Sweet Potato Foil Packet Tacos

* Photo and Recipe Credit to Natalie@ perrysplate.com

These were so fun! Blaine turned up his nose as I was preparing them thinking they were sloppy joes or hobo dinners. Then he couldn't stop "ooooo"ing and "ahhhhhh"ing. He loved them! They were really easy to make and very tasty indeed! I doubled the meat (and beans, tomato sauce, and taco seasoning) in the recipe, because Heaven knows that a half a pound of ground beef would simply never do in this house.

Sweet Potato Foil Packet Tacos

1/2 lb ground beef or turkey
2-3 T taco seasoning
1/2 cup tomato sauce (4 ounces)
1 can black, kidney, or pinto beans, drained
2-3 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch cubes (about 6 cups total)
2 T butter
salt
1 1/2 cups chopped fresh spinach
1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
sour cream, salsa, and/or guacamole for garnish
6 12-inch long pieces of aluminum foil

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

Brown ground meat in a skillet over medium-high heat. Stir in taco seasoning, tomato sauce, and beans. Set aside.

To assemble packets, spray the foil with non-stick spray. Place 1 cup sweet potato cubes in the center of each piece. Top with a small piece of butter (about 1 tsp) and a pinch or two of salt. Sprinkle some chopped spinach over the sweet potatoes, followed by about 1/3 cup of taco meat and sprinkle of cheese. Fold the sides in, then bring the top and bottom ends of the foil together in the center and fold, sealing the packet.

Repeat with remaining ingredients, placing the packets on a rimmed cookie sheet. Bake for 25-30 minutes until the sweet potatoes are tender.

Serve with sour cream, salsa, and/or guacamole.

Makes 6 servings.

Healthy Eating

My husband and have I committed to 3 months of drastically healthier eating. We're doing as much un-processed organic whole food as we can. We had resigned ourselves to some pretty cruddy meals but, one week in, we've actually eaten pretty well.

We had this roasted vegetable pasta sauce on homemade pasta on Sunday. I blended it up because that was the only way I could bring myself to eat it (I am super picky about veggies). It was quite good and made a TON. I froze the leftovers in 1 1/2 cup portions. It made an appearance later in the week as pizza sauce on whole wheat pizza dough topped with fresh mozzarella, artichoke hearts and spinach. And next week I'm going to use it in this lasagna.

On Monday I sauteed some onion, garlic, chopped asparagus and spinach in little butter. I tossed it with the leftover homemade pasta from Sunday night and it was probably my favorite meal of the week. 

On Wednesday I made this gnocci (but subbed half the flour with whole wheat). It also turned out really yummy. I topped it with this pesto.

On Thursday we tried out these mashed potato and roasted vegetable enchiladas. I used real potatoes instead of instant and a red bell pepper instead of the mushrooms. I also added some onion and garlic to the veggie mix and followed the reviewers advice by seasoning it all with some cumin. I also used these tortillas and the enchilada sauce from this recipe. We were pretty worried about how these would go but they were super good. My husband in particular loooved them.

Kristi's whole wheat blender pancakes have made several appearances. My sister is visiting and she said she normally doesn't like whole wheat stuff but she loves the pancakes as much as I do. We've been topping them with frozen berries I cook down with a little bit of honey on the stove. So yummy!

Lime Rice

I made Kristi's Honey lime enchiladas the other night with this rice (and some beans) and it was a great combo, and if i had a little more time it would have been good with some fresh Pico de Gallo, very Cafe Rio style. This makes a lot of rice, so i did half the recipe, and with the enchiladas i did corn tortillas and it was really good.

Lime Rice

in a sauce pan, saute

2 Tbs butter
1 yellow onion chopped
4 cloves garlic minced

In a large pot bring to boil:
6 2/3 cups water
8 tsp chicken bouillon
1/2 bunch of cilantro ( i didn't have any and so i didn't put this in)
2 tsp cumin
2 small cans diced green chili's
1 Tbs lime juice
1/2 tsp pepper

Add three cups of rice, and the butter/garlic/onion mixture. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 30 min. (stir occasionally so rice doesn't stick to bottom of pan)

Chili Verde

3 Tbs worcestershire sauce
1 Tbs garlic pepper ( I used just garlic, because I don't know what garlic pepper is!)
3 lbs pork picnic roast ( I used 6 pork chops)
1 large onion, diced
1 (14.5 oz) can chicken broth
2 (4 oz) cans diced green chilies, drained
3 (7 oz) cans green salsa (or one batch of your homemade tomatillo salsa!)
2 (15.5 oz) cans great Northern beans, drained (I used a can of black beans and a can of corn)

1. Pour half of the worcestershire sauce into the pan of the slow cooker, and half of the garlic pepper. Place the roast in the pan and sprinkle remaining worcestershire sauce and garlic pepper over the top. Add the onions, and chilies, and pour in the chicken broth. Cover and cook on low for 8-10 hours (or high for 5 hours!)
2.b When roast is tender enough to pull apart with a fork, add the green salsa, and the beans, if desired. Continue cooking until heated through. Serve as soup, over chimichangas, or over rice (I served over rice!)

* recipe from allrecipes.com

* The best thing that ever happened to me as a chef was learning to improvise. Obviously I did not have all the ingredients for this recipe, but I made substitutions and the result was awesome, I really loved it. So don't be afraid to improvise!

Tomatillo Salsa Verde

Last week my bountiful basket was overflowing with tomatillos. I had added a "mexican pack" to my order and so I was the proud owner of all sorts of mexican deliciousness- jalepenos, cilantro, tomatillos, green onions, etc. So rather than opt for the typical cafe rio salad dressing, I decided to make tomatillo salsa verde, it was delicious!

1 pound tomatillos, husked (I had no idea how many this would be so I just used all 8 of mine)
1/2 C finely chopped onion
1tsp minced garlic (I got to use fresh, thanks bountiful basket!)
1 serrano chile pepper, minced ( I used a jalepeno)
2Tbs chopped cilantro (I am sure I used way more than this)
1 Tbs chopped oregano
1/2 t cumin
1 1/2 t salt
2 C water (based on reader suggestions I subbed 1/4 c of water with lime juice!)

1. Place tomatillos, onion, garlic and chile pepper in a saucepan. Season with cilantro, oregano, cumin and salt. Pour in water. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until the tomatillos are soft, 10-15 minutes.
2. Using a blender, carefully puree the tomatillos and water in batches until smooth.

*recipe from allrecipes.com

* use your tomatillo salsa for dipping chips in, over chimis, in amy's cilantro cream sauce, or in the chili verde recipe I am posting next!

Rio Chicken

I personally have never had chicken that tastes like this at Cafe Rio, because if you go to Cafe Rio and don't get the pork, you've got issues. But this is an excellent chicken recipe perfect for burritos or salads! Especially when paired with the cafe rio dressing found on this site. Enjoy!

Cafe Rio Chicken

1 small bottle kraft zesty italian dressing
1 Tbs Chili Powder
1 Tbs Cumin
3 cloves garlic- minced
5lbs chicken breasts

Cook all together in crock pot for four hours. Shred chicken with fork and cook an additional hour.

Magical!

Chicken Azteca

I am a little bewildered that Chicken Azteca is not already on here. It's simple, it's good....but I couldn't find it on here today.

It's another Ralphie original, but actually I think she may have gotten it from Gretchen or someone. Regardless, yum.

Chicken Azteca

1 15 oz can black beans, draned
1 15 oz can corn
2 cloves minced garlic
3/4 t cumin
1C chunky salsa divided
2-3 boneless skinless chicken breasts
4 oz (1/2 pkg) cream cheese, cubed

lemon juice
cooked rice

1. Combine beans, corn, garlic, cumin and half of salsa in crock pot
2. arrange chicken over top (I cut it up so it will cook faster) and pour remaining salsa over chicken
3. cover and cook 4-6 hours
4. Use a couple of forks to shred chicken while in pot
5. stir in cream cheese and lemon juice, cook on high till cream cheese melts
6. spoon over rice

enjoy~!

Fiery Fish Tacos

I hopped on Allrecipes.com the other day and this was one of the featured recipes and since I spend a hundred dollars a week on fish tacos at Del Taco I thought I would give this recipe a shot, we loved it! I adapted it slightly, the original recipe called for way more cayenne and all the reviewers thought it was too spicy, I also added avacado.

Fiery Fish Tacos

1 C corn
1/2 c red onion diced
1/2 c diced red pepper
1 avacado cubed
1 C fresh cilantro leaves finely chopped
1 lime zested and juiced
sour cream
1t cayenne pepper
2 t salt
1/2 t ground black pepper
6 tilapia fillets
2T olive oil
12 corn tortillas, warmed

Preheat grill for high heat (we used our george foreman with great results!), in a small bowl combine cayenne pepper (or chili powder would work), salt and pepper. Brush each fish fillet with olive oil and rub the pepper mixture on the fish.

Arrange fillets on grill and grill 3 minutes per side.

Meanwhile mix together corn (I cooked the corn on a hot fry pan with no oil, I guess this is called "blackened corn"), red onion, red pepper, avacado, lime zest and lime juice, mix all together.

Heat the corn tortillas (you don't have to but they hold together much better if you do) for about twenty seconds on each side on a warm fry pan. Or I bet you could wrap them all in foil and stick them in the oven.

layer two corn tortillas (or they'll break, promise!) and top with fish, the salsa, sour cream, and cheese (if you want!).

They were so yum!

Enchilada Soup

My upstairs neighbor made this for us the other night, delicious!

Chicken Bouillion Cubes
4 Chicken Breasts
2 Cans Corn (drained)
2 Cans Black Beans (drained)
2 Cans mild gree enchilada sauce
1 can diced green chiles

Boil chicken with water and boullion cubes. When done take chicken out and dice, keep the water. Put the chicken back in the water and add rest of ingredients bring to a boil...

Um she doesn't put on there how much water or how many chicken cubes....I am guessing maybe 5 cups of water and 5 bouillion cubes..?

Honey Lime Enchiladas- four stars!

Adapted slighty from Mykitchencafe

This was easy and very yum, even with my questionably old tortillas : ) Seriously, yum, this is what I will make when I have to take someone dinner next. All you ladies in TX who are having babies, make this for yourself and pretend its from me : )

Honey Lime Enchiladas

5 Tbs honey
6 or 7 Tbs Lime juice
1 Tbs chili powder
1/2 t garlic powder

1lb chicken, cooked and shredded (you can use 3 chicken breasts if you want, I used a rotisserie chicken...yum)
8-10 flour tortillas
1 lb monterey jack cheese, shredded (I used sharp cheddar)
1 C sour cream
16 oz green enchilada sauce

Mix the first four ingredients and toss with shredded chicken. Let it marinate for at least half an hour, the longer the better ( I just did half an hour and it was great!). Pour about half a cup of enchilada sauce on the bottom of a 9x13 pan. Fill flour tortillas with chicken and shredded cheese, saving about 1 cup of cheese to sprinkle on the top of enchiladas (I think I used way less cheese than what the recipe calls for, not sure, I just used what I had!). Mix the remaining enchilada sauce with the sour cream and leftover marinade. Pour sauce on top of the enchiladas and sprinkle with cheese. Bake at 350 dgs for thirty minutes until brown and crispy on top.

* Freezable meal: freeze prior to baking. To bake, preheat oven to 350 dgs and bake enchiladas, covered (without thawing first) for one hour. Uncover and bake 30 minutes longer, until brown and crispy on top.

7-Layer dip or Taco Casserole

My friend makes this and serves for dinner. I never thought of 7-layer dip as a maindish, but it was fabulous!

7-layer dip:

1 lb ground beef
1/2 package taco seasoning
1 can refried beans
1 c. sour cream
8 oz. cream cheese
1 can diced tomatoes
salsa (I replaced the tomatoes and salsa with a can of Rotel)
1 container guacamole (I make mine homemade)
mozzarella
black olives
Tortilla chips or wraps

Brown 1 lb ground beef and drain.
Add about 1/2 pkg taco seasoning (no water, though).
Meanwhile, spread 1 can refried beans into 9x13 pan.
Ground beef goes on top of that.
Mix together 1 c. sour cream with 8 oz cream cheese and then spread on top.
Next goes on 1 can diced tomatoes (drained) plus some salsa (as desired).
Then 1 container of guacamole
Top with mozzarella and sliced olives.

Bake 350 for 30min.

I like to serve with Hint of Lime chips, but my hubby likes to scoop his out into a tortilla for a burrito.

Tex-Mex Stew

This recipe was adapted from the parents.com website. We ALL liked it (and that says a lot because my kids are terribly picky).

1-1/2 pounds lean ground beef
1/2 green pepper, chopped
1 can (15.5 ounces) black beans, drained and rinsed
1 can (11 ounces) corn niblets, drained
1 can diced tomatoes with green chilis (Rotel or generic)
1 can tomato sauce
1 packet onion soup mix
2-1/4 cups water
1 tablespoon ground cumin + a couple shakes
1/2 teaspoon salt + a couple pinches
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano + a couple shakes
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (only used 2 shakes total)
a couple shakes of cinnamon
shake of garlic powder
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

Directions

1. Brown beef with green peppers in 5- to 6-quart large, deep pot over medium-high heat, about 5 minutes, breaking up meat with wooden spoon but leaving some large pieces. Drain fat.

2. Add beans, corn, tomato & chilis, tomato sauce, soup mix, 2 cups water, cumin, salt, oregano, cayenne & cinnamon. Simmer, covered, 10 minutes. Stir 1/4 cup water into flour in small cup until smooth. Stir into stew; cook until thickened, about 1 minute.

We served with tortilla chip scoops. I've edited this post with some of the seasoning tweaks that I think really make the dish -- the cinnamon I think really brought out the flavor. Sorry the measurements aren't exact -- that's how I cook. It's good and it's EASY and it's fast.

Cilantro Chicken

I got this recipe off of Holly's blog (thelauritzens.blogspot.com). It was easy and delicious! I served with rice and beans! Thanks Holly

Cilantro Chicken

2 T lime juice

2 T vegetable oil

1 T honey

4 chicken breasts

1 C finely crushed tortilla chips

16 oz. thick-n-chunky salsa

2 T minced fresh cilantro ( I am certain I used a lot more than this!)

1 C shredded Monterey Jack Cheese ( I used pepper jack)

Combine lime juice, honey, and oil. Dip chicken in lime juice mixture then coat with crushed chips. Place in ungreased 9 x 13 baking dish. Bake uncovered @ 350 degrees for 45 minutes or until juices run clear. Combine Salsa and Cilantro. Pour over and sprinkle with Cheese, bake for 20 more minutes or until the cheese melts. (*I think this even tastes better with sour cream added when serving!)

Cafe Rio-esque Chile Lime Rice

My sister pointed me toward this recipe on her sister-in-law's blog. Copied and pasted here for your convenience:

saute in pan:
2 tbsp butter
1 yellow onion chopped
4 cloves garlic
in large pot bring to boil:
6 2/3 cup water
8 tsp. chicken bullion
1/2 bunch chopped cilantro
2 tsp cumin
2 small cans diced green chilis
1 tbsp. lime juice
1/2 tsp. salt

*add onion and garlic to boiling water. Add 3 cups long grain rice, reduce heat, cover and simmer for 30 minutes

It was definitely much better than the cilantro lime rice, but it still could use some tweaking. Next time I make it I'm going to halve the cumin. 2 teaspoons is a lot...you could really taste it and my house smelled like cumin for 3 days. Also, I think I might reduce the bouillon by one or 2 teaspoons and increase the salt. But I did like this rice and it would probably do well as a stand alone side dish. It worked really well as a burrito filler with the shredded beef. The tastes seemed to be more complimentary than with the cilantro lime rice.

Burritos

I'm on a burrito kick right now. It's kind of ridiculous actually...I've even started dreaming about them. I kind of wish I were pregnant so I could justify a burrito a day ("The baby demands a chili shredded beef burrito!") but, alas.

We're doing a burrito bar for my son's 1st birthday party in January so the next few weeks are going to be spent testing recipes. Here's what I tried tonight:

Whole wheat tortillas - was really excited about this since it's so highly rated on AllRecipes but turns out the dough needs to be covered with a damp cloth. My beautiful little dough balls dried out during the resting period. Good thing I bought back up tortillas. But I think they're worth a shot for anyone who has ever had the desire to make their own tortillas. I'll try again at some point.

Shredded Beef - This was excellent. I took the advice of several of the AllRecipes commenters and went with the cheaper and easier-to-shred chuck roast instead of rump roast. Also, since some commenters complained that it tasted a little bland, I added a 3rd can of hot tomato sauce (the brand I used was called El Pato and came in a yellow can) plus 2 cans of water to submerge the roast, as suggested. It definitely had a kick and Aaron and I both enjoyed it. I just need to learn to be patient and let roasts cook longer since I kept trying to shred it before it was ready and said bad words at the people who swore that chuck roast would be easier. It really was easy after it had cooked thoroughly. I shredded it and then left it in the juices in the crockpot for another hour or so. Delish.

Cilantro Lime Rice - I didn't realize that this is supposed to be a copy of Chipotle's rice, which I don't actually like all that much. It was ok and if you like Chipotle's rice you might like this. It was fine as a burrito filler, but I didn't care for it on its own. What I'd really like is a recipe for Cafe Rio's green chile rice. Anyone have that?? Google searches are not bringing up anything promising.

I just used bottled green sauce since I was too lazy to go searching for tomatillos to make my own (they're going out of season). It was good, as per usual.

We threw some cotija and monterey jack in there and voila! Burritos. Sans beans. We don't do beans around here, good for your heart or no.

The burritos were excellent, though I wouldn't have minded a change of rice. We had plenty of leftovers so we made a couple more, wrapped them in foil and plastic and threw them in the freezer for easy lunches. I'll probably eat them both tomorrow since the imaginary baby requires them.

Chicken Enchiladas Verdes

(image from Simply Recipes)

I recently made these enchiladas for Aaron and I. The enchiladas themselves were ok (I thought the chicken filling was a bit dry..probably because I didn't have the thighs the recipe calls for on hand and used white meat instead) but the real standout was the sauce.

I luuurve Mexican green sauce and this one is easy and so very good. I always see tomatillos at our local farmers market and wondered what they were. Now I know. They are a food of the gods and they exist for making delicious delicious green sauce.

Recipe here.

Mexican Pasta

Very easy and fast and uses mostly food storage. Can't go wrong with that. Blaine loved it, I thought it was okay, but Gwen scarfed it down. We topped with cheese and sour cream.

• 
  
• 
  
• 1/2 pound seashell pasta
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 onions, chopped
• 1 green bell pepper, chopped
• 1/2 cup sweet corn kernels
• 1 (15 ounce) can black beans, drained
• 1 (14.5 ounce) can peeled and diced tomatoes
• 1/4 cup salsa
• 1/4 cup sliced black olives
• 1 1/2 tablespoons taco seasoning mix
• salt and pepper to taste

1. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain.
2. While pasta is cooking, heat olive oil over medium heat in a large skillet. Cook onions and pepper in oil until lightly browned, 10 minutes. Stir in corn and heat through. Stir in black beans, tomatoes, salsa, olives, taco seasoning and salt and pepper and cook until thoroughly heated, 5 minutes.
3. Toss sauce with cooked pasta and serve.

Two Bean Tamale Pie

This is a really good recipe that can be made mostly from food storage. It's great when you haven't been to the store for a while : ) It's not like my very favorite but it is a go to often in our house and it's pretty good!

1 C chopped green pepper (easily omitted if the one you have in the fridge is rotten like mine was last night, ew).
1/2 C chopped onion
2 cloves minced garlic
1T cooking oil
1 can kidney beans
1 can pinto beans
1 can or 6 oz veggie juice (V8)
1 can diced green chiles
1 t chile powder
1/2 t cumin
1 pkg corn muffin mix
1/2 C cheddar cheese
1/4 cup cilantro or parsley

Grease a square baking dish and set aside. In skillet cook sweet pepper, onion and garlic in hot oil until tender. Stir in beans, veggie juice, chile peppers, chili powder and cumin and heat through. Spoon mixture into prepared dish.

Prepare corn muffin mix according to package directions, add cheese and cilantro, stirring until just combined. Bake uncovered in a 400 dg oven for 25 minutes. Serve with sour cream and salsa.

Lake Ralphie Dip

I have two similar recipes for chip dips that are both very good, so I took the best of both worlds and made a mega good dip. I'll give the two individual recipes, then my conglomeration.

Lake Powell Dip (from Winder Family Cookbook)

1 Can black olives (chopped)
1 small can diced green chiles
4 green onions (chopped all)
2 tomatoes
1-1/2 T oil
1 tsp white vinegar
1 tsp garlic salt

mix together and serve with tortilla chips


Ralphie's Famous Salsa (From Ralphie's house)
1 bunch green onions chopped
1 bunch cilantro chopped
1 can of corn drained
1 can black eyed peas drained and rinsed
1 large tomato chopped
2 avacados chopped
1 packet italian seasoning
1/4 C oil
14 C water


Lake Ralphie Dip
4 Green onions chopped
1 can black olives
1 can black eyed peas
1 can corn
2 avacados
3 tomatoes (or more, can't go wrong here)
some garlic salt
splash of white vinegar
bunch of chopped cilantro
1/4 C oil
1/4 C water
splash of lemon juice
salt

Can't go wrong. Run with it.

Salsa Verde

We made this last night to have with the "Cafe Rio" pork barbecoa tacos. I've been craving fresh salsa, but with the Tomato scare I thought we'd try tomatillos. Tasted very authentic!

7 or 8 tomatillos
1/4 cup chopped onion
1 to 2 jalapeno peppers chopped with seeds (For Mild -only one deseeded)
garlic to taste
salt and pepper to taste
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
lime juice - if you want even more zing

Boil tomatillos until they start to pop open - about 10 minutes. Mix all ingredients in a blender and refridgerate. Serve cool.