Chicken Tamale Casserole

With the cool weather settling in on Chicago, I decided it was a perfect time to make a casserole. I love to put everything together and then bake it up in the oven - making the house smell so great. I found this recipe for a Chicken Tamale Casserole in an email I received from Cooking Light highlighting casseroles.

Honestly, I was a bit disappointed in this recipe - not the taste, but the ingredients. I'm not a big fan of using processed products. This recipe calls for a lot of pre-packaged items (corn bread mix, creamed corn, canned chilies, etc.) and I used a rotisserie chicken which I purchased at the grocery store. Of course that made it very easy to prepare, but I felt a bit unhealthy while I was making it. And coming from Cooking Light I guess I expected a bit healthier of a recipe.

I thought the leftovers of this was tastier than when it was fresh out of the oven. The bottom of the casserole tasted a bit sweet at first so I think it tasted alot better after the flavors melded. I'd let it sit about a half an hour if you can.

To make this casserole taste a bit more homemade and also to make it more of a meal than just putting a piece of casserole on an empty plate, I placed it on to of some red leaf lettuce and then I topped it with a bit of chopped onion, sliced black olives and diced avocado. Those extra flavors made a big difference. We served this with Tortilla and Butternut Squash Soup and it was a very filling meal.

Chicken Tamale Casserole Serves 8 1 cup (4 ounces) preshredded 4-cheese Mexican blend cheese, divided 1/3 cup fat-free milk 1/4 cup egg substitute 1 teaspoon ground cumin 1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper 1 (14 3/4-ounce) can cream-style corn 1 (8.5-ounce) box corn muffin mix (such as Martha White) 1 (4-ounce) can chopped green chiles, drained Cooking spray 1 (10-ounce) can red enchilada sauce (such as Old El Paso) 2 cups shredded cooked chicken breast 1/2 cup fat-free sour cream

Preheat oven to 400°.

Combine 1/4 cup cheese and next 7 ingredients (through chiles) in a large bowl, stirring just until moist. Pour mixture into a 13 x 9–inch baking dish coated with cooking spray.

Bake at 400° for 15 minutes or until set. Pierce entire surface liberally with a fork; pour enchilada sauce over top. Top with chicken; sprinkle with remaining 3/4 cup cheese. Bake at 400° for 15 minutes or until cheese melts. Remove from oven; let stand 5 minutes. Cut into 8 pieces; top each serving with 1 tablespoon sour cream.