Mexican Hamburger Casserole

I tried this recipe the other night when we had the Arkansas 3 over for dinner.  They are coming over more often than they used to, and I'm enjoying spending more time with them.  When we took Belle to college, I thought my days of cooking for more than two were sort of over.  I'm glad they are not!  I try to experiment with kid-friendly foods when the grandchildren are here.  So earlier this week I thought I would try Dining on a Dime's Mexican Hamburger Casserole.  It sure sounded good to me and looked quick and easy to boot!  Here is the recipe (p. 187 ):

1/2 lb. ground beef, browned (I used 1 pound)
1 (10 3/4 oz.) can cream of chicken soup (or use the cream soup base)
1/2 lb. Cheddar cheese (I used more than 1/2 lb.)
1 (15 oz.) can tomato sauce
1 sm. can green chilies, diced (I used a large can...should have followed the recipe!)
1 (10 count) pkg. corn tortillas (do they even make little packages of corn tortillas?  I got a big one.)

Mix browned ground beef, chicken soup (or the prepared cream soup base...easy peasy, I promise), tomato sauce, and green chilies in a bowl.  Put a layer of tortillas on the bottom of a 9x13 pan, then layer of meat, a layer of tortillas and sprinkle with cheese on top.  Bake 300 degrees 30-45 minutes.  Serves 6-8

Notes: I just put the ground beef, chicken soup, and green chilies in the pan with the browned ground beef instead of dirtying bowl.  Also, maybe I read the recipe wrong but I did the layer of tortillas on the bottom then all of the meat sauce/mixture, then a layer of tortillas on top, then the cheese.  I served it with sour cream.

It was a really quick and easy meal to make.  My Honey and I really liked it.  I thought it tasted like an enchilada casserole.  The kids, on the other hand, didn't think much of it except the Youngest.  He thought it was "okay, not great."  The biggest problem seemed to be the corn tortillas.  I told them they were like tortilla chips, just not fried.  That didn't make any difference to them.  The Oldest really didn't like the green chilies either.  The one thing that ended up encouraging them to eat at least the meat portion was when they realized there would be no dessert without eating dinner.  ;)  It is not bribery -- they have a choice.  The Youngest ate his food lickety split.  The other two managed to eat what they had to so they could get some dessert.  I think this would be a good meal to take to a potluck.  I will make it again but will halve the recipe since My Honey and I would be eating too much if I made a whole portion...  Did I tell you we really liked it?

Dawn's Thought:  As their aunt, I don't blame my dear nephews and niece for the corn tortilla issue.  They are not like tortilla chips at ALL, Mother!  I never really liked corn tortillas anyway... but a week in Guatemala while 6 weeks pregnant made me ill for an entire YEAR whenever I passed the corn tortilla end cap in the grocery store.  ::shiver::  Never underestimate the power of smell!  :-P  And they just taste, well, yucky and grainy.  Ok.  Aunt-ish advocacy accomplished.  :-)