Vegetarian Green Chile & Pinto Bean Casserole

This is not a pretty dish but so delicious! Randy said he'd prefer it with fresh green chiles, but that will take a lot of work. Long baking time on this one, but easy prep. I did not use the low-fat options. This makes a great breakfast leftover with an egg on top!

Ingredients:
1 T olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped small
1/2 green bell pepper, chopped small (I used an anaheim and a red fresno chile)
2 tsp. minced garlic
1 tsp. ground cumin
salt to taste
2 cans (15 oz. each) pinto beans 
2-3 cans (7 oz.) whole green chiles 
1 cup Green Chile Enchilada Sauce (from a 15 oz. can; you can freeze the rest.  
1/2 cup low-fat sour cream
2 cups low-fat grated cheddar cheese 

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 375F/190C.  Spray an 8X8 inch glass or crockery casserole dish with non-stick spray.  (I used my deep pie dish)

Drain the pinto beans into a colander, spray with cold water until no more foam appears, and let beans drain.  In another colander drain the whole green chiles.

Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan over medium heat.  Add the onions and peppers and saute 4-5 minutes, until they are just starting to brown.  Add garlic, cumin, and salt and cook another minute or two, then add the drained beans and cook 3-4 minute, then mash the beans slightly.  (We used a potato masher, but you can use a large fork.)  Add the cup of green chile enchilada sauce and simmer until the sauce is mostly absorbed by the beans.  Then turn off the heat and stir in the sour cream.

While the bean mixture is cooking, open the whole chiles with your fingers and wipe with paper towels to dry them and remove seeds.  (This will take about 10 paper towels, but don’t skip this step.)  Divide the chiles into two stacks.

In the casserole dish make a layer with half the whole green chiles, half the bean mixture, and half the cheese.  Follow with another layer each of whole green chiles, bean mixture and cheese.

Cover the casserole with the lid or with foil and bake about 30 minutes, or until cheese is all melted.  Remove the lid and bake about 20 minutes more, until casserole is bubbling and starting to brown on top.  (You can put it under the broiler for a few minutes if it seems done but you’d like the cheese more brown.)  Serve hot, with condiments like salsa, Green Tabasco Sauce, sour cream, or guacamole if desired.