Pioneer Woman's Enchiladas

I make Chicken Enchiladas pretty regularly, but not beef. I like beef enchiladas, but really hadn't found a recipe for them that I just loved. Knowing how many people love Pioneer Woman and that she hasn't ever steered me wrong, I decided to try hers. They are way more steps that I usually take, but they are so worth it. All those steps lead to so many different flavors inside each bite.

You can find her Simple Perfect Enchiladas here. 

And because I am always looking for shortcuts... I didn't even bother frying up my corn tortillas. Just dip them in sauce and roll them full of meat. They will do just fine! 

Cheesy Green Chile Enchiladas

These are one of my favorite meals to make for others- who doesn't love chicken enchiladas with a cheesy, sour cream and green chile sauce? They are easy, fun to make and make a TON!

When I make these enchiladas, I make enough for 3 meals! It is so nice to have frozen homemade dinners ready to pop out and eat on busy nights. This dish makes 12 enchiladas, so you can decide how to divide them up.

Cheesy Green Chile Enchiladas

3-4 chicken breasts, cooked and shredded (I boil mine in water for 15 minutes and shred with the paddle attachment on my Kitchenaid mixer)

1 can cream of chicken soup

1 can chopped green chiles

2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

3/4 cup medium picante sauce

1 cup sour cream

flour tortillas

1/4 to 1 cup chicken broth

Preheat oven to 350. Place a little chicken broth in the bottom of casserole dish. You can fill a 13x9 dish or three 8x8 dishes.

In large bowl, mix together cream of chicken soup, green chiles, 1 cup cheddar cheese, picante sauce, and sour cream. Mix together.

Remove about 1/4 of this mixture and set aside.

Add shredded chicken to large bowl of green chile mixture. Fill flour tortillas individually. Roll up tortillas and place seam side down into casserole dish.

Using small bowl of mixure (the 1/4 you set aside), add 1/4 cup chicken broth and mix well. Scoop/Pour over enchiladas.

Top with remaining cheese and bake at 350 for 30 minutes.

Enjoy!

Southwestern Chicken and Rice

My Mom always made chicken and rice growing up and I hated it. The cream of mushroom soup taste was too much for me, so I have really avoided that dish as the head chef in my kitchen for 15 plus years! With this dish, I finally found a chicken and rice staple I can live with and love eating for dinner!

Southwestern Chicken
recipe from Pinterest, but with a dead link :(

Chicken tenderloins-cut into small squares
2 cups instant rice
1 taco seasoning packet
1 can rotel
Grated cheese- I used pepperjack

Cook chicken in skillet. Add 1 1/2 cups water, taco seasoning and rotel. Heat to boiling. Add 2 cups instant rice. Stir, remove from heat and cover. Once water is absorbed, stir and top with cheese. Let cheese melt and dinner is served.

We ate this as a casserole and our main dish. It would be great inside tortillas or on tortilla chips also. 

Spicy Chicken Tacos

After having great success with cakes from Mix and Match Mama, I decided to try one of her dinner recipes. Oh my- these spicy chicken tacos were so good and you would never know spinach was in there! Not a fan of the leafy green, but know how important it is. It just sneaks in under the tastes of salsa and chicken. I will make these again and again!

Here is the full recipe, courtesy of Mix and Match Mama.

1 pound cooked and shredded chicken breast 

1 jalapeno, chopped (remove the seeds)

1 package taco seasoning

1 box frozen spinach, defrosted and squeezed of all the excess water

2 cups salsa

2 cups Pepper Jack cheese, shredded

5 stand and stuff taco shells 
Olive Oil

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

In a skillet over medium-high heat, add chicken, jalapeno, taco seasoning, spinach and salsa and a tablespoon or so olive oil.  Reduce the heat to low and simmer about 5 minutes.

In an 8x8 inch baking dish sprayed with cooking spray, line up your 5 taco shells.  Place the chicken mixture inside the shells.  Top tacos with cheese and place in the oven.  Bake about 10 minutes or until the cheese is melted. Enjoy!

Chipotle Pot Roast Tacos

I made these for dinner and was so impressed by how simple they are, yet so tender and flavorful. My husband called dibs on the leftovers AT THE TABLE! Delish!

Chipotle Pot Roast Tacos
courtesy of HEB grocery store and their Cocinaware line

2-3 pounds boneless shoulder cut chuck roast
salt and pepper
2 T canola oil
16 oz. jar chipotle salsa
tortillas- white corn or flour
toppings- tomatoes, red onions, cilantro, avocado, etc.

Place oven rack on bottom 1/3. Heat oven to 325.

Season roast with salt and pepper. Heat dutch oven over high heat for 3 minutes. Pour in canola oil and add roast. Cook for 3 minutes on each side. Add 1 cup water and jar of salsa.

Place inside heated oven and cook for about 2 hours. Meat should fall apart easily. Shred meat with knife and fork. Place inside tortillas with your favorite toppings.

Chile Colorado Burritos

I tried another Pinterest recipe last week and boy was it good! I took one bite and told my husband, you are going to really like this! The burrito is stuffed with tender stew meat cooked in the crockpot all day in enchilada sauce and then stuffed with beans and cheese. Delish!

Get the recipe from Food Pusher here and make it for dinner! You won't be disappointed.

Southwestern Ranch Dip

I stumbled upon a really great dip making dinner last week. I was making a chopped chicken salad and the dressing made more than I needed. So, we saved it in a mason jar and have used it as a dip with fresh vegetables and my husband spread it on shrimp tacos. Easy and yummy!

Southwestern Ranch Dip, courtesy of Greens and Chocolate
1/2 cup mayonnaise (I used light with olive oil)
2/3 cup Greek Yogurt ( I actually used one with honey since I had it)
1 T ranch seasoning
1 T taco seasoning

Mix all ingredients. Chill and enjoy!


Now, if you want to be a rockstar like I was, you can totally make your own ranch and taco seasoning. I had no idea how easy this was and you likely have everything you need in your own spice cabinet.

Taco Seasoning, courtesy of $5 Dinners
Mix equal parts of chili powder, ground cumin, garlic powder and onion powder. I did 1T of each. Add in 1/4-1/2 part crushed red pepper. Store in an airtight container and use for dips, tacos, chili, etc. 

Ranch Seasoning, courtesy of $5 Dinners
2T dried parsely
1 t dired dill
1 t garlic powder
1 t onion powder
1/2 t dried basil
1/2 t black pepper

Mix all ingredients and use in your dip or to make real ranch dressing click here.

Enjoy!

Creamy Chicken Enchiladas

In my experience, any recipe from Kraft is good. They know their stuff!

I tried their Creamy Chicken Enchiladas last week and they are good and colorful! They have a good mix of chicken, cheese,salsa and cilantro.

Here is the recipe courtesy of Kraft Foods:

Nacho Cheese Soup

I was emptying the dishwasher recently and it only had bowls and spoons. No plates. No forks. We eat a lot of soup this time of year! I love the ease of crock pot cooking and with soup, we freeze half for another night. Soup freezes well and I like that!

Sour Cream Chicken Enchiladas

I am always looking for good freezer recipes and these Sour Cream Chicken enchiladas are both tasty and freeze well!

Here is the super simple recipe!

They honestly tasted more like cheese enchiladas than chicken, so I would recommend a little more chicken than it calls for. We used 2 cans of the Chicken of the Sea- I'll go with 3 next time!

We cooked 4 and froze 12 more. Great meal for the money when you can get 3 or 4 meals from one. Enjoy!

Tacos Al Pastor Recipe

I had Tacos al Pastor about 3 months ago. And, I fell in love! So, I dug around online and found the simplest recipe that seemed to match the restaurant taco I so enjoyed. These were super simple to make and both Marcus and I thought they were amazing! A new favorite!

• 1 pound pork tenderloin, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
• 1 (8-oz.) can pineapple tidbits in juice, drained
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• 1 tablespoon Mexican-style chili powder
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon pepper
• 1 teaspoon chopped garlic
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon canola oil
• 6 (8-inch) soft taco-size corn or flour tortillas, warmed

• 1. Combine pork and next 9 ingredients in a large zip-top plastic freezer bag. Seal and chill 4 to 24 hours.
• 2. Cook pork mixture in hot oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat, stirring often, 10 minutes or until pork is done. Serve mixture with warm tortillas and

Really, only 2 steps and most ingredients are already on hand! Enjoy!

Easy Pork Empanadas

As a born and bred Texan, I really hesitate to call these empanadas. They are really good, but not traditional empanadas. Ironically, I pulled this receipe from a newspaper in Michigan while traveling on business. Michigans consider this an empanada!

Pork Empanadas

Mix together:

1 cup pulled pork (I buy it pre-done and refrigerated in the meat section of the grocery store)

1 T diced green chiles

2T taco sauce (found on the mexican food aisle)

Scoop meat mixture onto biscuits stretched out

Fold biscuit over.

Brush 1 beaten egg or melted butter over all biscuits to help with browning.

Bake at 375 for about 15 minutes.

These are great alone or dipped in salsa or queso!

Chicken Enchilada Quiche

I made a Mexican quiche for dinner this week and it was fabulous and super easy! Enjoy it with Spanish rice or refried beans. Super yum! Chicken Enchilada Quiche

courtesy of Pillsbury
1 refrigerated pie crust
4 eggs, slightly beaten
1 cup milk
12.5 oz can chicken, drained
1.5 cup broken tortilla chips
2 cups shredded Monterrey Jack cheese
1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
1 cup picante sauce
4.5 oz. can green chiles
1/2 t. salt

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Place pie crust in pie pan and press down. Mix all ingredients and pour into pie pan. Sprinkle pepper on top. Bake 1 hour. Let stand 10 minutes to set before cutting and serving.

Super Low Fat Bean Burritos

Bean Burritos

FF flour tortillas
FF refried beans
Tostitos Queso Dip- sold in the jar on the chips aisle
Salsa- I used a higher end roasted tomato salsa
Canned Enchilada Sauce

Inside tortillas, spread beans, 1 T cheese and 1 T salsa down strip in the middle. Fold into casserole dish. Repeat for each burrito. Pour can of enchilada sauce on top and 1 T of cheese and salsa per burrito. Bake at 350 for 15 minutes.

They were super tasty- like frozen burritos which I love! You could easily add meat and still keep them lowfat! This version is only 5 Weight Watchers points for 2 filling burritos.