Jen's Beef Enchilada Casserole

"It's been a long time since I tried making a new recipe. I am really into learning to make more authentic-tasting Mexican food, so I wanted to try my hand at a sauce from scratch. Canned enchilada sauce tastes cheap to me, so I made my own and it was so yummy. Looking forward to getting some reviews of this...enjoy!"


INGREDIENTS:

23 small corn tortillas
4 cups Mexican-Blend shredded cheese

Meat Mixture Ingredients:

1 1/2 pounds ground beef (I use sirloin)
3 green onions finely chopped
1 Pablano Pepper diced
1 large tomato diced
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon cumin

Sauce Ingredients:

3 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons flour
3 cups beef broth (I use no salt added)
6 oz. tomato paste
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons chili powder
1/2 teaspoon dried cilantro
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon cumin
salt to taste

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine meat mixture ingredients together and saute in large pan until meat is browned. Run mixture through food processor. In medium saucepan over medium heat melt butter and add flour to make roux. Stir in broth and tomato paste continuing to stir until smooth. Add vinegar and spices and stir until smooth and sauce starts to simmer.

Layering (in 9x13 dish sprayed with cooking spray)

1/2 cup sauce
9 tortillas (place so they go up the sides of the dish)
1/2 of meat mixture
1/2 cup of cheese
1/2 cup sauce
8 tortillas
rest of meat mixture
1/2 cup cheese
1/2 cup sauce
6 tortillas
remaining sauce

Cover with foil and bake for 40 minutes. Uncover, add remaining cheese and bake additional 10 minutes. Allow to sit and "set" for 10 minutes before serving.

Serves 6-8