not delicious last night! I can see myself making every dish that was brought to cooking club be it just for my family or for when we have friends over for dinner. Try one or two of all of these recipes if you're looking for something new and exciting to try!

Sunny's Quesadilla Casserole

1 lb. ground beef

1/2 cup chopped onion

2 cans ( 8 oz. each) tomato sauce

1 can (15 oz.) black beans, drained and rinsed

1 can (8 3/4 oz.) whole kernel corn, undrained

1 can (4 1/2 oz.) chopped green chilies, undrained

2 tsp. chili powder

1 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp. minced garlic

1/2 tsp oregano leaves

1/2 tsp crushed red pepper (optional)

6 flour tortillas (8-in)

2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

Directions
1. Brown beef and onion in large skillet on medium-high heat; drain. Add tomato sauce, beans, corn and green chilies; mix well. Stir in all of the spices except red pepper. Bring to boil. Reduce heat to low; simmer 5 minutes. Add red pepper to taste, if desired.

2. Spread 1/2 cup of the beef mixture on bottom of 13x9x2-inch dish sprayed with no-stick cooking spray. Top with 3 of the tortillas, overlapping as needed. Layer with 1/2 of the remaining beef mixture and 1/2 of the cheese. Repeat with remaining tortillas, beef mixture and cheese.

3. Bake in a preheated 350 F oven 15 minutes or until heated through. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

Sopapilla Cheesecake- by Alisha

I got to taste this delicious little treat last night at our cooking club event.

Sopapilla Cheesecake


Ingredients
1 8 oz package cream cheese 1 stick melted butter
1 4 oz cream cheese 1/2 cup white sugar
1 1/2cup white sugar 1 ½ tsp ground cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2 packs refrigerated crescent rolls

1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Prepare a 9x13 in baking dish with cooking spray.
2. Beat cream cheese with 1 1/2 cup sugar and the vanilla extract in a bowl until smooth; set aside
3. Unroll the cans of crescent roll dough, and use a rolling pin to shape each sheet into 9x13 rectangles. Press into the buttered dish. Evenly spread the cream cheese mixture into dish, then cover with the remaining piece of dough and brush w/melted butter. Stir together the remaining sugar and 1 ½ tsp cinnamon in a small bowl and sprinkle evenly over the top of the cheesecake.
4. Bake in the preheated oven until the crescent dough has puffed and turned golden brown (about 30 minutes). Allow to cool 10 minutes before serving

Sandie's Chicken Tortilla Soup

After looking at literally dozens of tortilla soup recipes and not seeing one that jumped out at me I've decided to make up my own recipe. I knew what ingredients that I wanted in my soup and well tonight is perfect because I'm test driving this recipe on our neighborhood cooking group. Keep in mind that I'm making soup for 15 people and I'm sure that you can cut down this recipe

Sandie's Chicken Tortilla Soup-

Ingredients;

4 - 14½ ounce cans reduced sodium chicken broth

6 to 8 -cooked chicken breasts chopped (add or minus if- if you like lots of chicken use 8, like a little use less)

2 -15 ounce cans diced tomatoes

2-14 ounce cans dark red kidney beans (rinse the beans in cold water)

2- 14½ ounce cans black beans (rinse the beans in cold water)

3- medium sized yellow bell peppers -diced

3 medium sized green bell peppers-diced

3-red peppers (medium heat)-seeded and diced

4-green peppers (medium heat)- seeded and diced

2 cups yellow onion - diced

2 cups frozen yellow corn

2 to 3 teaspoons ground cumin (add or minus to your personal taste)

½ teaspoon dried jalapeno flakes (or add a fresh diced jalapeno if you wish)

Toppings...

Sour cream

Chopped Scallions (green onions)

Shredded Mexi-blend cheese (monterey jack, cheddar, asiago)

Fresh chopped Cilantro or as they call it here in the UK Coriander

Diced Avocado (squirt with lemon or lime juice to keep it from turning brown)

Sour Cream and for my British friends you can use Creme Fraiche

Lime Wedges

Tortilla Chips

Cooking Instructions (can't get by without these)...

Cook your chicken breasts, let cool dice and set aside.

Saute diced onions and diced bell peppers in 1 to 2 teaspoons of olive oil until bell peppers are soft and onions are transparent. Add chicken broth, canned tomatoes, canned beans and those diced medium heat peppers. don't forget to wear gloves when handling hot peppers and what ever you do DON'T touch your nose or eyes!!! Add in your ground cumin and let simmer. Taste it, if you like it spicy add more of the spicy peppers and cumin, don't like it too spicy, use less.

Add chicken and corn shortly before serving or else they will turn to mush.

Top with your favorite toppings (see above list for ideas) and the tortilla chips are a must! Don't forget to have an icy cold Corona Beer with it!

Chili Corn Bread Salad

Chili Corn Bread Salad
From the Kitchen of Alisha C.

1 pkg. (8 and ½ ounces) corn bread muffin mix
1 can (4 oz.) chopped green chilies
1/8 tsp. cumin
1/8 tsp. oregano
Pinch sage
1 cup mayo
1 cup sour cream
1 envelope ranch dressing mix
2 cans pinto beans, drained and rinsed
2 cans whole kernel corn, drained
3 medium tomatoes, chopped
1 cup chopped green pepper
1 cup green onions, chopped
10 slices cooked bacon, crumbled
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

Prepare corn bread according to package directions. Add green chilies, undrained, cumin, oregano, and sage. Bake in greased 8-in. pan at 400 degrees for 20 -25 min. Let cool. In a small bowl, mix mayo, sour cream and dressing mix. Set aside. Crumble half of cornbread in a 9X13 pan. Layer with half of beans, mayo mixture, corn, tomatoes, green peppers, green onions, bacon and cheese. Repeat layers (dish will be very full). Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours. Makes 12 servings.

Curried Chicken Salad

This recipe comes from Carrie- the newest neighbor on our street. This was fresh and delightful!

Curried Chicken Salad:
3 chicken breasts
1 cup Mayo
1½ - 2 tablespoons curry powder
1 celery stalk finely chopped
4 green onions thinly sliced
¼ cup slivered almonds (can omit if nut allergy)
¾ cup seedless red grapes or cherries when available
Lettuce and pita pockets for serving

Parboil chicken. Let cool and chop or shred. In large bowl, combine the Mayo and curry powder. Add chicken, celery, green onions, and almonds. Stir until well combined. Just before serving add grapes or cherries. Serve over a bed of lettuce or in pita pockets. (I do both:)