Recipe - Tex Mex Mac n' Cheese

Last night we made Tex Mex Mac n' Cheese.  This is a recipe that we've done a million times over probably the last 10 years (or nearly, at least).  It was originally from the Oregonian FoodDay.  We've modified it here and there and it's probably  never exactly the same, but is always yummy!  Here is what we did last night - we added collard greens for the first time and I thought it was a great addition.  It makes a large casserole - it'll feed a big group or give you a lot of leftovers. 

1 bag large elbow macaroni
1 onion (chopped)
1 green pepper (chopped)
1 bunch of collard greens (washed, stemmed, chopped)
1 jalapeno (seeded & chopped unless you want a lot of spice)
1 can of black beans, drained, rinsed
1 can of diced tomatoes - do not drain
1 small can of diced green chilis
5-6 heavy shakes of hot sauce (to taste)
1 T. cumin (divided)
3/4 T. coriander (divided)
1 T. chili powder (divided)
salt
1.5 cups whole milk (or lowfat, or some of each)
1 16 oz. sour cream (we use light)
2.5-3 cups pepper jack cheese
1/2 cup bread crumbs (buttered)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Grease a 13x9 casserole dish.  Boil the macaroni in salted water w/some oil.  Cook to al dente, or slightly below since it will cook a little longer in the oven.  Drain noodles & put back into pot as you'll mix everything in the pot.  In a large saute pan saute the salted veggies (you can do all at the same time, or add the greens a little later).  Greens should be tender, but should still be bright green.  To this pan add half the spices in the last few minutes of cooking.  Add the beans, tomatoes & chilis to mixture.  Prepare the sauce, which is the milk, sour cream, other half of the spices & salt. We actually had less than a full 16 oz tub of sour cream so we ended up using probably 3/4 of a tub.  In the pot, mix the veggie mixture with the macaroni, then mix in the pepper jack cheese & the sauce.  If your pot's too small (as ours was) then at least mix the macaroni w/the veggies and you can layer the cheese & sauce in the casserole dish.

Cover in tin foil and bake for 25 minutes or so.  Top w/the buttered breadcrumbs and bake uncovered until golden.