Chicken & Black Bean Enchilada Casserole

We made this yummy Chicken & Black Bean Enchilada Casserole recipe the other night and loved it!  Anytime I see "black bean" or "casserole" in the a recipe title I know it's worth trying for our family, so the fact that it has both meant it was a must try.  I found the recipe {here} on the Sweet Treats and More blog.

pic from sweettreatsandmore

It was an easy one to whip up, so I hope you'll try it too!  Continue reading for the recipe...

Ingredients:

2 cups shredded chicken breast meat (I baked and shredded 3 large chicken breasts)

1/2 tsp ground cumin

1/2 tsp ground coriander

1/2 tsp garlic powder

2 Tbsp chopped fresh cilantro

1 (15 oz) can black beans, rinsed and drained

1 (4.5 oz) can diced green chili peppers, drained

1 (10 oz) can red enchilada sauce (I used Old El Paso brand red enchilada sauce in medium heat)

8 (6 inch) corn tortillas

2 cups shredded Mexican blend cheese

1 (8 oz) container of sour cream

1/2 cup chopped green onions

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.  Cover large baking pan with foil, then spray with non-stick cooking spray.  Lay out chicken breasts in pan then sprinkle with cumin, coriander, and garlic powder.  (I didn't measure out the spices, I just sprinkled freely.)  Bake until cooked through...I used 3 frozen breasts so they were in for about 40 minutes.  Keep the oven on, once you remove the chicken...

2. Let chicken cool a bit, then shred with a fork.  Transfer shredded chicken to a large bowl.  Add cilantro, black beans, and green chili peppers.  Stir well.

3. Spray 9"x13" baking dish with non-stick cooking spray.  Spread half of the enchilada sauce over bottom of dish.  Place 4 tortillas over the sauce, overlapping if necessary.  Spoon half of the chicken mixture over the tortillas, then spoon on half the sour cream spreading it over the chicken mixture.  Sprinkle on half the cheese.

4. Spoon the remaining enchilada sauce over the cheese, and make another layer of tortillas.  Layer the remaining chicken mixture over the tortillas.

5. Cover dish with foil and back for 30 minutes in the preheated oven.

6. Remove dish from oven and take off the foil.  Sprinkle the remaining cheese over the top of the casserole then dot the surface with remaining sour cream.  (I chose to spread the sour cream a bit so it would be evenly distributed over the casserole.)  Place back in oven, uncovered, for an additional 5 to 10 minutes, or until the cheese melts.

7. Let stand a few minutes, then serve with extra sour cream and green onions sprinkled on top.

This is one of those dishes that tastes even better reheated as a left-over, so consider baking it the day before for the flavor to set in even more.  Hope you enjoy as much as we did! -Kristen

Don't forget to enter the Notecard Give-Away by 10pm EST this Sunday, January 15th!  Entry instructions can be found {here}.