Baked pinto beans, Enchiladia style

What a great easy dish to throw together! My roomie was a bit turned off by the menu selection- she can't get her mind around sweet potatoes and beans in the same dish. Separately, they're great, just not touching each other, I guess.

I made this with the sweet potato variation. I brought leftovers for lunch today. Of course, the crushed tortillas on top weren't that crunchy anymore.

Baked pinto beans, Enchilada style- Mark Bittman

1/4 cup olive oil
1 recipe salsa roja or cooked tomatillo salsa
4 cups cooked or canned pinto beans (or any other bean)
salt & pepper
1 cup cubed Monterrey jack cheese
1 cup crushed tortilla chips
1/2 cup crumbles queso fresco cheese
1/2 cup chopped cilantro for garnish

1.) Preheat oven to 400. Lightly grease a 2 quart souffle dish or 9x13 pan
2.) Spread the salsa in the bottom and spoon the beans on top. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Spread the cheese cubes around evenly, press lightly into bean mixture. Top with tortilla chips and queso fresco. Drizzle with remaining olive oil
3.) Bake until cheese is melted, sauce is bubbly and tortilla chips are browned, about 20-30 minutes. Garnish with cilantro and serve.

Sweet potato variation: Peel 2 large sweet potatoes. Cut into 1 inch cubes. In step two, spread them out over the salsa. Cover the dish with foil and bake (without the beans and other ingredients) for 15 minutes. Remove the foil, add the beans and other ingredients and proceed with the recipe.

My spin- I halved the recipe, using one can of rinsed, drained pinto beans and one sweet potato. Instead of salt & pepper, I used a nice dusting of Penzeys Southwest seasoning. And, I used cubed pepper jack cheese for a little more kick & omitted the queso fresco. I just ate this without tortillas- but it would be a great filling for them.

Enjoy!