Friday Fast & Easy Meals- Mexican

One thing that I absolutely love is Mexican and we eat it at least once a week if not twice. If we go for twice I try and mix it up a little. So here is one option we love for healthier Mexican night. Eating healthier is all about keeping things you love in the mix but just tweaking them. Small changes especially with things you eat frequently can make a huge impact.  This is fun, easy and cost effective.

Tasty Taco Bowls

1 lb lean ground turkey

• after it is cooked season with homemade seasoning you can make it bulk and have on hand or make each time you use. Use just as much water as needed to get the seasoning blended well. Its usually about 1/2 cup water.
• If you want to add a little extra flavor I also like to add a small can of diced jalapenos and I use mild but you use whatever suits your family tastes best.

Instant Brown Rice

• I literally use the wal mart brand and for a family night do 2 cups of brown rice and it cooks up in the microwave quickly and tastes the same

Toppings: This is where you can really go awry so be careful!

Black Beans

• We use canned for convenience. We use black beans now in a lot of recipes and just as an easy side if nothing else comes to mind.

Diced Tomato

Diced Avocado

• Gives you the creaminess you would get from sour cream if you want to forgo that topping.

Cheese

• Go for a mixed taco blend or a Colby jack blend to give it a little more flavor with less. Do not go overboard with it. I am a cheese lover and have to watch myself but cutting back on dairy in areas like this can be helpful for many reasons.

Diced onion

Salsa

• I like to buy the fresh kind from wal mart or publix. It is packed with flavor and lasts a week or so and if you are like us that is all you need it to last. The cost on the fresh if you really look at it is not more expensive.

Light Sour Cream

• If you want to really slim it up use PLAIN NONFAT GREEK yogurt and add some of that taco seasoning to it and you have a tasty lightened up topper that will still give you the creaminess you may me missing.

No Fail Homemade Taco Seasoning: I found a recipe on the internet and then deleted some things I did not like so this is what I actually use in mine and I use it for all kinds of things. It tastes amazing on ground beef, ground turkey or chicken. The recipe as listed is for ONE use. You can figure out how to triple it if you want or make bigger batches. It doesn't seem to be a problem for me to just make it when I need it. Also, wal mart has a brand of spices that are less than a dollar (.97) I believe and they taste fine. You can stock up on these for the cost of 1-2 packets of mix and it will last you far beyond that.

1 tablespoon chili powder

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

1/4 teaspoon onion powder

1/2 teaspoon paprika

1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin

1 teaspoon sea salt or regular salt

1 teaspoon black pepper