Mexican Chicken Casserole

Ingredients

2 or 3 chicken breast either boned or boneless,  (boneless is easier to deal with)

Two or three stalks of celery, chopped

One small onion or half a large, chopped

One clove garlic, finely diced

One teaspoon cumin seed

Salt & pepper

One can diced tomatoes with green chilies

One can corn 

One can black beans 

One can cream of chicken soup

Two or three large flour tortillas

Cheddar cheese, or cheddar/pepper jack blend or fiesta Mexican blend – shredded/grated

Directions

Boil chicken breasts, celery, onion, garlic, cumin seed and some salt and pepper in a pot filled halfway with water. Boil for approximately 2 hours until chicken is very soft. Remove chicken, and strain out vegetables (can save the liquid for chicken stock). After chicken is cooled, shred with forks and place in a mixing bowl with the boiled vegetables. Add the cans of diced tomatoes, corn, black beans (rinsed) and cream of chicken, and stir. Can add some Mexican spices (cumin, cilantro, smoked paprika, chili powder or cayenne pepper) to your taste and preference.

Grease or spray 9 x 12″ glass baking dish. Take tortillas and cut into 1 inch strips. Layer strips of tortilla on bottom of dish, then cover with half of the chicken veggie mix, then a layer of cheese. Then repeat – another layer of tortilla strips, the rest of the chicken mix and top with cheese. Bake in oven at 375 for approximately 20 minutes or until cheese has begun to brown slightly. Let cool for a good 20 minutes before serving – it’s very hot!