Sunday nights have become my night for inventive cuisine. Typically I’m either (a) fully stocked and ready to play, or (b) clearing out the fridge. Last night’s dinner was a combination of the two. My husband took me to The Cheesecake Factory Saturday night as sort of a late birthday celebration, so now we have boxes of leftovers and cheesecake taking up a whole bunch of space. We also bought groceries yesterday, so it meant making even more room.

So I started pulling stuff out of the fridge, then out of the cabinets. And I realized I had a bunch of stuff that didn’t match. AT all. Which meant that naturally I started mixing and matching, and the following is what happened.

Mexican Lasagna

2 lb extra lean ground beef
2 packs taco seasoning
8oz cream cheese
1 jar taco sauce
1 jar picante sauce
2 cups shredded Mexican cheese
9 lasagne noodles

1. Boil lasagna noodles according to package directions.

2. Brown ground beef. Drain. Add taco seasoning according to package directions. Add cream cheese and stir until melted and well-mixed. Add 2 tbsp taco sauce and stir well.

3. Spread a thin layer of taco sauce on the bottom of a 9×12 pan. Layer noodles, meat mixture, picante sauce, and cheese, ending with noodles. Spread taco sauce and cheese on top.

4. Bake at 400° for 30 minutes, until cheese is bubbly and golden brown.

5. Remove from oven and let stand 10 minutes. Cut into 12 squares. Top with desired toppings. (I used sour cream and black olives. Shredded lettuce, diced tomatoes, onions, etc. are also good choices.)

Enjoy!