Taco Tuesday

Oh, joy! It's Taco Tuesday! Today's yummy offerings include Easy Oven-Baked Chicken Tacos and Spicy Mexican Shrimp Taco Bowls. Sounds yummy, right? Enjoy!

QUICK TACO PIZZA

Tacos and pizza? Does it get any better than this? This recipes is from Old El Paso, and begins, "Blogger Cate O’Malley from Sweetnicks shares a favorite recipe. Some days, you have a craving for tacos. Some days, pizza. With this quick 30 minutes start-to-finish recipe, you don’t have to choose."

Prep Time: 5 minutes; Total Time: 30 minutes; Makes 8 servings

To view this online, go to https://www.oldelpaso.com/recipes/quick-taco-pizza.

Ingredients

1 package Pillsbury™ refrigerated pizza crust

1-1/4 lb ground beef

1 package Old El Paso™ taco seasoning mix

shredded lettuce (just a handful is perfect)

3-4 tablespoons of Old El Paso™ Salsa

1/4 cup shredded Cheddar cheese, more as desired

Preparation

Preheat oven and prepare the pizza crust, following the package instructions.

While the crust is prebaking, put the ground beef in a pan on medium heat, breaking it up. Once the beef has browned, drain the grease from the pan. Add 1/4 cup water and the taco seasoning package. Mix thoroughly, return to the heat, and allow the beef to cook for another 3-4 minutes as the sauce thickens.

Spread the beef on the prebaked crust and pop it back in the oven for 5 minutes. Remove the pizza from the oven and add the shredded lettuce, salsa, and the cheese. Return to the oven until the cheese has melted and the crust has browned, approximately 5-7 minutes. Cut into slices and serve.

Expert Tips

Swap out the Cheddar and use Mexican or Monterey Jack cheese.

Add drizzles of sour cream, chopped green chiles, or diced avocado for extra flavor.

SLAB BACON TACOS WITH BURNED SCALLION CREMA

This is from Sam Sifton in The New York Times cooking enewsletter. Sam wrote, "This is candied bacon, essentially, on corn tortillas with a creamy, smoke-flecked sauce that tastes of scallion and lime. I like it with pineapple salsa as well, and a salad of cilantro, mint and soft lettuce. You could make it with your standard sliced bacon from the market, but it’s far superior with the thick-cut variety or, best of all, with a chunk of uncut bacon that you can slice as thick as you like."

Yield: 6 to 8 servings; Time: 45 minutes

This was featured in "The Expandable Feast", and can be viewed online at https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1018991-slab-bacon-tacos-with-burned-scallion-crema.

Ingredients

For the bacon:

2 tablespoons chile powder

1 tablespoon ground cumin

1 tablespoon brown sugar

2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper

2 pounds slab bacon, cut into 1/4-inch slices

For the crema:

1 bunch green scallions, trimmed and cut into large pieces

1 jalapeño

1 to 2 limes

1 cup sour cream

1/2 cup mayonnaise

1 teaspoon kosher salt, or to taste

For serving:

Corn tortillas

Lime wedges

Pineapple salsa (see recipe)

Preparation

Heat oven to 450 degrees. Mix the chile powder, ground cumin, brown sugar and black pepper together in a large bowl, and then add the bacon slices, tossing to coat them with the spice mixture.

Arrange the coated bacon slices on a sheet pan, ideally one fitted with a wire rack. Roast in the oven until they are caramelized and starting to crisp at the edges, approximately 10 to 15 minutes. Remove pan from oven, chop the bacon into large dice and keep warm. Reserve the bacon fat for another use.

While the bacon cooks, make the crema. Put the scallions and jalapeño in a large dry sauté pan and cook over high heat, tossing occasionally, until the scallions and jalapeño have blackened at the edges, approximately 10 to 12 minutes.

Put the scallions and jalapeño in the bowl of a food processor, and blitz them with the juice of 1 lime, then add the sour cream and mayonnaise, and blitz the mixture until it is smooth and flecked with blackened bits. Season to taste with the salt and, if you’d like the mixture thinner, the juice of the second lime. Scrape into a bowl, and reserve.

To serve, warm the tortillas in the dry pan, one or two at a time, and reserve them in a tortilla warmer or clean dish towel. Fill them with the diced bacon and a slash of the crema, along with quartered limes and, if you like, salsa, cilantro, mint and hot sauce.

CHORIZO AND AVOCADO BREAKFAST TACOS

This comes from Leah Maroney in the Spruce Eats. For this recipe, Leah wrote, "Tacos for breakfast? You bet!

"Whether you have leftover chorizo from a previous meal, or you are just looking for a heartier way to jazz up your morning routine, we can't think of a better way to start your day than to take this classic Tex-Mex meal from dinner to fuel-powered breakfast. It's as simple as adding eggs.

"Perfect for a Cinco de Mayo celebration or a fun weekend brunch, you can transform the mundane breakfast of scrambled eggs with a few simple and basic ingredients, such as avocados, onions, tomatoes, and cheese. Have fun additions like tater tots, sour cream, beans, salsa, hot sauce, bacon, and chives, and get your kids engaged by creating a build-your-own-taco bar.

"If you're ovo-vegetarian, you can leave out the chorizo (and bacon)."

Prep Time: 10 minutes; Cook Time: 15 minutes; Total Time: 25 minutes; Servings: 2; Yield: 4 tacos

To view this online, go to https://www.thespruceeats.com/breakfast-tacos-4159319.

Ingredients

4 flour tortillas

1/4 pound raw or dried chorizo sausage

9 frozen tater tots, thawed

4 large eggs, beaten

1/3 cup shredded taco and nacho seasoned cheese

1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro

1/2 small red onion, diced

1 small tomato, diced

1/2 avocado, diced

1/4 cup salsa

Salt, to taste

Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Directions

Gather the ingredients.

Warm up flour tortillas in the microwave or quickly over an open flame. If you want the char, place over an open flame for 5 to 7 seconds and then flip with metal tongs, and char for another 5 to 7 seconds.

Heat a large nonstick skillet or cast-iron pan on medium-high heat. Add the chorizo, breaking it up as it cooks. If the chorizo is dried, dice it first and then add it to the pan and sauté until some of the fat has rendered and the chorizo is crispy.

Remove the chorizo from the pan, leaving the grease behind.

Add the thawed tater tots to the chorizo grease and cook until slightly browned. Remove the tater tots from the pan and add them to the chorizo. Keep the chorizo and potato mixture warm in a 200 F oven while you cook the eggs.

Using that same pan, turn down the heat to low. Pour in the beaten eggs and cook, stirring gently until completely cooked. Use a spatula to separate the eggs into four portions. While the eggs are still in the pan, turn the heat down even more and top each portion with cheese.

Sprinkle the cheddar over the top of each egg portion and cover the pan with a lid. Allow to cook for 1 to 2 minutes or until the cheese has melted. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Fill each tortilla with a portion of the eggs. Divide the potato and chorizo mixture between the four tortillas. Then sprinkle the cilantro, diced onions, tomatoes, and avocados over the top of each taco. Then drizzle the salsa over each taco and serve immediately.

EASY OVEN-BAKED CHICKEN TACOS

This is from Betty Crocker. It begins, "These cheese- and bean-stuffed tacos are our new favorite way to turn a rotisserie chicken into a super-easy dinner that serves up to 10."

Prep Time: 20 minutes; Total Time: 30 minutes; Makes 10 servings

To view this online, click here.

Ingredients

1 package (4.7 oz) Old El Paso™ Stand ‘N Stuff™ taco shells

2 1/2 cups shredded deli rotisserie chicken

1 package (0.85 oz) Old El Paso™ chicken taco seasoning mix

1/4 cup water

1 can (4.5 oz) Old El Paso™ chopped green chiles

1 can (16 oz) Old El Paso™ refried beans

1 1/4 cups shredded Mexican cheese blend (5 oz)

Diced avocado, chopped tomato, green onions, shredded lettuce, salsa and sour cream, if desired

Directions

Heat oven to 400°F. Spray bottom of 13x9-inch (3-quart) baking dish with cooking spray. Place taco shells standing up and together in dish; set aside.

In 10-inch nonstick skillet, cook chicken, taco seasoning mix, water and chiles over medium heat 5 to 6 minutes, stirring frequently, until chicken is heated through. Remove from heat.

To assemble, spread about 2 tablespoons refried beans in bottom of each shell. Top each with heaping 1/4 cup chicken mixture and 2 tablespoons shredded cheese. Bake 5 to 7 minutes or until cheese is melted. Top with remaining ingredients, if desired.

Tips from the Betty Crocker Kitchens

tip 1

Try other varieties of Old El Paso™ taco seasoning mix, such as original or hot & spicy for something different.

tip 2

Try Monterey Jack or pepper Jack cheese for a flavor twist!

BUFFALO TURKEY TACOS

Makes 8 servings

Source: Jennie-O

Find this recipe at: http://diabeticgourmet.com/recipes/html/1341.shtml

Ingredients

1 (16-ounce) package JENNIE-O Lean Ground Turkey

1/3 cup hot pepper wing sauce

8 hard corn taco shells, heated as specified on package

1 cup shredded lettuce

2 tomatoes, diced

1 avocado, sliced

1/2 cup blue cheese dressing

Directions

Cook turkey as specified on package. Always cook to well-done, 165F as measured by a meat thermometer.

Add hot pepper sauce. Stir to combine.

Fill tacos shells with lettuce, turkey mixture, tomatoes and avocado.

Drizzle with blue cheese dressing.

Nutritional Information Per Serving: Calories: 220; Protein: 14 g; Fat: 13 g; Sodium: 260 mg; Cholesterol: 45 mg; Saturated Fat: 4 g; Dietary Fiber: 3 g; Sugars: 1 g; Carbohydrates: 13 g

SPICY MEXICAN SHRIMP TACO BOWLS

This recipe from Old El Paso begins, "Fresh, bright, sweet and hot—this meal packs everything you love about summer into one (mini) taco bowl! Just 30 minutes of prep time gets you a batch of spicy shrimp taco bowls ready to be plated up alongside some fresh lime wedges and cilantro garnishes. Perfect game watch appetizer or light meal? You decide!"

Prep Time: 30 minutes; Total Time: 30 minutes; Makes 12 servings

To view this online, go to https://www.oldelpaso.com/recipes/spicy-mexican-shrimp-taco-bowls.

Ingredients

1/3 cup mayonnaise

1 tablespoon honey

1 teaspoon lime juice

1/4 teaspoon salt

3 cups coarsely shredded purple cabbage

1/2 cup thinly sliced green onions, cut on the bias

1 tablespoon butter

1 lb uncooked deveined peeled large shrimp, tail shells removed

2 cloves garlic, very finely chopped

1 tablespoon hot sauce

1 package (1 oz) Old El Paso™ original taco seasoning mix

12 Old El Paso™ Mini Taco Bowls™ soft flour tortillas

1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves

Lime wedges, if desired

Preparation

In medium bowl, mix mayonnaise, honey, lime juice and salt. Stir in cabbage and green onions; set aside.

In 12-inch skillet, melt butter over medium-high heat. Add shrimp; cook 2 to 3 minutes, turning once, until pink. Stir in garlic, hot sauce and taco seasoning mix. Heat to simmering. Reduce heat; simmer uncovered 1 to 2 minutes, stirring frequently, until thickened.

Heat bowls as directed on package. Divide cabbage mixture among bowls; divide shrimp mixture among bowls; top with cilantro, and serve with lime wedges.

Expert Tips

A nonstick skillet is great for many things, but it’s not great for searing shrimp. In fact, it tends to make them water out a bit. If possible, use a regular skillet for this shrimp taco bowl recipe.

To save a few minutes of prep time when making your shrimp taco bowls, look for bagged pre-shredded purple cabbage.

Hate chopping garlic? Leave it out and use chili garlic sauce instead of regular hot sauce.