Make Ahead Mexican Manicotti Bake
Our family loves Tex Mex type flavors. I’ve been making an Italian Manicotti freezer meal for years. I decided to experiment. I took the inspiration of the Tex Mex influence and created this Mexican Manicotti Bake. 
This little experiment really paid off! The taste is there. My family approved of this new version of manicotti.
I doubled the recipe to make one large casserole dish. We have a large family, so a single recipe wouldn’t be enough for all 9 of us. The recipe below makes one square dish.
Mexican Manicotti Bake Recipe:
- 1 lb. ground beef, browned
- 16 oz. can refried beans
- 1 Tbsp. taco seasoning
- 1/2 cup shredded tex mex cheese blend
- 4 oz. cream cheese softened
- 14 oz. tomato sauce
- 4 oz. can green chilies
- box manicotti noodles
- shredded tex mex cheese blend for topping
Brown the ground beef. Mix together the cooked ground beef, refried beans, 1/2 cup tex mex cheese, softened cream cheese, 1/2 the tomato sauce, taco seasoning, and green chilies in a large bowl. 
With a small spoon or piping bag, fill the manicotti noodles with the mixture. Pour the rest of the tomato sauce over everything. Top with a sprinkling of shredded cheese.
Place in a square foil casserole dish. If you double it, use a large foil dish. Cover with two layers of aluminum foil. Freeze. 
Bake at 350° for one hour if thawed before putting in or one and a half hours if cooking from frozen.
Serve with a fresh garden salad.
You’ll also enjoy these freezer meal recipes:
Tex Mex Pasta Bake 
Salsa Verde Chicken Tacos 
- 1 lb. ground beef browned
- 16 oz. can refried beans
- 1 Tbsp. taco seasoning
- 1/2 cup shredded tex mex cheese blend
- 4 oz. cream cheese softened
- 14 oz. tomato sauce
- 4 oz. can green chilies
- box manicotti noodles
- shredded tex mex cheese blend for topping
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Brown the ground beef. Mix together the cooked ground beef, refried beans, 1/2 cup tex mex cheese, softened cream cheese, 1/2 the tomato sauce, taco seasoning, and green chilies in a large bowl.
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With a small spoon or piping bag, fill the manicotti noodles with the mixture. Pour the rest of the tomato sauce over everything. Top with a sprinkling of shredded cheese. Place in a square foil casserole dish. Cover with two layers of aluminum foil. Freeze.
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Bake at 350° for one hour if thawed or one and a half hours if cooking from frozen.
