-
1
Boil a pot of water and cook the pasta to al dente according to package instructions.
-
2
Drain pasta but before you do, reserve 1/2 cup of the pasta cooking water.
-
3
Set pasta and reserved cooking water aside.
-
4
Turn on oven to 350 F.
-
5
In a large pan, pan fry ground beef, onion, and green peppers over medium-high heat until beef is brown.
-
6
Drain the grease from the beef mixture.
-
7
Return pan to medium heat, and add garlic, diced tomatoes, chili powder, cumin, paprika, cayanne, salt, pepper, and pasta cooking water.
-
8
Mix well to combine and allow to simmer for 5 minutes or until slightly thicker.
-
9
You want the sauce to be fairly loose so the casserole does not dry out in the oven.
-
10
Add the drained black beans, Mexi-corn and pasta.
-
11
Stir well to completely combine, and allow to heat through.
-
12
At this point, you can either make two 9x13 casseroles and freeze one, or make one 11x17 casserole for a larger group of people.
-
13
If you are making the 9x13 pans, top the one you are about to bake with 2 cups of shredded cheese, and leave the other plain to be frozen.
-
14
If you are making the 11x17 pan, top with all 4 cups of shredded cheese.
-
15
Place pan in oven and bake for 30 minutes or until the cheese is melty and golden brown.
-
16
Serve with your choice of garnishes.
-
17
Enjoy!
