Taco Pie

I'm in love with casseroles right now, and all comfort food in general (see my recent Chili Mac post). I clipped this recipe from Bon Appetit, from their weeknight cooking section. My favorite casserole in the world is Hamburger Pie, my Mom has made it for me for as long as I remember, and this Taco Pie recipe is a 'Mexican' nod to Hamburger Pie. The recipe is so flexible, you can substitute ingredients to what you have on hand, or what you feel like eating. Plus it is super easy to make, and so very delicious. I was sad when I ate the last plate of leftovers today. Try it, you'll love it.

What's in it*
3 Tbl vegetable oil
10 corn tortillas, halved
1 small onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced

1 - 2 Tbl taco seasoning, or cayenne and chili powder, etc

3/4 to 1 pound ground turkey or pork

14.5oz can chopped tomatoes

2 4oz cans chopped fire roasted green chile

1 C frozen or canned corn

1 2oz can sliced olives

1 - 2 C grated cheese (mozzarella, jack and cheddar)

How it's made

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Heat oil in large skillet (preferably cast-iron), and cook tortillas on each side until golden (work in batches).

Meanwhile, in a separate cast iron skillet, heat oil and saute onions until soft, a few minutes. Stir in garlic and spices. Add ground meat and a pinch of salt, and cook until meat is browned, about 5 minutes. Break up meat as you go. Drain off fat. Stir in tomatoes, chile, corn and olives. Bring to a simmer and cook until water is mostly evaporated (it helps to drain the can tomatoes if very watery).

In a casserole or pie dish (I used two dishes since I had so much filling), layer - half of tortillas, meat/veggie filling, cheese - repeat once more. Bake until cheese melts, about 10 minutes.

*feel free to experiment with ingredients and seasoning. Especially if you like spicy, add a few dashes of tapatio, or add chopped bell peppers, black beans.

Taco Seasoning

We made taco salad again last night, and I decided to 'just say no' to the taco seasoning packet.  Allrecipes.com came in handy yet again, and I found this recipe to season my meat with, and it was much tastier and flavorful than McCormicks.  The boys oohed and ahhed over it.

Mix together the following:

1 Tbl chili powder (or more)

1/4 tsp onion powder

1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes

1/4 tsp dried oregano

1/2 tsp paprika

1 1/2 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp salt

1 tsp fresh ground pepper

Taco Salad

Tonight we're having taco salad "take 2".  We made it last night as well, and there is something so satisfying about eating taco salad.  Maybe it's because I grew up eating it often.  The best part is not having to be confined to a tortilla to get all the goods mixed together, as you are with a taco or burrito.  It's not the fanciest recipe on the block but it's what's for dinner tonight, so here we go.  When serving this salad, we leave all the ingredients separate, just like when we serve tacos, so everyone can make theirs to order.

What's in it

One head of lettuce (romaine) rinsed, dried and chopped

Green onions, sliced

Cheese, grated - use a mixture of what you are craving, such as jack, cheddar or pepper jack

Sour cream

Tomatoes, chopped

Avocado, cubed

Can of corn, drained

Can of sliced olives, drained

Can of beans, rinsed and heated (I prefer black)

Ground beef or chopped chicken

Taco seasoning or packet (I got the spicy taco seasoning by McCormick)

Tortilla chips

Salsa

Catalina salad dressing

How it's made

Prepare the meat with the taco seasoning packet as directed on the back of the seasoning package.  Prepare the rest of the ingredients.  Set the table with each ingredient in it's own bowl, to have a 'make your own' set up.  I combine the onion and lettuce, and the corn and olives.  You can use any dressing you like - a salsa, Catalina, or that weird creamy mixture that's red and white mixed together and I'm blanking on the name right now.

An alternative to using tortilla chips is frying up a whole tortilla to serve as the base of the salad.