Recipe Monday - Simple Enchiladas

The other night I meant to make fajitas, but I didn't have some of the ingredients. So, I found myself trying to make enchiladas for the first time in my life. And they were great!

1 lbs beef strips

1 tablespoon butter

2 medium onions, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 cup chicken broth
1 cup milk
2 cans (4 ounces each) chopped green chilies
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
12 flour or corn tortillas
1 cup (4 ounces) shredded Monterey Jack cheese
1 cup (4 ounces) shredded cheddar cheese
2 green onions with tops, thinly sliced
Sour cream
Salsa

chili powder

Directions:

Saute beef strips with a dash of cumin, salt and chili powder. Set aside.

In a saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Saute onion and garlic until onion is tender. Blend in flour. Stir in broth, milk, chilies, salt and cumin. Cook and stir until thickened and bubbly. Reduce heat; simmer 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Set aside.

Grease a 13-in. x 9-in. baking dish. Spoon a little sauce in the center of each tortilla; spread to edges. Place about 2 tablespoons meat down the center of each tortilla. Combine cheeses; sprinkle 1-2 tablespoons on top of meat. Roll up tortillas and place in baking dish, seam-side down. Pour remaining sauce over. Sprinkle with green onions and remaining cheese. Bake, uncovered, at 350° for 20-30 minutes or until hot and bubbly. Serve with sour cream and salsa.

Yield: 6 servings.












 

Recipe Monday - Easy Mexican Chicken

I definitely need to make these again soon. A great twist on traditional Mexican, and really easy, too!

3 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
1/2 (20 ounce) jar salsa
1/2 large red bell pepper, chopped
1 tablespoons ground cumin
1 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoons chili powder
2 cloves crushed garlic
1 (15 ounce) cans black beans, rinsed and drained


Directions
1.Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (205 degrees C).
2.Arrange the chicken pieces in a casserole dish or a 9x13 inch baking dish. Combine the salsa, red bell pepper, cumin, lemon juice, chili powder and garlic.



Pour the mixture over the chicken.



Pour the black beans on top and cover.



Bake in the preheated oven for 1 hour. Top with cheese.



We ate baked tortilla chips with cheese, sour cream, and guacamole for a side.

 

Recipe Monday - Easy Fajitas

I have a complicated fajita recipe I love, but this one does the trick in one-third the time!

2 red bell peppers or 2 green bell peppers, cut into strips (or one each)
1 small onion, sliced
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 1/2 lbs lean beef sirloin or 1 1/2 lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 2 inch strips
1 1/4 teaspoons ground cumin
1 -2 teaspoon chili powder (depending on how much heat you want)
1 dash fresh lime juice
olive oil
vegetable oil
8 6-inch flour tortillas, warmed (I toss mine in a frying pan with vegetable oil for a few seconds on each side...way better than oven warming, tbh)

Directions:
Toss your olive oil in a pan on medium high heat
When skillet is very hot add bell peppers, onion and garlic; (be careful not to burn garlic or it will taste bitter) cook, stirring occasionally, until onion is slightly golden and peppers are tender.
Stir in beef or chicken, cumin and chili powder; cook, for just a few minutes
Squeeze a little lime juice over meat and stir occasionally, until meat is no longer pink.
Serve in tortillas; top with desired toppings.

Maybe you're looking for easy-peasy quesadillas. If so, check out this site.




 

Recipe Monday - Salsa Salad Mix

This was amazing. I used it as a side dish for enchiladas the other week. It's really simple, too.

1 can black beans
1 can corn
2 fresh diced tomatoes
2 avocados
1 small onion
lime juice
garlic
salt
pepper

Cut up anything that needs to be cut. Mix it all together. Refrigerate for an hour.

DONE.








 

Recipe Monday - Mexican Casserole

An incredibly easy meal that the kids love. Mexican casserole! (Courtesy of Debby Van Vraken, btw!)

Ground Beef (well, I put in the beef...her's was vegetarian)
Corn
Diced tomatoes (with juice)
Black beans (I used pinto beans)
salt
pepper
garlic powder
(you could even throw some cumin in here)
shredded cheese

Brown the beef, then drain the corn and beans and toss them in, throw in the tomatoes and spices and simmer for 10-15 minutes, then toss on the cheese and call it a night.

My kids asked for seconds.

 

Recipe Monday - Taco Skillet

Okay, so that looks half-disgusting. It's delicious, though, particularly for young kids, and a very quick way to use ground beef.

• 1 lb ground beef
• 10 34 ozs condensed tomato soup (campbell, regular or 25 less sodium)
• 12 cup salsa
• 12 cup water
• 6 flour tortillas (6 6 inch, cut into 1 inch pieces)
• 12 cup shredded cheddar cheese
• 1/2 cup sour cream

1. Cook beef in 10-inch skillet until well browned, stirring to break up meat. Pour off fat.
2. Stir in soup, sour cream, salsa, water, tortillas. Heat to a boil. Reduce heat to low and cook for 5 minutes Stir. Top with cheese.

That's it. Mexican without the messy, keep-it-in-the-tortilla challenge. Also sweeter because of the soup.


 

Recipe Monday - Shrimp Tacos and Homemade Salsa

These were amazing, omg.

• 20 medium prawns, peeled and deveined
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (I left this out b/c kids)
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 4 corn tortillas
• oil for frying
• shredded lettuce
• diced tomatoes
• sliced avocado
• cilantro lime sour cream (recipe follows)

1. In a bowl whisk together olive oil, garlic, cumin, salt and cayenne pepper (if using). Add in shrimp and toss to coat completely. Cover and refrigerate for 20 minutes (I actually did this!).
2. Cook shrimp in a skillet on medium heat until pink and cooked through, about 5 minutes. Turn off heat and cover to keep warm.
3. Use enough oil to lightly coat the bottom of a small pan, about 2 tablespoons. Heat over medium-high heat. Cook tortillas one at a time until soft, about 30 seconds on each side. Fold over to make a taco shell. As you cook each tortilla, place them on paper towels to absorb any of the oil left over.
4. Spoon 5 shrimp into each taco shell. Top with lettuce, tomato, avocado and cilantro-lime sour cream.

Cilantro Sauce:

• 1/4 cup sour cream
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
• 1/4 teaspoon cumin
• juice and zest from one lime
• salt to taste

1. Stir all ingredients together in a bowl.

BONUS: Homemade Salsa

• 3 medium tomatoes, cut in quarters
• 1/2 medium onion, cut in half
• 1 clove garlic
• 1 habanero, cut in half (after cutting the habanero, DO NOT touch your eyes before washing your hands. You can also use a plastic glove while cutting it.)
• 1 tablespoon vinegar
• 1 handful cilantro
• kosher salt to taste

1. Place all ingredients except salt in a food processor. Pulse about 8-10 times or until desired texture, you can make it as chunky as you would like. Season to taste with kosher salt.
2. Chill for 20 minutes.

These all come from Life's Ambrosia, btw. Best.