Stacked and Yummy

I really think last week's knock on the head jarred some creativity loose in my brain! I've been struggling lately to think of fun new stuff to post, and last week, my brain was just buzzing...and I only took Motrin, so it wasn't some hallucination wherein I think every idea I have is new and the best ever known to man. Or woman. By the way, I think I'm completely recovered. I went to yoga this morning and felt fine, and I didn't buy anything completely whacko at the grocery store. I rested a lot last week...probably because I bought a bunch of junk food in my befuddled state and my family was so thrilled, they kept quiet and ate it and left me alone!

One night last week, I needed to clean out the leftovers, so I made up this tortilla stack. Since you (most likely) do not have the same leftovers I did, I've written it down as regular ingredients. If you don't have or want to make the Good Luck Salsa for it, a reasonable facsimile would be a can of black-eyed peas, drained added to a jar of red salsa that also contained corn.

Chicken Verde Tortilla Stack

5 large flour tortillas
2 cups shredded cooked chicken
12 oz jar of salsa verde (I used Archer Farms from Target)
2 1/2 cups shredded Mexican-blend cheese (no, I didn't shred my own...sue me!)
3 cups Good Luck Salsa(recipe below and here, a post from 29Dec2012)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. On a baking sheet, place two pieces of foil, criss-crossed, each about 18 inches long. Spray lightly with cooking spray.

Begin your stack:
1. Tortilla
2. 1 cup shredded chicken
3. 1/3 jar salsa
4. 1/2 cup shredded cheese
5. Tortilla
6. Good Luck Salsa
7. 1/2 cup shredded cheese
8 Repeat layers
9. End with just a tortilla on top. Anything else will stick to the foil. You'll see what I mean. The photo above is just before the last tortilla went on the stack.

Wrap the ends of the foil up and over the tortilla stack, completely enclosing it. You don't want any of that good stuff oozing out and being wasted!

Bake on baking sheet for 45 minutes, until heated through.

Remove from oven and carefully peel back the foil. Top with remaining salsa and 1/2 cup cheese, and place back in oven for about 10 minutes, until cheese melts.

Let cool for a few minutes, and slice like a pie to serve it. You can garnish with sour cream if you like, but this was delicious as is. I served it with a fruit salad made of blueberries, oranges, and pears. Because it was clean out the frig night and that's what I had! This served all 5 of us, with leftovers for 2 lunches for the GI.


Good Luck Salsa

2 cans black-eyed peas, rinsed and drained
1 can yellow hominy, rinsed and drained
1 can petite diced tomatoes, fire-roasted or garlic and onion
1 green pepper, diced
1 onion, diced
1 can green chilis (or a small jalapeno, minced)
1 cup fat-free Italian salad dressing
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup cilantro, finely chopped

In a large bowl, stir everything together. Chill and let the flavors meld for a day or two. This keeps in the frig for up to a week.