Podcast 76: Healthy Brunch Recipes … and it’s a Small World After All

by The Meal Makeover Moms on October 14th, 2009

Last week, Janice’s sister, Diane, was visiting from Portland, Oregon (lucky Diane). As we all sat around eating lunch, Diane told us about her two favorite recipes from The Moms’ Guide to Meal Makeovers: Mexican Lasagna and Easy Enchilada Casserole.

easy-enchilada-casserole

Nothing about that conversation was unusual until Liz’s cell phone rang an hour later.  On the other end was a fan of our cookbook who needed help.  After getting over the shock that she had actually gotten one of The Meal Makeover Moms on the phone, this mom of two shared how she just left her copy of The Moms’ Guide to Makeovers in her shopping cart after buying the ingredients for our Easy Enchilada Casserole. She needed us to fax or read her the recipe so she could make it for dinner! If that wasn’t strange enough, it turns out that she grew up in New Rochelle, NY … the same town where Liz grew up.  It’s a small world after all.

Since the Easy Enchilada Casserole recipe wasn’t on our website (not all of the recipes from the cookbook are on the site), we decided to add it under our Recipes section and to include it in this week’s Cooking with the Moms podcast on Brunch.  We really like this recipe because it’s perfect when you’re feeding a crowd, and it’s versatile — you can easily swap the meat-free crumbles for ground beef, chicken, or turkey. And it tastes great (if you don’t believe us, just ask Diane or our new friend from New York)!

easy-enchilada-casserole ingredients

Easy Enchilada Casserole
Makes 8 Servings

  • One 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes
  • 1 tablespoon canola oil
  • One 16-ounce bag frozen mixed bell pepper strips, thawed
  • 2 teaspoons ground cumin
  • 1 teaspoon chili powder
  • 1 teaspoon onion powder
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • One 12- or 16-ounce bag meat-free or soy crumbles
  • One 15 1/2-ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed
  • Twelve 6-inch corn tortillas
  • 2 cups preshredded reduced-fat Cheddar cheese
  • One 2 1/4-ounce can sliced olives, drained, optional
  • 1/2 cup reduced-fat sour cream

1. Lightly oil or coat a 9 x 13-inch baking pan with nonstick cooking spray. Spread 1/4 cup of the crushed tomatoes evenly over the bottom of the pan and set aside.

2. Heat the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the bell peppers, cumin, chili powder, onion powder, garlic powder, oregano, and salt and cook until the peppers are tender, about 5 minutes.

3. Add the remaining crushed tomatoes, the meat-free crumbles, and beans and stir to combine. Cook, stirring frequently, for 5 minutes.

4. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

5. Arrange 6 tortillas on the bottom of the baking pan, allowing them to overlap. Top evenly with half the bean mixture and 1 cup of cheese. Arrange the remaining tortillas over the cheese. Top with the remaining bean mixture, cheese, and olives if desired.

6. Bake uncovered until the cheese melts and the casserole is heated through, about 20 minutes. Serve with sour cream.

Nutrition Information per Serving: 320 calories, 8g fat (3g saturated), 560mg sodium, 43 carbohydrate, 10g fiber, 23g protein

easy-enchilada-casserole

The other recipe in the show is our Raspberry Breakfast Cake which we shared right here back in early September. It’s one of those recipes that everyone seems to love. In fact, we were first inspired to make it after reading the June issue of Gourmet magazine, and we noticed that we weren’t the only ones. Two Peas and Their Pod made a gorgeous version of this recipe with plums and nectarines, Smitten Kitchen also baked it up, and the photos alone will convince you it’s a must-make recipe, and Pinch My Salt posted a version made with a combo of half a cup each of blueberries and strawberries. We got a huge kick when we saw that Maris over at In Good Taste tried our healthy interpretation and posted the recipe to her blog.

This week’s show is filled with great brunch ideas and plenty of funny things to laugh about. We hope you’ll tune in. And if you like what you hear, please tell your friends about the show!

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4 Comments | Filed Under Beans, Lunch, Podcast, Vegetarian 

4 Responses to “Podcast 76: Healthy Brunch Recipes … and it’s a Small World After All”

  1. Tami on October 15th, 2009

    Hi Ladies! I raise chickens and have an additional tip on hard cooking eggs. The trick to get them to peel easily is to use OLD eggs!! Go figure! Tami

  2. The Meal Makeover Moms on October 15th, 2009

    Thanks Tami! There’s more air between the membrane and the shell which explains why they peel easier. Great tip!!

  3. Aggie on October 17th, 2009

    This casserole looks so good!! What a great story about the phone call! Btw…I grew up in Mt Vernon, NY, which is pretty close to New Rochelle!

    Congrats on the Foodbuzz nomination! Well deserved!

    PS…thank you so much for posting my button on your side bar! :)

  4. Cindy on October 22nd, 2009

    We tried the enchilada recipe for supper tonight – it was so good! 3 out of 3 wanted me to serve it again.

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