Make a Mexican meal of enchilada casserole

Every weekend we plan far too many things to try to accomplish, then about half of the planned items go undone. Last Sunday I had several things planned to completely fill the afternoon and evening. Right after lunch we discovered we had a hummingbird trapped in our garage. The tiny bird flew frantically in our garage. After 90 minutes, she found her way out and we all uttered a big sigh of relief. A small hummingbird filled our afternoon and nothing got done from our to-do list. But, that's just fine. Monday came all the same.

I am continuing on with the variety of recipes I have been given. I hope you enjoy trying them.

Enchilada Casserole

2 pounds ground beef

1 (10-ounce) package Doritos corn chips, slightly crushed

1 (16-ounce) bottle taco sauce

1 (12-ounce) can enchilada sauce

2 cans cream of chicken soup, undiluted

12 ounces shredded taco blend cheese

Brown and drain ground beef. In a large baking dish begin to layer ground beef, enchilada sauce, Doritos, chicken soup and taco sauce, then top with shredded cheese. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

Zucchini with Green Peppercorns, Lemon and Parmesan

1 lemon, juiced

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

Coarse grained salt and cracked black pepper

1 teaspoon green peppercorns, drained and smashed

1 zucchini, sliced lengthwise into paper-thin slices, (see note)

Parmesan, sliced into long curls

Whisk together the lemon juice, olive oil, salt, pepper and green peppercorns. Taste and adjust seasonings. Roll each zucchini slice into a coil and place on serving plate. Pour dressing over zucchini. Drop Parmesan shavings over the plate. Serve immediately.

Note: To make zucchini ribbons, cut a thin slice off the zucchini, discard. Place zucchini cut side down on a cutting board so it doesn't roll. Drag a sharp carrot peeler across the zucchini, pressing down hard as if you were peeling a carrot. You will get nice long ribbons.

Very Special Spinach

3 (10-ounce) boxes frozen spinach, thawed and drained

2 cups cottage cheese

1 1/2 cups grated Cheddar cheese

3 eggs

1/4 cup flour

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup butter or margarine, melted

Mix together all ingredients. Pour into slow cooker. Cook on high 1 hour. Reduce heat to low and cook 4 more hours.

Easy Creamy Corn Casserole

1/2 cup butter, melted

2 eggs, beaten

1 (8.5-ounce) package dry corn bread mix

1 (15-ounce) can whole kernel corn, drained

1 (14.7-ounce) can cream-style corn

1 cup sour cream

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and lightly grease a 9-by-9-inch casserole dish.

In a medium bowl combine butter, eggs, corn muffin mix, corn and sour cream. Mix well and spoon mixture into prepared dish. Bake for 45 minutes, or until the top is golden brown.

Have a wonderful week and until next time, happy cooking.

Susan McClanahan is administrator at the Cape Girardeau Senior Center. Send recipes to her at smcclanahan@semissourian.com or by mail at P.O. Box 699, Cape Girardeau, Mo. 63701. Recipes published have not been kitchen-tested by the Southeast Missourian staff.