Grit-Style Chilaquile Casserole

40 minutes in the oven? Ugh-that's such a long time for someone as impatient as I am, especially when it's after 8 and you're waiting on dinner. So what do we do when we have over an hour and a half to kill? Put on some Buena Vista Social Club and make margaritas! Oh, and write a blog post.

Tonight's dinner comes from The Grit cookbook. Even though we aren't vegetarians, The Grit in Athens, GA is one of our favorite places to eat! They have a great selection of typical and not-so typical home-cooked meals and desserts. When I visit the Grit, it always takes me forever to decide what delicious thing I want off the chalkboard (I usually order from the board, not the menu). Fortunately, I now have The Grit Cookbook which allows me to make their down-home recipes all the time. I've been working my way through it, and I have yet to make something Isaac and I didn't like! A few weeks ago I was looking for an interesting chilaquile recipe, and I stumbled across this one .Finally, we're trying it out...

But first, a little bit about chilaquiles. Chilaquiles is a dish that comes from Mexico and is generally comprised of fried corn tortillas, scrambled eggs, beans or meat, cheese, and salsa . Different versions are found in certain parts of Mexico and areas of Central and South America.

Looks messy but tastes delicious

The following meal serves 8, and took about 15-20 minutes to prepare (Isaac cut and sauteed the veggies while I put the casserole together). Cook time is about 35-40 minutes. They say to cool for 10 minutes before serving, but we'll see if I can wait that long.


Ingredients
2 tablespoons butter, divided
1 small or 1/2 large yellow onion, finely chopped
1 small zucchini, chopped (approximately 2 cups)
1 medium yellow squash (approximately 2 cups)
1/2 teaspoon cumin powder
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon salt
5 taco-size (8 inch) flour tortillas (we used whole wheat), divided
4 cups shredded white cheddar cheese, divided
1 medium jalapeno pepper, minced
2 cups Grit Pintos or canned seasoned pinto beans
3 eggs
1-1/2 cups buttermilk
1/4 teaspoon dry or prepared mustard

**White cheddar cheese can be expensive, so we went with a bag of mixed "Mexican blend" cheese. Seemed to work fine.
Also, I left out the jalapeno pepper. I like a little spice, but those bad boys are difficult for me to enjoy.

Make it!
Preheat oven 350 degrees. Grease a 9 x 13" pan or glass casserole dish with 1 tablespoon butter and set aside.

In a large skillet or frying pan, melt 1 tablespoon butter over high heat. Add onion and garlic, and saute until onions are softened. Add zucchini, squash, dry spices, and salt. Tossing frequently for even cooking, saute until vegetables are fully tender and onions are caramelized. Set aside.


Tear 3 tortillas by hand into random strips 2 to 3 inches wide. Distribute tortilla strips into bottoms of casserole dish, layering evenly (retain remaining 2 tortillas for top crust). Spread 2 cups of shredded cheese over torn tortillas. Sprinkle minced jalapeno evenly over cheese, followed by a layer of the pinto beans. Spread sauteed vegetables over this, and top evenly with remaining cheese.


Tear remaining 2 tortillas as before and distribute on top to form upper crust.
Beat eggs together with buttermilk and mustard.
Pour mixture over casserole and place in oven.
Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until bubbling at the edges and well browned on top.
Cool for 10 minutes before serving. Top with Grit Salsa.

Right out of the oven

**If you ask really nicely, I may post the recipe for Grit Pinto beans and Salsa. Or you could just go buy the book and support this amazing local restaurant!





Check out The Grit and get the cookbook HERE!