Texas Taco Ring

My camera and have decided to try to work together again. After a long talk and a bit of discovery on how we each work, (frankly, that consisted of me finding out how to get the macro function to work) I think we may be able to work out our differences. I hope you are able to see a little bit of improvement in the photos. (If not, wait a little while until I am able to get that SLR I'm drooling over.) We're still having a disagreement on where to focus and why.

I found the inspiration for this recipe in the February issue of Taste of Home. It looked yummy, but the ingredients seemed a bit bland. Besides that, you were supposed to make meatballs for the ring. Meatballs! They take way to long to form and then bake. I really don't have time for grimy hands and 50 baby balls of meat. So, that is how TOH's Taco Meatball Ring became Texas Taco Ring.

Meet my little, chicken friend.

Since he isn't camera shy, like me, he gets the honor of naming all the dishes on this blog.

I decided to put this up first so you could drool for a bit before you continue on.
Did you notice the melty, gooey cheese?
The little leaf of cilantro? Oh!!! That crispy crust! And the Jalapeno!!!
Hold on while I go cut myself another piece......


Start off with 1/2 -1 pound of ground pork. Yep! Ground pork. It is sooo cheap compared to the extra lean beef and seems to be just as lean. Most of the time, I have to add olive oil to keep it from sticking to the pan. If you know of some horrible reason why I shouldn't be using it, feel free to let me know. I just can't promise that I will stop using it... It's so yummy and did I mention Cheap?!
I probably used only half of this. I put the leftover in the fridge for a taco later.

Once the meat is browned, add a packet of taco seasoning.

I prefer the Hot Taco Mix from McCormick.
Now, be honest. Were you surprised?

Did you even know they made Hot Taco Mix?

Pour in the 3/4 cup of water the package calls for.

Stir it up and wait till all the liquid is evaporated.



In the meantime....

Open up two cans of crescent rolls.

Or, get your hubby or kids to open it for you.

Which comes in very handy should you have a fear of these

exploding time bombs disguised as helpful, bready shortcuts.

I think they are an evil plot to make mother's hearts across America stop

when they POP open with the smallest of tear in the packaging.

I tell you - that little dough boy is dangerous!

Once you have given yourself CPR in order to restart your heart,

lay the triangles on a pizza sheet with the smallest ends pointing away from the center.
Over lap the wide ends by a couple of inches.

When you are finished, it should look like a

giant sunflower or a child's drawing of the sun.

Smear on some refried beans - straight from the can.

Nothing should be too good for your family!

Top the refried beans with a 1/2 pound of the taco meat.

Be careful to keep the meat on the overlapped edges.

Top with cheese. I think I used about a cup and a half.
Are you beginning to look forward to the coming goodness?

Add some onions, if you like.

I obviously like them, so here they go!

Top that with fresh cilantro.

If you are one of those people who think

cilantro tastes like soap, I just feel sorry for you.

You are missing out on one of the greatest herbs ever.

You knew it was coming. Jalapenos!

How could I make a Taco ring without them?
That would be sooo un-Texan.

Now, carefully tuck the points under the inside edge of the dough.

I discovered that it was easier if I used a butter knife to lift the dough from the pan.

Bake for 15-20 minutes in a 400 degree oven. Or until it is golden brown.

I suggest that you serve it immediately.

That stretchy, gooey cheese is hard to resist.



Texas Taco Ring

1/2 lb of ground meat

one package Taco mix

3/4 cup water

2 tubes of Crescent rolls

3/4 cup refried beans

1 1/2 cups grated colby jack cheese

1/4 onion, chopped (optional)

1/4 cup cilantro, chopped (optional)

1/4 cup sliced jalapenos (optional)

Brown ground meat in skillet. Add 1/2 of package of taco mix and 3/4 cup water.

(If using 1 lb of meat add entire package and 3/4 cup of water.)
Let simmer until all water has evaporated.

Meanwhile, place crescents on a greased, pizza pan with small end pointing out.

Overlap top edges by 1 1/2 - 2 inches.

Layer refried beans, taco meat, and cheese along inside edge.

Top with desired vegetables.

Bring points over layers and tuck under inside edge.

Bake at 400 degrees for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown.

Enjoy! Take a Bite for me!

Sorry for the delay

I just want to apologize for the lack or recent recipes. You see, my camera and I are having issues. It is frustrated because I keep trying to make it do things it is just not able to do. I on the other hand, am frustrated because it won't do what I think should be a simple procedure. So, we are at a stand still. I hasn't helped anything, that I have been drooling over other cameras online. It makes my little point and shoot camera feel cheap. But, I just can't help myself. Those Digital SLRs are sooo good looking. And the lenses! I've got to stop. I'm just making us both miserable.



All this conflict has taken away my appetite and resulted in my kitchen being uncharacteristically quiet - and clean. I hope to be over this problem soon. My fister is coming to visit this weekend and I am depending on her to kick start my culinary drive. I hope she will tolerate my photographic intrusion while we cook for the herd. She isn't usually shy, but you never know! Maybe if I promise to name the recipe after her....

Tuna Mac Salad

I have to admit it. I never, ever, ever - in a million years- thought I would be making and eating a tuna salad. It's just not my style. Tuna fish sandwiches? You bet! But a salad?! Well, that just sounds too Grandmommy-ish for a hipster like myself.

Wait a minute while I pick myself up off the floor. Hipster! I can't believe I said that! Ha!

Well, now that I have have brushed my rump off and managed to get back in my chair, I can tell you that this recipe simply, intrigued me. You see, my beloved Fisha-head (Whom most of you know, but I have decided to begin making anonymous because of the embarrassing things I sometimes leak out here.) loves tuna fish. He eats tuna fish with a spoon. No crackers, bread, or anything. Just a spoon. He eats it for a meal and then will sneak in a have more for a snack. Needless to say, a single, large can of tuna doesn't last very long around here and since my goal every time I cook is to have leftovers for lunch, this predicament is unacceptable.

I guess I don't have to tell you that it passed the Fisha-head taste test, but my own, also. I found it on a great new site - www.elise.com/recipes Oh! and guess what?! I changed it. Surprise! Well, I know you're not but humor me some. The original recipe called for lettuce to be mixed in with the salad. However, that wouldn't work for leftovers. So - It had to go. I also made a few more changes, but nothing to drastic. Here goes!

I've decided my kitchen lighting is not very good for pictures. (Considering I have a huge florescent box on the ceiling, I shouldn't be surprised.) I'm going to start using a lens that helps with florescent lighting and try to get Photo Shop. Maybe that will help my pitiful, photo-taking self.

OK. I'm finished moping.

First you need to boil some eggs. I only had small eggs that somehow materialized in my fridge. So, I used 4 of them. Normally, I would have used 2 large eggs. In another pot, I boiled one cup of elbow macaroni according to the package directions.

Now, what's tuna without onions? So chop up 1/2 of a small onion.

Looks like I'm fixing to get part of my thumb in there too. Don't worry. I missed. Oh! I know it is hard to tell from my hands, but I am a girl. Very much so. Don't let the manly hands fool ya!

Next chop up 3 ribs of celery and 1/2 a large bell pepper.

Yes. I did put in celery. Even though I think it useless, other people seem to like it. Since trying to please my hubby is the most important thing.... Oh I can't go on. It's a filler! Anything to make tuna last longer! I'll even drop to the lows of adding celery. I'm so ashamed, right now.

I had to add a bit of kick. Mostly to get Fisha-head back for his recent jalapeno ambushes when it is his turn to cook. So, it is optional, of course. I just added one jalapeno - with seeds! I'm bad to the bone!

Now take all this beautiful deliciousness and dump it in a bowl. A large bowl to be exact.

Chop your eggs.

Drain one large can of tuna in spring water, (Only the best for Fisha-head!)

Add the cooked, drained, and rinsed macaroni. And stir it up some.

Pour in the juice of 1/2 a lemon.

I frankly don't mind cheating with bottled lemon juice. However, if you are a purist (Why are you reading this for goodness sake?) go beat up an innocent lemon. I don't care!

When you have finished all this back-breaking work, it should look like this.

Now comes the gooey part. Add 1/2 cup of mayo. 1/2 teaspoon of paprika, and salt and ground black pepper to taste. Stir it all up

I said, "STIR! Sister!"

You should have ended up with something that looks like this.

Now, I personally think this would be very yummy over a bunch of salad greens. Unfortunately, I am out of salad fixin's at the moment. However, it tastes pretty darn good without the lettuce stuff. It's up to you.

I just can't keep from thinking just how much farther this recipe would stretch with lettuce though...... Let me know if you like it after you Take A Bite!




Hey! I realized that it might be easier to make a recipe if you could get it without all the annoying photos. So, here's your chance.

Tuna Mac Salad

2 large eggs or 4 small eggs

1 cup elbow macaroni

1/2 cup onion, chopped

1 cup green bell pepper, chopped

3 stalks celery, chopped

1 jalapeno, chopped (optional)

1 large can of tuna in spring water

juice of 1/2 a lemon

1/2 cup mayonnaise of your choice

1/2 tsp paprika

salt and pepper to taste

Boil eggs and macaroni, in separate pans, til done.

Mix together onions, celery, bell peppers, and jalapeno (if desired.) Add tuna.

Drain and cool eggs. Drain macaroni and rinse. Dice eggs and add to tuna mixture. add macaroni to tuna and stir. Add rest of ingredients and stir til well coated.

Can be eaten with lettuce, as a salad, or as is. Serve either immediately or after being cooled in fridge. Enjoy!

Let's Get Started

Here is the first, of what I hope to be many, recipes on this blog. I wish I could say that I thought hard about what recipe to use first. Unfortunately, it didn't happen that way. I had some Italian sausage defrosted that needed to be used soon. (Potential food poison wins over first impressions.) After a quick web search, I found a good looking recipe. So, out came the pots, the ingredients, and my camera.

I found this recipe on the Internet at Johnsonville recipes. (See link above.) I happened to be in the mood for some soup or other cool weather dish, since it was a chilly 65 degrees outside. Got to love that Leander, Texas winter weather! Being in that frame of mind, I was really excited to find this Italian Sausage Chili. It fit all the criteria. Easy, quick, and using the Italian sausage hidden in my fridge. I made a few changes to the ingredients, as usual. Jesse and I both voted. We decided that it is a definite keeper! You'll be wishing for some frosty weather of your own so you can make this chili yourself.

I need to apologize in advance for the fact that I am a messy cook. I just can't help it. It must be in my genes. I have seen many cooking sites and have never seen a messy kitchen on any of them. Well, my kitchen is a working kitchen. You're going to see food on the sides of the pan while it is cooking (gasp!) and plates and bowls on the counter (my goodness!) Please don't let my short-coming keep you from trying this recipe. I'm sure you can give it the clean cooking environment it deserves.

Doesn't it look yummy?!

OK. Start with one pkg of Italian Sausage.

I don't like taking the casings off, so I got some sausage without them from HEB.

Brown the sausage and strain.

Remove the sausage from the pot and put aside til later.

Your going to need to chop one small onion, 3 celery ribs, and one bell pepper.

Add this delicious trio to the pot and saute.


Add 1 Tbs of garlic to the veggies.
(Watch out! Your family is gonna start running to the kitchen now.
Who can resist this smell? It is the best smell in the world.)
Saute the veggies til they are soft and tender.




Do you see this brown stuff left over from the sausage
that is stuck to the bottom of your pan?
Don't just leave that there! Scrape it off.
That is flavor, woman! Tons and tons of flavor!





Next, add 2 cans of Italian diced tomatoes,
1 can of butter beans and 1 can of kidney beans.
Don't forget to drain and rinse the beans.
You don't want all that nasty canned juice in your chili.




Add a can of tomato paste.
I used to hate using tomato paste. It is so think and nasty.
Getting it out of the can is terrible.
That is until I learned to open both ends of the can.
I take of one end and use the other end to push the paste out.
No more nasti-ness. Just a satisfying plop.






Now for the spices. One Tbs of crushed basil is dumped on top.

Then 1 1/2 tsps of baking cocoa.

That's right cocoa! Don't leave it out.

Just don't tell anyone that you put it in. It will be our little secret.
Wink. Wink.

I almost forgot!

Put that yummy Italian Sausage back in the pot.

Give it a big stir and simmer for 20 minutes.

Yummy! Italian Sausage Chili

Go ahead..... Take a bite!