Quesadilla Casserole

I've made this recipe twice and both times it's turned out great! Most recently, I made it last week for a bunch of family- my mom and brothers, my mom-in-law, and my youngest brother-in-law. Almost everyone really liked it and took second (and third) helpings. And that's saying a lot, because my brothers and brother-in-law are fairly picky eaters. The only one who didn't like it a lot was my youngest brother, and his only complaint was that it was too spicy. So if you're not a fan of spicy food, you can just decrease the amount of spices.

1 lb ground beef
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 tsp minced garlic (I probably used a little more garlic because I like garlic.)
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
1/2 tsp oregano leaves
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper (optional) (This is what you can leave out or decrease in order to make the casserole less spicy)
6 flour tortillas (8-inch)
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese (I probably used more cheese because we really like cheese)


Brown beef, onion and garlic 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.

Spread 1/2 cup of the beef mixture on bottom of 13x9-inch baking dish sprayed with non-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.

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