Baked Tacos

Mexican, Party Time

Evening kids! Taco night is upon us, so I thought I would change it up a bit. So, you know those crunchy taco shells you are supposed to bake in your toaster oven or oven before you all all your ingredients? Well, most of the time, some of them get burned or not at all cooked through. I saw this idea on Pinterest and decided to add my own spin. Turned out great! The girls gobbled up their tacos. The awesome part about tacos is you can really add your own likes in that tiny shell. You could add a combo of black olives, black beans, refried beans, or ground beef. Mine are made with straight up cheese and ground beef.

Baked Tacos

1 package crunchy tacos
Ground Beef with Homemade Taco Seasoning- See below
shredded Mexican cheese blend

Directions-
Preheat oven to 350
Make your ground beef. Drain and cool a bit.
Put your shells in a long casserole dish. Put cheese on the bottom. Add in a spoonful of beef to each taco. Top with more cheese. Bake for 15 minutes or so until shells turn golden brown and cheese is all melted. Add your favorite taco toppings. You could make a ton of these for a party and set out a taco bar!

ENJOY!

Homemade Taco Seasoning-

Sautee 1/2 a chopped onion and 2 cloves chopped garlic in a bit of oil in your hot pan. Take out the onions and brown a pound of meat. Once browned, take it out and strain it. Add it back in the pan with your onions and add your taco seasoning.

Seasoning- Of course, you can always add more of less of these ingredients. I am using real sautéed onions and garlic, but you could use ground onion and garlic if you have it.
1 teaspoon of salt
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon of ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon of red pepper flakes
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon corn starch
Add your seasoning to the beef and about 1/2 cup water over the heat until it absorbs, about 5 minutes

 

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One Pot Chicken, Mushrooms,and Potatoes

Chicken, One pot meal

Hey guys! I made this dinner last night. I wanted to do a chicken and mushrooms of some sort. I thought of doing my creamy chicken and mushrooms, but I wanted something lighter. I had some beautiful potatoes I got at the farmer’s market, so I decided to make this dish. It was pretty delicious! I hope you will give it a try.

One Pot Chicken, Mushrooms and Potatoes

Ingredients
1 whole chicken cut in to pieces (on sale, so use whatever chicken you have.)
2 tablespoons oil
1 container of mushrooms, sliced
1 small bag or container of red potatoes- about 8 (you could use golden or fingerling) sliced in half lengthwise
1 medium onion, chopped
About 1 cup liquid- I used a combo if wine and chicken broth- you could also add water if needed
1 tablespoon cold butter
2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
fresh herbs- rosemary, sage, tarragon, and parsley

Directions

Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a pot on medium/high heat until oil begins to shimmer- I used a dutch oven, but you could use a large cast iron skillet. Add chicken skin-side down and cook without moving until golden brown and crisp, 7 to 9 minutes. Flip, and cook until browned on second side, another 3-4 minutes. Transfer to a large plate and set aside.

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Add the potatoes to the fat in the pan and cook over medium-high heat, stirring and tossing occasionally until lightly browned, 5 to 7 minutes. Add the onion and cook, stirring, until slightly softened, about 4 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Add the mushrooms, season with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring occasionally, about 3- 4 minutes. Stir in half or your chopped herbs.

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Next, Add the wine/chicken stock to deglaze the pan, scraping up brown bits on the bottom. Push the potatoes to the side and place the chicken back in, skin side up. Bring the liquid to a boil, reduce to a simmer, and cook, uncovered, until the thighs register at least 165°F on an instant-read thermometer and the stock is reduced to about a half cup, 18 to 20 minutes. Add your pat of butter to the sauce. This gives it a nice rich finish. Add the rest of your fresh herbs on top.

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Roasted Eggplant Dip

Appetizers and snacks, Dips, Dressings, and Spreads, Vegetarian

So yesterday I bought a beautiful eggplant at the farmer’s market. I was thinking of what I could do with it; parmesan, rollatini, pasta, lasagna, etc. I was researching online to see what else was out there. Apparently, there are tons of ways to prepare eggplant. I kept seeing tons of different recipes for dips.

Babaganush is a eggplant dip served in many greek and mediterranean dishes. I have had it many times before, but I have never made it. Traditionally, it calls for tahini paste. Tahini is made from sesame seeds that are soaked in water and then crushed to separate the bran from the kernels. The crushed seeds are soaked in salt water, causing the bran to sink. The floating kernels are skimmed off the surface, toasted, and ground to produce an oily paste. Fun fact for the day!

Anyways, I didn’t have any tahini paste handy, and I did not want to make a special trip to the store to buy any, so I improvised with what I had. I ended up adding more olive oil and some red wine vinegar. I only used 1 eggplant here and ate half of this dip in one sitting with some carrots and pita chips. I would say one eggplant for every 2 people if you have a bunch of eggplant lovers. I also LOVE garlic, so I added 2 cloves. You can certainly use less or sub garlic powder for less intense garlic flavor.

Roasted Eggplant Dip- serves 2

1 eggplant- cut in half, salt and pepper, and add plenty of olive oil. Cook in a 400 degree oven for about 45 minutes. Let it cool.

Scoop out your eggplant filling. The skin should easily peel off. Add 2 tablespoons of olive oil, 1 tablespoon of red wine vinegar, and 2 garlic cloves finely minced. You could even pulse this all in a mini-food processor if you wish. I added a shake of Mrs. Dash.

Serve with chips, veggies, or crusty bread. You could even use this as a spread on a sandwich. If you like eggplant, you will love this dish!

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Chicken and Veggie Alfredo Pasta

Kids, Pasta

So remember last night when I made that awesome slow braised chili beef? Yeah, well, we actually ate it tonight! It was so good, but I knew the girls would not eat it. I didn’t even make them try it. It was too spicy and smoky for them, so I made them this back-up meal. We all went to the farmer’s market today and picked out some yummy veggies. I sauteed some yellow squash, green zucchini, and mushrooms. I cooked a chicken breast and thigh in a cast iron skillet. When they were done, I shredded the chicken. The girls recently picked out some wagon wheel pasta, so I cooked that and added some jarred alfredo sauce (Newman’s Own). I added all the ingredients together and topped with parmesan cheese. The girls gobbled it up. So glad they love their veggies! You could totally make this vegetarian by omitting the chicken. Or you could even add shrimp or sliced sausage.
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Summer Tomato Sandwich

Sandwiches, Vegetarian

Not much can beat the taste of a summer tomato sandwich. I picked 2 tomatoes from my garden this afternoon. I promptly cleaned one of my beauties and sliced it up. A sprinkle of salt and pepper. White bread of some sort is best- I had a loaf of soft french bread, so I broke off a piece and sliced it down the middle. I added a slather of mayo, loaded my bread with tomatoes, and took a bite. Complete perfection! If there is a heaven, there will be lots of fresh garden summer tomatoes all year round!

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