Judy's Black Bean and Corn Casserole

With this whole pregnancy thing, my taste buds have gone through a whirlwind of flavor changes. For example, I now like fried onions on burgers, hot dogs, perogies, or anything else that it can be put on. This may not seem strange to some of you, but my parents (before they knew I was pregnant) seriously thought I was ill when I ordered a rink burger with onions. I'm also really needing strong vinegar things to actually taste any kind of tartness - for example when I'm putting mustard on my hot dog, I need to give my hot dog a bath in it so that it's dripping out of the bun. Otherwise, I don't taste it at all. Also, I've stopped being able to detect the strong smell of 'cream corn' after a stem cell transplant at work - it's a glaringly obvious smell that even just by walking by a patients room, you can smell it without a doubt. Now? a subtle smell if I really really look for it.

So imagine my surprise when all my life I've stayed away from anything spicy, only to find out that I can't taste the spicyness anymore, just the delicious flavour of the food! My husband's a fan of spicy food, so mom saved some of her leftover casserole for him to try (as she wouldn't think of making it when I come home since I can't eat it). Well he hardly had two bites of it as he wanted me to try it and I scarfed it down! Mom was shocked! (so was I to be honest), but alas, a new casserole recipe for you guys! My mom threw a little of this and a little of that together one day and it came out great! I've already made it and doubled the recipe so we could enjoy it for a few days!

Judy's Black Bean and Corn Casserole

1/2-3/4 lb ground beef

1 can of corn

1 can of black beans, strained

1 taco seasoning packet

1 tbsp chille powder

salt & pepper

garlic (powder or the real deal - as much as you want)

1 small jar salsa

1 prepared box of Kraft Dinner

1 cup grated cheese

Fry up your ground beef with some chopped onion, then strain and rinse to drain some fat. Return to large skillet and add corn, black beans, all the seasonings, and salsa. Add your prepared box of kraft dinner (with cheese stirred into cooked noodles already) to your beef mixture and mix together. Pour into a casserole dish or roaster and top with grated cheese. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes or until cheese melts and you're too hungry to wait any longer.

When I doubled the recipe, I used 1.5 lbs ground beef and two boxes of KD and two cups grated cheese on top and 2 tbsp chile powder. Otherwise, I kept the liquid from the corn and added about 1/2 cup of water to rinse out the salsa jar. Myself, I would probably only use half a taco seasoning package if I wasn't doubling the recipe, but that's just my personal taste. Enjoy!