Round...? I 've lost count

Strep hits again.

I have still maintained my own health thus far, but at this point, I feel screwed.

On another note, it was Mexican Meatloaf night. I love anything mexican, so even though this recipe is completely different that how I usually make meatloaf, I decided to give it a try. It's excellent. And more importantly, it gets a 5 out of 5 thumbs up in my family. I like to serve it with Quinoa and Black Beans.

I have stayed pretty close to the original recipe. The only changes I made are that I add closer to 1.5 cups of rice to make it a little firmer and I suggest adding the last layer of fritos and cheese during the last 5-10 minutes of cooking time. Tonight, I actually made the homemade cream of mushroom soup suggested in the original recipe and I loved it. I will post it tomorrow. Feel free to use the canned, it's fine.

Here is the original recipe.

Here is how I make it:

Mexican Meatloaf

• 1 lb of Ground Beef
• 1 Can Cream of Mushroom Soup (or homemade Cream of Mushroom, will post it tomorrow or check the original recipe for the link)
• 1 Can Cream of Chicken Soup
• 1 Small Can of Green Chilis
• 1 16oz Jar of salsa (I use mild for my kids)
• 1 8oz Can of Tomato Sauce 
• 1 1/2 Cups of Brown Minute Rice (uncooked)
• 2 Cups of Shredded Colby Jack Cheese
• 1 Bag of Fritos, Crushed 

Preheat oven to 350. In a skillet brown the meat until done and drain, then add all of the ingredients except for Fritos and cheese and mix well. This needs to heat until it reaches a bubbling bowl.

Spray a 9x13 baking dish with non-stick spray. Pour 1/2 of the meat mixture on the bottom of the dish, then sprinkle with crushed Frit’s and top with cheese. Add the rest of the meat mixture and bake for about 20 minutes. Add the rest of the Fritos and top with cheese and bake for another 5-10 minutes, until the cheese is melted.

Quinoa and Black Beans

Quinoa is one of my new favorite foods. Whole grain and full of protein, which is important to me with my cardio and weight training I do. My husband and I love it, my kids - sort of. I think it will grow on them. I hope.

Anyway, this is one of my go-to side dishes when I make mexican food. I came across it while searching the web for quinoa recipes. I like the flavor, the texture, and it's just good for me. Also, it's just as good leftover, I am guilty of eating it cold for lunch the next day!

Here it is:

Quinoa and Black Beans

1 teaspoon vegetable oil

1 onion, chopped

3 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped

3/4 cup uncooked quinoa

1 1/2 cups vegetable broth (chicken broth or water work fine too)

1 teaspoon ground cumin 

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper 

salt and pepper to taste   

1 cup frozen corn kernels

2 (15 ounce) cans black beans, rinsed and drained

1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro (optional)

Heat the oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Stir in the onion and garlic, and saute until lightly browned. Mix quinoa into the saucepan and cover with vegetable broth. Season with cumin, cayenne pepper, salt, and pepper. Bring the mixture to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 20 minutes. Stir frozen corn into the saucepan, and continue to simmer about 5 minutes until heated through. Mix in the black beans and cilantro.

 

Fish Tacos

How do you say 'taco' in Spanish?

Um, taco.

I grew up loving and eating fish. Then as a teenager, I had a bad experience and got sick from it. Over the years, I would try it and it nauseated me every time. Last summer, while vacationing at the beach, my husband and I broke down and tried fresh fish. And it was awesome. I ate more fish those two weeks than I had in 20 years. Since then, I have fallen in love with sushi. My favorite is the spicy tuna rolls. Yum!!! I am still picky about fish, but I am much braver when it comes to trying it.

Last week, I was surfing Pinterest and came across a recipe for fish tacos. It was so simple! Battered fish from the freezer section of the grocery, baked, and put into tacos. I wasn't too sure about the frozen fish part, but decided to try it. I bought a bag of Gorton's Crispy Battered Fish, it had 12 pieces in it and cost about $3.50 at my local Walmart.

Friday night was my test. When I told Shaun what I was making, the look on his face was priceless! Kind of a "I just got over the stomach flu twice in less than a month and you're making fish for dinner?" look. LOL! I made regular ground beef with taco seasoning for the kids (and for my backup). I baked four pieces of the fish according to the directions on the package and cut up my normal taco toppings (lettuce, tomatoes, green onions, cheese, sour cream).

First off, the fish was very crunchy and had an awesome flavor. I honestly did not expect it to be restaurant quality, but it was. I made fish taco and it was incredible. Each of the kids took a bite and loved it, even though they ate the ground beef. I think my oldest would have eaten a fish taco, but there wasn't enough, remember, this was kind of a test. My youngest ended up eating a whole piece of fish herself and begged for more. Shaun also ended up absolutely loving it.

The frozen fish tacos far exceeded my expectations. In fact, I don't think I will ever eat a ground beef taco again! 5 out of 5 thumbs up!!!