Rich, meaty, Southwestern flavors with ground beef, country sausage, green chiles, canned white beans, tomatoes pasta and greens. This is pure comfort food.
1 cupditalini pasta(or other small pasta, like macaroni, shells or orecchiette)
2teaspoonsolive oil
½poundground beef
½poundcountry sausage
1sweet bell pepperseeded and diced
2stalkscelerydiced
1medium oniondiced
15 ounce can diced tomatoes
15ounce can cannellini beansor other canneed white beans, rinsed and drained
1cupgreen chiles (preferably Hatch)canned or fire roasted and diced
6 ouncesfresh baby spinach
2cupsshredded cheesesuch as cheddar, monterey jack, colby jack or a blend
Instructions
FOR THE SPICE BLEND
In a small bowl, combine the cumin, chili powder, oregano, garlic powder, kosher salt, black pepper and red pepper flakes. Stir well to combine and set aside.
PAR-COOK THE PASTA
Cook the pasta according to the package directions until it's about 2 minutes from being cooked to al dente. (i.e. if it says 9 minutes for al-dente, cook it for 7). Remove from the heat and drain the pasta. Rinse with cold water to stop the cooking and set aside.
FOR THE CASSEROLE
Preheat the oven to 350°.
Heat a large skillet over medium high heat. Add the olive oil and when the pan is hot, add the ground beef and sausage. Brown the meat, while stirring and breaking apart the crumbles with the back of a wooden spoon.
When the meat is browned, stir in the chopped bell pepper, celery and onion. Cook for 3-5 minutes, stirring occasionally until the vegetables are softened and the onion and celery are slightly translucent.
Pour the beef and vegetables through a large mesh strainer to drain the fat. Return the meat and veg to the pan.
Add the spice blend and stir well to combine. Add the green chiles, can of diced tomatoes, cannellini beans and par-cooked pasta and stir well to combine.
Add the fresh spinach leaves to the pan and gently stir to combine. Put the lid on the pan and cook for one minute, or just until the spinach leaves start to wilt.
Spray the casserole dish with vegetable spray. Add half of the ground beef mixture to the caserole and spread evenly. Top with 1 cup of the shredded cheese. Spread the remaining casserole mixture over the cheese and top with the last bit of the shredded cheese.
Bake for 25-30 minutes or until the casserole is bubbly and cheese is melted.