The food fusion you didn’t know you needed! That’s the Mexican Lasagna Bake for ya. It’s got that beloved taco-seasoned beef and smooth black beans you love from one cuisine and the bouncy noodles and stretchy cheese that you long for from the other. Stack it all together with some flavorful veggies and creamy goodness for the most delicious duo you could ever dream up! So, whether it’s taco Tuesday or pasta Thursday, the Mexican Lasagna Bake will satisfy either way!
Ingredients
For the bake:
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 onion, finely diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 (1-ounce) packets taco seasoning
- 1 cup water
- 1 green bell pepper, finely diced
- 1 (28-ounce) can low-sodium diced tomatoes, undrained
- 1 cup corn
- 1 (15-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
- 1 cup cottage cheese
- 1 cup sour cream
- 1/2 teaspoon cumin
- 1 egg
- 9 lasagna noodles, cooked and cooled
- 2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded, divided
- 2 cups mozzarella cheese, shredded, divided
Optional garnishes:
- sour cream, to taste
- lettuce, chopped, to taste
- tomatoes, chopped, to taste
- olives, chopped, to taste
- green onions, chopped, to taste
- cilantro, chopped, to taste
Directions
Step 1 –Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Step 2 –In a large pan, add the ground beef, the onion, and the garlic and cook until the meat is no longer pink. Drain the excess grease.
Step 3 –Stir the taco seasoning and the water into the beef mixture and cook until the water evaporates.
Step 4 –Add the green pepper, the undrained tomatoes, the corn, and the black beans to the beef mixture and simmer until it is slightly thickened, about 5 minutes.
Step 5 –Transfer the meat sauce mixture from the heat.
Step 6 –In a small bowl, combine the cottage cheese, the sour cream, the cumin, and the egg.
Step 7 –In a 9×13-inch pan, layer (in this order) 1 cup of the meat sauce, 3 of the lasagna noodles, 1/2 of the remaining meat sauce, 3 lasagna noodles, the cottage cheese mixture, 1 cup of the cheddar, and 1 cup of the mozzarella, the remaining lasagna noodles, and then the remaining meat sauce.
Step 8 –Cover the dish with foil and bake for 40 minutes.
Step 9 –Discard the foil and sprinkle the lasagna with the remaining cheddar and the remaining mozzarella.
Step 10 –Bake the lasagna until the cheese is browned and bubbly, about 15 minutes.
Step 11 –Let the bake rest, about 10-15 minutes.
Step 12 –Garnish the bake with the sour cream, the lettuce, the tomatoes, the olives, the green onions, and the cilantro.
Step 13 –Cut the bake into squares and serve.
