Skinny Easy Taco Pie (Drizzle Me Skinny)

As some of you may have seen on facebook I'm fighting a sinus infection. That with work being off the chain busy, I'm behind on my post. I'm writing this right now sitting in my sauna at home hoping to sweat this crud out!

Since I've been under the weather I've been trying out some new meals that aren't too time consuming. I have come across this amazing site Drizzle Me Skinny! I'm in love with her recipes AND she actually will comment back to me on Instagram! OK this may seem silly but it really impresses me when ppl comment back.  She posted a top 10 recipes family favorite meals and this Taco Pie was on it. I must say I could have ate the whole pie myself!

Ingredients

• 1 pack of Pillsbury reduced fat crescent rolls
• 1lb lean ground beef
• ⅔ cup of salsa
• 1 package of taco seasoning
• ⅔ cup light grated cheese
• *Optional to top with lettuce, tomatoes and onions etc

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350F
2. Heat up your ground beef in a frying pan on stove, once cooked drain fat. Add salsa and taco seasoning, I only use half the pack of seasoning so it is not to strong tasting. Simmer for 5 minutes.
3. Place your crescent rolls into a 9 inch pie dish, making sure to cover all areas. This may require breaking up some of the rolls to fill in spaces. Pre-bake crust for 5 minutes to avoid the middle not cooking through..
4. Place your meat mixture into the pie dish and spread evenly, sprinkle with cheese.
5. Bake in oven for approx. 10-12 minutes, checking often. Serves 6 at 8sp or 7pp per slice.

Alexis notes: I used a thin crust pizza dough instead of crescent rolls (it was a little less calories etc and easier to work with). I did add a little salsa and non fat sour cream on the boys meals.

Thanks for Stopping by!

Don't forget to see the parties I link up to HERE.

Pasta Palooza ... Taco Macaroni and Cheese

As most of you know the boys love anything with noodles!  And then you add their love of anything Mexican food then we have a winner.  So then when I came across this Taco Macaroni and Cheese on Cassie Craves, I just had to give it a shot.  This was a hit with Rick and the boys, it sure did smell good (only smells for this girl until I'm done with this diet).

Ingredients:

1 pound macaroni or shell pasta
1 pound ground beef
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 serving of taco seasoning (or 1 packet of store-bought seasoning mix)
1 cup salsa
1 8-ounce package cream cheese, cut into chunks
2 cups milk
1/2 cup sour cream
2 cups shredded Mexican cheese blend

Directions:

1. Cook pasta according to package directions; drain.

2. Meanwhile, brown ground beef and sweat the onion together in a large skillet over medium-high heat. When the beef is completely cooked through, drain off excess fat, return to skillet, and add garlic. Cook and stir 30 seconds. Add taco seasoning and salsa and stir to combine; reduce heat to low.

3. In a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, add cream cheese, milk, and sour cream and stir to combine. Cook until cream cheese is melted and mixture is thick and bubbling. Stir in shredded cheese.

4. Add cheese sauce and ground beef mixture to pasta and stir to combine. Top each serving with salsa and sour cream, if desired.

A super easy recipe and I had everything on hand!

Hope you give it a try!

What's on your menu tonight?

Don't forget to see the parties I link up to HERE.

Soups on ... Slow Cooker Taco Soup ($5 Meal Recipe)

Even though it is starting to warm up, it's still raining here in Washington.  So soup is always a good fix for those days, plus most soup recipes I can throw in the crockpot and not have to worry about it!  Even with me working from home I don't have time to cook all day or stop and make a meal during the day.  

I went to one of my favorite site $5 Dinners for Alea's Slow Cooker Taco Soup.  A real simple soup that was a hit with the boys, heck anything taco usually will go over well.

Ingredients

1/2 pound hamburger, browned
1 medium onion, chopped
1/2 cup bell pepper diced
1 3/4 cups cooked or 15.5 oz. can black beans
1 3/4 cups cooked or 15.5 oz. can white beans
2 cups cooked rice
1 3/4 cups or 15.5 oz. can  frozen corn
3 1/2 cups or 2 15.5 oz. cans diced tomatoes
15 oz. can tomato sauce
2 cups water
3 tablespoons taco seasoning mix
1 cup crushed chips
1 cup shredded Mexican cheese

Directions

If necessary, brown hamburger.

Add hamburger, onion, bell pepper, beans, corn, rice, diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, water and taco seasoning to the slow cooker. Cook on low for 6 hours.
Ladle soup into bowls. Top with crushed chips and cheese.

Hope you enjoy this recipe it will fill your belly and be a crowd pleaser at the same time!

Don't forget to see the parties I link up to HERE.

Party Food ... Biscuit Taco Cups

We continue with our party food theme this week.  This was a fun recipe I found on Table Spoon for Grands! Biscuit Taco Cups.  They were really simple to make and a fun twist on your usual taco's.  I made these for our dinner guest that come over every other week for dinner.  The boys and my friend loved them, her son only liked the biscuit but he's more of a picker eater.   My boys don't have a choice LOL and must eat what is in front of them.  I think most kids would love this one.  It would be a fun food to pass around at a party too!

• 1 1/2  lb lean (at least 80%) ground beef
• 1  (15-oz.) can spicy chili beans, undrained
• 1  package (1.25 oz) Old El Paso® 40% less-sodium taco seasoning mix
• 1/2  cup water
• 1  can (16.3 oz) Pillsbury® Grands!® refrigerated buttermilk biscuits
• 1  cup shredded Cheddar cheese (4 oz)
• 1/2  cup shredded lettuce, if desired
• 1/2  cup chopped tomato, if desired
• 1/2  cup sour cream, if desired
• 1/2  cup Old El Paso® Salsa, if desired

1. 1Heat oven to 375°F. Brown ground beef in large skillet over medium-high heat until thoroughly cooked, stirring frequently. Drain.
2. 2Add chili beans, taco seasoning mix and water; mix well. Reduce heat to medium; simmer 10 minutes or until ground beef mixture is slightly thickened, stirring occasionally.
3. 3Meanwhile, spray outside bottom and sides of 8 (6-oz.) custard cups lightly with nonstick cooking spray. Separate dough into 8 biscuits. Roll or pat each biscuit to form 4 1/2-inch round. Place rounds over outside of sprayed cups; press to fit over bottom and part way down sides of cups. Place cups, upside down, in ungreased 15x10x1-inch baking pan.
4. 4Bake at 375°F. for 14 to 16 minutes or until deep golden brown. Remove pan from oven. Carefully remove biscuit cups from custard cups. Place biscuit cups, right side up, in same baking pan. Spoon beef mixture evenly into each cup.
5. 5Top with cheese, lettuce, tomato, sour cream and salsa.

Alexis Notes: I used the back of my cupcake pan instead of custard cups.  I skipped the salsa but I'm sure the adults would love salsa on them.

Hope you enjoy these!  Have a great day!

I party and link up HERE

Beef & Zucchini Taco's ($5 Meals)

On a quest to save money around here I tried the $5 meals for two weeks to see if I could bring our grocery bill down.  I still have to work on it but I did it close to the $5 a meal.  I did find some yummy recipes that the boys and I enjoyed.  This one I could actually eat just modified (most night I fix them a meal and then me what I can eat - which on this diet is so limited).

I found this recipe on the $5 Meal Website for Beef & Zucchini Taco's.  I've included her break down of prices (mine was a little more)

Ingredients
1.5 lb ground beef, browned and drained ($1.95/2=$.98!!!)
2 cups zucchini, diced ($.25) 
1/2 yellow onion, chopped ($.15)
1 tsp garlic powder ($.05)
1 tsp onion powder ($.05)
1 tsp chili powder ($.05)
1 tsp ground cumin ($.05)
Use her homemade taco seasoning mix or substitute a packet of taco seasoning
Salt/Pepper, to taste

Old El Paso – 6 hard shells, 6 soft shells pack ($1.49)

1 large tomato, diced 
About 1 cup chopped iceberg lettuce ($.20)
About 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese ($.30) 

Directions
1. Brown ground beef with diced zucchini and chopped onion. Drain and return to pan. Add spices and let saute for 3-4 minutes to let the flavors infuse.
2. Prepare taco fixins…chop lettuce, dice tomato and set out shredded cheese.
3. Cook corn cobs in boiling water for 4-5 minutes, or in a microwavable dish covered with plastic wrap for 2-2.5 minutes per ear.
4. Assemble tacos

(I used taco seasoning from the bulk isle at Winco.  I used coleslaw kit to add a little extra veggies - didn't use the sauce)

The boys had it in a shell

I had mine naked in a bowl :)

Have a wonderful day, give this one a try a great way to get some veggies in!

Is it really Monday?

I think I lost a week there?  Oh wait I did a week of my sanity with the snow and the kids being home all week long!  Between snow and kids I think I was going looney. Rick had Wednesday and Thursday off but I lost my cooking mojo most of the week.  I did make up this Taco Casserole I first pinned on my Pinterest board. It was a super easy and yummy weight watcher meal.

What is on your menu tonight?  On our meal plan is Crock Pot Chicken Enchilada Soup.

Tacos & Chips? (Well not your normal way)

The boys have been requesting taco’s lately so I found a few that I thought we’d give a shot.  2 healthy and one on the fence .. hehe.  The not so healthy one was just ok so I won't post it ... lol.

First off we had a Chicken Taco that was good, now I couldn’t find the right chicken tenders they talked about so the ones I used not the best but the taco was good.

And for the chip part!  Not your normal chips but they sure were tasty I could just eat these for my meals .  These Sweet Potato Chips are easy to make!

Have a Great Monday!  Anything special on your menu tonight?

Tuesday Dinner (Saucy-Q Chicken Soft Tacos & Frozen Fruit Pops)

As many of you know Tuesday nights is dinner with my a friend from high school.  It’s great having friends over so I can test out new recipes … .  Rick loves chicken and Taco’s so this Saucy-Q Chicken Soft Tacos from Hungry Girl who is now one of my favorite low fat sites to check out.  She also includes the WW points for you who follow that program.  I really enjoyed these!  I ran out of chicken and had a ton of the salsa left over.  Next time I’ll do a 4th breast since Rick said he would have ate more if there was more chicken!

And for dessert I had to make Frozen Fruit Pops since we finally had a HOT day here in the PNW.  I made a ton so the neighborhood kids had a few too, let’s just say my house is very popular now with hands out for these .  Thanks “Cole’s Mom” these are really good is what I was told.

Happy Tuesday everyone

Manic Monday Meals ~ Cornbread Taco Bake (Bake Off)

HOLY moly it's Monday and I'm so behind I have some great recipes I made over the weekend but I can't get to the camera yet so I going to post 2 I tried last week. Both are great and went over well with the family, except Rick who is not a big fan of bread in his dish :). I tried two different cornbread recipes one was a hit the other not so much (Sorry Paula Dean but your's was the loser). Next time I make the 2nd Taco Bake I'll use this cornbread it will make it so much better!

Cornbread Winner!

Quick Cornbread

Food Network

Ingredients

• 1 cup flour
• 1 cup yellow cornmeal
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon coarse grained salt
• 1 cup skim milk
• 1/4 cup canola or vegetable oil
• 1 large egg or 2 large egg whites, lightly beaten

Directions

Heat oven to 400 degrees F. Spray a 9-inch square baking pan with non-stick cooking spray.

Combine flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Set aside.

In a separate smaller bowl, whisk together milk, oil and egg or egg whites. Pour the wet ingredients over the dry and, using a fork, stir until just combined. Do not overmix. Spread batter evenly in pan and bake 20 to 25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cut into squares or triangles and serve immediately.

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Aunt June's Taco Bake

Ain't She Crazy Blog

11/2 lb lean ground beef

1 pkg taco seasoning mix

1/2 C. water

1 can whole corn, drained

1/2 C. chopped green pepper

(I skipped this because I would never, in a million year put green pepper on a taco!)

1 8oz can of tomato sauce

1 pkg corn muffin mix (like Jiffy)

1 can french fried onions.

(I bought the only size I found and it was about twice what we needed. They must make smaller cans.)

1/2 C shredded Cheddar cheese

Brown the ground beef and drain the grease. I added some chopped onion to the ground beef as it cooked. Stir in the seasoning, water, corn, peppers and tomato sauce. Pour into a baking dish (I used a 9x13" pan, though she suggests something smaller like a 2 qt. casserole.) Prepare muffin mix as directed, except add in 1/2 the can of french fried onions. Spoon the mixture around the edges of the casserole. Bake, uncovered for 20 minutes at 400 degrees. Top with cheese and the rest of the onions and bake a few more minutes until it's all melted.

ALEXIS NOTES: I again out of taco seasoning used a chili packet, this one I used a different corn bread (that was my mistake it wasn't the best flavor, if I used the above one it would have been a tie), Next time I'd use the small can of onions also and I didn't have green pepper so I used a small can of green chilies.

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Corn Bread Taco Bake Winner (Just by a SMALL margin)

Taco Corn Bread Casserole

Debbi Does Dinner ... Healthy & Low Calorie

Taco Corn Bread Casserole

1 package (8 1/2 oz) corn bread/muffin mix

1 egg

1/3 cup milk

3 cups cooked taco seasoned meat

1 can black beans

1 cup (8 oz) sour cream, light

1 cup colby jack, cheddar or mexican cheese, shredded and divided

1/2 cup onion, chopped

1 medium tomato, chopped

1 cup shredded lettuce

1 can sliced olives (optional, I didn't use)

In a large bowl, combine the corn bread, egg and milk until blended. Spread into an 8 x 8 pan sprayed with cooking spray. Bake at 350 for 15 minutes. Combine taco meat and beans, spread over corn bread. Combine sour cream, 3/4 cup cheese and onion. Spread over meat mixture. Bake for 20 - 25 minutes longer or until heated through and cheese is melted. Sprinkle with tomato, lettuce and remaining 1/4 cup of cheese.

Total calories = 3252 calories

6 servings = 542 calories per serving

ALEXIS NOTES: I made the corn bread mix (use the one on top the best), I used about low fat ground beef, didn't have taco seasoning so used chili :), skipped the onion, next time I'll add the corn!

Hope you all have a wonderful Monday and may enjoy one of these fine recipes :).

Make Something Monday ... Taco Soup

Looking for a quick and easy dinner! Do you the people in you life love taco's? Well here is the best of all worlds. Rick loves Taco Soup and Cole loves Chili and this was a cross between them. Enjoy!

Ingredients

2 lbs. Extra Lean Ground Beef,
1 Pack of Taco Seasoning,
1 Pack of Ranch Seasoning,
2 Cans of Mexican Stewed Tomatoes,
1 Can of Tomatoe Sauce,
2 Cans of Shoepeg Corn,
2 Cans of Dark Red Kidney Beans

Directions

Brown and drain hamburger Meat. Add all other ingredients in a big pot with hamburger meat. Heat to a boil and then simmer for about 30 minutes. Serve with Light Tortilla Chips.

To reduce sodium, you can use dry beans and make your own tomato sauces.

Number of Servings: 6

Tempt My Tummy Tuesday - Easy Taco Casserole

Yup I'm getting home late so I'm turning to my list of pretyped recipes :). Holiday weekend throws me off :). HUGS

This was a yummy taco one, you know how my boys love taco recipes. I didn't have taco shells so I used tortillas and it was just as yummy. Yup you know the way I roll we use what we have on hand, no running to the store to buy extra stuff! Enjoy!!

Ingredients:
1 Pound Ground Beef
1 Cup Chopped Onion
1 Cup Water
2 Cloves Garlic , Minced
½ Cup Taco Sauce
2 Ounces Sliced Black Olives
1 Package Taco Seasoning Mix
12 Medium Taco Shells Broken into pieces
9 Ounces Shredded Cheddar Cheese

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375

In a large skillet over medium heat combine the ground beef, onion and garlic.

Saute for 5 to 10 minutes or until beef is browned and onion is tender.

Drain excess fat and stir in the water, taco sauce, 1/4 cup olives and the taco seasoning.

Turn heat down to low and simmer for 4 or 5 minutes.

Layer half of the broken taco shells in the bottom of a lightly greased 8x12 baking dish. Cover with half the meat mixture and sprinkle with 1 cup cheese. Repeat using the remaining taco shells, the remaining meat mixture and the remaining cheese.

Bake at 375 for 25 minutes or until cheese is melted and bubbly.

Top with the remaining olives.

You can chop up a onion and add it to the mixture as well as any of your other favorites, depending on how spicy you like it.

Found here http://www.essortment.com/all/tacocasseroler_pmw.htm