Never too many tomatillos: dinner made easy and interesting

Photo by KarenMarleneLarsen on flickr

Here is an old favorite of mine.  It was a life saver on nights when I didn’t want to put much effort into dinner and had dozens of CSA tomatillos hanging around.  Since it’s a Mark Bittman recipe (gotta love him) it is made to be substitution friendly.  So use up that extra chicken breast, add in your favorite cheese, beans, and herb and you are set.  This is a one-dish casserole the way it should be.

Eat an extra serving for little ol’ no-longer-allowed-to-eat-dairy me and enjoy a warm layered treat on a cold fall evening.  Yum!

Chicken, Tomatillo and Bean Casserole
From Mark Bittman’s How to Cook Everything.

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 onion, diced
• 1/4 cup shallot, chopped
• 1 teaspoon fresh thyme
• 2 cups tomatillo
• 1/ 2 cup stock (whatever you have around)
• 4 cups cooked cannellini or lima beans
• 2 cups shredded cooked chicken
• 1 1/2 cups Monterrey jack or cotija cheese

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Grease the bottom and sides of a square glass baking dish.

Put the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. When oil is hot add the shallot and onion, cooking until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the thyme and cook for another minute. Add tomatillos and stock to the skillet, cooking while stirring occasionally until tomatillos break up and become saucy, about 10 minutes.

Put half the beans in the bottom of the greased dish, sprinkling with salt and pepper. Follow with a layer of the tomatillo mixture, then a layer of the shredded chicken, finally a layer of cheese. Repeat with the other half of the ingredients to make a second layer to the dish. Bake until the casserole is hot and the cheese is bubbly, 20 to 30 minutes.