Sweet Potato Taco Casserole

After looking at some other FOOD blogs, I found a recipe for Sweet Potato Tacos on the On My Menu blog. It sounded delicious, but I wanted to make a few CHANGES and turned it into a casserole instead. The result—DELICIOUS!

Sweet Potato Taco Casserole
2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed into 1/2-inch (or so)
Olive oil and season salt
1/2 bunch cilantro, chopped
1 pound lean ground beef
Taco seasoning
1 (4-ounce) can tomato sauce
1 (15-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 (15-ounce) can diced tomatoes (or more if you prefer)
1 (4-ounce) can diced green chiles
Grated cheddar cheese

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Spray a 9 x 13-inch pan with nonstick spray and put the prepared potatoes  in pan. Drizzle with a touch of olive oil and sprinkle season salt over top. Toss to coat. Sprinkle the cilantro over top and toss to coat again.

In a frying pan, cook the beef until done. Add taco seasoning (I have a bulk size container and just add a little at a time until it tastes good to me!) and tomato sauce and stir. Stir in the beans, tomatoes, and chiles until just heated through. Layer over the potatoes in the pan and then top with cheese. Bake, covered, for about 25 minutes. Serve with torn lettuce, salsa, sour cream, and cubed avocado pieces. Serves around 6.

TIP: You can also make this with ground turkey and it will still taste amazing, I promise! Also, try experimenting with different cheeses as a topping too. A pepper jack or Mexican blend would taste yummy. The addition of sliced olives would probably be pretty good too!