Casserole of Baked Beans, Potatoes & Beef

A few months ago I found some casseroles made with pork n' beans or baked beans, ground beef & potatoes which sure sounded good. I thought something like this might be good to help me curb my recent fast food cravings. I've haven't eaten any fast food recently. Go me!

I love Angus ground beef, which is on sale, and I decided to extend the wonderful Angus beef flavor with tofu, which also makes it low fat and economical. Tofu absorbs flavors really well and often tastes like meat, depending on how it's prepared.

This makes a large casserole, but you could half the recipe. I cooked this with canned no added salt tomato sauce & navy beans because I really watch sodium in my diet. I tried to give it that great baked bean flavor though. I like this recipe a lot! It's a pretty involved recipe but fun and it would be great for times when you're bored and want
something to do.

Casserole of Baked Beans, Potatoes & Beef

1 lb. ground chuck, browned and drained of fat (try Angus beef when you can find it on sale)
14 oz. extra-firm tofu, prefrozen, defrosted, squeezed dry & crumbled
1 slice cooked bacon, crumbled
3 lbs. russet potatoes in jackets, microwaved & sliced in 3/4 - 1 inch rounds
1 Tbsp. olive oil
2 15 oz. cans navy beans, bean broth reserved
2 8 oz. cans tomato sauce
1 onion, peeled and microwaved whole
1/2 green bell pepper, cut in strips and microwaved
3 cloves garlic, pressed
2 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce, or to taste
1 Tbsp. spicey brown mustard
2 Tbsp. molasses
1 dash Tabasco
about 1 Tbsp. cumin
1/4 tsp. or so paprika
dried parsley, generously
dried mustard, sparingly
salt to taste
vegetable oil spray

Add to blender tomato sauce, onion, bell pepper & bacon, blending after each ingredient added. Pour into a large pot sprayed with vegetable oil spray. Add reserved bean broth, 1 cup of water, garlic, Worcestershire sauce, Tabasco, molasses, brown mustard, dry mustard, spices and parsley. Simmer slowly for 5-10 minutes. Add beef and simmer for 1-2 minutes. Add tofu and simmer for 5 minutes. Add salt to taste ( I usually like a lot of pepper but this didn't even taste like it needed pepper). Remove from heating element and cover with lid.

Spray a large rectangular pan (about 11 x 15 1/2 x 1 3/4 inches deep) with vegetable oil spray. Add olive oil to coat pan. Line pan with potato rounds. Sprinkle lightly with salt and dried parsley.

Add beans to beef mixture. Adjust seasonings. Pour bean mixture over potatoes and bake in 350 F oven for 30-40 minutes. It's okay if there's a little juice in the pan that hasn't absorbed into the casserole yet. Cover with foil after removing from oven (or before if top of casserole dries out or browns too quickly). Serve (tell everyone it's better if they cut up their potatoes) & enjoy!