So a few weeks ago I wanted to make classic Italian lasagna and as you do I went to the store and bought all the ingredients. And when I was in the pasta aisle looking for lasagna noodles (I thought of making it from scratch but laziness overwhelmed me!) and the Barilla no-cook lasagna noodles were on sale and looking at the small boxes I thought there was no way only one box would make one lasagna, so of course I bought four boxes. Low and behold, one box does in fact make a whole lasagna... So now I had an abundance of lasagna noodles and I was getting sick of regular old lasagna, so I decided to get creative and make a Mexican lasagna. I've been brainstorming all week on how to actually make it, and of course I didn't actually look up recipes that others have done, this is ALL me. At first I had thought of mixing all the ingredients into the sauce minus the noodles and cheese, then thought better of it. Lasagna is layered after all!
I feel like this was pretty easy to make though it was a little time consuming making the chicken, however that is easy enough to throw in a crock pot on low or make it a day ahead. I personally poached it for a couple hours on the stove when I was dropping off the daycare dogs. And then to shred the chicken I threw it in my kitchen-aid mixer with the paddle mixer until it was perfectly shredded! Other than the chicken the rest of the lasagna is a breeze to make. Hope you enjoy it as much as we did!
Mexican Chicken Lasagna
2 large Chicken Breasts, shredded
3 cans black beans, drained
1 large can crushed tomatoes (28oz)
1 green pepper
1 red pepper
1 yellow onion
2-3 hot peppers (use whatever hot peppers you'd use normally for other stuff, it should be spicy)
2-3 cups Shredded Cheddar or Mexican Blend Cheese
1 box no-boil lasagna noodles
Cook the chicken either in a crock pot or on the stove with salt, pepper, chili powder, and paprika. Once cooked through and tender, drain, and either shred by hand or in a mixer.
Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees.
Chop the peppers and onion finely (I used my food processor to do it or you can use a knife...old school) and then saute in a large saucepan. When the veggies are soft add the crushed tomatoes and simmer for at least 10-15 minutes.
In a large casserole dish layer first the sauce, then noodles, followed by chicken, beans and cheese. Top with noodles, sauce, chicken, beans, and cheese. Top with a final layer of noodles and sauce and cheese. Cover in aluminum foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove foil and bake an additional 10 minutes or until the cheese is bubbly and nice looking.
My final lasagna I was able to cut into 16 pieces. And it was DELICIOUS! Enjoy!
