Mama's Taco Salad

My mom has always been the queen of cooking, and she has shared some of her cooking secrets with me! I'm no culinary genius, but thanks to my mom I won't go hungry.

When I was growing up, tacos were my absolute favorite. My mom would make them with not only ground beef, but potatoes too! This is probably where my deep love for potatoes has rooted from. Just this past weekend, I made taco salads for my hubby and I. Of course, I documented it on Instagram! I got few recipe requests, so I thought I would share this super easy recipe with you guys!

Serving Size: 2

Ingredients:

1/2 pound of lean ground turkey
2 Del Oro Tostada Crowns
1/2 package of  McCormick Low Sodium Taco Seasoning
2 Small potatoes, chopped
1 can of Pinto beans
1/2 head of iceberg lettuce
2 tomatoes, chopped
1/2 cup of chopped fresh cilantro
1/2 cup of chopped onion
1 avocado, chopped
Reduced Fat Daisy Sour cream (to your liking)
Reduced Fat Sargento 4 Cheese Mexican Cheese (to your liking)
Salsa (to your liking, I like the Taco Bell Home Original sauce, but Pace or any other type can be used)

Directions:

1.  Cook the ground turkey and chopped potatoes in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Stir them together, and then stir in the taco seasoning. You will want to cover the pan, so that the potatoes will cook thoroughly.  Once they are finished, the potatoes will be soft and the meat will be browned. 

2. In another pan, you will want to heat the pinto beans. You can also have these beans refried if you'd like.

3. Once your tostada crowns are ready, add the beans, lettuce, tomato, cilantro, avocado, and onion to them. Then you will want to add the meat and potatoes on top. 

4. Top your salad with sour cream, cheese, and salsa. 

As you guys can see, I LOVE cheese. I also like to use the reduced fat stuff, because it's just as good as the regular thing. It just makes me feel a little less guilty! I hope you guys enjoy this recipe! It's so easy and fast! 

Do you guys have any dishes that you make that you happen to grow up with as well?  

We also have a winner for the Scarlett Garnet giveaway! 

 

 Congrats, Marsa! 

A big thanks to everyone who participated!

Homemade Strawberry Limeade

Have any of you been to Red Robin and had their Freckled Lemonade? Well if you have, you probably know it's SO delicious! If you haven't, no big deal because you can make one similar to it at home!  And here's how!

The ingredients you will need:
1 pint of coconut water or just plain ol' water
6-8 strawberries
1 lime
3-4 Truvia packets

Note: you can add more or less of any of these ingredient according to your taste. I like things pretty sweet!

What you will need to do:
1. Crush the strawberries. I used a Ziploc bag and just crushed them with my hand. The Ziploc bag is pretty necessary so your kitchen doesn't turn out looking like a strawberry massacre. Strawberries are pretty soft so they can be easily crushed. It also serves as a stress reliever!

2. Put the crushed strawberries into your jar (or whatever you are using).

3. Squeeze one whole lime into the jar.

4. Add one pint of water.

5. Add sugar, and enjoy!

I know that this weather calls for hot chocolate and such, but I can't help adding a little summer vibe to these cool days.

Two Minute Chocolate Cake

Last week I went to go visit my lovely sister. I had the best time with her, but I also had the best food. My sister is one of the best cooks that I know. While I was at her place, she whipped up some chocolate cake for me in less than ten minites! Amazing, right?! I could have sworn it was a magic trick. Just this weekend she posted the recipe on her blog, and decided to share it on here too! She has so many great and easy recipes on her page. One of my resolutions for this year is to learn to cook more things, which means I will probably spending lots of time on her blog and texting her. 

Here are the Ingredients you will need:  

3 tbsp All purpose flour

1 1/2 tbsp unsweetened coco powder

3 tbsp powdered sugar

1/8 tsp baking soda

1/8 tsp salt

3 tbsp cooking oil

3 tbsp milk

1/4 tsp vanilla essence

1tsp chocolate chips (optional)

 What you will need to do:

1.  Add all your ingredients into a microwave safe mug and mix.
2.  Put into the microwave for 1 minute.
3.  When it stops check to see if it is done yet. If not, put it in the microwave for about another 30 seconds. You will not want to leave it in the microwave for too long or else it will get rock hard. Now you're done! 

One thing I suggest is that you use a smaller mug. I tried this recipe in one of the biggest mugs I own, and it only took up about 1/4 of my mug. Have fun and enjoy the results of this magical recipe!