Taco Salad Casserole

My family and I love Mexican dishes and taco salad is at the top of the list for a few reasons. It’s easy to make, it’s pretty inexpensive and it tastes great. I like easy recipes that don’t take much thinking especially during the week while we are busy with school and other activities. While on pinterest, I found a new twist on the classic taco salad and so I gave it a try and we loved it. In this recipe the taco meat is mixed with re-fried beans which makes the meat mixture creamy. A bed of crunched tortilla chips is laid on the bottom of the casserole dish then the meat mixture goes on top.  Bell pepper, onions and tomatoes top the meat mixture and then a layer of cheese. The casserole gets baked until bubbly, when it’s done the lettuce mixture tops it off. Even if you are not much into cooking you can’t mess this recipe up, so give it a try.

Taco Salad Casserole

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Ingredients:
1 lb. ground turkey or beef
1 can 16 oz. re-fried beans
1 package taco seasoning
2 1/2 cups coarsely crushed tortilla chips
1 medium bell pepper chopped
2 tomatoes chopped
1/2 yellow onion chopped
1 1/2 cup Colby Jack cheese shredded
1 avocado chopped
1 cup lettuce shredded

Directions:
Step 1: Brown meat and drain. Return to skillet add taco seasoning and cook according to directions. Then add the re-fried beans. Heat thoroughly.
Step 2: Coarsely crush chips and place two cups on the bottom of a 2-qt. casserole dish.
Step 3: Top with the meat mixture and cover with onions, 1 cup of the tomatoes, bell pepper and the shredded cheese.
Step 4: Bake uncovered on 350 F for 20-30 minutes or until the cheese is all hot and bubbly.
Step 5: Top with remaining tortilla chips, tomatoes and the chopped avocado. Serve with sour cream and salsa.
Notes: If you plan to serve the whole casserole put the lettuce on top but if you are planning to serve a small family with leftovers just sprinkle the lettuce on the individual servings so it will not get wilted from the heat of the cooked casserole.
Recipe slightly adapted from: Pearls Hand Cuffs and Happy Hour
Serves: 6-8

Tagged as: casserole, mexican, taco-salad