Mexican Beef & Bean Pie

I love any Mexican food, especially the ones that have beans. This recipe is from one of my daughter-in-law's family reunion cookbooks.  I made this for the first time about a month ago.  It was totally delicious, and a great way to use up extra pinto beans.

1.  Prepare pinto beans:  Prepare 2 cups of pinto beans.  This will make more than you need, but the extras are great for burritos. Follow package directions.  You will need 1 1/2 cups for the Mexican pie.

2.  Prepare crust:  Combine in a medium-sized bowl:
(1)  3/4 cup of corn flour (I used rice flour and it worked okay)
(2)  1/2 cup of cornmeal
(3)  Stir in 1 1/2 teaspoon of baking powder, 1/2 t of salt, 1 tablespoon of sugar.
(4)  Mix 1 egg, 1/2 cup of milk, and 1/8 cup of olive oil in a measuring cup and combine until blended.
(5)  Spread onto a greased 9" pie pan and bake at 350 for 6-8 minutes.

3.  Prepare vegetables:
(1)  Mince 1 onion
(2)  Chop 1 green pepper

4. Prepare meat mixture:
(1)   Fry 1 pound of ground beef/turkey. 
(2)  Add the onion and green pepper when half cooked.
(3)  Stir in 1 cup of salsa, 1 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon of cumin, 1 1/2 tablespoons of chili powder, and 1/4 teaspoon of black pepper.
(4)  Then stir in 1 1/2 cups of the pinto beans you cooked.
(5)  Put the meat mixture on top of the crust.

5.  Top with 1 1/2 cups of cheddar cheese.

6.  Bake at 350 for 30 minutes or until done.

Serve with a platter of chopped lettuce, tomatoes, and green onions.  Also fill bowls with salsa and sour cream for topping.


Other Mexican recipes on this blog:

Mexican Casseroles
Texas Style Gluten Free Stacked Enchiladas  (From my Come & Dine cookbook)
Acapulco Delight - A great Mexican Enchilada (From my Heritage School Cookbook)
Michelle's Favorite Vegetarian Enchiladas   (From my daughter)
Kathy's Baked Chili & Chips Casserole  (From my church cookbook, Come & Dine)
Fiesta Gluten Free Tamale Pie   (From my church cookbook, Come & Dine)
Authentic Chicken Enchiladas Verde  (From a church friend)
Rebecca's Favorite Chicken & Chile Enchiladas  (From a church friend)
Delores's Chicken & Tortilla Casserole (Made Gluten Free)  (From my church cookbook, Come & Dine)
Great Beef Enchiladas - From my church cookbook, Come & Dine

Tacos, Chimichangas  & Etc.
The Best Fish Tacos   (Modified from Food Network)
Fantastic Baked Chimichangas  (From my Syre School Cookbook)
Authentic Chicken Flautas  (My hispanic friend Abbie taught me how to make these!)

Delicious Chicken Fajitas  (A mix of many recipes)
Easy Gluten Free Baked Taquitos  (From a newspaper clip)

The Best Homemade Refried Beans  (From an Internet search)
Sara's Grandpa's Recipe for Mexican Beans (from my nephew's wife-a yummy side dish that is thick like a stew)

Mexican Chicken & Beef
Anna's Pollo Guisado (Mexican Braised Chicken)  (From a church friend in Phoenix)
Fantastic Gluten Free Carne Asada!  (From an Internet search--a combination of sites)
Belizean Chicken, Black Beans & Rice, and Belizean Coleslaw  (From my daughter's family)

Soups
Mexican Chicken Soup- A Great Remedy for Colds & Flu  (I got this over 25 years ago from a Mexican cookbook)
Bethany's Crowd Pleasing Tortilla Soup  (From a friend in California)
Southwest Turkey Soup   (From my Syre School Cookbook)

Salads
Baja Salad with Black Beans & Quinoa  (My own version of something I ate in Seattle)

What Do You Know About Christ as the Sin Offering in Leviticus 4?

    I learned in my reading the Life-Study of Leviticus that the five basic offerings in Leviticus form a kind of cycle.  And here’s how.  Whenever I come to God in the morning, I realize a lot that I'm not for God. Because of that I need to lay my hands on Christ symbolically as my burnt offering because He's the only One who is absolute for God. Then as I begin to read God's word and pray, I realize I'm receiving  Christ into me as the reality of the meal offering. 

 My receiving of Christ as my spiritual food brings me into a fellowship with God, and this  fills my hearts with peace.  In Ephesians 2:15 I learned that through Christ's death He reconciled sinners to God and became the peace offering. At this juncture in my fellowship with God, He is able to shine on my hearts and point out to me my sins and shortcomings. Then like 1 John 1:9 says I can just confess what I see to God and ask for His forgiveness. In this way I can have the experience Christ as my sin offering.  

But why do we sin anyway?  In order to get this, you have to go all the way back to Genesis 3. Here we see a talking serpent pressuring Eve to eat of the tree of knowledge of good and evil.  Instead of checking with her husband or going to God like she should have, she took matters into her own hands.  Satan knew his evil nature was inside of that fruit, and if they ate it, it would get inside of them. God's enemy thought for sure if that happened, he would destroy God’s purpose for them. 

God is never outdone by His enemy.  All of this was part of God's well-thought out plan. This never ceases to amaze me!  The first time the word sin was ever used is in reference to God's judgment on Satan who is typified by the prince of Tyre in Ezekiel 28:16. This judgment took place long before Adam and Eve were ever created. 

In chapter 43 of the Life-Study of Leviticus Witness Lee explains what the sin offering means: 

The sin offering deals with our sinful nature, with sin as the nature of our fallen being. The nature of our fallen being is sin, and this sinful nature is the essence, the substance, the element of Satan. Our sinful nature--the sin in our being--is satanic.  We may even say it is Satan himself.  Sin, which is rebellion, is Satan. This sin has been injected into us, causing us to be constituted sinners (Rom. 5:19), that is, sinners in constitution.  Human beings, therefore, are a constitution of sin. We need to see that our being is fully constituted with sin, with the enemy of God.  The sin offering deals with our nature of sin....Christ was crucified as sin. When He was crucified, sin also was crucified, and we were crucified as well (Lee. Witness. Life-Study of Leviticus. Anaheim: Living Stream Ministry, 1989, Print). 

Like this chapter points out Satan became the embodiment of sin, and Romans 5:12 tells us this sinful nature has been passed down:  Wherefore as by one man sin entered into the world and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned. 

But what happens when we’re regenerated? I met a believer once who did not believe she could sin any more. But according to the truth in 1 John 1:8 and 10, believers can sin because they still have Satan's evil nature within them. This makes our Christian life quite a battle at times.  And that's why we need to start every day before God's face.  We know from the Bible (Romans 8:23) that there will be a day when our body will be freed from sin. I'm looking forward to that day!!  But until then I know I need to keep myself in this cycle of enjoying Christ daily as my burnt offering, meal offering, peace offering, and sin offering!  

 You can listen to excerpts of Witness Lee's speaking the Life-Study of Leviticus on Life Study of the Bible  with Witness Lee.   You can also read the online Life-Studies of Leviticus and check out other resources available to enhance your study of the Bible on Living Stream Ministry's website.

Other Posts on Leviticus:

What is the Purpose of the Offerings in Leviticus 1:2?
Why Does Leviticus Start with the Burnt Offering in Leviticus 1:4?
What is the spiritual Meaning of the Meal Offering in Leviticus 2:1?
Taking a Closer Look at the Peace Offering in Leviticus 3:1
What Do You Know About Christ as the Sin Offering? 

What is the Meaning of the Trespass Offering in Leviticus 5?

Patty's Yummy Tater Tot Casserole

     This is comfort food for the last few weeks of winter.  I made this for four of my grandkids, and I had to scrape the pan to get the last bite!  The first time I had this was when I was in junior high, and it's just plain yummy. Years ago my friend Patty gave me this recipe, and I've tweaked it so it's gluten free. 

 This was my first time making it gluten free, and I didn't know how it would come out. Taste your gravy and get it to your liking.  I'm so glad that Trader Joe's sells tater tots!

 

 

Patty's Gluten Free Tater Tot Casserole

1.  Prepare gluten free cream of celery soup: (Patty's recipe calls of 2 cans of cream of celery soup with 2 cans of milk)
(1)  In a large skillet put 3-4 T of butter and melt it.
(2)  Stir in 5 T of white rice flour and stir.
(3)  Gradually whisk in 2 cups of milk and stir until thickened.
(4)  Then slowly add 3 cups of chicken broth. (I just used water and 4 teaspoons of Chicken Better Than Bouillon)
(5)  Stir in spices:  2 teaspoons of salt, 3/4 teaspoon of black pepper, and 1 teaspoon of thyme.
(6)  Taste and make any adjustments. I added a bit more water and about 2 more T of rice flour to get it the right consistency. Set aside until the meat mixture is cooked.

2.  Prepare vegetables:  Dice 1 onion and dice up 2 stalks of celery.

3.  Prepare the meat:
(1)  Brown 1 pound of ground beef or turkey. 
(2)  When halfway browned, add the diced onion and the celery.  Cook until the vegetables are tender.
(3)  Add to the above soup mixture.

4.  Assemble casserole:
(1)  Put the meat mixture evenly on the bottom of a 9 x 13 pan.
(2)  Spread about 2-3 cups of frozen green beans over the top and mix them in a bit.
(3)  Spread Trader Joe's frozen tater tots over the top of that.
(4)  Bake at 350 for 30-35 minutes or until cooked through.

List of other casseroles on this blog:

Mexican Casseroles:
Texas Style Gluten Free Stacked Enchiladas  (From my Come & Dine cookbook)
Acapulco Delight - The greatest Mexican Enchilada!   From my Heritage School Cookbook
Michelle's Favorite Vegetarian Enchiladas   (From my daughter)
Kathy's Baked Chili & Chips Casserole  (From my church cookbook, Come & Dine)
Authentic Chicken Enchiladas Verde  (From a church friend)
Fiesta Gluten Free Tamale Pie   (From my church cookbook, Come & Dine)
Rebecca's Favorite Chicken & Chile Enchiladas  (From a church friend)
Delores's Chicken & Tortilla Casserole (Made Gluten Free)  (From my church cookbook, Come & Dine)

Pasta Casseroles:
Fantastic Gluten Free Macaroni & Cheese  (Modified from my Heritage School cookbook & Internet search)
Gluten Free Comfort Food - Downright Delicious Gluten Free Tuna Noodle Casserole  (From my Heritage School Cookbook)

American Favorites:

Make It From Scratch Gluten Free Turkey Pot Pie
Gluten  Free Comfort Food That Hits the Spot - Chicken Divan (From my church Come & Dine cookbook)
The Best Gluten Free Shepherd's Pie  (From my Heritage School cookbook)

Breakfast for Dinner:

Hash Brown Egg Casserole  (From my friend Lisa)
Mexican Migas Breakfast Casserole  (Modified from a recipe from an airport cookbook)
Baked Zucchini Frittata  (I picked this up from a Whidbey Island farmer's market)
Jan's Sausage & Vegetable Frittata  (From a friend who was a home ec teacher)