Happy fall! Time for pumpkins, chilly nights, football, and of course soup. Soup is my ultimate comfort food. Crock Pot Chicken Tortilla Soup is definitely a keeper!
Category Archives: Mexican
Fresh Homemade Salsa
Tomatoes, tomatoes, and more tomatoes… What in the world am I going to do with all of these tomatoes? We do this every spring, we plants so many tomato plants and then they all come in at once.
I hate to waste anything so I am finally taking the time this summer to make my own salsa and sauce.
Chicken Enchilada Zucchini Boats
This was our dinner tonight and oh boy it was gooood! I saw the recipe a while back on Kevin’s site and had to try it. And now since it’s summer, zucchini’s at it’s best.
Since we already ate our own garden’s stock, I stopped at the local farmer’s stand on the way home a picked up a bunch. With zucchini, peppers and onions in season right now this meal is not only healthy, but affordable.
Mexican Egg and Quinoa Muffins
Keeping with the Cinco de Mayo theme… I give you Mexican Egg and Quinoa Muffins!
I just love to make all kinds of things in my muffin pan. These muffins are so darn good I just had to share. Not only are they super easy to make, they’re good for you too.
Guacamole
Celebrate Cinco de Mayo or your next fiesta with guacamole. Guacamole is a staple in any Mexican dish I prepare, but it is also an awesome, easy dip. I whipped this up in about 10 minutes and we had it as a Sunday afternoon snack.
Grilled Cilantro Chicken Kabobs
My husband and I love to entertain, especially in the summer. Making kabobs is one my favorite things to make for guests. They are easy, look pretty, and you can please just about any type of eater. And let’s face it, who doesn’t like eating food from a stick!
Kabobs also make a quick and easy week night dinner and paired with this marinade you can’t go wrong. This marinade would also taste great with beef, pork, shrimp, fish, or veggies.
When getting ready to juice a lime put it in the microwave for about 15-20 seconds. The heat helps the citrus juice flow out of the lime much easier.
Ingredients
- 1 pound chicken breasts, cut into small pieces
- 1 cup of fresh cilantro leaves
- 1 jalapeño pepper (optional)
- 1 lime, juiced
- 1/2 teaspoon lime zest
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- dash of rice wine vinegar, or any white vinegar
Directions
- Prepare grill over high heat.
- Place cut up chicken pieces in a medium sized bowl and set to the side.
- In a blender or food processor add cilantro, jalapeno, lime, lime zest, oil, and vinegar and puree until nicely blended.
- Pour marinade over chicken and marinade for at least 20 minutes. The longer it marinade the better it tastes.
- Place marinaded chicken on skewers and grill for about 5-8 minutes on each side, or until no longer pink. Remember to soak wooden skewers before adding the chicken, so they don’t catch on fire!
Enjoy!
Quinoa Black Bean Quesadillas
I totally made this recipe by accident and I’m so glad I did! I was originally planning on making tacos with this recipe but I couldn’t get the tortillas to cooperate for the photos. Hmmm, what to do? Then it struck me… Quesadillas!
It was Sunday afternoon and we had a day full of projects, so this made the perfect quick and healthy lunch. My 5 year old loved them and ended up eating more of these than I did.
Super busy during the week? Make the quinoa mixture ahead of time and then assemble the quesadillas for a quick week night dinner. The mixture also works with tacos or a burrito if you prefer.
Ingredients
- ½ cup quinoa, cooked
- ¼ cup onion, diced
- ½ jalapeno pepper, diced or more for added heat
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 cup black beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 can diced tomatoes
- ½ teaspoon chili powder Package of whole wheat flour tortillas
- Fresh cilantro, Greek yogurt, sliced avocado, salsa, shredded cheese, or any of your favorite toppings!
Directions
- Cook quinoa according to package directions.
- Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a large skillet. Sauté onion and jalapeno pepper for 3 minutes.
- Add minced garlic and sauté for 1 minute. Add cooked quinoa, black beans, diced tomatoes, and chili powder to the sautéed veggies. Cook for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Set aside
- Heat ½ tablespoon of oil in another skillet, preferably cast iron, over medium high heat.
- Place tortilla in the skillet and spread about a ¼ cup of the quinoa mixture over the tortilla. Sprinkle with cheese, optional, and top with another tortilla. Cook for about 5 minutes, or until brown, and flip.
- Cook for a few more minutes, until that side is brown.
- Cut into pieces and serve with your favorite quesadilla toppings.
Enjoy!
Mexican Twice Baked Sweet Potato
I’ve never been a huge fan of sweet potatoes…Boy did this recipe change my mind. These aren’t just good, they’re amazing, oh and they’re healthy too!
Recipe from Pinch of Yum.
Ingredients
- 2 or 3 medium sweet potatoes
- 1 can of black beans, rinsed and drained
- 1 can of corn, drained, I like shoepeg, or fresh off the cob is the best
- 1 small onion, diced
- 1/2 cup red pepper, diced
- 1 small jalapeño, diced (if you like spicy)
- 1 clove of garlic, pressed
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- sprinkle of cumin
- 1 ounce light cream cheese
- 1/4 cup of greek yogurt or sour cream
- salt and pepper to taste
- handful of chopped fresh cilantro
- 1/2 cup of cheese, I used cheddar, you could use Monterey Jack, Colby… anything really
Directions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees and baked sweet potatoes for about an hour, until soft. Check by poking with a fork.
- Heat a skillet (cast iron is the best) over medium high heat. Do not add any oil or butter, and add corn to pan. Sprinkle with chili powder, cumin, salt and pepper. Do not stir. Let the corn roast for a few minutes before stirring. Roast for about 10 minutes until nice and brown. Set aside in a bowl with black beans.
- Heat a tablespoon of oil and saute onions, peppers, and garlic. Set aside.
- Remove sweet potatoes from the oven and let cool for a few minutes. Cut sweet potatoes in half and scoop out flesh. Leave a little lining of the flesh inside to help keep the shape of the sweet potato.
- In a large bowl mix sweet potatoes, cream cheese, yogurt or sour cream, and mix using a hand mixer.
- Careful mix black beans, roasted corn, sauteed onions, peppers, garlic, and cilantro into the sweet potato mix.
- Scoop the filling into sweet potato skins. Top with cheese and broil for 5 minutes, until cheese is nice and bubbly. I had filling leftover, so I put it in a casserole dish, topped with cheese and baked.
Yummy!