Mexican Food
-and-
Pizza
So when I stumbled across this little gemstone, I knew I had to make some remnant of it... and let me be the first to tell you- it was delicious.
I tweaked the recipe (as usual) to fit two things:
1. to make it healthier-ish
2. to fit what I had in my pantry/fridge (since I had used most of our fresh veggies by this late in the week)
I made three of these bad boys, but honestly- I only needed 2. I could only manage to enjoy 2.5 mini slices of this treat, and J finished up his 4 slices, and my 1.5 extra and both of us were full and satisfied.
This is also one of those dishes that looks not as pretty as other dishes you can create due to the hodgepodge of ingredients all piled together, however, let me tell you- it is definitely worth trying at home.
It curbed my craving for mexican and pizza all at once, all while having protein power, low-fat cheese (yum), and veggies! Also it was lower in carbs due to the use of whole-wheat tortillas instead of that fluffy pizza dough... (which surprisingly, I enjoyed this flatbread version better than I like normal pizza dough... yes I just admitted that)
Ingredients:
One of my absolute favorite parts of this recipe is that you truly can use what you have (in regard to veggies) and just pick up a few extra things at your weekly shopping trip. I will definitely be keeping some black beans on hand for whenever I decide to make this next, and then just need to stop for some fresh tortillas!
6 10-inch whole wheat (or whole grain) tortillas.(read the label on the bag- find the one with the least sugar)
1 cup low-fat/reduced fat cheddar cheese
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, seasoned with taco seasoning, cooked, and shredded
1/2 cup diced onions
1 cup salsa (I used medium, chunky-- next time I plan on "making my own" with some tomatoes, avocados, onions, and seasoning)
olive oil
1 can low-sodium black beans, rinsed & drained (again- read the label... I found out that the "store brand" black beans actually have lower sodium than the branded "reduced sodium" can!)
1 can "no salt added" corn, drained (or you can use frozen corn kernels, thawed)
1/2 tsp red pepper flake
1/2 tsp smoked paprika
salt & pepper to taste
Preparation:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray casserole dish with cooking spray. Lay 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts inside and sprinkle with taco seasoning, salt, & pepper. Bake 45 minutes or until chicken is cooked through.
2. Once chicken is baked, remove from oven and shred. (I used my KitchenAid Mixer for this with the beater attachment). Sprinkle more taco seasoning to taste (It should look shredded & "speckled" with the red seasoning).
3. Place in tupperware container and set aside.
4. Drizzle olive oil on baking sheet. Place 2 tortillas, side by side, on olive oil. Sprinkle shredded cheddar cheese on top (just a little bit). Cover with an additional tortilla, each (think of this like making a grilled cheese tortilla sandwich).
5. Bake cheese-filled tortillas in oven for 6 minutes, until the cheese has melted. Remove from oven. Gently press top tortilla flat with turner to make the two tortillas "stick" better together.
6. In a small bowl, mash rinsed/drained black beans. Add salsa. Mix together. (this will serve as your "sauce").
7. In another small bowl, mixed the drained corn with the red pepper flake and smoked paprika. Add onions and mix.
8. Take the bean/salsa mix and spread on top tortilla, leaving around a 3/4 inch rim of tortilla. Top with the shredded taco chicken. Sprinkle corn/onion mixture on top, and top with a small handful of shredded cheddar cheese.
9. Return to oven and bake for an additional 12-15 minutes.
10. Repeat for third "pizza" as desired.
Future Tweaks:
1. I would love to try this with mango salsa. I think that the slightly sweet taste may add more depth to this already delicious dish.
2. I am going to try mashing avocado with my black beans- to add more protein
3. Next time, I am going to cook my chicken in advance. (example: the night before, I will plan a different chicken dish, and just cook two extra breasts that are seasoned differently-- this will cut down on the time it takes to prepare, and this will be a great last-minute dinner fix!)
4. Cook less. Next time I will just use 4 tortillas, since 1 "pizza" (plus my leftovers) was enough for both of us to be satisfied.
5. I may try the "southwestern corn" next time. This is a beautiful blend of bell peppers, onions, and corn. AND although it is technically "canned" it is considered a "steamers" by green giant- meaning they don't add as many extra preservatives! Nom Nom Nom
I hope ya'll seriously try this... it was one of our favorite finds! I love that the tortilla (especially the bottom one) gets extra crispy- so you can cut through it easier with the pizza cutter. I also love that you're full, but it's not the "dough" that fills you up- it's all the loaded up veggies and proteins!
(again, it doesn't look as appealing as it tastes... next time I'll add some bell peppers to get some more color).
P.S. I forgot to mention....this was so yummy and satisfying that neither of us wanted dessert...
Happy satisfying those "comfort food" cravings,
No comments:
Post a Comment