This recipe couldn’t be easier! I discovered the Walking Taco when I helped at my daughter’s high school sports concession stand. As i was happily pushing my Crockpot Ropa Vieja (find recipe HERE), more and more people were ordering this Walking Taco! It is a favorite at sports concession stands, and kids and adults love them! It is also a great way to serve up tacos for a bunch of kids at a party. I’ve also heard that it is a great way to do tacos while camping!
Walking Tacos (AKA Tacos In A Bag)
Ingredients:
1 pound of your favorite taco meat recipe, cooked
Individual sized bags of your favorite flavored Doritos® or Fritos®
Crush the chips in their bag. Gently open the top of bag, being careful not to rip it from top to bottom.
Add meat and popping of your choice into the bag. Close bag and gently “mush” the ingredients around. Open the bag and walk around, eating the awesome “Walking Tacos”!
We LOVE tacos at our house, and this recipe is so easy, you’ll never want to buy those prepackaged versions (full of salt and additives) again!
Zesty No Salt Taco Seasoning
(Adapted from Rachel Ray recipe)
1 Part Chili Powder
1 Part Ground Cumin
1 Part Garlic Powder
1 Part Onion Powder
1/3 Part Tumeric
1/4 – 1/2 Part Crushed Red Pepper (I used ground red pepper)
Combine all the parts into a good container with a secure, air-tight lid and shake until combined. Enjoy! Feel free to play with the amounts – maybe you like more red pepper, or you want more cumin!
Consider using fresh spices in this mixture for a more potent flavor. One of my favorites is to order through The St. Augustine Spice and Tea Exchange. You can check out their website and wonderful spices by clicking here. (Though nothing beats going into one of their stores and just inhaling the aroma!)
Thank you to WTLV-TV’s First Coast Living for inviting me on to talk tacos and taco seasoning!
1 lb. extra lean ground beef
1 packet taco seasoning
2/3 cup water
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded
36 wonton wrappers
your favorite taco toppings – salsa, cheese, sour cream, lettuce, tomatoes, etc.
cooking spray
Preparation:
Preheat oven to 375.
Brown the meat in a skillet and drain off fat. Return the meat to the skillet; add the taco seasoning, water and black beans. Mix and simmer for 5-10 minutes, until water is absorbed.
Spray 18 regular muffin pan cups with cooking spray. Place one wonton wrapper in each muffin cup. Divide half of the taco meat between muffin cups. Sprinkle half of the cheese over the cupcakes. Repeat layers – wonton, taco meat and cheese. Bake at 375 for 20 minutes, or until cheese is bubbly. Top with your favorite taco toppings.
School gets going and sometimes it is hard to come up with fun lunches the kids will like. Check out some of these ideas from Simple Solutions Diva:
Chicken Soft Tacos – Let the kids assemble their own soft chicken taco for lunch! Place all their favorite ingredients in small, separate, plastic containers. Things like guacamole or avocado slices, shredded cheese, salsa, and leftover shredded chicken work great — they can wrap it up in a whole wheat soft tortillas and feel like they are the chef!
Sandwich Sushi – Sometimes it is not about the sandwich, but the presentation! The night before, take your favorite filling – PBJ, chicken salad, turkey and cheese – and layer it in whole wheat soft tortilla. Tightly roll the tortilla up and seal in plastic wrap. In the morning, unwrap the plastic and slice the sandwich into pinwheels. Place in a plastic container like sushi rolls and include wooden chopsticks.
Shake It Up Layered Salad – Layer/assemble a salad in a mason jar or tall plastic container. Be sure to place the dressing at the bottom of the container first, to avoid wilting the salad greens. Also, you want to leave a little room at the top so when there is room to shake things up (and disperse the ingredients! This is also great for adults!
Lunch Dip Day – Assemble a simple tapas-style lunch – a little bit of everything! For protein, use things like single serve hummus, sliced chicken, black bean, corn and red pepper salsa, avocado or guacamole, yogurt dip. Assemble dippers/scoopers like whole wheat or bean tortilla chips, baby carrots, red pepper slices in a separate container. They can much away at a little bit of everything!
If you want a GREAT Black Bean, Corn and Red Pepper Salsa, check out my recipehere!
Black Bean, Corn & Red Pepper Salsa, From SimpleSolutionsDiva.com.
Now we have these great ideas for lunch, but how do your kids lay everything out to assemble? On a dirty school lunch table? Nope! I like creating a disposable placemat out of parchment paper or wax paper. A small sheet will do!
Now, my kids are older, and they really don’t like taking a lunch box to school – they go old school with a paper bag lunch. But I get worried about things getting too warm. So, I started freezing their small water bottle (or you could freeze a juice box) to use as a freezer pack that is melted by the time they sit down to eat.
Another great lunch idea, if your kids like soup or chili, is to send them to school with a small thermos that will keep their soup or chili hot.
How to Take Lunch To School (or work!)
Rubbermaid Lunch Blox Sandwich Kit
Lunch Blox by Rubbermaid – These are a cool way to carry salads & sandwiches to school or work. They come in a variety of sizes, but I really thought the Sandwich Kit and the Salad Kit were unique – they come with a freezer pack that fits between the components to keep everything cold!
You can find Lunch Blox on the Rubbermaid site (Click Here), or you can also look at Target, Pulbix or other grocery stores.
Rubbermaid Lunch Blox Salad Kit
French Bull Packit Salad Cooler – I thought this was so neat! The entire bag freezes to keep salad cool up to 6 hours! They have a variety of sizes (sandwich, entree, and more!), but I snagged the salad bag! (And it can hold the Rubbermaid Lunch Blox salad kit!)
I love using spices when I cook, and I especially love the convenience of pre-packaged spice blends! But when I began looking at the salt content and additives in the packets, I thought there has got to be a better way! So here are five, very flavorful spice blends that will save you on salt and additives. Simple, flavorful and awesome!
Note: All spice blends will stay fresh in air-tight containers for up to 6 months.
Homemade Curry Powder Recipe:
Homemade Curry Blend from SimpleSolutionsDiva.com.
Ingredients:
1/2 cup Paprika
1/4 cup Cumin
1 tablespoon Fennel Powder
2 tablespoons Ground Mustard Powder
1 tablespoon ground Red Pepper Flakes – more or less to taste adds spiciness
3 tablespoons ground Coriander
1/4 cup ground Turmeric root
1 teaspoon Cinnamon Powder
1/2 teaspoon Cloves Powder – Adds complex flavor
Preparation:
Combine all ingredients into an air-tight jar and shake!
Homemade Italian Seasoning
Homemade Italian Seasoning, from SimpleSolutionsDiva.com.
Ingredients:
1/2 cup Basil leaf
1/2 cup Marjoram Leaf
1/2 cup Oregano leaf
1/4 cup cut and sifted Rosemary Leaf
1/4 cup Thyme Leaf
2 tablespoons Garlic Powder
Preparation:
Combine all ingredients into an air-tight jar and shake!
Homemade Ranch Mix
Homemade Ranch Seasoning Mix, from SimpleSolutionsDiva.com.
Mix one tablespoon of this mix with 1/3 cup mayonnaise and 1/4 cup milk or buttermilk. This is also great sprinkled by itself onto fish or chicken before cooking.
Ingredients:
1/4 cup dried Parsley leaf
1 Tablespoon Dill leaf
1 tablespoon Garlic Powder
1 tablespoon Onion Powder
1/2 teaspoon Basil leaf
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
Preparation:
Mix all ingredients together in jar or food processor (I used my single serve sized blender!).
Lemon Pepper Seasoning
Homemade Lemon Pepper Seasoning, from SimpleSolutionsDiva.com.
Ingredients:
1 cup fresh lemon zest (zest approximately 10-12 lemons to get 1 cup)
1/3 cup peppercorns (black or mixed colors)
Preparation:
Place peppercorns in a food processor {or clean coffee grinder} and pulse just a few times until coarsely ground. Combine together in a bowl the fresh lemon zest and ground peppercorns and combine thoroughly. Pour out onto a parchment lined baking sheet and place in oven on lowest setting (mine was lowest at 170 degrees). Bake for about 1 hour or until zest is dried. Place mixture back into food processor and pulse until finely ground.
For ideas on what to do with all those lemons you used to get the zest, check out another Simple Solutions Diva post! (Click Here)
Homemade Taco Seasoning
Click Here to see my zesty, homemade Taco Seasoning recipe!
Meatless Mondays is a great concept – it’s a movement to get people to be conscious of their meat consumption and potentially reduce their risk for preventable health issues like high cholesterol.
I wanted to create some kid-friendly and simple recipes that will make Meatless Monday easy and stress-free! I hope you like them!
Spinach Lasagna Roll-Ups
Spinach Lasagna Roll-Ups from SimpleSolutionsDiva.com.
These are not only the perfect, single serving size, kids will enjoy making them with you! Besides, who doesn’t like to play with their food? You can assemble this on Sunday, put it in the fridge, and pull it out Monday to cook. Easy Peasy!
Ingredients
One 15 oz. container Ricotta Cheese, part skim (You can substitute cottage cheese)
One cup shredded mozzarella cheese, divided – ½ cup for cheese mixture; ½ cup to sprinkle on top of baked dish
One egg
Salt and pepper to taste
½ teaspoon garlic powder
¼ cup parmesan cheese (I used fresh grated, but you can use packaged to save time!)
1 container of frozen, chopped spinach – thawed and squeezed of liquid.
One box of lasagna noodles, cooked and drained (Note: to keep them from sticking after cooking, toss the cooked noodles with a light drizzle of olive oil).
2 cups marinara sauce – I used prepackaged sauce to make it easy.
Preparation
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Cook noodles according to the package. Drain and toss with light drizzle of olive oil.
In a large bowl, combine the ricotta, ½ cup mozzarella, parmesan, egg, salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Add the drained, chopped spinach and mix well.
Pour about ½ cup of marinara into the bottom of a baking dish.
On a clean, flat work surface, lay out the noodles. Spread about ¼ cup of cheese mixture onto a noodle, spreading to the edges. You do not want it too thick. Starting at one end, roll the noodle up and place on it’s end in the baking dish. Repeat until you have used all the noodles.
Pour remaining marinara sauce over the top of the lasagna rolls. Cover with tin foil and bake for approximately 40 minutes. Just before it is done, sprinkle remaining mozzarella over top and cook until bubbly.
Stuffed Peppers
Meatless Monday Stuffed Peppers from SimpleSolutionsDiva.com.
My mom used to make these filled with rice and ground beef. I decided to replace the beef with Great Northern Beans – a great way to still get your protein and a very flavorful meal!
Ingredients
4 peppers (I used a combination of yellow, red and green peppers)
1 15 oz. can Bush’s Great Northern Beans, Reduced Sodium
1 15 oz. can diced tomatoes (I like to use the basil oregano flavored)
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup onions, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
½ teaspoon cumin (feel free to add more to taste)
Salt and pepper to taste
2 cups brown or white rice (I used Uncle Ben’s Ready Rice to make it easier)
1 can tomato sauce
Shredded cheddar cheese – as much or as little as you like.
Preparation
Wash and then cut the tops off the peppers. Deseed the peppers. Take the tops of the peppers and chop them up (without the stem).
Pour the can of tomato sauce into the bottom of the baking dish.
In a large pan, sauté the onions, chopped pepper tops and garlic. Add the cumin, tomatoes, salt and pepper, beans, and rice – mix thoroughly. Feel free to add more or as little spices as you want!
Stuff the peppers with the rice mixture. Place the stuffed peppers upright in the baking dish. Place in oven for approximately 40 minutes. Sprinkle the cheese on top of the peppers in the last 5 minutes of cooking.
Serve warm!
Upgraded Grilled Cheese
UpGraded Grilled Cheese from SimpleSolutionsDiva.com.
This is like having mozzarella sticks in sandwich form!
Ingredients
4 slices crusty bread
4 thick slices mozzarella
1 egg
¼ cup half & half or milk
salt to taste
1 teaspoon olive oil
butter
½ teaspoon minced garlic
Marinara sauce for dipping
Preparation
Make a sandwich with two slices of bread with two large slices of mozzarella; Repeat with second sandwich.
In a bowl, beat the egg, milk/cream, & salt.
In a fry pan, heat olive oil and garlic over medium high heat. Add butter.
Dip the sandwiches in the egg mixture and then place in fry pan. Cook until golden brown on one side (approx. 2 mins.), then flip.
Serve with warm marinara as dipping sauce.
Avocado Tacos
Avocado Tacos from SimpleSolutionsDiva.com.
This is so easy and very tasty! Top these tacos with your favorite taco toppings: sour cream, lettuce, etc.
Ingredients
Corn tortillas
2 Avocados, mashed
Bean, Corn and Red Pepper Salsa (Click here for recipe)
Favorite taco toppings
Preparation
Heat corn tortillas in a fry pan. Add a couple of teaspoons of the mashed avocado, the bean salsa. Add favorite toppings! Enjoy – Yum!
If you would like to see more Meatless Monday recipes, visit my Pinterest Board or visit MeatlessMonday.com. Thank you to WTLV-TV’s First Coast Living for inviting me on to share these recipes!
I love flavorful, mexican-inspired food! When I was preparing for a Super Bowl Party, I wanted to create something that was tasty, not full of fat, and was made with fresh ingredients. So I made this Black Bean, Corn and Red Pepper Salsa! A friend of mine had made this years ago for a party and I never got the recipe, so I decided to wing it! And this stuff is addicting!
TryMe Tiger Sauce
The key to the flavor of this salsa is a product called TryMe Tiger Sauce – I had never heard of this before, until I moved to the South. According to the website,
“The original tiger sauce is an exotic, moderately spicy blend of ingredients in a cayenne pepper base. With a touch of sweet and sour, it’s perfect for meats, seafood and poultry. Delicious on sandwiches, in dips and soups.”
Well, delicious it is! And don’t be frightened by the “moderately spicy” comment. It is really quite mild. I would describe it as a low heat that builds in the mouth. And it is perfect in this recipe! Try making the salsa without the sauce, try it, then add the sauce to it – you will taste a more complicated flavor.
Black Bean, Corn & Red Pepper Salsa
Black Bean, Corn & Red Pepper Salsa, From SimpleSolutionsDiva.com.
Ingredients:
1 can Bush’s Reduced Sodium Black Beans, rinsed
1 cup frozen corn, thawed and rinsed
1/2-3/4 cup red pepper, diced small
2 Tablespoons fresh cilantro, chopped (optional)
1/4 cup red onion, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, pressed
2 Tablespoons green chilies, chopped (optional)
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder (use as much or as little)
1/4 teaspoon onion powder (use as much or as little)
Juice of one fresh lime
2-3 splashes of seasoned rice wine vinegar
3-4 splashes of TryMe Tiger Sauce (to taste)
Sea Salt, to taste (optional)
Preparation:
Combine all ingredients in a bowl; refrigerate for at least 1/2 hour to allow flavors to blend. This is so much better the next day! Enjoy with tortilla chips, as a condiment on tacos and burritos, or as a side dish.
Part of the fun of a Super Bowl Party, besides the game and the commercials, is the food! But you don’t want to spend your entire day in the kitchen and be exhausted when guests arrive. I like to prepare a main dish that cooks in a crockpot, where people can serve themselves when they feel like it. Then I supplement with simple appetizers and finger foods. Here are a few of my favorites:
Crockpot Beef Barbacoa
Crockpot Beef Barbacoa from SimpleSolutionsDiva.com.
Barbacoa refers to a way of cooking meat that originated in the Caribbean, and eventually was adopted in Mexico and the Southwest. It is where the term “barbecue” came from, but this has nothing to do with an open flame! It is meat, slow cooked with wonderful spices, then shredded and served in a flour tortilla. In this recipe, I’m using chuck roast cut of beef.
Ingredients:
1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
1/2 medium yellow onion
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
4 cloves garlic
4 teaspoons ground cumin
2 teaspoons oregano
1 teaspoon ground allspice
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
3/4 Cup beef stock
3-4 chipotle chiles in adobo sauce, chopped (The amount depends on the heat level you like)
3-4 pound beef chuck roast
Preparation:
Combine vinegar, onion, lime juice, garlic,cumin, oregano, allspice, cloves, salt and pepper, beef stock in a blender and puree.
Place roast (trim off excess fat from roast) in crockpot and pour puree over the roast. Cover and cook on low for 8-10 hours, or high for 6 hours. Shred beef in crockpot and serve in soft (and warm) flour tacos. Serve with sour cream, shredded cheese, salsa, beans, or whatever else suits your tastes!
Un-Sloppy Joes
I loved sloppy joes as a kid, but they were always so messy! Well, a simple solution to that is serve them in pita bread halves! Use your favorite sloppy joe recipe (or use mine below!) and serve them in pita pockets! In this recipe, I use Stonefire Authentic Flatbread Pitas (yes, I love their products and use them a lot!). Stuff shredded cheese on top, add a dash or two of hot sauce and you have the neatest sloppy joes on the block! You can make this up ahead of time and put the beef in a crockpot to keep warm – guests just help themselves! Double the recipe for larger groups.
Ingredients:
1.5 pounds lean ground beef
1/2 Cup onion, chopped
1/4 green pepper, chopped
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon prepared yellow mustard
1/2 Cup ketchup
1 can tomato paste
6 oz. water
3 teaspoons brown sugar
salt and pepper to taste
3 Stonefire Authentic Flatbread Pitas, halved to create 6 pockets
Preparation:
In a large pan, cook beef, onion and green pepper over medium high heat until beef is cooked. Drain off liquid. Add garlic powder, mustard, ketchup, tomato paste, salt, pepper, water and brown sugar. Stir until thoroughly blended, reduce heat to low and cook for 30 minutes. Serve in pita halves with shredded cheese and hot sauce as desired.
Thai Chicken Flatbreads
Thai Chicken Flatbread from SimpleSolutionsDiva.com.
For a flavor change, try making a variety of flatbreads! Since I am a SIMPLE Solutions Diva, I used pre-made flatbreads by Stonefire Authentic Flatbread Naan because they are light and have a variety of flavors; you can make your own flatbread dough if desired. Prep the flatbreads in advance, then toss in the oven as needed!
This is a nice spicy recipe with an asian twist:
Ingredients:
1 Cup cooked chicken, cut or shredded into small, bite-sized pieces (I used store-bought rotisserie chicken)
6 Tablespoons thai peanut sauce (I used House of Tsang Bangkok Peanut Sauce)
2 Tablespoons shredded carrots
1 1/4 Cups shredded mozzarella (use more or less, depending on how cheesy you want your pizza)
1 Tablespoon green onions, sliced on bias, for garnish
2 Stonefire Authentic Flatbreads Naan, original flavor.
Preparation:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees (if using a pizza stone, place stone in oven before preheating).
In a bowl, toss chicken with 4 tablespoons of thai peanut sauce. Sprinkle mozzarella on both flatbreads. Divide the chicken mixture between the two flatbreads. Sprinkle with carrots and green onions. Drizzle each flatbread with 1 tablespoon of remaining thai peanut sauce. Place flatbreads in oven for 5-10 minutes until cheesy is melty.
Serve warm!
A BIG THANK YOU to Stonefire Naan for providing me with a large selection so Stonefire Naan Flatbreads to use in this post!
Buffalo Chicken Dip
Love Buffalo Chicken Wings but want to avoid the mess and the bones? Try this simple recipe, courtesy of my sister-in-law, Jennifer. This stuff is truly addictive! Serve warm with corn chips or pita wedges.
Ingredients:
1 Rotisserie chicken, shredded and cut into bite-sized pieces (approx. 2.5 cups)
1 6 oz. bottle of Texas Pete Hot Sauce
8 oz. cream cheese
1 Cup Ranch Dressing
1 8 oz. bag mexican shredded cheese
Preparation:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 13×9 pan. Place shredded chicken in bottom of pan and pour hot sauce over the chicken, covering the chicken in sauce.
In a microwave safe bowl, place cream cheese and microwave for 30 seconds (until the cream cheese is softened). Add the ranch dressing and stir well. Pour mixture over the chicken; top the dish with the cheese and place in oven until the cheese is melted and the entire dish is bubbly (approximately 15-20 mins). Serve with chips.
Magic Cookie Bars
Magic Cookie Bars from SimpleSolutionsDiva.com.
A blast from childhood, these scrumptious bites of chocolate and coconut goo are so sweet, just one or two will do! Make them the day before and store at room temperature.
Ingredients:
3/4 Cup butter, melted
2 1/4 Cup graham cracker crumbs (about 18 crackers)
1 (14 oz) can sweetened condensed milk
1 1/2 Cup semisweet chocolate morsels
1 Cup butterscotch flavored chips
1 Cup sweetened flaked coconut
1 Cup chopped pecans (Not everyone likes pecans, so I use 1/2 cup and place pecans on one side)
Preparation:
Heat oven to 325 degrees. Coat 13×9 inch glass baking pan with non-stick cooking spray (I actually used a 9×9 pan, made the layers thicker, and cooked them longer.)
Melt butter in the glass dish, and add graham cracker crumbs. Mix thoroughly and press into bottom of prepared pan. Layer evenly with chocolate chips, butterscotch chips, coconut, and nuts. Pour sweetened condensed milk over mixture, making sure it covered entire surface of the pan.
Bake approximately 25 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool. Cut into bars. Store covered at room temperature, well hidden so everyone does not eat them all at once!
More Simple Super Bowl Recipe Ideas:
Looking for other simple, crowd pleasing recipe ideas for Super Bowl? Try these:
We love tacos in our house, and I like to make large batches of the meat mixture so we can have leftovers through the week. But it can get expensive! Try this simple tip to stretch your grocery dollar:
When making taco meat, add a one pound can of rinsed and drained black beans to every one pound of meat. The beans are a very low fat protein that goes great with the meat and spice mixture. Just be sure to double the spices!
Crockpots are the ultimate in easy cooking! Ropa Vieja is a cuban dish that is so versatile ~ You can serve it over yellow rice, you can stuff it in Tacos or Burritos, or you can make sliders out of it. It is great to serve to a crowd, so you can keep your holiday entertaining simple! When I make this dish, I tend to be generous with the spices. I’ve listed lower spice amounts here, but feel free to play with the amount of spices yourself, based on your personal taste!
(FYI – Ropa Vieja is Cuban for “Old Rags” because it is shredded!)
Ropa Vieja is a cuban dish that is so versatile ~ You can serve it over yellow rice, you can stuff it in Tacos or Burritos, or you can make sliders out of it. It is great to serve to a crowd, so it is great for football games, holiday, or just entertaining for a crowd!
Author: SimpleSolutionsDiva.com
Recipe type: Slow cooker/Main dish
Cuisine: Cuban
Serves: 8 servings
Ingredients
2 lb. Pork Tenderloin OR 4-6 Boneless Chicken Breasts
1 cup Mojo Sauce/Marinade (find it in ethnic or mexican food aisle of grocery store)
1 cup Chicken Broth (add more if you would like more liquid)
2 T. Minced Garlic (add more or less to taste)
1 tsp. cumin (add more to taste)
1 T Chili Powder (add more to taste)
1 Vidalia Onion, chopped
1 can Rotel tomatoes with green chilies
Optional Ingredients (If you like smokey flavor):
½ tsp. Smoked Paprika
1 or 2 smoked chipotle peppers, finely chopped (Found in the mexican food aisle in a can)
Instructions
NOTE: The ingredients list is for a milder version of this recipe. If you love spiciness, increase the garlic to 4 T.; cumin to 1 T; Chili powder to 2 T. I recommend playing with the ingredients based on your taste!
Place chopped onions in bottom of crockpot; lay meat over the onions.
Pour chicken broth and mojo sauce/marinade over meat.
Add spices, can of Rotel, and any remaining ingredients.
Cover and cook on high for four hours, or low for 8.
When it is finished cooking, use two forks and gently shred the meat right in the crockpot and mix it well into the juices. (Learn from my mistake - use oven mitts when shredding - the steam is extremely hot!)
Serve over yellow rice and sprinkle with cheddar cheese. Or serve it up as taco meat/burrito meat, or as sliders on mini rolls. I love to use green Tabasco sauce (it is milder) as a condiment with this.
