Wet Burritos

I’m not sure what it is but I’ve had little desire to cook this week. Maybe it’s because my girls are at camp and I have been at baseball every night with my son. Last night I was home but my son was out and my wife spent the evening getting her hair done. Still nothing. Father’s Day was spent on the road dropping the kids off at camp so we just picked up some ribs from the local market. I threw them on the grill with a salad. That is the most cooking I’ve done all week.

If you are lucky enough to send your kids to a good summer camp, it is well worth it. Our kids have attended Springhill christian camps for years. They have a location in Seymour, IN and Evart, MI. It is your typical summer camp with horseback riding, lake activities, and zip lines. My summer camps never had zip lines! They have a blast, in a very loving environment. They get back in a couple of days so maybe I will get my enthusiasm back for cooking. We miss them very much, but happy they can have this time away to grow and learn.

A few weeks back I made one of my kids favorites. Wet Burritos. If you have never had wet burritos you and your family are in for a treat. I cooked this for the blog and made a double batch to freeze the second batch. They freeze great.. Since I am not cooking this week, I grabbed the second batch from the freezer for dinner. Always great to have extra meals frozen and ready to go..

Mexican Chipotle Layered Bake

We were very busy, a few weekends ago, with different functions. We had our monthly Dinner Group at our house on Saturday. It was The Pioneer Woman theme night. I will explain this and my menu in another post. I cooked all day Saturday and had a fabulous dinner. Usually on Sunday I cook a meal or two for the blog and also take various meats out of the freezer so I can plan my meals for the week. But by this Sunday afternoon I was beat. I didn’t feel like cooking a big meal. I had yummy leftovers from the night before for lunch and I was full. But the pesky kids always want to eat.

I had a pound of ground beef in the freezer and decided to make taco meat for the kids. Then my mind does what it usually does and I make the ordinary, extraordinary, using just ingredients I have in the house. I made a Mexican Chipotle Layered Bake with minimal effort. I used Herdez Chilpotle Salsa for a smokey taste, but any salsa will do. This dish could also be used as an appetizer party dip if you want. The kids placed the mixture on soft tacos and they loved it. Simple, good and quick!

Tortilla Chip Day February 24, 2015 in the USA

National Tortilla Chip Day is celebrated on February 24, 2015. A tortilla chip is a snack food made from corn tortillas, which are cut into wedges and then fried. Alternatively they may be discs pressed out of corn masa then fried or baked. Corn tortillas are made of corn, vegetable oil, salt and water.

Tortilla chips are the quintessential and often complimentary appetizer in Tex-Mex and Mexican restaurants in the U.S. and elsewhere. Although first mass-produced in Los Angeles in the late 1940s, tortilla chips were always considered to be a Mexican food, known as tostados. Though usually made of yellow corn, they can also be made of white, blue, or red corn. Some manufacturers include many other ingredients including wheat, sugar, and MSG.

The triangle-shaped tortilla chip was popularized by Rebecca Webb Carranza as a way to make use of misshapen tortillas rejected from the automated tortilla manufacturing machine that she and her husband used at their Mexican delicatessen and tortilla factory in southwest Los Angeles. Carranza found that the discarded tortillas, cut into triangles and fried, were a popular snack. (With material from: Wikipedia and cutecalendar.com)

Follow me at dadwhats4dinner.com and check out my Mexican Black Bean Dip that would go great with tortilla chips. Fast and simple!!!

Mexican Black Bean Dip dadwhats4dinner.com

Ranchera Chicken Mexican Lasagna

Ranchera Chicken Mexican Lasagna

If you have read my blog you know I am always looking for new and different ideas for dinner each night that anyone can make.  I try to think of ways to change it up.  I also like recipes that I can double and freeze for a later date. Our lives will be getting crazy starting March 1st with 3 kids in spring sports. Truthfully it never ends. Even with the craziness I try to keep home cooked healthy food on the table each night. This recipe is a great twist on Mexican lasagna. For this recipe I use split bone in chicken breast which I cook ahead of time.  I buy these mainly because they are cheap.  To reduce fat I always remove the skin.  To make your life easier a rotisserie chicken from the grocery would work fine, just remove the skin, bones and chop the meat.  I also use refried black beans which are healthier than refried pinto beans.  Refried beans originated in Mexico where they’re called frijoles refritos, or “well-fried beans.”  Actually refried beans in general are low-fat and a good source of fiber.  I hope you enjoy this recipe and pass my link with your friends.  My family loved it.

Mexican Cheesecake Flan Brownie

This is the final addition to my Cinco de Mayo series. Mexican desserts are not always easy to come up with even though many great recipes exist. My new recipe is a combination of two great Mexican desserts. Brownie and Flan. For the brownie I use a box of Ghirardelli dark chocolate brownie mix with the addition of cinnamon, Mexican chili powder and cinnamon chips. The flan is also a very simple recipe using only five ingredients. I also made some hard caramel glass as a decorative addition, but I think the dish would be great with a simple caramel sauce. Enjoy this with my other Cinco de Mayo recipes. Mexican Black Bean Dip and Mexican Ground Turkey served with Authentic Sopes.

Happy Cinco de Mayo

Makes 24 servings

Mexican Ground Turkey served on Authentic Sopes

This recipe is the second in my Cinco De Mayo series. For your appetizer see my post for Mexican Black Bean Dip.

This recipe is a twist on basic taco meat filling. I use ground turkey quite often in our house and I am always looking for ways to use it instead of beef. The little sweet peppers used in this recipe are awesome. I found them at my local Kroger’s produce department. I made an authentic Sope (pronounced “SOH-peh”) as the base for the filling.

Sope is as popular in Mexico as is the tortilla and is made with the same ingredients. It is a thick, hand formed type of tortilla, with the edges crimped into a shallow bowl, when fried it becomes a container for lots of different fillings. It will take you a few times to get the thickness right. If you don’t have the time or patience for Sopes, this filling works great for tacos or enchiladas.

ENJOY!

Mexican Black Bean Dip

This is the first in my Cinco de Mayo  series. Tonight appetizer. What else would be first?  Over the next week I will post a cocktail, main dish and dessert.

dadwhats4dinner.com

This is an awesome simple appetizer dip that will wow your friends. I am a little embarrassed of how easy this is, but adults and kids absolutely love it. If you are on the west coast and still need an idea for tonight’s party, this is it.