Chicken Enchilada Casserole

This is what's for dinner.  I'm not sure where the original recipe came from, since we have been eating this for a very long time.  We have modified and easy-fied it over the years, because we like it easy, and this is what it looks like now.

This is not really what our casserole looks like, because we have neither orange plates nor perfectly-places sprigs of rosemary.  Ours is always gone before I can take a picture of it.  

But this is the general idea.

Chicken Enchilada Casserole
makes one panful - enough to feed our family of 10 if we have a big salad and a bowl of cooked veggies to go with it.

2 onions
3 cloves garlic
5-6 chicken breasts (I think - depending on how many we have and how hungry everyone is)

Chop onions and mince garlic.  Saute in oil.  Or bacon drippings.  Chop chicken into the bite-size that you most like to bite, and cook with onions and garlic.  Season to taste.  Today we went with a simple cumin, salt and pepper.  Other days I'm more in the mood for poultry seasoning (thyme, sage, marjoram, rosemary, black pepper, and nutmeg) or a stronger Mexican flavor (chili powder, garlic powder, red pepper flakes, oregano, paprika, cumin, and a pinch of cinnamon), so season to whatever sounds good to you.

36 ounces of sauce (tomato sauce, tomato paste - count half paste and half water, cream of chicken soup, tomato soup, or a combination)
1/2 cup of sour cream (or more if you are feeling really creamy)
4 ounce of diced green chiles (or more if you aren't feeding gringo children)

1.5 pound bag of small corn tortillas

Once the chicken is done, grease a 9x13 pan.  Start with tomato sauce, then tortillas, and layer ingredients, lasagna-style.  No need to roll up the tortillas like true enchiladas, and that's why we like this recipe.  Just lay them flat like lasagna noodles, in as even of a layer as you can.  I usually use two whole tortillas and four halves for each layer.  I sometimes just dump the sauce, sour cream, chiles, and chicken all together and then just layer than with the tortillas.  Proceed to the top of the pan, ending with sauce.  Top with grated cheddar cheese, if you like it that way and the boys haven't used up all the cheese on ham and cheese sandwiches for their lunches.

Bake at 350 or so for half an hour or so, until hot all the way through and cheese is bubbly, or until you are so hungry you just have to eat now.  Because we all know that happens sometimes.  But if you can be patient and wait, the tortillas get nice and soft and more yummy.  And yummier.  And tasty too.