Southwestern Casserole
This dish brings together two of my greatest loves: casseroles and the flavors of the Southwest.
I love casseroles because even though they’re not always the prettiest dishes, they’re often the easiest. Not to mention the comfort food factor. And when it comes to Southwestern/Mexican food, I just can’t get enough of it!
So I jumped at the opportunity to make this dish, which is basically just layers and layers of all kinds of Southwestern foods. It makes for an extremely satisfying meal!
First I coated a baking dish with cooking spray, then layered the bottom with diced green chiles.
Then I cooked a pound of ground turkey, along with onion, garlic, diced tomatoes, and lots and lots of seasonings.
Then the layering began. First the ground turkey mixture, then two cups of frozen (thawed) corn.
Next up: a layer of refried beans!
My spreading job left a little something to be desired. 
If you make this dish, I recommend spreading the beans with a wooden spoon or a spatula that’s been moistened with water; it helps with the sticking.
Next up: CHEESE! I didn’t bother measuring, I just sprinkled on a generous amount.
That went into the oven at 375º for 25 minutes. While it was cooking I chopped up my toppings: fresh tomatoes, green onions, cilantro, and avocado.
Put it all together!
I think this is one of the prettier casseroles I’ve made…
…that is, until I slopped it into my dish. 
I also didn’t bother with a fork…that’s what tortilla chips are for, right?
Southwestern Casserole
Adapted from For the Love of Cooking, originally from Cooking Light
Makes a heaping 9 x 13 pan
Ingredients (don’t be intimidated by the long list; it’s a lot of stuff you probably have on hand!)
2 (4 oz) cans diced green chiles
olive oil
1 lb ground turkey
1 sweet yellow onion, diced
1 tsp chili powder (can double if you like a lot of heat)
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp oregano
salt and pepper, to taste (I found I needed to add more salt at the table)
2 tsp minced garlic
3 tbsp fresh cilantro, chopped
1 (14 oz) can of diced tomatoes, undrained (this helps keep the turkey moist)
2 cups frozen (thawed) corn
1 (14 oz) can of refried beans
1-1.5 cups of shredded sharp cheddar cheese
2 fresh tomatoes, seeded and diced
2 green onions, sliced
1 avocado, diced (I liked keeping the chunks on the bigger side)
sour cream or plain Greek yogurt (I forgot this, but it would be a delicious addition!)
1. Preheat the oven to 375º.
2. Coat a 9 x 13 baking dish with cooking spray. Spread both cans of green chiles on the bottom.
3. Heat a bit of olive oil in a large pan over medium heat. Add the onions, ground turkey, and all the seasonings. Cook 5-6 minutes, using a wooden spoon to break up the meat.
4. Add the minced garlic and can of diced tomatoes; cook another 2-3 minutes.
5. Spoon the turkey mixture on top of the chiles. Then add the corn. On top of the corn, carefully spread the refried beans (with a moist wooden spoon or spatula), then add the cheese.
6. Bake for 25 minutes. Pull out of the oven and let sit for 5 minutes, then top with the diced fresh tomatoes, green onions, cilantro, and avocado. Serve with sour cream or plain Greek yogurt if desired.
Any other casserole lovers out there? How about Southwestern/Mexican food lovers?
Themocracy
This is beautiful!! I love casseroles because they’re so simple… just toss it all together and bake.
YUMMY! seriously, this one is right up my alley
you could even make it into a dip!
this recipe is so right up my alley, i’d probably eat the whole darn thing. i love anything with green chiles!
This sounds delish (except for the beans hahahaha). I love the recipes you post Katie…and I’ve made several of them so far! Keep ‘em coming!
Yum! This is my kind of casserole!
This is going on my list of things to make! My bf would LOVE that!
YUM!! This is definitely my kind of dish – I love casseroles and I LOVE Mexican food
Yjis looks so good. I love Southwestern style cooking too so I definitely want to give this recipe a try.
yummy! I was going to make chili for the Patriots/Jets game on Sunday, but this may be the way to go!
Yum!!! That is one AMAZING RECIPE!!! I can’t wait to try it!
This looks so good! And you could make so many different variations. I’m with you- when it comes to Southwestern or Mexican food, I’m all about the chips as utensils. That’s my favorite part!
YES! I actually thought of you when I wrote that line, as I remember you mentioning that before.
Oh, your pictures are making me drool! I’m sure I would LOVE this delicious-looking dish. Unfortunately, I’m having to avoid tomatoes for while
(It’s so hard!) But, I’ll bookmark this page for when I can, hopefully, resume my tomato consumption.
EVerything I love is in this dish! YUM!
Wow, this looks soooo good. Now I am craving mexican
Oh this looks DELICIOUS!!!
That looks amazing!! Definitely want to try it.