My Take : Oven Tacos

These Oven Tacos were inspired by a blog posting from Lynn's Kitchen Adventures that I pinned to Pinterest. What a brilliant concept - preparing your favorite taco meat, adding it to crispy taco shells and sprinkling on your favorite cheese. A few minutes in the oven to melt the cheese and warm up the taco shells, resulted in a wonderful dinner that was already assembled (for the most part).

I did not use the recipe that I linked on my menu plan. Please find my delicious version of oven tacos below:


Annette's Oven Tacos (makes 12 tacos)
Inspired by Lynn's Kitchen Adventures

1 to 1 1/2 pounds of lean ground beef
1 small onion, diced
1 large jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped
2 large garlic cloves, chopped
1 pint of grape tomatoes, quartered
1 can of black beans, drained and rinsed
2 tsp cumin
1 Tablespoon chili powder
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp salt
1/3 cup ketchup

Brown beef with jalapeno, garlic, and onion. Add seasonings. Cook until fragrant. Add the tomatoes and black beans and cook for another minute. Stir in ketchup and heat thru. Spoon some of this meat mixture into a crunch taco shell and place into a 9x13" casserole dish. Repeat process until all tacos are filled. Top with shredded sharp cheddar cheese and heat in a 350 degree oven for about 15 minutes. Add your favorite taco toppings and enjoy!

**My favorite oven taco toppings were: sliced avocado, sliced red pepper, sour cream and lettuce.
***Hubby enjoyed his taco with salsa and lettuce.
****The boys ate theirs adding no additional ingredients.


***** We had extra taco meat left over (after filling all of our taco shells) - so I will be enjoying a nice taco salad for lunch sometime this week. I love leftovers! *****


Here is hoping that you enjoy this dish as much as our family did. Have a great week!

Tasty & Hot, Hot, Hot!

I love Mexican food. I love tasting the vibrant flavors that you really don't taste in any other type of cuisine. It is my favorite kind of "party food" to make ... as you just kind of kick back and enjoy it. It is simple, yet delicious.

Sunday night, as a reward for my husband finishing a pretty big "honey do" item ... I made him a Mexican feast. It was delicious (and the leftovers today were just as good!)

Chicken Enchiladas 252 calories per enchilada

2 chicken breast halves, sprinkled with 1/2 tsp chili powder and cut into 1" pieces

1 red pepper, diced

1/2 yellow onion, diced

1 clove garlic, minced

10 oz fresh mushrooms, sliced

1 tsp thyme (fresh)

1 tsp rosemary (fresh)

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp olive oil

10 oz can of enchilada sauce

1 cup fat-free ricotta cheese

2 cups mozzarella cheese

8 whole wheat flour tortillas

Saute pepper, onion, garlic, mushrooms, thyme, rosemary, and salt in olive oil until tender. Remove from pan to a bowl and keep warm. Add the seasoned chicken to the pan and cook 5-6 minutes until cooked through. Add the veggies and stir in the ricotta cheese. Remove from heat.

Coat both sides of a warmed tortilla with the enchilada sauce. Fill with the meat/ veggie mixture and top with a sprinkle of mozzarella cheese. Roll and place into a greased casserole dish. Repeat until all 8 tortillas are filled. Top with any remaining enchilada sauce and any remaining cheese.

Bake in a pre-heated 400 degree oven for 20 minutes until cheese is melted and filling is bubbly.

Serve with pico de gallo and guacamole. Followed promptly by either a fiesta or siesta.

Layered Enchilada Crockpot Pie

I love potlucks. I love sampling the delicious "bests" that were brought to the potluck. I love gleaning new ideas - seeing new ways to prepare salads, new presentations for desserts, and finding new favorite items to add to our family's menu.

Today, our church had a potluck after our church service in the park. I brought a family favorite recipe - a wonderful, quick, flavorful meal that my family loves... and hopefully, my church family found it good as well as we brought home an empty dish.

Layered Enchilada Crockpot Pie

serves 10-12 (picture may be added at a later date)

5-6 (10 inch) flour tortillas
1 1/2 to 2 pound ground beef
1 medium onion, chopped
1/2 large green pepper, chopped
1 jalapeno, seeded and chopped
4 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 pint of grape tomatoes, quartered
2 tsp cumin
1 Tablespoon chili powder
salt and black pepper to taste
1/2 cup ketchup
2 cups salsa, divided (I used Pace Mild Picante sauce)
2 cups sharp cheddar cheese
1 bunch green onions

In a large skillet, brown the beef with onion, green pepper, garlic, and jalapeno. Add seasonings and tomatoes and cook for a minute longer. Stir in 1 cup salsa and ketchup.

Spray your crockpot with non-stick spray or line with aluminum foil to avoid stuck on food. Place the first (single) layer of tortillas in the bottom of the crockpot (tearing them to make them fit, if necessary). Pile on 1/2 of the meat, some cheese, and some of the chopped green onions. Layer on another layer of tortillas, the remaining meat, more cheese and more green onions. Layer on the final layer of tortillas, the final 1 cup of salsa, more cheese and green onions.

Cook in a crockpot at low setting for 4 hours or at high setting for 2 hours, until cheese is melted and it is nice and bubbly.


** Note: I love to mix-up the ingredients I use in this versatile dish, depending on the audience I am serving.

Other ingredients I like to use:
Monterrey Jack or Pepper-Jack cheese (any cheese is good)
Avocado
Sour cream
Red Peppers
Olives
Black Beans
Corn
Cilantro
Lime Juice (stirred into the meat, just after done cooking, before assembling the pie)
Doritos or tortilla chips, crumbled over the top

I hope your family enjoys this meal as much as our family does.

A Little Bit of Spice.

Every week, I try to plan a salad supper into our meal plan. I love salads for supper. There is so much that you can do - so many tasty options.

I love Mexican food. I love going to restaurants and indulging in queso and salsa with those still fresh from the oven tortilla chips (I like to pretend they are fresh from the oven, and not fresh from a vat of oil...) I love squeezing a little fresh lime over a taco. I adore the incredible variety of flavors that attack your taste buds. Deliciousness!

So ... needless to say, this week, I prepared one of my favorite salads: Black Bean Taco Salad.

Here is the line-up of ingredients: Spicy Taco Meat, corn, black beans, green pepper, avocado, green onions, and reduced-fat sharp cheddar cheese.

And here is the finished product!

My dressing consisted of one part light sour cream and one part salsa. It was perfect! I have also used a balsamic vinaigrette or just squeezed fresh lime juice over the top as my dressing. Whatever way you go, it is delicious. Another thing that is fun is to take spinach tortillas, slice them in thin strips and then toast them in the oven. They add a nice crunch to the salad, in case you are missing the carbs. The way I fixed it made enough salad for 6 servings at 279 calories per serving. My boys loved eating the meat, beans and corn on the side and I made cheesy quesadillas for them.

Here is the recipe for my Spicy Taco Meat that I used to make this salad:

Spicy Taco Meat
1 to 1 1/2 pounds of lean ground beef
1 small onion, diced
1 large jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped
2 large garlic cloves, chopped
1 pint of grape tomatoes, quartered
2 tsp cumin
1 Tablespoon chili powder
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp salt
1/3 cup ketchup

Brown beef with jalapeno, garlic, and onion. Add seasonings. Cook until fragrant. Add the tomatoes and cook for another minute. Stir in ketchup and heat thru. Serve.

*** This meat makes wonderful tacos, enchiladas, or even nachos. The sky is the limit!


Enjoy!