if you have heard my husband tell the story, you’ll remember it goes like this: “so when we first got married, i wasn’t sure if my wife could cook. THEN she made this thing called burrito pie. and i HAD FIFTHS Y’ALL.”

of course, during our first year of marriage i had to pull out something big. something serious. something really fancy and high class. burrito pie was it. i mean, what sounds more country club than BURRITO PIE?? i’m pretty sure they serve it at state dinners and probably at buckingham palace for christmas.

all joking aside, i knew no matter what i made, it had to be fairly simple for my new husband who was (and still is) purely a meat-and-potatoes guy. if i had made him something truly out-of-the-box different, he would have walked out the door, driven to taco bell (actually it would have been bojangles – bless it – since we lived in north carolina), ordered himself a meal, and brought it back home.

so it has only taken me 2 years of blogging to finally share this with you, my oldest, most-used, most-asked for recipe. it is super easy and the ingredients are simple. it is a comfort dish, perfect for cold days or lazy weekends around the house. it’s also a good one to take to people who have just had a baby or are just needing a little help with dinner. it has been dubbed “the famous burrito pie” thanks to the lovely lady who posted my recipe inspiration on allrecipes.com back in 2002 – i am forever grateful.

burrito pie
ingredients

2 lbs ground beef

1/2 white onion, chopped fine (or 2 tbsp minced, dried onion)

3 cloves garlic, minced (or 2 tsp jarred minced garlic)

1 can mexican-style rotel*

1 – 16 oz jar taco sauce *

1 – 16 oz cans fat free refried beans*

1 – 16 oz can charro beans*

6-10 flour or corn tortillas

1 – 8 oz bag shredded mexican-style cheese

1 – 2 oz can sliced black olives (optional)

salsa, green onions, sour cream, cholula & tortilla chips – for serving

directions

1. preheat the oven to 350.

2. in a large skillet, brown the ground beef over high heat. when meat is almost no longer pink, add the chopped onion and cook until onion is translucent and fat has cooked off (or you can drain, if desired). add garlic and cook another 45 seconds or so.  mix in the beans and stir to soften & combine. add the rotel, taco sauce, and olives (if using). stir mixture well, making sure everything is incorporated. reduce heat to low and simmer, uncovered, for 15-20 minutes. stir occasionally. take mixture off heat.

3. spread a thin layer of the meat mixture on the bottom of an ungreased large casserole dish. tear each tortilla in half (to get better coverage) and make a layer of tortillas on top of the meat mixture. follow with another layer of meat mixture, then a layer of cheese. repeat tortilla, meat, cheese pattern until all the meat mixture is used, ending with a layer of meat mixture then cheese.

4. bake for 18-20 minutes, until it’s cooked through and the the cheese is bubbly. top each serving with salsa, cholula, and sour cream and serve hot.

*any ingredient with a star by it is also available in a hot or spicy version.. if you are wanting SPICY, go for the hot versions.

enjoy!