Y'all from down here in The Republic, particularly Swamp City region, know just what I'm sayin: We have a spot on the calendar of weather cool enough that you can rev up the oven without making it too impossibly hot to sleep on the other side of the house.
Time to bake something!
Did you get caught short without ingredients worth an oven? If you spend too much time sifting through recipes, planning and running around town to buy things you need for baking fancy desserts, you could lose nature's window of opportunity! Besides, you know -- I'm no cookie baker. To me, the five days of fall we get every year equal casserole! And here's a one-dish meal that only requires stuff you probably always keep around (except for the flaxseed meal. That's my gracious nod to Mira and my inherited cholesterol issues.)
Spicy Kidney Bean Mac (not to be confused with Rodeo Macaroni)
2 1/2 cups cooked elbow macaroni
1 small can diced chilis
4 oz cubed pepper jack cheese
1 14 oz can kidney beans
1/2 1 big can (27 oz?) diced tomatoes
2 tsp comino
1 tbsp flaxseed meal
Stir it all together -- even the juices from all the cans -- pour into a baking dish and bake uncovered at 325 degrees for 20 minutes. Stir well (to mix the melted cheese all up), then bake for another 20 minutes.
Overkill, on the baking time? Maybe. Edible and worth the cozy "it's autumn" feel you get from indulging in oven energy? Absolutely.
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