I’m going to be honest with you, things might get a little slow around here over the next few weeks. It just so happens that Blair and I head to Europe on Wednesday for a week & a half, beyond excited doesn’t even describe how I am feeling. We both have traveled there separately, but never together. Back when we booked the trip, I skipped around the house like a 5-year-old chanting “I get to eat gelato, I get to eat gelato.” The last time I was in Italy, I probably gained a good 10-15 pounds from eating all the delicious foods, granted I was also there for over 5 weeks, hopefully, that doesn’t happen again. We will be starting our journey in Spain, then we are headed to France, and finally Italy. I am happy to be taking a little break from blogging and focus on spending quality time with the hubs.
I decided to share this particular recipe before our trip since it is a great one. It may be a new favorite of mine. I never thought to bake tacos, but I can tell you I am now the idea’s biggest fan. Ever since marrying Blair, whenever I made tacos he never considered them to be that. In Blair’s eyes, tacos are not tacos unless you use a hard shell. You see I am a huge fan of soft tacos, but hard tacos never really did it for me, that is until I made these. I also didn’t realize the glory of refried beans, I plan to try to make my own soon.
So what exactly is a baked taco, do you ask? You start by browning some ground beef, (I bet turkey would work too) add in some refried beans, tomato sauce, and taco seasoning, and you have your base. You then stuff the shells, top with cheese, and bake for about 10 minutes. This meal is awesome and comes together in under a half-hour. I ended up halving the recipe for Blair and me, but when I make these for the crowd I will simply double it. I reheated the leftovers in the oven for lunch the next day. When I am in the mood for Mexican and have a busy night ahead, I will definitely be whipping these up. See you all when I return, hopefully with a Mediterranean tan and lots of pictures to share!
Baked Tacos
Yield: 4-5 servings
Ingredients:
- 1lb ground beef
- 2 teaspoons dried minced onion or onion powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoons chili powder
- 1/2 teaspoon cornstarch
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 4 oz. can tomato sauce
- 8 oz. can refried beans
- 1 cup shredded Colby-jack cheese
- 9-10 hard taco shells
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. In a small bowl, combine dried minced onion or onion powder, chili powder, cornstarch, garlic powder, cumin, oregano, and cayenne pepper. Mix well and set aside.
In a large skillet brown ground beef over medium-high heat until no longer pink. Drain off any excess liquid and remove from heat. Add the refried beans, tomato sauce, and prepared spices. Stir until the beans are fully incorporated.
Spoon the taco meat mixture into the taco shells and place into a baking dish, standing upright. Sprinkle cheese evenly over the top of the taco meat in each shell. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until the cheese has melted and the tacos are heated through. Remove from the oven and top with any optional condiments for serving.
