I made Mexican Layered Three Bean Casserole recently and thought I’d give you an update.
Huh- why?
Good question! I kept thinking about a comment from my bloggy friend Jenelle who said that she would’ve made this recipe too, but she didn’t have any peppers.
Or I really should say, I kept thinking about the comment…as I was substituting one ingredient after another while I was making the recipe.
What did I substitute?
- yogurt and cream for the sour cream and milk
- chopped, frozen anaheim and jalapeno peppers for the poblano (and they weren’t roasted, which probably really affected the final dish!)
- flour tortillas for corn
- kidney beans for pink beans
- cheddar cheese for monterey jack
- my home canned salsa for salsa verde
Seriously. The only things I didn’t change were the black beans and refried beans. I was cracking up as I realized the final dish probably wouldn’t come anywhere near tasting like the original.
Obviously, this is not a review of the original recipe. 
But you know what? What I ended up with was good, everyone ate it and even had seconds. But most importantly, it used what I had on hand. And in my world if I waited until I had salsa verde I would never make it. I wouldn’t be able to keep my budget in check if I had to purchase specialty items just to make a recipe.
I’m not advocating radically changing recipes and most of the time I only change one or two things, but the point is you can change things while using the recipe as a guideline in order to use what you have on hand. And sometimes I change things because I’m not a fan of them, like corn tortillas in dishes where they come out mushy. I almost always substitute flour tortillas in dishes like this.
Just be honest and don’t say it’s “so-and-so’s recipe” if it bears little resemblance to the original (I’ve had that happen to me and it was not a good feeling…).
The good part? Well, besides the fact that my family enjoyed it, it turned out to be a pretty frugal meal even though I used some canned beans (bought on sale) instead of the usual cheap beans I keep in my freezer. Here’s the breakdown:
- yogurt = .63
- milk = .04
- peppers from the freezer = 0*
- 5 flour tortillas = .65 (bought at $3.99 for 30)
- garden canned salsa = 0*
- 1 can refried beans = .85
- 2 cans beans = 1.00
- 1-1/2 c. cheese = .72 (@$3.99/2 lbs.)
- onion = .10
*I do have the cost of seeds and fertilizer that I should one day figure into the produce I get from the garden, but that would involve calculating the pounds I ended up with over the season, compared with the cost of the seed variety, plus each ingredient in the fertilizer I make, so…ummm…that’s way too much math at this point in my life. Maybe one day…
Total = $3.99 leaving $1.00 for salad to easily come in at the $5.00 goal for the meal.
Will I make it again? Honestly, I don’t know. It’s very similar to “enchilada pie” or “Mexican lasagna” that I make often and it was kinda soupy.
But that was probably because I only kept two of the original ingredients the recipe called for, so you should probably take that with a grain of salt.
-Jami
I believe a cottage can be anywhere or anything (condo, ranch, farmhouse) as long as you have a "cottage mentality" which puts people above things, celebrates imperfections, embraces simplicity, and finds joy in everyday life. Thanks for joining me!
I think flour tortillas vs corn tortillas in a casserole make a huge difference in the final texture. That might have had a lot to do with the soupy consistency. Keep the great posts coming! I always enjoy your blog.
Thanks, Shanzanne, for the encouragement! I appreciate it.