Chicken Taco Layered Casserole

My in-laws were in town this weekend.  A great, relaxing mini vacay for me... in my own home.  I took naps when I wanted, read books, and played computer games uninterrupted.  Oh, the simple joys.  I also cooked dinner for them to try out some of my recent meals.  One night I made my "Lazy Chicken" ... similar to this one.  I dumped 3 frozen chicken breasts in the crockpot with a cut up bell pepper and a medium-sized jar & a half of salsa.  5 hours later (on low), I shredded the chicken and put it back in the sauce.  I served it as tacos in corn tortillas with some lettuce, green onions, salsa, and sour cream.  I had almost a whole bowl full of chicken left so I decided to use it up today with what I'll call 'Chicken Taco Layered Casserole'.

Doesn't it look ooey gooey and delicious?!

First off, I'm sorry I didn't take any before pictures!  It's a really customizable recipe and I didn't have much to customize with in the house, so I didn't take any shots.  Sorry!!

Here's how easy it is:

Chicken Taco Layered Casserole - my creation

Take the leftover chicken mixture and add some canned black beans (rinsed and drained), some frozen corn (thawed), and/or chopped onion. I would have added all of these if I had it on hand just to bulk up the mixture and make it stretch a little farther, but it was fine as is.  Thankfully I had added a green pepper to the first batch of cooking the chicken in the crockpot so it felt a little more substantial than it was.

In a square 8 x 8 baking dish, put a little salsa down on the bottom of the dish.  Lay 4 corn tortillas down, overlapping as necessary.  Place half the chicken mixture down.  Sprinkle with cheese (I used some shredded mozzarella (I had about a 1/3 of a bag left) and cheddar (I had about a 1/4 of a bag left) mixed).  Repeat a layer of 4 corn tortillas, again, overlapping as necessary.  Place remaining half of the chicken mixture.  Sprinkle the top with cheese. 

I assembled the dish around noon while Little One was down for a nap.  I covered it with foil, stuck it in the fridge, and pulled it out and cooked it for dinner.  If you do this, take it out of the fridge about 15 - 20 minutes before you want to bake it to let the dish warm up a little.  Bake at 375 degrees, covered, for 25 minutes.  Uncover and bake an additional 10 minutes, or until cheese is melted and browned.

This made 4 servings, or 2 or 3 large servings.

The Verdict:

This tasted just like chicken tacos with NONE of the work involved.  The corn tortillas gave it a nice flavor and added a little thickness to the finished product.  I will definitely keep this recipe as an easy, make ahead, use of leftover Lazy Chicken.  Have I said how much I LOOOOOVE that recipe?  It would be delicious served topped with some shredded lettuce, sour cream, and extra salsa.

Enjoy this ridiculously easy and user-friendly meal!!

P.S. This is a "use it up week".  I made some salmon this weekend that we'll use for salad this week.  I also am pulling out my leftover pork for pulled pork sandwiches and the 2nd Chicken Tetrazzini meal to use this week.  My grocery list for this week has exactly 8 things on it.  Hello saving money!!!!!!  So, don't be surprised if you don't see a lot of posts this week.  Apparently, my weekend of relaxation is carrying over to this week as well!  Score one for Mom!