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I remember when my boys were little and I had to get dinner on
the table. It had to be something that I could get to them in the quickest
amount of time possible, that my picky then husband would like, that the boys
would like, and that was reasonably nutritious, and by reasonable, I mean by
the widest definition of that word. I didn’t have time to browse cookbooks, or
flip through magazines, or involve myself in tedious activities like pounding meat
between two slices of waxed paper, or cutting vegetables into even julienne. I had to have a trough of something at the ready.
Remembering those days, and attempting to make up for today’s lack of culinary preparedness, I furiously ransacked my pantry, and found a can of tamales, and a can of chili, don’t ask me what they were doing there. I remember years ago, and I’m talking back in the 80s, when tamale casserole was all the rage, so I went back in time for a revisit. I assembled it from what I could remember, popped it into the oven, and when it was ready, I dug right in. I’ll tell you what, this is delicious! It was so satisfying and yummy, that I could hear myself making sounds one might hear from a pig looking for truffles. As I alluded to in the title, it isn’t fancy by any stretch of the imagination, but it is REALLY good.
Remembering those days, and attempting to make up for today’s lack of culinary preparedness, I furiously ransacked my pantry, and found a can of tamales, and a can of chili, don’t ask me what they were doing there. I remember years ago, and I’m talking back in the 80s, when tamale casserole was all the rage, so I went back in time for a revisit. I assembled it from what I could remember, popped it into the oven, and when it was ready, I dug right in. I’ll tell you what, this is delicious! It was so satisfying and yummy, that I could hear myself making sounds one might hear from a pig looking for truffles. As I alluded to in the title, it isn’t fancy by any stretch of the imagination, but it is REALLY good.
It Ain’t Gourmet Tamale Chili Casserole
1 15-oz. can chili no beans
1 15-oz. can beef tamales
1 small Melissa’s shallot, chopped fine
1 2.25-oz. can chopped black olives
1 c. frozen corn, thawed
1 c. shredded sharp cheddar cheese
Crushed corn chips
Preheat oven to 350° F. In an 11” x 7” baking dish, spread half of the chili evenly on the bottom. Remove paper from tamales and place them on top of the chili. Sprinkle with shallot, black olives, corn, and cheese. Bake 20 to 25 minutes until hot and bubbly. Serve immediately topped with crushed corn chips, guacamole, sour cream, additional cheese, or whatever you happen to like.
1 15-oz. can beef tamales
1 small Melissa’s shallot, chopped fine
1 2.25-oz. can chopped black olives
1 c. frozen corn, thawed
1 c. shredded sharp cheddar cheese
Crushed corn chips
Preheat oven to 350° F. In an 11” x 7” baking dish, spread half of the chili evenly on the bottom. Remove paper from tamales and place them on top of the chili. Sprinkle with shallot, black olives, corn, and cheese. Bake 20 to 25 minutes until hot and bubbly. Serve immediately topped with crushed corn chips, guacamole, sour cream, additional cheese, or whatever you happen to like.
