Everyday Taco Salad

I got an email from South Beach diet the other day with a recipe for taco salad that sounded amazing. Except it was full of expensive shit I didnt have on hand or intend to drop money on. So this recipe was born from that idea. Taco salad with ingredients on hand. Deeelicious. Especially the beans, which I will make again as a side for sure.

3/4 lb lean ground beef or 2 1/2 cups soy crumbles
1 tablespoon EVOO
1 tablespoon oregano
1 teaspoon paprika (smoked paprika is even better)
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 tablespoon cumin
10 oz fresh spinach, roughly chopped
3/4 large red onion, roughly chopped
1 large tomato
1 cup of shredded cheddar cheese (fat free is fine, i used daiya - which is gluten free, vegan and delicious)

spicy sweet black beans
29 oz canned black beans, rinsed, drained and pat dry
1 tablespoon EVOO
3 tablespoons honey
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (or to taste)

dressing
2 tablespoons fage 0% greek yogurt
2 tablespoons dijon mustard
2 tablespoons champagne vinegar
1 tablespoon lowfat sour cream
1 oz goat cheese, crumbled
1 tablespoon oregano
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/8 teaspoon salt

rinse and drain beans.  pat dry with papertowels.  add EVOO to a large skillet and wait 30 seconds.  add beans, cilantro, honey and apple cider vinegar.  when liquid begins to reduce and become stickier and beans are soft, add red pepper flakes.  set aside in a large bowl to cool slightly.

mix oregano, paprika, chili powder and cumin in a small bowl with a whisk while a large skillet heats up with EVOO.  add beef to EVOO and stir in seasonings, breaking up beef. sautee for 3 minutes or until lightly browned. roughly chop 1 large tomato, squeezing out juice/seeds with your hands and add to beef mixture, sauteeing for 5 minutes or until cooked through and tomato skin begins to blister slightly.  

meanwhile, roughly chop spinach and red onion, tossing with cheddar. add to bowl with beans. top with meat mixture and toss. 

whisk together everything but goat cheese.  gently stir/fold in goat cheese crumbles and top individual servings of salad. yum.

15 Minute, Not Really At All Homemade Meal

As a tribute to the semi-homemade new first lady of New York, Sandra Lee, I present to you a fifteen minute not really at all homemade meal.  I made this up in the aisles of the supermarket at 9:30pm while visualizing what was in my freezer/fridge.  Kind of pisses me off that Madam First Lady has an entire show (and a magazine, I think) dedicated to her creations of recipes like these, but whatever.

I'm not doing so great with the tribute aspect of this post, but my intent to do so was clear, right?

Sausage, Peppers and Polenta
1 package pre cooked sausage (I used Aidell's Roasted Garlic and Gruyere Chicken Sausage)
1 cooking spoon scoop of tomato paste
1 freezer bag of mixed peppers
1/2 onion
1 pre cooked tube of polenta (should all be gluten free, but check to be sure, as always)
4 - 6oz red wine
EVOO
italian seasonings (I used rosemary, thyme, basil and red pepper flakes)

Grab a large skillet, preferably one with high sides.  Heat it on high.  Add EVOO after 30 seconds.  Let EVOO heat for 30 seconds and add sliced onions and frozen peppers.  Pour wine and seasonings over peppers and onions and allow to bubble and reduce a bit.  Stir to evenly distribute spices and wine.

While the veggies simmer, cut the polenta into 1/2 inch thick slices.  Slice the sausage. 

When these preparations are done, use whatever spoon you had been stirring with to scoop a slightly heaping spoonful of tomato paste and stir well.  This will thicken up nicely to form a sauce.  A pinch of sugar could be necessary to cut the bitterness of the tomato paste/wine.  When peppers are cooked (about 5-7 minutes more), add sausage. Pop the polenta in the microwave for 90 seconds.  When the microwave beeps, kill the heat and cover the pan.

Place the polenta circles in the bottom of a casserole dish.  Top with sausage, pepper and onion mixture.  Sprinkle some parm for good measure.  I shit you not, This went from being stuff on the counter to on the table in 15 minutes flat. Makes 3 servings too!

Welcome to politics, Sandy.