Can you believe it’s already February? The days pass far too quickly. I usually don’t care much for February, but I have decided to make the conscious effort to celebrate instead of be sad. While I don’t feel his loss as much, February has been hard for years as it is the month he passed away. Anytime I get sad, I am going to celebrate our love as best I can. I think that is a much better way to live. So forgive me if next week, I travel memory lane again. He is on my mind frequently as I miss him constantly and it’s hard to keep it from bleeding into the column.

I had some extra ground turkey this week so I went with Tex-Mex this week. I do so love it. I can eat tacos or nachos three or four times a week. Yum! It was also a favorite of my husband. We ate tacos at least five times a month.

Tex-Mex usually contains canned ingredients, which saves on time. Since most of what I cook is after work, I am all about saving time where I can. It also includes ingredients not generally found in Mexico. Ingredients like beef, yellow cheese (like cheddar), wheat flour, black beans, canned vegetables (especially tomatoes), sour cream and cumin are all common in Tex-Mex, but not traditional Mexican cuisine.

Mexican food has more ingredients freshly prepared and takes more time to complete. Meat is locally grown depending on local it may be pork or chicken or, if a costal location, shrimp or crab. It’s more likely topped with a green tomatillo sauce or mole whereas Tex-Mex is more cheese covered. Fresh or grilled onions, homemade salsa or guacamole are also popular toppings, depending on what you are eating. Mexican tends to be healthier as well because the ingredients are generally fresh and less processed.

A couple of things to keep in mind this week. Beans can be added to all recipes. Personally, I don’t care for beans so I remove them from all recipes. However, brown, Ranch or pinto beans are all good options for adding to Tex-Mex foods or you can serve with a side of refried beans if you prefer. You can also serve rice as a side dish if you would like to complete your meal. Some popular taco toppings are salsa, jalapeno, lettuce, tomato, onion, avocado or guacamole, shredded cheese (I use Mexican blend for almost everything, but feel free to use your favorite), and sour cream. This weekend, check your ingredients and make your grocery list. Then, meet me in the kitchen for Tex-Mex dinners!

Air Fryer Tacos

I loved how these turned out! This may be my new favorite taco.

1lb ground beef 1 medium onion, diced 1 pkg. taco seasoning, more or less to taste ¼ cup water, if needed for taco seasoning 1½ cups shredded Mexican blend cheese, more or less as needed 8 corn tortillas 1 Tbsp. avocado oil, more or less as needed Taco toppings of your choosing, we used sour cream and tomato. Avocado/ guacamole, salsa, onion, etc are all good choices.

Heat large skillet over medium heat. Add ground beef, breaking apart, and onion and cook for until browned. Drain any grease away. Add taco seasoning and water called for on packet. Simmer for few minutes until liquid is absorbed. Remove from heat. Wrap corn tortillas in damp towel and microwave for 1 minute to soften. Working in batches, brush outside of tortillas with avocado oil. Fill 4 tortillas with ground beef and cheese. Fold in half to form taco and place in air fryer basket with taco standing up if possible. 4 fit perfectly in my air fryer basket without allowing them to fall over. If you have a larger basket, feel free to put more in at once. Cook at 400°F for about 8 minutes or until edges are browned and shell is crisp as desired. Remove cooked ones and repeat as needed. Top cooked tacos with your favorite taco toppings.

Recipe adapted from dinnersdishesanddesserts. com.

Fritos Taco Bowls

1½lbs ground beef 1 cup sweet onion, diced 8oz can tomato sauce 1 10oz can Rotel, drain if desired Taco seasoning, to taste ½ cup water, if needed Fritos Rice-I used taco rice, but with the flavors of this meat, flavored rice is not necessary.

Taco toppings as desired-I used sour cream, tomato, Mexican blend cheese and green onion. Other options would be salsa, jalapeno, avocado, lettuce, etc.

Brown beef and chopped onions in large skillet over medium-high heat until beef is no longer pink and onions are translucent. Drain grease if needed. Add taco seasoning and water if needed. Mix well and add tomato sauce and Rotel. Mix well and heat over medium low heat 5-10 minutes or until heated through. Prepare rice as directed on packaging. In individual serving bowls, add handful of Fritos as desired, small layer of rice, large spoonful of beef taco mixture then top with taco toppings.

Recipe adapted from sweetlittlebluebird. com.

Taco Casserole

1lb lean ground beef 1 medium onion, diced 1 15oz can chili of choice 1 cup salsa 2 cups coarsely broken tortilla chips, more or less as desired/needed to cover dish 2 cups sour cream 4 green onions, sliced 1 tomato, chopped 1 cup Mexican blend cheese, shredded Heat oven to 350°F. In large skillet, cook beef and onion over medium heat for 10 minutes or until beef is no longer pink. Stir in chili and salsa. Heat to boiling. Reduce heat to low. Simmer for 3 to 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. In 9x13” casserole dish, spread broken chips on bottom to cover as desired. Top with beef mixture. Spread sour cream on top. Sprinkle with cheese. Bake uncovered for 20 minutes or until hot and bubbling. Serve with extra tortilla chips and taco toppings if desired.

Recipe adapted from simplystacie.net.

Cheesy Crockpot Chicken Casserole 2 skinless, boneless chicken breasts 14oz tomato sauce 10oz Rotel 1 tsp. chili powder ½ tsp. garlic powder ½ tsp. salt ¼ tsp. pepper 1 cup dry pasta ¼ block Queso Blanco Velveeta, more or less to taste 1 cup shredded Mexican blend cheese Place Crock Pot liner in slow cooker. Add tomato sauce, Rotel, powder, garlic powder, salt, pepper and dry pasta (uncooked). Mix well. Add chicken breast and push down into liquid until covered. Cook on low for 4 hours total. Check about half way through cooking or so. The pasta will absorb the moisture and you may need to add water/broth if it is all absorbed before time is up. At 3 hours into the cooking or when chicken is cooked through, remove chicken and shred. Return chicken to slow cooker along with Velveeta. Cook for final hour. Plate and top with sour cream and shredded cheese or other taco toppings if desired.

Recipe adapted from 101cookingfortwo. com.