Taco Cassarole

We had nearly a pound of leftover taco meat (we'd had friends over and mis-estimated how much we would need), and since it was seasoned I couldn't really use it for anything with a different flavor palate... so I invented this. It was a big hit.
Tastes like tacos!!

Makes a 9x13 pan.
about 20-25min prep time + 15-20min of baking time

1 pound or so of ground meat
2ish cups uncooked rice (I did a mix of white and brown, it made about 5c cooked)
1 can tomato sauce
2 cans diced tomatoes (or 1qt home canned)
1/2 onion, chopped small
1 can black beans (or pinto) (or about 1-2 cups cooked dry beans)
chilli powder, cumin, garlic powder salt and pepper or taco seasoning
about 8 oz cheddar cheese, shredded

If you are cooking your own beans instead of using canned, you will need to prepare them ahead of time since they take hours to cook.
Put the dry rice in a pan with the tomatoes and their juice, and add enough water for cooking (I don't measure, I just pour in water about twice as high as the rice, then let it simmer with the lid off and check it every couple of minutes, stir it, and add more water if it ever runs low).
While the rice is cooking, brown the meat with the seasoning. You can add the onions if you like them cooked. Drain off the grease. Set aside.
As the rice is getting nearly done, add the tomato sauce and mix it in.
Put the cooked rice, meat, onions (if they're not with the meat), beans, and half of the cheese into a 9x13 baking dish, and mix them all up. You can add additional seasoning if you like (I put in about 1 Tbs garlic powder, 1 Tbs chili powder, 1 Tbs cumin, and 1/2-3/4 tsp salt and just a little pepper).
Sprinkle the remaining cheese over the top, and bake at 350 until everything is warm and melted--about 15-20 minutes.

Basic Biscuits

There is a cheese biscuit version of this recipe as well...this is the plain versionYou can make them with plain white flour of course, but I like putting in a little wheat because it makes them heartier.

3 c flour (I usually do 2 white 1 wheat)
4 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp cream of tartar (you can technically skip this, but if you have it do use it, it helps with fluffiness)
1 1/2 tsp salt

3/4 c lard  or room temperature butter (or you can substitute in part bacon grease, but if you do that be sure to add it with the liquid part)
*1 1/2 c milk or buttermilk (or milk with 1Tbs of lemon juice in it)

1 egg (optional)



Preheat oven to 450.

Mix the dry ingredients in a bowl.
Cut in the solid fat (lard or butter) until all is consistently crumbly.
Add liquid ingredients all at once, and stir with a fork just until moistened.


*Put in blobs on a baking sheet (just like cookies). If you have parchment paper that is really nice because the cheese can melt out and stick to the pan.
Bake at 450 for 10ish minutes.

*If you prefer to do rolled and cut out biscuits instead of drop biscuits, reduce the milk to 1c, roll out the dough 3/4 inch thick and cut out in rounds, and bake for 12-15 minutes...otherwise the recipe is the same.