Butternut Squash Enchilada Casserole

 I've never been a big meat eater. I'm not a vegetarian, but I tend to choose meat-less meals more often than not. This Butternut Squash Enchilada Casserole is filled with delicious and flavorful layers, and isn't as intimidating to put together as the instructions look. I love how colorful this casserole turns out, and the fact that it makes so much food that there is plenty for a leftover lunch the next day.

Ingredients
butternut squash, cubed
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
1 red pepper, chopped
2 teaspoons cumin
2 teaspoons chili powder
salt & pepper to taste
1 can corn, rinsed
1 can black beans, rinsed & drained
1 cup salsa
12 tortillas (flour or corn per your preference)
1 1/2 cup sour cream
1 cup enchilada sauce
2 cups mozzarella cheese, shredded


Recipe

Roast Butternut Squash
{1}
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and grease with 1 tablespoon of olive oil.
{2}
Peel the squash and slice it into 3/4 inch cubes. Toss the cubes in a large bowl with 2 tablespoons of olive oil and generously sprinkle with salt.
{3}
Place butternut squash on the baking sheet and roast for about 30 minutes, until soft. Flip the squash cubes halfway through baking. Allow them to cool slightly after removing from oven.

Vegetables
{4}
Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet on medium-high heat. Add chopped onion, green pepper, red pepper, cumin and chili powder, and roast the veggies in the olive oil & spices on high heat until charred just a bit.
{5}
Mid-way through, add the corn and black beans. Add the butternut squash. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Assemble the Casserole
I used a large casserole dish 12.5" x 10.75" x 2.5" - quantities below will need to be adjusted depending on the size of the dish you use. I repeated the layers twice, whereas the original recipe repeated the layers three times in a 11" x 8.5" x 3" dish.
{6}
Add 1 cup of salsa to the bottom of the casserole dish and spread to coat it evenly.
{7}
Top the salsa with tortillas, overlapping to completely cover (you can tear or cut the tortilla in half if necessary)
{8}
Spread half of the vegetable mixture over the tortillas.
{9}
Top with sour cream, dropping it in small dollops all over, then carefully spreading it over the veggies.
{10}
Drizzle the enchilada sauce over the sour cream.
{11}
Sprinkle with mozzarella cheese.
{12}
Repeat steps 7-11: layers of tortillas, vegetables, sour cream, enchilada sauce & cheese. Once you add the final layer of mozzarella cheese, cover the casserole dish with foil.
{13}
Bake at 375 degrees for 25 minutes covered, then remove the foil and bake for 10 minutes uncovered. Let it cool a bit, then cut right in the casserole dish and serve. Enjoy!