Slow Cooker Chicken Enchilada Casserole

This has got to be one of the easiest recipes I've ever made! At first, we wondered if it was going to be very good because it seemed really liquid-y. But after you add in the tortillas and cheese, it thickens up quite a bit. It really tastes just like chicken enchiladas. Delicious!!

Ingredients:
3 chicken breasts
2 (10 oz) cans of red enchilada sauce
10 corn tortillas
2-3 cups cheddar cheese, shredded (divided)
1 (3.8 oz) can olives, sliced (divided)

Directions:
Add chicken and enchilada sauce to slow cooker and cook on low 6-8 hours.
Shred chicken using forks. (I shredded them right in the slow cooker - easy!)
Slice tortillas into strips - a pizza cutter works great - and add to chicken and sauce. Stir.
Add 1 cup cheese, half the olives, and stir again.
Top with remaining cheese and olives. Continue to cook 30-60 minutes longer or until cheese is all melted and bubbly.

Serve with lettuce, sour cream, or any other toppings you would like. Enjoy!

                  

These pictures do not do it justice at all. It looks like a sloppy mess but tastes amazing! We only have 2 kids left at home now, so we had tons of leftovers. I just pulled the dish out of the cooker and stuck it in the refrigerator. Then, a couple days later I popped it back in and heated it up. I thought the tortillas would be all soggy and gross but it was almost better the second time. We will definitely be making this again!

Mexican Street Tacos

Have you ever eaten Mexican Street Tacos? I never had until recently. I always made tacos with ground beef and taco seasoning on flour tortillas, Fritos, or those crunchy, hard shells that always break apart when you take a bite. You know what I'm talking about, right? Ugh!

So when my son and daughter-in-law came home for a visit, they told us we were making street tacos & that we would never want to go back to regular tacos again. Seriously. He was right. We don't. 

In fact, we have made these 3 times since then and they are sooooo good!! The chicken is cooked in a crock pot & practically shreds itself it's so tender. I am also IN LOVE with the white corn tortillas! They have such a great flavor. Mmmmm! You also don't need all the toppings that you would normally put on tacos. Authentic street tacos only have cilantro and onions. That's it. (I only put pico de gallo or guacamole on mine because to me, those go on everything! Plus, I'm not a fan of raw onions.)

Even if you don't want to make tacos, this meat is easy & delicious. It could be used with almost anything. 

Ingredients:

2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breasts

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 onion, chopped

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp paprika

2 tsp chili powder

1 tsp sea salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

White corn tortillas

Cilantro

Diced onions

Directions:

Put chopped onions in bottom of crock pot, then add the chicken and garlic. Mix all spices together and sprinkle over chicken. Cook on low for about 6 hours until fully cooked. Shred the chicken with 2 forks and let sit another hour or so. 

Heat tortillas on skillet (flipping so both sides are nice and toasty) then fill with chicken, onions and cilantro. (Or other toppings.) ;)

Enjoy!! 

This was mine with just the pico on top. ;)

Oven Baked Chimichangas

Oven Baked Chimichangas

 

Ingredients

Makes 6 chimis

*This recipe makes use of already cooked chicken and cooked rice so plan ahead!

1/4 cup vegetable oi

1 onion chopped

1 can black beans rinsed and drained

1/2 cup cooked rice

2-3 cups diced cooked chicken

1-2 teaspoons minced cannd chipotle chiles in adobo sauce

1 cup shredded cheese

salt and pepper

6 large burrito size tortillas

Directions:

Place baking sheet in the oven and heat to 450* While oven is heating, in a large skillet heat 2 Tbsp oil.  Cook onion until tender.  Stir in beans, rice, chicken and chipotle and cook until heated through, about 3 min.  Remove from heat stir in cheese and season with salt and pepper to taste.  

Covering tortillas with a damp paper towel, microwave tortillas about 1 minute.  Top each warm tortilla with some of the chicken mixture, leaving about a 2 inch boarder at the bottom of the tortilla. Fold in the sides and roll up the tortilla tightly.  Brush the wrapped tortillas with the remaining oil and arrange them seam down on the hot baking sheet.  Bake until the chimis are golden brown and crisp, about 8-10 min.

Taco Soup

Taco Soup

Ingredients:

2 cans pinto beans undrained
1 can kidney beans undrained
1 can corn undrained
1 large can diced tomatoes
1 can tomatoes & chilies (Rotell)
1 can diced green chilies
1/4 cup sliced black olives (if desired)
1 pkg taco seasoning (about 2 Tbsp)
1 pkg ranch dressing mix
1 small onion diced
1 lb ground beef

Directions:

Brown meat and onions.  Drain and add to crockpot.

Sprinkle both seasoning packets on meat.  Add beans, corn, tomatoes, chilies and olives. 

Stir

In crock pot cook on low for 8-10 hours or high 4-5 hours.

Top with cheese, sour cream and serve with or over tortilla chips!

Stuffed Pasta Shells

Ingredients:

12 uncooked jumbo pasta shells
1 medium onion chopped
1 pound ground beef
1 1/2 tsp chili powder
3 oz cream cheese at room temp
1/4 cup taco seasoning
1/2 cup salsa
1 cup shredded four cheese blend

1/2 cup crushed corn chips
4 medium green onions
1/2 cup sour cream

Directions:

Heat oven to 350*  Spray 9 inch square baking dish with cooking spray.

Cook pasta as directed on package.  While pasta is cooking, cook ground beef and onion in skillet until beef is browned.  Drain.

Stir in chili powder, cream cheese and taco seasoning into beef.  Heat over medium low heat 2-3 min until cheese is melted, stirring occasionally.   Remove from heat.

 Drain pasta shells.  Fill shells with beef mixture, using about 2 Tbsp for each shell.  Place filled shells in prepared pan.  Pour salsa over shells.

Cover with aluminum foil and bake 20 min.  Remove pan from oven.  Sprinkle shells with cheese and corn chips.  Bake uncovered about 10 min longer or until cheese is melted.

Top with green onions and sour cream if desired.

Colorado Beef Burritos

These burritos were so good - I totally forgot to take any pictures of them until there was only one left!  So, the pictures aren't the best - but I will definitely be making these again. 

These were the really good shredded beef kind of burritos, like you get in Mexican restaurants. Yum!  And they were super easy.  The recipe is a freezer Crockpot meal, so I actually had it sitting in my freezer ready to go.  Then I just dumped it all in my Crockpot on Sunday to cook.  You still have to shred the meat and make the burritos, but it's still pretty easy.

I got the recipe from baked in the south.  There are a whole bunch of yummy freezer-to-Crockpot meals on there that I'm planning to make.

Ingredients:
2 lb. stew beef
1 c. chopped onion
1 c. beef stock
2 (12 oz) cans red enchilada sauce
6-8 flour tortillas
2 c. shredded cheddar cheese

Directions:
Label gallon freezer bag and add stew beef, onions, beef stock and 1 can enchilada sauce.  Freeze.
(If you don't want to freeze it, just add the ingredients straight to the Crockpot instead.)

Cook on low for 6-8 hrs until beef is tender.  Remove beef and shred.

Divide beef evenly between tortillas and roll into burrito.  Lay burritos seam-side down on greased baking dish.  Pour remaining can of enchilada sauce over burritos and top with cheese.

Bake at 375 F for 15-20 minutes, or until cheese is melted and bubbly.

Serve with salsa, lettuce, sour cream or other toppings if you want.  I liked mine plain. :)

Mexican Bean Dip

This bean dip is such a family favorite - it is our go-to recipe for all the family gatherings.  It is great for potlucks, football parties or just with dinner.  It is also very yummy as a leftover. :)

 

This is one of those recipes, that really doesn't have very exact measurements, you can add as much or as little as you like for your family.  (If you can see, only one half of this dip has serrano peppers, I don't think my 2 year-old would like a mouthful of fire!) haha

 

Ingredients:

8 oz cream cheese

1 can refried beans

salsa (I used about 1/2 cup)

shredded cheese (any kind would be delicious - I used cheddar)

diced jalapeno peppers, optional

chopped green onions, optional

 

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 F.

 

Spread the cream cheese in the bottom of a casserole dish or pie plate.  (Sometimes we double the batch and make it in a 9x13 pan.)

 

Continue layering, with the beans and salsa.

 

Spread as much cheese as you would like on the top, then sprinkle chopped peppers and green onions on top.

 

Place dish in oven and bake until cheese is bubbly and melted.  You may have to broil it a little at the end.

  

 

Serve with chips as a dip, or as the little ones like it - wrap it in a tortilla.  It makes a yummy bean burrito!

 

Enjoy!

Restaurant-Style Guacamole

I've had a couple requests lately for my guacamole recipe - so I thought I'd put it on here.

I have only two requirements when it comes to guacamole:  1) It has to have enough salt and lime flavor, and 2) It has to have a nice kick to it. That's it.  I could seriously live off of this guacamole! Sooo good!

I don't usually have specific measurements, I just add stuff until it looks and tastes how I want it, but when I made it today, I wrote down everything I put in - just in case anyone cares. :)  Haha

Ingredients:
4 avocados
1/2 bunch cilantro (about 1/4 cup), chopped
2-3 serrano peppers, finely chopped (yep - the hotter the better!)
1 green onion, diced
1 roma tomato, finely chopped, no seeds
juice from 1 1/2 limes
1/2 tsp salt

Scoop insides of avocados into a large bowl, smash with fork.  Add all other ingredients, stir until combined.  Taste to make sure it's exactly how you like it.  Serve with chips. (or whatever) :D

Hope you like it!

MEXICAN PIZZA

Okay, I know - this isn't new or anything. But it was different, easy and delicious! We used personal sized pizza crusts and everyone could put their own toppings on. This is something that is great for busy nights, because I usually have all the ingredients on hand, and it takes only a few minutes to throw together.

Ingredients:

1 lb ground beef

1 small onion, chopped

1/2 c water

1 envelope taco seasoning

1 prebaked 12 in. pizza crust

1 can refried beans

taco shells or tortilla chips, coarsely crumbled (Fritos are good too)

1 c shredded cheddar cheese

1 c shredded mozzarella cheese

2 c shredded lettuce

tomatoes

olives

hot sauce, salsa or other toppings (sliced jalapenos?)

Directions:

In large skillet, cook beef and onion over medium heat until no longer pink. Drain, stir in water and taco seasoning. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered for 5 min.

Meanwhile, place crust on ungreased baking sheet. Spread with refried beans. Top with beef mixture, cheese and olives.

Bake at 450* for 10-15 min or until cheese is melted. Top with lettuce, tomatoes, chips and salsa.

Walking Taco

We just got back from a Youth Conference up in the mountains and one of the meals my amazing neighbor served was walking tacos. I thought it was such a good idea and had never heard of it. Clean, easy and a great camping meal!!

Ingredients:

pre-cooked* Chili or hamburger with taco seasoning
shredded cheese
sour cream
sliced olives
shredded lettuce
chopped tomatoes
salsa or hot sauce
small bags of chips, Fritos or Doritos any flavor you like

Directions:

cut the top off each bag of chips...add meat or chili and any ingredients you like :)

CHICKEN FAJITAS

Okay, I know everyone already has a favorite fajita recipe...but I'm telling you these are the best! Scott and the boys loved them and we are definitely putting this in our dinner rotation from now on. YUM!

Ingredients:
4 TBS olive or canola oil, divided
2 TBS lemon juice
1 1/2 tsp seasoned salt
1 1/2 tsp oregano
1 1/2 tsp cumin
1 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 1/2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into thin strips (I used like 6 breasts - and it soaked up all the marinade - it was perfect!)

1 sweet red pepper, julienned
1 green pepper, julienned
1/2 chopped onion
(you might want to use less of these if you use less chicken)

flour tortillas, shredded cheese, lettuce, salsa, etc.

Directions:
In large Ziploc bag, combine 2 TBS oil, lemon juice and all seasonings. Add chicken & turn to coat. Refrigerate for 1-4 hours, at least.

In large skillet, saute peppers and onions in remaining 2 TBS oil until crisp-tender.
Remove from pan, set aside.

In same skillet, cook chicken over med-high heat until no longer pink. Return peppers and onion, heat through.

Spoon into tortillas, add toppings and serve!

Burrito Casserole

Normally people cook more over the holidays, but I get lazy! So now I've got to step it up and start cooking again.

I found this recipe from blog chef, one of my favorite recipe blogs! It is so yummy!!

Ingredients:

1 lb ground beef
1/2 medium onion finely chopped
1 package taco seasoning
6 flour tortillas
1 (16 oz) can re-fried beans
2-3 cups shredded cheese
1 can cream of mushroom soup
4 oz sour cream
hot sauce (I used salsa)

Directions:

In a large skillet, brown ground beef and onion. Drain. Add taco seasoning and stir in re-fried beans. In a separate bowl mix cream of mushroom soup and sour cream.

Spread 1/2 of the sour cream mixture into the bottom of a casserole dish. Tear up 3 tortillas and spread them over the sour cream mixture. Put 1/2 of the meat and bean mixture on top of that. Add a layer of shredded cheese (add hot sauce or salsa if using). Repeat the layers.

Sprinkle remaining cheese over the top and bake uncovered at *350 for 20-30 min.

*I used a square baking dish. A 9x13 is to big but my 8x8 was borderline to small. So something in between would be perfect.

BEEF ENCHILADAS

Okay, this recipe makes enough for 2 pans, and I always freeze one for later. Last time I added the sauce before freezing & when we cooked it the enchiladas were soggy - GROSS! So this time I just put all the enchiladas in a pan with a note to add the sauce & cheese on top before baking. (We'll see how that goes.)

Even though I like shredded beef rather than ground, this recipe is spicy and DELICIOUS! If anyone tries it with shredded beef - let me know how it turns out. :)

Ingredients:
1 lb lean ground beef or turkey
1/2 c tomato sauce
1 TBS taco seasoning
1 tsp crushed red pepper
2 tsp oregano
Dash of Tabasco
1 can black beans, or kidney beans, drained
shredded cheddar cheese
ground onions
12 corn tortillas
2 cans red enchilada sauce

Brown ground beef in skillet. Add tomato sauce, taco seasoning, red pepper, oregano, beans and Tabasco sauce. Mix thoroughly. Divide beef mixture & spoon over each tortilla. Sprinkle cheese & ground onions over beef mixture & roll up tortillas.

Place seam side down in baking dish. Pour sauce over top. Add additional cheese.
Bake at 350* for 30 min.
(You can also layer the enchiladas like lasagna instead of rolling individual enchiladas as well.)

Queso Dip

Ingredients:

1 lb *Velveeta cheese, cut into 1/2 in cubes
1 can (10oz) Rotel diced tomatoes & green chilies, un-drained
1 can chili without beans (optional)

Directions:

Mix ingredients in 2 qt microwaveable bowl. Microwave on high 5 min or until Velveeta is completely melted, stirring after 3 min.

Serve with tortillas or Wheat Thin crackers.

* I have used Mexican Velveeta before, since I had extra from my Chicken Tortilla Soup recipe, and it is great!

Texas Caviar

Ingredients:
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 can corn, drained
1 can garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
1 4 oz can diced green chilies
4 med tomatoes, diced
1 med green pepper, diced
1 white onion, diced
1/2 bunch cilantro, finely chopped
juice of 4 limes
5 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
3 avocados, diced
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
Combine. :) Serve with tortilla chips.

Chicken Enchiladas

I can't believe I haven't posted this recipe. It is one of my staples. Very yummy and very healthy. It came out of the Eating for Life cookbook.

Ingredients:
4 chicken breasts
4 green onions sliced
3 cans (10 oz each) green enchilada sauce
8 corn or flour tortillas
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
TOP: 1/2 cup salsa, shredded lettuce, chopped tomatoes, olives, sour cream

Directions:
Spray 9x13 baking pan. Boil chicken and shred (I have used baked and grilled chicken, whatever you like) Spray a large skillet, saute onions for 2 min. Add shredded chicken and 1 can enchilada sauce. Cook until heated through. Microwave other 2 cans of sauce for 2 min. Dip tortillas in sauce, fill with chicken mixture, roll tortilla. Pour remaining sauce and sprinkle with cheese. Bake until melted. 350*

MEXICAN RICE SALAD

This is a great recipe for a potluck side dish - it makes a TON!! It is super yummy though & since I had leftover chicken, all I had to do was make some rice & then mix it all up!

Salad Ingredients:
5 c cooked rice
2 tsp salt
2 cans black beans
1 can corn
1 bunch green onions, chopped
2 c shredded chicken
1/2 c chopped tomatoes (I didn't add these)

Dressing:
1/4 c lime juice
2 TBS vinegar
2 TBS packed brown sugar
2/3 c oil
4 pickled jalapenos (I had sliced ones in a jar & just threw a bunch in)
2 tsp chili powder
1 tsp cumin

Add all salad ingredients in large bowl. Make sure the rice & chicken are cooled a little.
Put all dressing ingredients in blender & then pour over salad.
Mix well.
Chill for at least 1 hour before serving.

This was a little hotter the next day. I like it better warmed up just in a bowl. Scott & the boys ate it in tortillas w/cheese & lettuce. Yum yum!

CREAMY TOMATILLO DRESSING

Ingredients:
3 tomatillos, peeled and quartered
juice of 1/2 lime
1/2 c buttermilk
1/2 c mayonnaise
1/2 c sour cream
1 pkg dry buttermilk ranch dressing
1 c fresh chopped cilantro
2 cloves garlic, minced (1 tsp)
3 tsp sugar
1 jalapeno, sliced - add more if you like spicy

Place all ingredients in blender, mix well. Refrigerate for one hour before serving.

CILANTRO LIME RICE

This rice was so good, and the best thing was that we just dumped everything in the rice cooker. Super easy!

Ingredients:
3 cups rice
3 cups water
4 tsp.(or cubes) chicken bouillon
4 tsp. garlic, minced (I think I only used one)
1 TBS canola oil
2 TBS fresh lime juice
1/2 bunch of cilantro
1/2 onion
1 can green chilies

Blend cilantro, onion and chilies in food processor. Then, either dump everything in a rice cooker like I did - or - bring water to boil & add all ingredients. Simmer covered for 30 min or until rice is cooked.

FIESTA RAVIOLI

Another hit at my house - YUM!
This was actually quite spicy, so if you don't like really spicy food, just use a mild salsa or enchilada sauce.

Ingredients:
1 pkg frozen beef ravioli (25 oz)
1 can enchilada sauce
1 jar salsa
2 c. shredded monterey/colby jack cheese
black olives

Cook ravioli according to directions on pkg. Meanwhile, in large skillet combine enchilada sauce & salsa.
Cook & stir over med heat until heated. Drain ravioli - add to sauce. Stir to coat.
Top with cheese & olives.
Cover & cook over low heat 3-4 min. or until cheese is melted.