Mexican Lasagne | Pamela Salzman

I almost fell off my chair when I was scrolling through my Instagram feed this morning and saw all the first day of school pictures. ย Whoa! ย I thought it was still summer. ย Is it just me, or did your schools start the day after Labor Day when you were a kid? ย My girls go back to college this weekend, which is normal for college, but my son’s school is quite traditional (thankfully) and begins September 5th.

Mexican Lasagne | Pamela Salzman

But since I know many of you are back to a routine and schedule, I thought it would be wise to share a recipe for a real meal that you can make to get the troops back to normal. ย No more eating whenever it suits you. ย No more cheese and olives for dinner. ย Back to real food with real nourishment!

Mexican Lasagne | Pamela Salzman

I know you are going to love this Mexican Lasagne, aka “Enchilasagne.” ย Mexican Lasagne is easier to say, so we’re going with that. ย Basically, replace the pasta with corn tortillas and the tomato sauce with a red enchilada sauce and you’ve got a delicious twist on lasagne. ย You can add meat to this or make this vegan. ย You might even be able to make this paleo with grain-free tortillas. ย It’s definitely worth a try! ย This is a hearty, easy and flavorful meal that my entire family loves and my students reported back with rave reviews from their families, too!

Mexican Lasagne | Pamela Salzman

My daughter has to limit her dairy and I have made this many times with Kite Hill almond milk ricotta and omitted the shredded cheese on top. ย Sometimes I’ll buy extra Kite Hill and dollop the top with it or just bake it with sauce on top and that’s that. ย I love adding veggies to the dish because I try to add veggies wherever it feels natural, and the addition of vegetables makes this a complete meal. ย I suggested onion, bell pepper and zucchini, because they’re all in season, but mushrooms, Swiss chard and eggplant would be great, too. ย Whatever you incorporate into the lasagne though, whether it’s meat or vegetables, must be cooked prior to adding. ย Otherwise, the flavor will be too bland and the vegetables/meat will release too much water.

If you are still on summer break, enjoy it while it lasts! ย If your kiddos have started school this week, may the force be with you!

To remind, I’ll be on The Today Show on Friday morning, most likely between 8:30 am and 9:00 am. ย I will be at The Gem in Dallas on Monday, August 21st from 10:00 am to 12:00 pm. ย And I’ll be on KHOU Channel 11 “Great Day Houston” on Wednesday, August 23rd around 9:45 am. ย Looking forward to it all!

5 from 1 vote

Mexican Lasagne Recipe

By Pamela
Servings: 8

Ingredients 

  • For the sauce:
  • 2 Tablespoons unrefined, cold-pressed extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 large garlic clove, minced
  • 4 teaspoons ground cumin
  • 3 teaspoons chili powder
  • 1 teaspoon chipotle chili powder, this is pretty spicy, but when you add the tortillas and cheese, the heat is toned down
  • 24 ounces tomato puree or crushed tomatoes, not tomato paste, approximately 3 cups
  • ยพ cup chicken or vegetable stock
  • ยฝ teaspoon sea salt
  • freshly ground black pepper to taste
  • For the vegetables:
  • 2 Tablespoons unrefined, cold-pressed extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 onion, diced
  • 1 medium zucchini, diced
  • 1 green bell pepper, diced (or sweet bell pepper)
  • 1/8 teaspoon sea salt
  • 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 15- ounce container whole milk ricotta or vegan almond milk ricotta, such as Kite Hill
  • 1 large egg, beaten (helps to bind the ricotta)
  • 15 6- inch corn tortillas
  • 1 cup shredded Mexican cheese blend or mozzarella, or omit

Instructions 

  • Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
  • To make the enchilada sauce, warm 2 Tablespoons oil over medium-low heat in a small saucepan. Add the garlic and spices and sautรฉ until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the tomato puree, stock, salt, and pepper to taste. Simmer 3-4 minutes and taste for seasoning. Set aside.
  • In a large skillet, warm 2 Tablespoons of olive oil and add the onion, zucchini, and bell pepper. Sprinkle with an 1/8 teaspoon each of salt and pepper and saute until tender, about 6-8 minutes. Set aside.
  • Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, combine the ricotta and egg and set aside.
  • To assemble the lasagne, pour ยฝ cup of the enchilada sauce on the bottom of a 13x9-inch baking dish. Place 5 corn tortillas on top of the sauce. They can overlap since you want to cover the bottom of the baking dish. Take ยฝ of the ricotta mixture (about 1 cup), and with a spoon gently spread it over the tortillas. Top the ricotta with ยฝ of the sautรฉed vegetable mixture. Spread 2/3 - ยพ cup of enchilada sauce over the veggies. Top with 5 corn tortillas, and repeat this with the same ingredients (ricotta, veggies, sauce).
  • For the last layer, top with 5 corn tortillas, the remaining sauce and 1 cup shredded cheese.
  • Bake lasagne until heated through and cheese is melted and bubbly, about 25-30 minutes.
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7 Comments

  1. Tamar Hanoun says:

    Hi Pamela! I’m planning to make this for a get together next weekend. Wondering what you suggest to serve on the side? I can of course do some sautรฉed veggies or a salad but wondering if you have something else you think would be good ๐Ÿ™‚

      1. Tamar says:

        Great idea!!! I think I will make your restaurant-style Mexican rice (LOVE that) and maybe some refried beans. I just flipped through your two cookbooks and website and didn’t see a recipe for refried beans – do you have one that you use? Appreciate your help ๐Ÿ™‚

  2. 5 stars
    Loved this and added some left over chicken from your SLOW COOKER CHICKEN TACO recipe. Flavors were spicy just the way my guys like it!

    1. Pamela says:

      Perfect place to use that slow cooker chicken!

  3. Monica Lovell says:

    I made this tonight and we all loved it! My husband said it was pretty good even though it didn’t have any meat in it. ๐Ÿ™‚ I loved the sauce!! It tasted like the real deal. I usually make green enchiladas ( your casserole one) but I think I may make some red ones with this sauce. My kids didn’t think it was too spicy either. It had a little kick but was super flavorful. It was very easy to put together too. A nice salad and we had a yummy dinner. Thank you as always!