If I had to choose two global cuisines to rule the world, they would Italian and Mexican, respectively. Although, Mexican food only falls into second place slot of my Best Ethnic Cuisine of All Time list, this dish, an interpretation of a Nigella Lawson recipe, is good enough to make me reconsider my ranking.
Me and Mexican food. Me and tacos, taquitos, burritos, enchiladas, fajitas ... we go way back. I'm sure by now, you're aware of my infatuation with Italian food, and my opinion that it is the single greatest cuisine on the planet ... so, what could be better than marrying the pizazz of spicy, colorful Mexican food with the carbby, rich, decadent palate of Italian food?
I present to you the greatest, Friday night dish ever: Mexican Lasagna with avocado dip.
What you need to make this mouthwatering and tummy-filling meal:
an avocado
a red bell pepper
green chillies (as much as you can handle)
coriander (cilantro)
sweet corn
black beans
a can of chopped tomatoes
1/2 an onion
ground nut oil
spicy cheese
gluten free corn tortillas
chili powder
Mexican flavored chicken breast from the deli
lime juice
spring onions (scallions)
a bit of lemon juice just to keep the avocado from discoloring
There are no measurements because this is the kind of dish that you fill with all the things you like and use less of the things you don't like. This is the kind of dish that will turn out fantastic no matter if you use twice as many black beans and just a few ounces of corn or if you scrap the corn altogether! Experiment and make it to reflect your tastes, not mine.
Fry the peppers, onion and chopped, deseeded chillies in the groundnut oil. Salt and cook until tender.
Boil the black beans and the corn together according to the instruction on the black bean package. Strain and topped pour into a bowl and top with a generous portion of the cheese. Cover.
Add a generous serving of coriander and tomatoes with a little bit of water to the pan with the onions and chillies and allow to bubble away for about 10 minutes.
Take one tortilla shell and place it in the bottom of your dish. (I used a circular Pyrex.)
The spoon over 1/3 of the tomato/onion mixture. Top with a few pieces of chicken and some cheese. Layer another tortilla and spoon over 1/3 of the black bean mixture. Top with chicken and cheese. Continue on this way until you have used all the ingredients that you would like to use, ending with a tortilla.
Bake in a preheated oven for 30 minutes at 200 degrees C/400 degrees F.
For the avocado dip:
Mix the avocado with a bit of lemon juice, lime juice, spring onions, coriander and some chopped chillies if you'd like. You can make this as chunky or as smooth as you like. Pack into a bowl and refrigerate until the lasagna is finished. Serve on the side with sour cream or dolloped on top.
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