If you can't get South of the Border...

Stay north and try this easy tortilla pie! We'd had chili and quesedillas recently, but this was a delicious twist on similar ingredients. I was pleasantly surprised at how quickly it came together. Dinner was ready in less than 20mins!

Easy Tortilla Pie

3 whole wheat tortillas, 10" size $.51
1 can 15oz black beans (or beans of choice) $.79
1/2 C frozen corn $.17
1/2 C frozen diced onion $.23
1/2 C frozen diced peppers $.23
1 -2 fresh diced roma tomatoes $.50
1 C shredded cheddar cheese $.75
salsa, to serve (optional)

Total Cost: $3.18
Servings: 4 (generous)
Cost Per Serving: $.80

To Make:

1. CAUTION: Before proceeding further, make sure you have either a deep dish pie plate or a round cake pan. The whole pie will be about 2" deep, so you pan needs to be that deep.You could probably modify this to make it work in a brownie pan, but I haven't tried it yet!
2. Preheat the oven to 400* In a medium size mixing bowl, combine the diced peppers, onion, corn, and beans (drained and rinsed). Dice the tomato and add it as well.
   
3. Grease your cake pan/pie plate and place a tortilla in the bottom. If it curls up a bit around the edges, that's fine. Layer about 1/2 of the filling on top of the tortilla, then cover it with half the cheddar cheese. Top with another tortilla, and repeat with the second half of the filling and cheddar cheese. End with a tortilla. If you want, you can sprinkle some more cheddar cheese on top of the completed pie.
   
4. Bake, uncovered, in the 400* oven for 10-15 minutes, or until the edges have turned crispy and the cheese has melted.
   
5. Slice into pie wedges and serve with salsa. At this price, you could afford some mango/pineapple salsa (Newman's Own makes an excellent one) which complements the black beans wonderfully.
   

Frugal Hints

• I chose black beans because I like them - but you could also substitute kidney beans, pinto beans, red beans, or refried beans if you'd rather. I always buy the largest size can of beans and use half. The rest can be mashed up and made into veggie burgers, or sprinkled onto salad for extra protein.
  
• If you can, use fresh tomatoes for this recipe. It keeps the tortillas from getting soggy and tastes SO good. If, however, they are just too expensive, or hard to get decent ones in your area, canned diced tomatoes will also work. Just place them in a shallow bowl, press a slotted spoon against them, and drain out the extra liquid before mixing them into the filling. (If you are feeling REALLY frugal, save the extra liquid to use in soup!
  
• This pie may be a bit squishy to cut when it is still molten hot. Allow it to cool slightly, and it will slice better. It is also fantastic at room temperature the next day.

Enjoy!