Taco Salad

My family has this recipe for Taco Salad that was a weeknight staple in our house. It is quick, cheap, and yummy! The step that takes the longest time is browning the hamburger meat. So, here it goes.

Ingredients:

• 1 lb ground round
• 3 small tomatoes
• 1 can dark red kidney beans
• 4 stalks green onion
• 1/2 small can of chopped black olives
• 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
• 2 bottles of Kraft Catalina dressing
• 1 head of green leaf lettuce
• 1 bag bite size Tostitos tortilla chips

*In my last post I told you that I omitted black olives because I don't care for them. I have tried to omit them in this recipe, but it changes it dramatically. The chopped olives in the can are small enough that you won't have overwhelming olive flavor, but I think that they are necessary for the dish.*

Brown the hamburger meat. Add salt and pepper to season the beef.

While the hamburger meat is browning, you can start washing and chopping vegetables.









Remember the technique I used for chopping onion? I thought it wouldn't work because the tomato is soft, but it does work! It saves a lot of time! See the post on making "Red Beans and Rice" if you missed it!

 






Drain the browned hamburger meat. I put them in a large strainer. You'll see why in the next few steps.

Pour the can of kidney beans onto the hamburger meat in the strainer. Then add half of the can of olives (You can add the whole can if you would like, but since I don't like olives very much I will just add 1/2 a can). I pour water over it now to rinse the fat from the meat and the extra sodium from the juices in the cans off of the beans and olives. Then top with the chopped tomatoes so that the liquid from them can drain away.


 

 Cut up lettuce and place in a large mixing bowl. Usually you don't want to use a knife to cut lettuce because it bruises, but taco salad is usually eaten so fast that it won't matter. I use a knife because it is saves a lot of time.

Top the lettuce with everything in the strainer and green onions. You will also need to add the cheese, but make sure that the meat has had time to cool to either room temperature or a little warmer. You do not want the cheese to melt.







Pour one of the bottles of Catalina dressing into the bowl.












                      Mix all together.

 
 When making individual servings, scoop the salad into bowls. Top with crushed tortilla chips. The tortilla chips are necessary because the salad is a little sweet from the dressing. The chips provide a nice balance.
The extra bottle of Catalina dressing is for people who want to add a little more to their serving.

Serve immediately.

 Nutrition Facts: Serving Size = 2 cups   Yields = 6 servings

532 Calories. 38g Carbs. 29g Fat. 31g Protein. 739mg Sodium 

Easy: 5 out of 5
Delicious: 5 out of  5
Cheap: 5 out of  5
Leftover Quality: 3 out of 5 (The salad can be refrigerated. It will not look very good after being cooled, but it still tastes good. The lettuce just looks a little wilted because it is covered in dressing.)

Taco Pizza

I did not want to wake up this morning! The house was so very cold and my bed was warm and cozy. On my way to work, I snoozed in the passenger seat as my sweet boyfriend drove us to work. On my way into work, all I could think about was getting to bed earlier tonight. I'm only going to be able to do that with a quick and easy dinner. Normally I would cave in and grab something from a fast food joint on the way home, but let's try to make something instead. Have you ever heard that you can only pick two between fast, cheap, or good? Well, this recipe is not the case. It has all three qualities. Seriously, it is super fast, yummy, and fairly cheap. I found it on the Pillsbury website.

Here's what you need:

• 1 lb ground chuck
• 1 pkg taco seasoning
• 1 can refried beans
• 1 can (13.8 oz.) Pillsbury refrigerated pizza crust
• 2 cups shredded Mexican cheese blend
• 1 large tomato
• 3 stalks green onion
• lettuce
• picante sauce
• black olives (if desired)

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. 






Unroll pizza dough on an ungreased baking sheet. Let it sit out until it reaches room temperature.

Brown ground chuck. Drain. Add taco seasoning as instructed on the packet.







Starting from the middle, press pizza dough on the baking sheet until it covers the bottom of the pan and the sides. Bake the crust for about 8 minutes or until it is a light brown.

Chop the green onions and tomatoes.

Spread the refried beans onto the cooked pizza crust.

Cover the beans evenly with the seasoned beef.

Top with shredded cheese.

Add chopped green onions, tomatoes, and black olives. I opted out of the black olives because I'm not a fan.

Place pizza back in oven and cook for another 5-7 minutes. You want the cheese to melt, and the crust to be a golden brown.

Top with lettuce and picante sauce if desired.








ENJOY!!!!

Nutrition Facts: Serving Size = 2 slices   Yields = 6 servings

(I cut the pizza in 4 rows and 3 columns)

575 Calories. 49g Carbs. 29g Fat. 29g Protein. 1547mg Sodium - Yikes!

Although these numbers are high, they are better than fast food. I will try to add something healthier tomorrow!

Easy: 5 out of 5
Delicious: 5 out of  5
Cheap: 4 out of  5
Leftover Quality: 5 out of 5 (I was skeptical, but it was still delicious. Don't add the lettuce and salsa until ready to serve.)

Ghoulish Halloween Dinner: Bat Kidneys and Maggots with Sliced Ogre Fingers (or just the plain-jane "Red Beans and Rice with Sausage" will work too!)

The last day of October! You know what that means... cooler weather and HALLOWEEN!!! So, since I don't have any little ones to take trick-or-treating, I will have to be festive in other ways. Tonight I am going to share my Ghoulish Halloween Dish. We are having Bat Kidneys and Maggots with Sliced Ogre Fingers (known to the less festive as Red Beans and Rice with Polish Sausage.) I found this recipe as a submission from my mother into our "Fleming Family Cookbook." It is a lot easier than I thought it would be! I did have a set back, but I think it actually made the dish so much easier. I was going to cook this a couple of nights ago, but I didn't have an onion. I had already soaked the beans, so I just put them in a freezer Ziploc bag, and froze them. Tonight, I just pulled them out and dropped them in the pot. I think I will always keep the amount of red beans I need soaked and frozen so I can make Red Beans and Rice at the last minute instead of having to wait for them to soak.

On to what you really want to know! Here is what you will need to make this:

• 1 lb (or 2 cups) dry kidney beans 
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1 tsp ground black pepper
• 2 or 3 bay leaves
• 1/2 tsp celery salt
• dash of red (cayenne) pepper
• 2 lbs polish sausage, cut up (I used Cajun Andouille from the local meat market.)
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp thyme
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp ground cumin
• rice (I used Minute Rice to save some time)

First, you wash and soak the beans for 2 hours. If you would like to take my suggestion, put them in a freezer Ziploc to have them on hand when you are ready to make Red Beans and Rice in the future. 

(I found this really amazing way to chop onion. Some of you may have known this, but like I mentioned in my last post, I'm trying to help people like me that have no idea about cooking. After peeling the onion, slice it without cutting all of the way through to the other side. Leave a little bit of onion to be like the binding on a book. Twist the onion a quarter turn {where your vertical slices are now horizontal} and repeat the pattern so that you have vertical and horizontal cuts. Next, turn the onion on its side. Slice it like you would to put on a sandwich, and it will come out in diced pieces! So awesome and no tears!!!)

Now, add the ingredients to the pot. You do not need to make a mixing bowl dirty. Once it is in the pot, you can stir it all together. I add the bay leaves last so that I don't break them into pieces. After I stir the other ingredients together, I place the leaves apart from each other in the pot. You are going to take the bay leaves out before serving, so remember how many bay leaves you put in the dish. 

Once you put all of the ingredients in the pot, only add enough water to cover the beans and sausage. If you add too much, it will be watery and it won't thicken like it is supposed to. Cook medium to low heat for about two to three hours or until the beans are done (soft). Serve over rice. 

I used Minute Rice, and the instructions are on the package, but you can follow this recipe for regular rice:

RICE: 1 cup rice, 2 cups water, 1 Tbsp margarine, 1/4 tsp salt. Bring to boil on high, uncovered. Stir. Reduce heat to low. Cover. Cook 20 minutes. 

Don't forget to take out the Bay Leaves!!

I hope you enjoy your yummy Red Beans and Rice (or Bat Kidneys and Maggots with Sliced Ogre Fingers for the spooky meal menu)!! 

Nutrition Information: Serving Size = 1 cup beans & 1/2 cup rice       Yields = 10 servings
Facts are per serving (includes white minute rice)
529 calories. 57g carbs. 26g fat. 24g protein. 946mg sodium

Disclaimer: I apologize for the terrible photos. I took the pictures with an iPad. My camera was lost in one of my many moves. 

My name is Jess

Welcome to my blog!!! I am so happy that you have stopped by. I'm going to give you a little background information about me, and tell you my goals for the blog. So, let's get acquainted. 

My name is Jess and I am a 26-year-old, country girl who loves good food, good music, and good company. I have a boyfriend, Jake, and am Mommy to a beautiful brindle pit-bull mix named Anah. We live in the heart of Mississippi, which means at the heart of the deep south. Here, everything is fried, sweet, covered in cheese, or comes in extra-large portions. 

You all know the statistics about Mississippi. It is the worst in the good ones, and the best in the bad ones. Mississippi is in the top of the nation for diabetes, heart disease, obesity, and depression. I want these statistics to change. The question is, "How do we change them?" We have to do it one person, one commitment, and one decision at a time. It will not be easy, and I'm sure it will not always be fun; but I am willing to try to change our statistics. I am going to change my life for myself, my family, and my fellow Mississippians. I am in the same boat as many of the other Mississippians. I am overweight - obese even. I am poor - so close to homeless that I am not even comfortable with it. I am busy. I spend long hours at work, and live in the country - so I spend long hours driving back and forth between work and home. 

I have used all of the excuses, but the truth is I could start living a healthy life if I really wanted to. I am here to document my journey. I want you to see my path, step by step. Maybe you can follow-a-long, too, so that we can improve this country's health one person at a time. I will basically begin by learning to cook at home. That is really sad to admit, but I haven't had a lot of practice. I'm going to quit eating out at restaurants for every meal, and document my attempts at home-cooked meals here (Failures and all). 

It will be an entertaining journey, I hope. Thank you for joining me! Happy living!!