Tex-Mex Beef Enchilada Casserole

Obviously enchiladas contain at least corn tortillas: a sometime food in my opinion. The real problem here is what to thicken the sauce with since I am trying to avoid wheat flour. I tried coconut flour, but it's a little gritty. I'll keep this updated when I try something else. For now I've left the recipe as-is with the flour, feel free to substitute and experiment on your own.

Servings: 4        Prep Time: 1 hour         Total Time: 1 hour 20 min.

o   1 small onion, finely chopped

o   2 garlic cloves, minced

o   1 pound ground beef

o   Coarse salt and pepper

o   4 6-inch corn tortillas cut into small pieces (optional, but I've found you need a thickener of sorts or this becomes more of a soup)

o   3/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese

o   Chipotle chile enchilada sauce (recipe follows)

o   ¼ cup fresh, chopped cilantro (optional)

Preheat oven to 450

Make filling: In a skillet, cook ground beef until no longer pink, transfer to a colander set in a larger bowl lined with aluminum foil, drain completely. Cook onion and garlic until soft, about 8 minutes. Add beef back into skillet and season with salt and pepper.

Mix in enchilada sauce (below) and tortillas.

Spread evenly in a casserole dish and top with cheese.

Bake uncovered until hot and bubbly, 20-25 minutes. Let cool 10 minutes before serving. Serve garnished with cilantro.

Chipotle chile enchilada sauce; (recommend 1 cup per 3 enchilada serving)

makes approx 4 cups sauce

o   1 ½  tablespoons olive oil

o   ¼ cup all-purpose flour, coconut flour, etc... ???

o   1 can (14.5 ounce) reduced-sodium chicken broth

o   1 ½ tablespoons chili powder

o   1 small canned chipotle chile pepper in adobo sauce, minced.

o   1 tablespoon adobo sauce (from canned chipotle)

In a medium saucepan, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add flour and cook, whisking, for 1 minute – to cook out “flour” taste. Add broth, chili powder, chipotle, adobo sauce, and ¾ cup water; bring to a boil, whisking constantly. Reduce heat to a simmer until lightly thickened, about 10 minutes.

To bake from frozen:

Cover with foil,* make sure foil does not touch cheese or sauce. Bake, at 450, for 30 minutes. Uncover; bake additional 15 minutes, until browned and bubbly. Let cool 10 minutes before serving.