Taco Mac & Cheese

My husband loves taco anything! Ask him any night what he wants for dinner and you will have him say "TACO!" It's pretty much a running joke now. So, naturally I'm always scoping out taco recipes. I'm always up for pasta and this gives a taco twist to an American Chop Suey.

 

1 lb of your favorite pasta, cooked

1 lb ground beef

1 medium onion, chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

1/2 packet taco seasoning

1 cup salsa

1 cup reduced fat sour cream

1 cup shredded Mexican cheese blend

2 cups milk

2 Tbsp cream cheese

 

Recipe Adapted from Cassie Craves

 

Cook past according to package directions. Drain and set aside.

 

Spray a skillet with some nonstick spray and add onions and garlic. Saute over medium heat for 5 minutes, until they start to caramelize. Add in the beef and seasoning, breaking the beef apart as it cooks.

 

When the beef is thoroughly cooked, add in the salsa, sour cream, cream cheese, and cheese. Mix well until all cheese is melted and blended in. Lastly, add the milk and mix well. Cover and simmer on low for 5 minutes.



Mix in your pasta.

Garnish with salsa and sour cream and enjoy!



Sweet Corn Tomalito

Chevy's was one of my husband's favorite Mexican restaurants. When they all closed down, I bought the restaurant's cookbook to try and make him some dishes. 

The first time, I made him a huge sampler platter for Valentines Day. This was back 9 years ago when clearly out relationship was still new and I gladly spent 8 hours in the kitchen cooking something special for him. Now, I just cook a few dishes from time to time, like this one, that he loves. 

This is a great side for almost anything. I usually serve it on Thanksgiving or Christmas. It's not hard to make, it's just time consuming. 

You can prepare this ahead of time and cook it later. It freezes well in a Ziploc freezer bag. Just portion it out and then lay the bag flat and expel any air. Defrosts in the fridge overnight or on the counter in about an hour. Don't try to can or jar this! I'm huge on jarring things and this one was a big mistake! The cornmeal expands and will explode everything everywhere. What a mess that was!

 

6 cups drained corn kernels

¾ cup milk

¼ cup melted butter

2/3 cup sugar

¾ cup cornmeal

¾ Tsp baking powder

¾ Tsp salt

¼ cup milk

Preheat oven to 250 degrees. Blend 3 cups of the corn kernels and the ¾ cup of milk in the blender. Add butter and sugar until smooth (2 minutes). Grind remaining corn kernels slightly in food processor and mix corn mixtures together with remaining ingredients. Pour into a baking pan and cover with aluminum foil. Set inside larger baking pan and fill ¾ of the way up with water. Place in oven and cook for 1 ½-2 hrs until hot. Scoop out pudding portions.