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Tangy Tortilla Casserole

BY Kevin Lee Jacobs | April 16, 2021 8 Comments

Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

Last updated on April 18th, 2021

Tangy Tortilla CasseroleI’ve had oodles of requests for easy casserole recipes, and you know me — I aim to please! This Tangy Tortilla Casserole was included in The Hollywood Bowl Cookbook. The book was published, in 1984, to benefit The Los Angeles Philharmonic. The casserole is a veritable symphony of meat (vegan “meat” works well here), enchilada sauce, onion, melty cheese, and a crunchy border of crushed tortilla chips. It’s super simple to make. As proof, I filmed and wrote out the directions for you:

As you will see in the above video (click the play arrow to watch), you can’t mess up this casserole. I assembled the ingredients in a too-large baking dish, and I still ended up with a screamingly-delicious main course. Mercifully the dish contains zero carbs. (In my dreams.)

Tangy Tortilla CasseroleThe (now-out-of-print) Hollywood Bowl Cookbook contains myriad recipes, all contributed by The Los Angeles Philharmonic’s myriad donors and volunteers.  Tangy Tortilla Casserole was submitted by Claire Segal, a longtime public relations and marketing executive for the arts in Los Angeles. Thank you, Ms. Segal!

Tips for Making Tangy Tortilla Casserole

Tangy Tortilla CasseroleBake the casserole in a 3-quart baking dish, just as Clair Segal’s recipe indicates.  Otherwise, if you use a standard 9×13-inch dish, you will have to make some minor adjustments to the recipe, just as I did in the video above. (Hint: watch the video.)

To make the casserole vegetarian-friendly, simply substitute bulk, vegan “Beyond Beef” for the ground beef component. Beyond Beef contains no gluten, no soy, no GMOs. Its red coloring comes from pomegranate extract.

Make it ahead! Permit the meat sauce in the assembled casserole to cool to room temperature. Cover with cling film and refrigerate for several hours, until you are ready to bake.

Enjoy the leftovers! Speaking from terrific experience, Tangy Tortilla Casserole is delicious at all temperatures — hot, warm,  and even cold from the fridge. Reheat in a preheated 350°F oven until the cheese melts.

I’ll shut up now. Here’s the printable recipe:

Print Recipe
5 from 1 vote

Tangy Tortilla Casserole

A cheesy-easy main course!
Prep Time10 mins
Cook Time30 mins
Course: dinner, Main Course
Cuisine: Tex-Mex
Servings: 8

Equipment

  • a greased 3-quart baking dish

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 lbs. ground beef, crumbled (see note below)
  • 1 medium onion, chopped
  • 14.5 oz. can diced tomatoes
  • 10 oz. can red enchilada sauce
  • 2 1/4 oz. can sliced black olives with liquid
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1/8 teaspoon black pepper
  • 8 corn tortillas
  • 1 cup small curd cottage cheese
  • 1 egg
  • 1/2 lb. Jack cheese, thinly sliced
  • 1/2 cup grated Cheddar cheese
  • 1/2 cup finely crushed packaged tortilla chips

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 350°F. Brown the ground beef and onion in a large skillet. Blend in the tomatoes, enchilada sauce, olives with liquid, salt, garlic powder and pepper. Bring mixture to a boil; reduce heat; simmer uncovered for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
  • Meanwhile, wrap the tortillas in damp paper towels (or a damp terry cloth), and then heat them in the microwave oven until soft -- 30-45 seconds. Cut the tortillas in half. Whisk together the cottage cheese and egg.
  • Spread one-third of the meat sauce in a greased 3 quart casserole. Top with one-half of the Jack cheese, one-half of the cottage cheese mixture, and one-half of the tortilla halves, arranging each in an even layer. Repeat layering, using one-third more of the meat sauce, and the remaining Jack cheese, cottage cheese mixture, and tortilla halves. Spread with the remaining meat sauce, top with Cheddar cheese and border with the crushed chips.
  • Bake, uncovered, in the preheated oven until the cheese melts -- approximately 30 minutes.

Notes

To make this dish vegetarian friendly, substitute bulk, vegan "Beyond Beef" for the ground meat component. 
Recipe adjustments for a 9x13 baking dish:
Make only two layers with the meat sauce, OR just make three very thin layers
Increase the cottage cheese to 2 cups (no need to increase the egg)
Increase the Jack cheese to 3/4 lb.; increase the grated Cheddar to 1 or even 1 1/2 cups 

Looking for other dinner recipes? I’ve got multitudes, both here on this website and on my YouTube channel. Here are just a few to wet your whistle:

Coquilles St. JacquesCoquilles St. Jacques

Country Meatloaf DinnerCountry Meatloaf

Roasted Chickpeas and Veggies DinnerRoasted Chickpeas and Veggies Dinner

Hungry for more? Get my email updates. And please post a comment below. I love hearing from you!

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Patio Pergola Project, Part One

Comments

  1. 1

    margaret says

    April 18, 2021 at 8:09 am

    Can’t wait to try this tortilla casserole when I get to our son’s home in Fla. Our grandson, who loves spicy food, is excited to celebrate his 7th Birthday with us. It has been a long 15 months since we’ve been together-have vaccinations-will travel!
    Thanks for all your recipes,Kevin.

  2. 2

    Kevin Lee Jacobs says

    April 18, 2021 at 9:06 am

    Hi Margaret — Hope you enjoy this casserole. Fox and I are fully vaxxed too. Hallelujah!

  3. 3

    Maryann says

    April 18, 2021 at 1:55 pm

    Kevin, I want to see a pic of you with that fabulous sounding Mohawk!! And I’d love to see a video of your band and you singing your melodious songs!!

  4. 4

    Kevin Lee Jacobs says

    April 18, 2021 at 2:14 pm

    Hi Maryann – Thanks for watching the video! Unfortunately — or rather “mercifully” — there are no videos of me from that period. Just oodles of cassette tapes!

  5. 5

    Maryann says

    April 21, 2021 at 3:09 pm

    Hi Kevin
    Do you think I can make this in two smaller dishes, and freeze one for another time. Thank you love your posts Maryann

  6. 6

    Mina says

    April 24, 2021 at 8:34 pm

    The Tangy Tortilla casserole was a hit with my husband and visiting married son. Next time I will omit the olives (my better half detests them) an add a can of black beans. I used just one pound of ground turkey and no one noticed!
    Love to read your blog every Sunday morning, Kevin!

  7. 7

    Mary says

    May 2, 2021 at 8:41 pm

    5 stars
    Made this for my husband and myself today. Loved it! Kevin, your posts always a delight. I made the pumpkin spice cinnamon rolls last fall, and they were to die for. Tried using the plastic milk jugs to start cool season seeds, but we live in the Oregon high desert, and the wind and low humidity was was a bit too harsh for them to thrive. Still, it was fun to try!

  8. 8

    Kevin Lee Jacobs says

    May 3, 2021 at 12:53 pm

    Hi Mina – So glad this dish worked out for you. Great idea to sub black beans for the black olives!

    Hi Mary – Music to my ears! Happy to know you enjoyed the Tangy Tortilla Casserole AND the Pumpkin Spiced Cinnamon Rolls!

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