Taco Bowls

My husband and I tried to go on a fiscal fast for a month. We tried to see if we could live off of our food storage for a month. First of all, we had so much food in our cupboards we really needed to clean it out. Also, it was a good challenge to see if we could do it. We agreed that the only thing we would buy would be milk. If you know my husband, he can't live without his cereal. The day before we began, I went to the store and got a ton of fruits, vegetables and eggs. We ate the fruit right away but surprisingly the veggies lasted a long time. Some of the veggies I froze but we had veggies up until the last day of the month. It was pretty incredible. On the last day of our fiscal fast my husband and I agreed that we ate really well and that we could probably do it another month.

I should probably get the extra large tortillas for how much stuff I put in them.

One of the meals that was a go to when I couldn't think of anything to make was taco bowls. I bought these taco tins from Marshall's I think. They are really inexpensive. I think they were $5 for a set of 4 bowls. Anyway, I really like them. You can put olive oil on the tortilla and sprinkle it with chili pepper or garlic salt, or whatever seasoning you want. I usually just spray the tins with Pam and put the tortillas in without seasoning them. It's up to you.

Turn the oven to 450 degrees and put the tortillas in the oven for about 10  minutes. Check on the tortillas and take them out when the edges are beginning to brown.

You do not have to have tortillas to make this!!! By the end of our fiscal fast we were not putting our taco bowl in a tortilla shell but rather a cereal bowl.

Once you have your bowl, put whatever you would like in it. This is usually how I layer it.

cooked white rice
black beans

cheese (it melts on the beans and the rice)
lettuce
tomatoes

Doesn't get much better than home grown tomatoes right?

avocados
homemade buttermilk ranch (at the end of our fast we used a couple different dressings and they were all really good)
Tabasco

Let me know what toppings you put on your taco bowl.

Chicken Enchilada Quinoa Bake

I have been wanting to cook with quinoa for a while but it's just so expensive that I've been leaving it on my grocery list every time I go to the store. Finally I just gave in and bought it. This was the first thing I made. I saw it on Pinterest and it made my mouth water. When I'm hungry I should not be allowed to look at recipes, especially dessert recipes! Anyway, this recipe was delicious. I wish I had an awesome Mexican dish like the Pinterest picture though. I will say, it was delicious right out of the oven but it tasted even bettter as leftovers because all the juices soaked into the quinoa. So yummy!

The recipe came from Tablespoon.com

Chicken Enchilada Quinoa Bake

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 small onion, finely chopped

2 1/2 cups cooked quinoa (white or red)

1 1/2 cups shredded cooked chicken breast

1 can (15 oz) black beans

1 can (4.5 oz) chopped green chiles

1 tablespoon chili powder

2 cups enchilada sauce (from 19-oz can)

1/2 cup shredded sharp Cheddar cheese (2 oz)

1 cup shredded pepper Jack cheese (4 oz)

Sour cream or plain Greek yogurt

Sliced avocado

Fresh cilantro

Crumbled cotija (white Mexican) cheese, if desire 

 

 

 

Directions: 

• Heat oven to 350°F. Spray 13x9-inch (3-quart) ceramic or broiler-proof baking dish with cooking spray.
• Heat 10- or 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Add oil and onion; cook 5 minutes or until onion is soft.
• Reduce heat to low. Add quinoa, chicken, black beans, green chiles, chili powder and 2 cups of the enchilada sauce; stir to combine. Remove from heat.
• Stir in Cheddar cheese. Transfer quinoa mixture to baking dish. Top evenly with pepper Jack cheese.
• Bake 10 to 15 minutes.
• Turn oven control to broil. Place baking dish about 5 inches from broiler; broil 1 to 2 minutes or until cheese is golden and bubbly. Remove from broiler. Top with sour cream, avocado, cilantro and cotija cheese. Serve immediately.

 

*This recipe is another easy one to prepare ahead and leave in the fridge until you are ready to bake it. It was great for a busy evening.