Cheesy bean taco bake
A golden crescent-roll crust layered with refried beans, salsa-spiked black and kidney beans, melted cheese and crunchy crushed chips, the potluck taco bake made meatless.
- 45 min total
- 15 min hands-on
- Anyone can make this
- Serves 6
- About $1.65 a serving
- 480 calories
- Good the next day
- Vegetarian
Dolly says: Make the full amount. It’s just as good for lunch the next day.
Ingredients
For 6 servings.
- 1 can refrigerated crescent rolls
- 1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 can kidney beans, drained and rinsed
- ¾ cup salsa
- 1 can vegetarian refried beans
- 1½ cups Mexican blend cheese
- 1 cup tortilla chips, lightly crushed
- 1½ cups shredded lettuce
- 2 Roma tomatoes, diced
- ½ cup sour cream (optional)
From your pantry
- 2 tsp chili powder
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- ½ tsp garlic powder
Each serving has about 480 calories, 22 g protein, 56 g carbs and 18 g fat, and costs about $1.65 at typical US grocery prices. Both are estimates from what the recipe uses.
Missing something?
- No black beans? Pinto beans work.
- No kidney beans? Pinto beans work.
- No salsa? Pico de gallo works.
- No Mexican blend cheese? Shredded cheddar or cheddar cheese or Monterey Jack cheese works.
- No shredded lettuce? Iceberg lettuce or romaine lettuce works.
- No sour cream? Plain Greek yogurt works.
Steps
Tap an underlined word for a quick explanation.
the oven to 375°F.
Preheat. Preheating means turning the oven on before you start, so it’s fully hot when the food goes in. Food that starts in a cold oven cooks unevenly and doesn’t brown the same.
How you’ll know: The oven beeps or its light clicks off, usually 10 to 15 minutes after you turn it on.
Unroll the crescent dough into a 9x13-inch baking dish, the seams together, and press it about an inch up the sides.
Pinch. A pinch is what you can hold between your thumb and two fingers, less than an eighth of a teaspoon. It’s a small, forgiving amount, so there’s no need to measure.
How you’ll know: It’s a light sprinkle you can barely see on the food, not a little pile.
Dolly’s tip: Pinch every perforation shut, or the filling leaks underneath.8 minutes, until puffed and pale .
Bake. Baking means cooking in the oven with dry heat all around the food. It cooks evenly from every side, so you can mostly leave it alone.
How you’ll know: It’s golden on top and passes the recipe’s check, like a clean toothpick or the right temperature.
Golden brown. Golden brown is the color of good toast, somewhere between yellow and light brown. It means the outside is cooked and crisp but not burnt.
How you’ll know: It looks like toast and smells toasty; dark brown with a bitter smell means it went too far.
Timer: 8 min
Dolly’s tip: Baking the crust first keeps the bottom from turning soggy.Meanwhile, stir the black beans, kidney beans, salsa, chili powder, cumin and garlic powder together in a bowl.
Spread the refried beans gently over the hot crust, then spoon the bean and salsa mix over them and sprinkle with the cheese and crushed chips.
18 to 20 minutes, until the cheese has and the crust edges are deep .
Bake. Baking means cooking in the oven with dry heat all around the food. It cooks evenly from every side, so you can mostly leave it alone.
How you’ll know: It’s golden on top and passes the recipe’s check, like a clean toothpick or the right temperature.
Melt. Melting means gently heating something solid, like butter or cheese, until it turns liquid. Low or medium heat keeps it from browning or burning.
How you’ll know: It’s smooth and liquid, and butter may foam a little but hasn’t turned brown.
Golden brown. Golden brown is the color of good toast, somewhere between yellow and light brown. It means the outside is cooked and crisp but not burnt.
How you’ll know: It looks like toast and smells toasty; dark brown with a bitter smell means it went too far.
Timer: 19 min
Let it sit 5 minutes, then top with lettuce, tomatoes and sour cream and cut into squares.
Timer: 5 min
Plan this in Dollop, and get the grocery list
Dollop puts this dinner on a night that suits your week, lists only what you still need to buy, and walks you through each step while you cook.
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