Recipe: Taco Pasta Bake

My recipe for taco pasta SALAD is a common go-to recipe in our home simply because it requires minimal ingredients and I can whip it up in no time. However, when I decided to to whip it up the other day, I realized I didn't have the needed sour cream or salsa. Now what? Well thanks to my love for pasta and past experience of making a quick meat sauce, I whipped up the lovely creation of taco pasta BAKE! Enjoy!

Ingredients
1 box of rigatoni, ziti, or mostaccioli
1 lb. ground beef
1 envelope of taco seasoning
1 cup water
1/2 pkg of cream cheese
2 cups of shredded Mexican/Fiesta cheese

Directions
1. Cook pasta according to package.
2. Brown ground beef. I added a little salt, black pepper, and adobo for taste.
3. Add taco seasoning and 1 cup of water. Let it simmer for about 5 minutes until the liquid has reduced. I like my pasta with a little coating so I left enough liquid to coat the pasta a little with the oils.
4. Add the 1/2 pkg of cream cheese to the beef mixture, stir until melted and combined, then remove from heat.
5. Mix the pasta, beef mixture, and shredded cheese in a 9x13 baking pan.
6. Spread the mixture evenly in the pan making sure all the pasta is coated well, and top with a layer of shredded cheese. We love our pasta really cheesy so add as much or reduce the amount to your liking.
8. Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit uncovered for approx. 30 minutes. Enjoy!

Recipe: Chorizo Quesadillas with Guacamole

Two items we typically always have in our house is tortillas and chorizo. Simply because you can do so many things with tortillas, and chorizo is a quick and simple thing to cook. If they want a quick snack, Mahal and JAM like to request quesadillas. I've done the plain and simple cheese quesadillas, and I've also tried to make them with chicken. Then I had an aha! moment just like when I thought that mixing my two favorite foods, Mexican and pasta, into one dish for taco pasta salad was genius. Why not make two simple dishes into one?! So here we have it! Chorizo quesadillas with guacamole. If you didn't know, for the LONGEST time i despised guacamole. I know I know, I was probably the only one on this planet that did, but the more I tried it, the more I liked it! It was more of an acquired taste for me. I just made guac for the first time to pair with this recipe and it turned out great in my opinion. This recipe made 6-7 quesadillas. Adjust the ingredients to your liking. ENJOY!!

Chorizo Quesadillas with Guacamole

Ingredients:

9 oz pork chorizo, casing removed
1 small red onion, chopped
1 to 2 cups white button mushrooms, stems removed and chopped
1 large poblano pepper, seeded and chopped
Salt and black pepper to taste
Shredded Monterey Jack cheese
Medium- sized corn tortillas
Guacamole

Directions:
1. Cook chorizo on medium heat until browned and break up the meat into smaller pieces.

2. Add the onion, mushrooms, and poblano pepper. Sauté it all, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are browned. Season with salt and black pepper.

3. Heat a small skillet on medium heat. Spray the pan with nonstick cooking spray and add a tortilla onto the skillet. Put about a 1/2 a cup of cheese onto the tortilla and top with the chorizo mixture. Top the chorizo mixture with another tortilla.

4. Heat the tortilla until it is browned and flip the quesadilla to brown the top tortilla and fully melt the cheese. Cut into 4 wedges and serve with the guacamole.

Guacamole

Ingredients:

3 avocados

2 cloves of garlic, minced

1 small onion, minced

1 lemon

Cilantro, chopped

1 medium tomato, chopped

Salt

Directions:

1. Scoop out the flesh of avocados and mash until there are no chunks left.

2. Add garlic, onion, juice of lemon, cilantro, and tomato. 

3. Add a pinch of salt for taste. Mix well and Enjoy!

Recipe: Chicken Enchiladas

I love chicken breast because there's so much you can whip up with it. I usually have some cooked chicken on hand for times when I want to whip up something quick since cooking the chicken is what usually is the most time consuming part of most recipes. If I want to whip up something fairly quick and yummy or if I have guests coming over last minute, this is definitely my go to recipe. It's always a crowd pleasure and takes minimal work!

Ingredients:
* 1 lb. boneless chicket breast
* 1 - 16 ounce jar of Pace Picante Sauce
* 2 teaspoons chili powder
* 1/2 cup of sour cream
* A bag of shredded Monterey Jack cheese
* 1 package of  corn tortillas (8-inch)
* 1 - 28 ounce can of Green Chile Enchilada Sauce
* 1 green onion, thinly sliced


Directions:
1. Boil the chicken breast on medium/medium high with your seasoning of choice until the chicken is tender enough to shred with a fork. For 1 lb. of boneless chicken breast it usually takes me 1 hour to 1 hr. 20 min. to achieve this consistency. My go - to seasonings are the ones I used in my Taco Pasta Salad recipe.

2. Once your chicken is cooked, drain it and shred it all in a large bowl.

3. Add jar of picante sauce, chili powder, sour cream, and about 1 cup of Monterey Jack cheese to your bowl of shredded chicken and mix it all thoroughly. If you like your enchiladas more cheesy add a little extra cheese to the mix.

4. Warm about 10 tortillas. I warm my tortillas in the microwave for about 1 minute and cover it with a moist paper towel to soften the tortillas and avoid cracking when rolling them.

5. Spoon about 1 tablespoon of the chicken mixture vertically into the center of a tortilla, and then roll up the tortilla and place it on a lightly greased, shallow baking pan. Continue steps 4 and 5 until you use all of the chicken mixture.

6. Once you have your chicken - filled tortillas lined up on your baking pan, cover all the tortillas generously with a can of green chile enchilada sauce. It's personal preference as to what kind of sauce you use but I like the green sauce. You can also use another jar of Pace Picante Sauce as an alternative or they offer red chile sauce as well.

7. Generously apply Monterey Jack cheese over the top of the sauce - covered tortillas and top it off with green onion.

8. Bake at 350^oF  for 40 minutes or until the enchiladas are hot and bubbling. Enjoy!