In recent years, Manhattan has amped up its real Mexican cuisine with good Mexican restaurants. You can't go wrong with Mexican food when you go out to eat!
At home, the closest I get is Tex-Mex. Authentic Mexican cooking isn’t hard, but it takes a lot of steps because every ingredient, including the spices, is fresh and often cooked from scratch. I mean, you grill your chilies and garlic bulbs and sometimes infuse your cooking oils before you start the meal prep. I tend to take shortcuts. :)
Here’s an easy Tex-Mex one-pan dinner:
My Stovetop Tex-Mex Medley Dinner
Ingredients:
1 lb of ground beef, browned in a skillet
1 large onion, diced
1 stalk of celery, diced
1 bell pepper, diced
1 cup of corn, frozen and thawed
1 can 15-ounce pinto beans (or substitute: black, pink, or Roman beans if you wish.)
2 cans 15-ounce diced tomatoes (I buy the Italian seasoned diced tomatoes)
1 jalapeño pepper, diced (or substitute 8 Hatch or 8 Poblano chile peppers, or an 8 oz can of chile peppers if you wish.) If I have no chile peppers, I’ll carefully use red pepper flakes - a little adds a lot of heat, so don’t get too shake happy!)
Taco seasoning to taste - start with 1 tablespoon.
Select a cheese: (1) Extra Sharp cheddar, or (2) Pepper Jack
Select a starch: (a) Baked potatoes; (b) 2 cups of cooked rice, white or brown; (c) corn or flour tortillas; or (d) tortilla chips
Optional: Sour cream - We omit it.
Garnish with diced onions, tomatoes, chile peppers, lettuce, black olives, and/or green onions.
1) Brown the ground beef in a chef-size skillet on the stovetop. Salt and pepper it as it browns.
2) As the ground beef cooks, add the diced onion, celery, bell pepper, garlic, and chile peppers (or 1 diced jalapeño pepper). After the ground beef is fully cooked, drain any excess liquid. Usually I don’t have any to drain.
3) Next, add the thawed corn, diced tomatoes, and beans.
4) Sprinkle in the taco seasoning to taste. Cover with a lid and simmer for 15 - 20 minutes. If the mixture gets dry, add 1/2 cup of water at a time. Simmering covered with a lid will soften the vegetables and thicken the juices.
5) Top with either extra sharp cheddar or Pepper Jack cheese, as much as you like. Cover with a lid to melt the cheese.
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| Taco seasoning ingredients |
7) Garnish with the diced crunchies of onions, tomatoes, chile peppers, shredded lettuce, sliced black olives, and/or chopped green onions.
After browning the ground beef on a stovetop, alternately, you could layer the ingredients in a casserole dish to bake in your oven, but simmering it in a 12” chef skillet covered with a lid on a stovetop works in a shorter time with less cleanup. Personally, I’d only bake a casserole if I had to bring it to another house. As I said, I take shortcuts! Below is another ,,,
💙💚💛💜💙💚💛💜Dessert💙💚💛💜💙💚💛💜
People either like or hate candy corn. I like it, especially the pumpkin-shaped candy corn. If I eat 2 of them for dessert, I’m satisfied, which is one of the things I like: a little goes a long way. Also, I like the texture: soft and chewy, and it doesn’t stick to your teeth. The flavor is based on honey, butter, sugar, and vanilla. One pumpkin has 30 calories. A serving is 120 calories, but I bet, like me, few people eat more than 2 pieces.
Where do you stand on the candy corn divide?
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