Taco Casserole

I'm sorry.  There is no way ground meat photographs successfully.

When I was little, my mom joined forces with 3 other moms in the neighborhood and formed a casserole group.  Once a month each mom would make 4 casseroles that would be distributed to the other families.  In this fashion everyone would need to make 4 less meals throughout the month-a boon for busy moms with hungry families.  I think this club went on for about 6-8 years.  I don't remember it as much because I was the youngest, but my brother, when asked what his favorite food his mom made purportedly said "I don't know.  We just eat a lot of casseroles."

Out of all the casseroles that came our way the Taco Casserole is one of my favorites and one that we continue to make often.  Is is very easy to make and can handle substitutions and random ingredients and, like all casseroles, freezes like a dream.  If you try to image taco casserole, imagine it like a mexican flavored lasagna.  It has layers of corn tortillas, meat and sauce, and cheese.

I usually use ground turkey in this dish (and in most dishes that call for ground meat), because it is healthier and because I'm more used to using it.  You can use ground anything, including some type of tofu with Soyrizo if you wanted to go vegetarian on this thing.  If you have left over carnitas or other type of meat go ahead and use that too.

One you cook the ground meat stuff, you just dump in whole cans of stuff to make the meat sauce. You can use canned,  stuff from a jar, fresh, spicy, mild, a combination...whatever.  I like dumping in a can of sliced olives because I love baked olives.  You can add corn, extra chilies, more tomatoes-really, whatever you feel like adding to you taco casserole.  There is no need to drain the liquid out of canned items.  Part of the liquid cooks away as you cook the meat mixture, and part of it is needed to help keep the casserole from drying out as it bakes.

For the cheese layers, I prefer using cheddar or a "Mexican blend" (whatever that means), but you can use whatever you have on hand.  Pepperjack is really tasty in the casserole and I've used swiss as well, although it doesn't melt as nicely.  You can shred the cheese or if you are lazy you can just use slabs of cheese.

See?  You can do whatever you want with this casserole.  My mom is the queen of substitutions and using whatever she has on hand.  She has made this thing with substitutions such as chili verde, goat cheese, baked chilies, and even brie cheese once.  It is always delish.  Especially with more salsa and guac on the side.

Here are the general ingredients and instructions for the Taco Casserole.
For one 9x13 pan or 2 square pans
Ingredient families:
1 pound of meat, precooked or gound
1 jar/large can/ container of salsa.  More if you feel so inclined.
8-12 corn tortillas
2-3 cups of cheese, or enough to cover the layers.
1 diced onion or a handful of dried onions
Extras:
Can of chopped chilies
Can of sliced olives
Corn
Tomatoes

Directions:
If you are using raw ground meat then you need to brown it with your onions.  Remember to break apart the meat so it forms little clumps.  The first time I had to brown ground meat I was surprised that when you brown the meat it doesn't automatically break apart.  Lots of jabbing at the meat is usually necessary.

Once the meat is browned and in small pieces you can open up the cans of salsa and olives and whatever else you are putting into the sauce and just dump it in.  Simmer the mixture about 5-10 minutes, but you don't want to simmer the liquid away.

Make sure you spray or oil the pans you are using and then place a layer of corn tortillas on the bottom of the pan.  They don't need to overlap and gaps are fine.  Layer a third of the meat mixture over the tortillas and then cover with a layer of cheese.  Continue with another 2 layers of corn tortillas, meat mixture and cheese.

At this point your casserole is finished!  And ready to be popped in the freezer, heated in the oven, or wrapped for a gift.  I read somewhere that when you put foil on top of the casserole you should grease the part of the foil that is closest to the casserole so that when the cheese melts it doesn't stick to the foil.  I haven't tried this, but it makes sense.  If you freeze the casserole, wrap it in foil and then in freezer paper if you have it.

To bake this casserole:
Bake the taco casserole at 350 until bubbly.  I usually leave foil on it until right before I take it out of the oven and then I broil the top so the cheese gets nice and toasty.

If you froze the casserole and forgot to defrost it just stick it in the oven covered in foil right when you turn it on.  The preheating will help to defrost the casserole and keep your casserole dish from breaking if you used a ceramic or glass container.  It will probably take about an hour if your casserole is frozen.

If you think your casserole looks dry then you can add a half to whole cup of water before baking.

Serve with extra salsa and guacamole.  Sometimes we like to carbo load and eat it with more tortillas. Enjoy!

Tuna and Tomato Salad

When I lived in Spain I felt like the Spanish put tuna on everything.  It appears on pasta, on salad, in empanadas, on bread, on pizza, in lasagna and croquets.  Over time I did learn to appreciate tuna and now I have a special fondness for a good tuna salad.  I think one of the things that made me appreciate tuna much more was that most of the tuna served on salads was tuna packed in olive oil, not water.

You can read a little more on tuna packed in olive on on this post by Scordo I found as well as a list of some recommended brands.  My favorite is Ortiz and the Genova brand you can get at Costco.  Tuna packed in olive oil is more expensive than tuna packed in water, but is DELICIOUS, and worth the splurge.  It also makes for a very filling and tasty meal.  And you can feel good about yourself because you are getting your omega-3 fatty acids that help your brain.

Anyway, this salad can be made with or without greens and eaten alone or with yummy baguettes, or crackers.   Apart from cutting tomatoes, it is quick to prepare and does well on picnics.

Tuna Salad with Tomatoes
Serves 1 as a main dish or two as a snack.

1 can of tuna packed in olive oil.
1 tomato or any sort, or a handful of cherry tomatoes.  Make sure they are deliciously ripe and sweet.
Balsamic vinegar (2-3 Tbs?)
Freshly ground pepper and salt to taste.  I like a healthy dose of salt to contrast the tomatoes and balsamic vinegar.

I must admit that I drain some of the olive oil from the can.  I know I just talked about the deliciousness of tuna in olive oil and while I appreciate the flavor, I don't appreciate all of the actual oil.  So I usualy drain some out.  Next, gently break up the tuna and cut up the tomatoes and put them into a bowl. Grind pepper and sprinkle salt over the top.  Add enough balsamic vinegar to coat the tuna and tomatoes and mix gently so you don't get a mash of tuna/tomato stuff.

Serve on top of salad, eat with a spoon, or spoon onto fresh bread. Enjoy!

Making do

I've finally gotten back to update some more food related posts.  This post is going to be about making do with what you have in the kitchen in terms of kitchen gadgets.  Living abroad in Spain and Peru allowed me to exercise my problem solving ability when it came to preparing food and it is something that I continue to do even if I have all the tools readily available to me here in the US.  I've brined a turkey in a tub and a wet towel, made banana bread in an 8x8, baked cookies in pie pans and glass casserole dishes, and mashed potatoes with a large spoon.  Of course, you could also take another lesson from my unintentional kitchen creativity : thoroughly think through recipes before you try them. Especially in a foreign land.  But being creative is fun.

The key when you come across a situation like this is not to panic.  Or, not to panic too much or too long.

Living in a kitchen that you have to stock yourself is both fun and frustrating.  You tend to forget little necessities that you take for granted in a well stocked kitchen.  This has happened a few times in the past couple of weeks as we slowly but surely stock up our kitchen with all sorts of handy items.  If you find yourself in a pinch, think about what items you have in your kitchen that are close in shape or function to what you need.  Also, we put a great deal of emphasis on the shape of food, especially baked goods, but ask yourself if your bread REALLY needs to be in a loaf pan, or your pie REALLY needs to be in a pie pan.  Yes, it helps identify what you are making/serving, but your food will taste the same anyway.

Recently I made soup and realized that I didn't have a ladle.  I didn't really want to aim hot soup from the pot directly to the bowl so I thought for a second and pulled out our one cup measuring spoon.  The one cup measuring spoon, especially if it has a longer handle like many do, works great.  It also works for stew or sauce or anything else you need a spoon or ladle for.

Another substitution that I came across was for grinding spices.  Instead of buying poultry seasoning, I decided to make some.  Of course, I didn't read the recipe through otherwise I would have known it wanted me to grind up the rosemary and tarragon.  I didn't want to throw out the spices I already had in the bowl, so I grabbed a jar and proceeded to grind away at my spices.  Of course, I didn't end up with the fine powder I would have gotten with a mortar and pestle, spice grinder or small Cuisinart, but it did pretty well.

As I come across more ways to to be creative in the kitchen, I will share them here.