Layered Tortillas with Beef and Chili

Preheat the oven to 175°C/350°F.

Cook the filling

1. Peppers and meat are cooked separately then blended into one filling before assembling the «torta».
2. Prepare the vegetables: finely chop the onion and mince the garlic; cut the peppers into bite-size pieces.
3. Heat half of the butter and oil in a pan over medium heat. Add half of the onion and garlic then sauté 4-5 min until lightly coloured and soft, paying attention not to let them burn. Add the peppers and sauté 4-5 min, then add the diced tomatoes.
4. Cook over low heat, covered, about 15 min until the peppers are soft. Add salt and pepper to taste.
5. Meanwhile, heat the remaining butter and oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add the remaining onion and garlic then sauté 4-5 min, with stirring, until the onion is translucent. Add the meat and sear about 4-5 min until it looses its red colour, then break it up with a fork. In order to brown the meat, it is important not to stir it at the beginning, otherwise it will loose its juices and will «boil» rather than brown.
6. When the meat is golden-coloured, add the cream cheese, broth, tomato paste, spices and oregano. Cover and cook over medium-low heat about 5-7 min, until the flavours are blended. Add salt and pepper to taste. Combine the beef mixture with the peppers.

Assemble and cook the «torta»

7. Place a first tortilla in a buttered ovenproof dish. Put some filling on top, sprinkle with some grated Cheddar, then cover with a second tortilla. Continue this layering sequence according to the number of tortillas in the ingredient list, until the filling is completely incorporated. Press down lightly on the top tortilla at each new layer. Finish with additional grated Cheddar on top of the last tortilla.
8. Cover with a lid or greased aluminum foil (so that it does not stick to the top) then bake 20 min in the middle of the oven. Uncover and cook an additional 20-25 min. For a nice crust, turn on the top broiler for the last 2 minutes.
9. Take the dish out of the oven and let it rest 5 min before cutting up the «torta» into pie-shaped slices. Serve.