My husband and I are both taco lovers. Taco Tuesday is a regular weekly staple in our lives. He is a flour soft taco guy and I am a hard, corn tortilla kinda gal most of the time. This tasty taco salad is one version of a taco that we both agree on and enjoy each and every time it is ordered or made at home.

Like most recipes I like to cook, there is no set way that it has to be made. Ingredients can be substituted, flavors swapped, and type of protein updated. I have a recipe for Asian inspired veggie salad feast, that has many of the same elements of a taco salad, but with different flavors and selection of veggies. Small changes allow me to keep staple recipes simple, but add variety in both nutrition and flavor.

Ingredients for Taco Salad

Seasoned Beef
1 lb. ground beef – 80-85% lean (fear not, beef will be drained before adding spice)
2 Heap Tbsp Taco seasoning (see recipe below)
2 tsp. graeseed or vegetable oil
Veggies
4-6 oz – crunchy greens, such as Lef Farms Crispy Green Lettuce, mixed with any lettuce variety.
1 hot chili, such as jalapeno or serrano
1/2 cucumber, seeded and sliced
1/2 heirloom tomato chopped into bite size chuncks
7 oz. canned corn, drained
7 oz. canned black beans drained
1 lime quartered for dressing individual plates
Cheddar, cotija or other cheese of your choice for sprinkling (1-1 1/2 ounce)

Taco Seasoning recipe

Note: this recipe will make enough seasoning for a number of uses.

1 heap Tbsp. Chili Powder
1 tsp. fine sea salt
1 tsp. kosher salt
1 tsp. sweet paprila
1.5 tsp. black pepper
2 tsp. garlic powder
2 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. onion powder
1/2-1 tsp. red pepper flakes (optional – remove if you do not want the heat)
1-2 tsp. dried oregano

Add all ingredients in a jar and shake to mix. Store in dry location until use.

Instruction

Heat large frying pan to medium-high heat. Add oil. When oil is shimmering, add in beef and begin breaking apart as it cooks. When beef is just browned and broken down, carefully drain any excessive oil in pan. You do not want your taco salad to be too greasy!

Add in the taco seasoning and combine. Cook until beef is just getting crispy. Put aside to cool a bit.

While the beef is cooking, wash and dry lettuce, slice and dice other veg, and arrange all vegetables on serving plate.

Add beef to middlle of plate and sprinkle some of the cheese over.

Put remaining cheese to the side for individual sprinkling.

Serving the Tasty Taco Salad

Serve family style, with cheese and lime wedges available for individual plates.

Servings: 4-6

Famliy style taco salad — Tasty taco salad served family style

If you like this recipe, take a look at my burger with baked french fries and all the fixins recipe!

Kristen Cooks

April 14, 2023

Weeknight Dinner – Mediterranean Smorgasbord

When you are thinking of that trip to Greece, southern Italy, or Lebanon and want to bring that back home, I have just the meal for you. A simple, quick, yet elegant spread of Mediterranean treats.

Homemade hummus is accompanied by crisp cucumber, red onion and carrots, as well as fresh, soft pita bread from #josephspitabread. I added #ndmedjooldates for a pop of sweetness. To make this a complete meal, I pan seared 2 flounder fillets and added a side of honey-thyme roasted tomatoes.

For the hummus, I based the ingredients loosely on a recipe by #rickstein. If you have not explored his shows and cook books, check him out! My favorite show and resulting cookbook is called “Venice to Istanbul” and contains recipes from Italy, Croatia, Albania, Greece and Turkey. It is simply a wonderful and culturally enriching book! Check it out here

To try one of earth’s sweetest fruits, check out the Natural Delights Medjool dates. They have amazing sweet and savory recipes that are worth a try directly on their website. https://www.naturaldelights.com/

Weeknight Meal – Mediterranean Smorgasbord

Recipe by kristenCourse: Dinner, LunchCuisine: MediterraneanDifficulty: Easy

Servings

servings

Prep time

minutes

Cooking time

hour

minutes

Calories

300

kcal

Note: calorie count is auto approximated. Cooking time is inclusive of oven roasted tomato and sauté of the founder

Ingredients

Cucumber, Red Onion and Carrot, sliced
Fresh Pita bread
Medjool dates (6-8)
Hummus
15.5 oz. can of chick peas, drained and rinsed
2 tbsp. tahini paste
1-2 cloves of garlic (this is to your taste, I go with 2 large cloves)
1.5 tsp. cumin
Juice of 1 lemon
Tsp. kosher salt, + more to taste
4 Tbsp. water
Tbsp. EVOO
Sumac and/or Paprika to finish
Flounder
2 Tbsp. butter
2 Flounder fillets
Paprika
Roasted Tomato
Vine tomatoes (approx. 12)
Honey, Tbsp. thyme and olive oil to coat

Directions

Coat tomatoes in olive oil, sprinkle with thyme and put into 350 degree oven for approx. 60 mins. Watch for the tomatoes to become deflated and quite roasty-toasty browned. Before taking out of oven, drizzle with honey and allow to roast the remaining 5 mins
Arrange crisp veggies, pita and dates on serving platter, with bowl at center for the hummus
In food processor, combine all ingredients, except for the olive oil and sumac/paprika, leaving a small handful of the chick peas for topping the hummus. Pulse or blend until hummus is smooth and creamy. Pour into bowl and top with olive oil and dusting of sumac and/or paprika
Once tomatoes are out of oven and cooling, heat the butter in large sauté pan. Pat the fillets dry and sprinkle with kosher salt, pepper and paprika. Once butter is just beginning to brown, place fillets in pan. The fillets are so thin, that 1-2 mins on the first side should result in a nice, seared color. Flip and then tip the pan and continually baste the first side with a spoon, scooping the butter from the edge of the pan. Another 1-2 mins and you are done! Serve and smorgasbord is complete!