Spanish Rice

Pair this with a couple of tacos and call it a perfect meal.  Let's be honest: This stuff makes me drool. 
Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1 1/2 cups instant rice1
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 red bell pepper, chopped
• 1/2 green bell pepper, chopped
• 1 teaspoon prepared mustard
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 (14.5 ounce) cans diced tomatoes
• 1/2 can tomato soup
• 1/2 can water

Directions:

1. In a large saucepan over medium heat combine oil, uncooked rice, onion, red bell pepper and green bell pepper. Sautee until onions are translucent. Stir in mustard, salt, tomatoes and tomato juice; simmer for 8 minutes, or until rice has completely cooked.

Thanks to Sal for the original recipe.

Mexican Baked Beans

I got this recipe a long time ago from my very health-conscious sister.  I don't make it often, but when I do, I remember why I saved it for so long!  It's not quite a chili, but not quite a casserole.. I'm not sure what to call it, besides spicy and delicious!

Ingredients:

• 1 tbsp veggie oil
• 2 cups red onion, chopped
• 6 garlic cloves, minced
• 4 raw jalepeno peppers, minced
• 2 cups red bell peppers, chopped
• 1 tbsp cumin
• 1 1/4 cups tomato sauce
• 1 tbsp honey
• 1 tbsp molasses
• 2 tbsp Dijon mustard
• 1 15oz can Pinto beans
• 1 15oz can Great Northern beans

Directions:

1. Chop up all your vegetables.
2. Heat a heavy pot or deep skillet and add oil.
3. Sautee onions to your liking.
4. Add garlic, jalepenos, bell pepper and cumin, and sautee for a few more minutes.
5. Stir in tomato sauce, honey, molasses, mustard and all beans.
6. Re-season as needed.
7. Pour mixture in oven-safe dish and bake uncovered for at least 30 minutes.  The longer you cook it, the more the beans will "set up" as the liquid is driven into the beans.

Nachos

This is one of those foods that's great, cause you can put whatever the hell you want on it.  In this case, I had a couple extra things on hand that I added in, but feel free to make it your own by adding what you like, or taking out what you don't.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 bag thick tortilla chips (so they don't break apart from the weight of the other ingredients)
• 1 lb. ground turkey (or beef)
• 1 package taco seasoning
• 1/2 can corn
• 1-2 cups shredded cheddar cheese (or nacho cheese... or both!)
• 1/2 can diced tomatoes
• 1 1/2 cups lettuce
• 1/2 can refried beans
• Sour cream

Directions:

1. Set your oven to 400 degrees F.
2. If you are using meat, brown the meat and follow the directions on the back of the taco seasoning packet.
3. Arrange a handful of tortilla chips on a cookie sheet, being sure that most of the chips are exposed and not lying on top of each other.
4. Add on your cheese, meat, refried beans, and corn... Anything that you wouldn't mind being cooked onto your tortilla chips.
5. Add another layer of chips and add on more warm ingredients.
6. Stick it in the oven and keep an eye on it.... Just warm it up long enough to melt the cheese  (about 10 minutes).
7. Take it out of the oven and top with lettuce, diced tomatoes and sour cream.
8. Grab a fork and dig in, cause once you get to the ooey-gooey center, there's no use in trying to keep your fingers clean.

Mexican Fudge

Unfortunately, I haven't made this in a while, so this post will be without a picture.  However, I will put my name on the line and say that this is one of those appetizers you can't stop eating. It is highly addictive and probably pretty bad for you.  But sometimes, we need to let our tastebuds win us over and stop thinking about how big our butt will look in the morning.
Thanks to the Skuban-Hobbs family cookbook for the recipe.

Ingredients

• 2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded
• 2 cups monterey jack cheese, shredded
• 1/2 cup green taco sauce
• 3 eggs
• Large tortilla snack chips

Directions

1. Combine cheeses.
2. Beat eggs and taco sauce together.
3. Using a 9x9 inch square pan, layer cheeses, sauce, cheeses.
4. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.
5. Cool 5 minutes.
6. Cut into squares and serve on chips.

Cheese Quesadillas

Okay, so some of my recipes may be far from complicated (much like this one, for example), but though you may know how to make a cheese quesadilla, you may have forgotten that you could make one in the first place. Sometimes we stare into the empty abyss that is our refrigerator and simply can't connect the dots. So this recipe is a reminder that yes, you do have food to eat in your refrigerator, even if there's only a couple of condiments and a piece of cheese.

Ingredients

• Shredded Cheddar Cheese
• Flour tortillas (you can use corn tortillas, but you should deep fry them in oil first)
• Pam (spray-on vegetable oil)
• Salsa (optional)

Directions

• Spray a tortilla-sized skillet lightly with Pam.
• Throw on a tortilla, and turn the stove on to medium heat.
• Sprinkle a bunch of cheddar cheese on top
• Cover with another tortilla
• Flip when you believe the cheese is melted enough to stick the two tortillas together.
• Continue flipping until both sides are lightly brown.
• Remove your quesadilla from the skillet and cut into eighths.
• Dip in salsa and enjoy.

Note: You can also add other ingredients to your liking, such as (but not limited to) cooked chicken, onions, green peppers, jalepenos, tomatos, etc.

Stuffed Green Peppers

Another one of my favorite recipes from my mom... Easy to put together, and it can feed up to 4 or 5 people.

Ingredients

• 4 green peppers, with the tops and middles cleaned out
• 1/2 lb beef or ground turkey
• 1/2 onion, chopped
• 1 cup rice
• 2 cans tomato soup
• 1 can stewed tomatoes

Direction

• Simmer the peppers for 5 minutes, then set aside.
• Cook the rice in a separate pot
• Cook beef/turkey with onions.
• Add 1 can stewed tomatoes and 1 can tomato soup
• Add rice to the beef/turkey mixture
• Mix 1 can tomato soup and 1/2 can water together.
• Pour rice mixture into green peppers, then pour the tomato soup/water mixture over top.
• There will be extra rice and tomato soup/water mix, so just pour the remainder in the bottom of the pot.
• Cover the pan and heat it through.

Taco Casserole

A lot like my recipe for Tuna casserole, but with a taco-ey flavor. Yes, it's college. Don't expect me to get all Bobby Flay on ya. Good food is good food, even if it isn't gourmet.

Ingredients

• 1 cup or more of taco meat (left over from tacos)
• 8 oz macaroni noodles
• 1 can Cream of Celery soup
• 1/2 cup mayo
• 2 tbsp butter
• Salt
• Pepper
• Grated cheddar cheese (optional)

Directions

• Set oven to Broil
• Cook noodles and drain
• Mix in soup, butter, mayo, and meat.
• Add salt and pepper to taste.
• Add cheese to the top.
• Put in the oven until the cheese is melted.

That's it. Yes, it's a very easy recipe, and probably like nothing else you'll see on the web. I make it all the time. And if you don't have leftover taco meat, you can make your own and just use more noodles and stuff.