Layered Chicken Taco Salad

I had been in the mood for tacos, but kept forgetting to buy hard taco shells at the store!  So I used some of my regular fix-ins' for tacos - cheese, lettuce and tomatoes and turned it into a layered salad...or dip?  This dinner came together in no time at all.   

We ate this by scooping it up with tortilla chips even though I had added seasoned tortilla strips to the top of the salad (you can usually find them in the aisle with the croutons).  Which is why I thought of it as a dip or a salad.  I used chicken because I don't eat ground beef, but you can very easily substitute it.  I also tossed in the black beans to cook a bit with the chicken when I added the taco seasoning.    

This is a great dish to customize to your family - choose a different meat or add other toppings such as black olives or chopped green pepper.  We also would have topped it with sour cream and salsa, but I didn't have either of those on hand - and now you can see how desperate I was to have tacos even though I didn't really have all of my usual suspects for the toppings!  I'll chalk that up to another pregnancy craving...  

Serves 4

Layered Chicken Taco Salad

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, diced

1 cup black beans, drained and rinsed

3 tablespoons taco seasoning

3/4 cup water

1 head of Romaine lettuce, chopped

2 Roma tomatoes, seeded and diced

1 1/2 cups shredded Mexican blend cheese

1 cup Santa Fe tortilla strips (optional)

sour cream and salsa (optional)

In a medium skillet over medium, heat the olive oil and add diced chicken.  Cook until browned, add the black beans, taco seasoning and water.  Simmer for about 10 minutes until sauce is slightly thickened.  Spoon chicken and black bean mixture onto the bottom of a 9 x 13-inch pan.  

Top chicken with lettuce, followed by tomatoes, cheese and tortilla strips.  Dish out to individual plates or bowls (or scoop right out of the pan with a tortilla chip!).  Serve with sour cream and salsa if desired. 

Pimento Cheese

Pimento cheese...so Southern, so good.  I was buying it from the grocery store until I discovered how easy it is to make on my own.  Cream cheese, mayonnaise, and definitely sharp cheddar cheese.  There are differences in recipes where some use only mayo, no cream cheese, but on the sharp cheddar cheese, there is no substitute.  

 Incredible with butter crackers, veggies or in a grilled cheese (my favorite!).

Makes 3 cups 

Pimento Cheese

3 oz cream cheese, room temperature
2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese
1 cup mayonnaise
3 tablespoons diced pimentos
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
salt and pepper to taste

With an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese until smooth.  Add the remaining ingredients, beat until well blended and the shredded cheese has been broken up some.  Serve with crackers or as a dip for veggies.

 

Spicy Corn Dip

It's Football Saturday!!  In our house, that means one thing - good food and lots of it!  Corn dip has become a staple for football games since we moved to Savannah 6 years ago.  Our friends from Louisiana first introduced it to us and we've been hooked ever since.  She actually served hers warm in small Crock Pot and it was SO good.  This version is a cold version, from my sister-in-law and I think we love it equally as much.  

Probably a bit easier to keep something cold than warm at a tailgate or picnic - we've had this plenty for both types of events!  It's always a hit.   

Serve with crunchy tortilla chips, butter crackers, pita chips, whatever your preference.  Anything that you'll be able to scoop a big bite of this dip!  Kroger now has this blend of cheese called Fiesta Blend - it's shredded sharp cheddar and pepper jack cheeses mixed with jalapeno peppers and spices.  That's what I used this time, but I've also used a Nacho/Taco blend or regular sharp cheddar cheese.  

Spicy Corn Dip

2 cans Mexicorn

1 can Rotel

1 (8 oz) container sour cream

1 cup mayonnaise

1 cup shredded cheese (your choice)

dash sugar

Drain Mexicorn and Rotel.  Mix all the ingredients in a large bowl and refrigerate for a couple of hours or overnight to blend flavors.

Red Pepper Ranch Dip

This dip is so easy and makes a ton!  I made it one night when I had a girlfriend over and we didn't even make a dent in it, although believe me, we indulged.  The rest of my family and I ended up eating it for snacks over the next couple of days and it just got better as it sat in the fridge.  Such a great go-to dip for a party and especially wonderful when you have unexpected company because you can throw this together FAST.

I typically don't like olives, but I do like the tangy flavor in this dip.  So, I used already chopped black olives - and when I say chopped, it's more liked minced.  The teeny specks of black you see in this dip are really the olives.  If you're a fan, feel free to use whole or sliced olives and chop them as small or big as you like. 

Makes about 4 cups

Red Pepper Ranch Dip 

2 (8 oz) bars reduced fat cream cheese, softened
1 red pepper, diced
1 can corn (drained)
3 tablespoons diced pickled jalapenos
1 tablespoon diced black olives
1 packet Ranch dressing mix

In a large bowl, mix all of the ingredients until everything is combined.  Let sit in the fridge for a couple of hours before serving with butter crackers, pretzels or veggies.