Mexican Beef & Bean Casserole with Tomato Corn Salad

Last week when I was looking at recipes for the stuffed peppers I checked out the one in my Betty Crocker cookbook. On the adjoining page this recipe, which sounded easy and yummy, caught my eye. Of course, I had to to have some veggies to go with it and I remembered recently cutting out a veggie salad recipe from Gourmet magazine. It was great with the casserole and I would also consider bringing it as a side dish to a barbeque.

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MEXICAN BEEF & BEAN CASSEROLE

1 lb. lean ground beef
2 cans pinto or kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 - 8oz. can tomato sauce
1/2 cup thick and chunky salsa
1 tsp. chili powder
1 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese

Heat oven to 375 degrees. Cook beef in a medium saucepan over medium heat 8-10 minutes, breaking up meat into small pieces, until brown; drain off fat. Mix in beans, tomato sauce, salsa and chili powder in ungreased 2 qt. casserole dish. Cover and bake 30 minutes, stirring once halfway through baking. Sprinkle with cheese and put back in oven, uncovered, until cheese is melted.
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I only used one can of red beans, I think two cans might be too much. Also, I used Cheddar cheese ILO Mont. Jack, and I used 4 tsp. of chili powder for extra flavor. I think this would also be delicious in a tortilla with lettuce and tomato or as a dip with tortilla chips.

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CORN AND TOMATO SALAD

salt & pepper
2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp. cider vinegar
1 1/4 lbs. tomatoes, cut into bite size pieces
1 bunch scallions, finely chopped, keeping the white and green parts separate
2 tbsp. unsalted butter
4 cups fresh corn kernels (from about 8 ears)

Whisk together oil, vinegar, 3/4 tsp. salt and 1/4 tsp. pepper. Toss tomatoes with dressing. While tomatoes marinate, cook white parts of scallions in butter with 3/4 tsp. salt and 1/2 tsp. pepper in a medium skillet over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until golden, about 4 minutes. Add corn and saute until just tender, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a bowl and cool. When corn is room temp, add to tomatoes and toss with green scallions.
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I used frozen corn that I had thawed, but I'm sure fresh would be awesome, just more work than I wanted to do. Also, I used rice vinegar because I was out of cider vinegar, and I used a whole tablespoon, not just a teaspoon. This was delicious eaten right after I made it, but it did not do well in the fridge. The next day the tomatoes were mealy and mushy and unpleasant to eat.

Happy eating!