by Nava Atlas
I love the earthy and simple home-cooking style that is an amalgam of Southwestern, Tex-Mex, and basic Mexican ideas. In all of the aforementioned cuisines, there are a few key ingredients, with a wonderful range of variations. What's best about these ingredients--wheat and corn tortillas, beans, rice, corn, and of course, green chilies--is that they're all easily available, and all come in convenient, ready-to-use versions right on the supermarket shelf.
Simple, hearty classics like burritos, tostadas, and tacos, full of the lively flavor combinations that have made this style of food so popular in restaurants, are easy to make in quick, meatless, and best of all, lower-fat versions at home. Once you get into the groove, you can make any of these tortilla specialties easily (almost mindlessly!) and without any real formal recipe.
For example, you can simply mash up some canned pinto beans (drained and rinsed), warm them, season with a little cumin and minced scallion. Add a tiny amount of water to loosen their consistency. Roll this mixture into a soft flour tortilla, or spread it onto a flat, toasted corn tortilla, or stuff it into a ready-to use taco shell. In all cases, you may use garnishes such as shredded lettuce, salsa or picante sauce, reduced fat sour cream, or reduced-fat grated cheese. Serve with quick-cooking brown rice and a steamed vegetable.
If you'd like quick, Mexican-flavored meals to be a regular part of your repertoire, here's what you'll want to have on hand: Good-quality flour tortillas and corn tortillas (available in any supermarket); taco shells, canned pinto and black beans, quick-cooking brown rice, prepared salsa and picante sauce, reduced-fat sour cream, low-fat plain yogurt, or soy yogurt (all entirely optional), and grated reduced fat cheddar cheese or soy cheese (also optional--many of these types of dishes are quite tasty even without cheese).
MEXICAN LASAGNA (Tortilla Casserole)
Serves 6
When you don't even have the energy for rolling up a few tortillas, here's the perfect solution: a layered casserole featuring all the lively flavors you'd expect from this type of dish. This all-time favorite of mine is practically a no-brainer, and yet is special enough to serve to company--which I've done many a time.
1-pound can pinto, pink, or black beans,
drained and rinsed
14-ounce can diced or stewed tomatoes
4-ounce can chopped mild green chilies
2 cups frozen corn kernels, thawed
2 scallions, minced
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
8 corn tortillas
1 1/2 cups pre-grated Monterey Jack, reduced-fat cheddar cheese,
or grated cheddar-style soy cheese
Reduced-fat sour cream, low-fat yogurt, or soy yogurt for topping (optional)
1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
2. Combine the first 7 ingredients in a mixing bowl. Mix thoroughly.
3. Lightly oil a wide, 2-quart casserole dish and layer as follows: 4 tortillas, overlapping one another; half of the bean mixture; half of the cheese. Repeat the layers.
4. Bake the casserole for 12 to 15 minutes, or until the cheese is bubbly. Let stand for a minute or two, then cut into squares to serve. Top each serving, if desired, with a small scoop of sour cream or soy yogurt.
Helpful tip: Kids who have gotten to the stage when they like beans are likely to enjoy this casserole, so you may want to make it minus the chilies to suit their preference for milder flavors. Pass a bowl of chopped chilies around for those who wish to top their serving with them.
Calories: 336
Total fat: 10 g
Protein: 16 g
Carbohydrate: 45 g
Cholesterol: 25 g
Sodium: 166 mg
A note from The Natural Connection:
Nava's cookbooks are available through The Natural Connection's Bookstore.
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