Day 12 Pedro’s Special or A Good Plan for Taco Tuesday
Day 12 Pedro’s Special or A Good Plan for Taco Tuesday
Hello dear! It appears that we’ve come to Day 12. On the heels of Beef A-La-King, this one is not like a Tex Mex thing or Mexican thing, but it has a similar feel? Ok, so what is a feel? I do not know really, but I am trying to figure out the reason for the name. This one was really so very easy it even stood out in a book of recipes that are designed not to require any talent! On an aside, it’s true that most of these recipes do not require much talent, but really we can’t all be great chefs. At the end of the day, some of us just want to make sure our children and families are not starving to death, and that no one gets bored. That’s really important to me. I want to be sure that it isn’t the “same ole same ole.” Sure maybe tacos every Tuesday is what your family loves, and that is fine too, but if not this works on Taco Tuesdays or any other day in the week.
So here it is:
Pedro's Special
Ingredients 3 servings
1 lb ground beef
1 chopped onion
1 garlic clove minced
1 can (15 oz) tomato sauce
1/3 cup tomato juice, or consomme, or water (this used to be 1/3 can using the can from the tomato sauce)
1 15 oz can kidney or chili beans 1/4 tsp oregano
2 Tablespoons chili powder
1 bag corn chips
bit of lettuce and minced onions
Toppings
Lettuceonions
black olives
Jalapenos
Sour Cream
Guacamole
Diced tomatoes
Directions
Brown the beef with onions and garlic, drain the fat. Stir in the tomato sauce, oregano, and chili powder. In a large casserole dish, grease the dish and layer the beans, corn chips, meat mixture making sure you end with the chips on top. Bake it covered at 350F for 45 minutes. Uncover for the last ten minutes. Before serving top with shredded lettuce and onions.
Note, I was rather confused about the tomato sauce and the tomato juice and what was meant by “1/3 can tomato juice.” If you used the big cans you end up with soup. I did not clarify this earlier. What you need to do is pour tomato juice into the tomato sauce can after adding the tomato sauce into the meat mixture. The 1/3 can is using the tomato sauce can for a measuring device. It is not an exact science here, but then I don’t think Peg Bracken was looking for exactness as much as she was helping the rest of us who hate cooking.
*I have updated this recipe after experimentation and replaced 1/3 can with 1/3 cup of tomato juice. It really works out better than guessing with an empty can.
Now this one was a hit and after serving it exactly as it is written I really think that this would be great with some black olives, sour cream, guacamole, and some cheese like those taco blend cheeses. Could eat this with some rice, tortilla shells even.
My kids really enjoyed this and that means a lot when you are cooking. ‘Cause if the kids won’t eat it then there is a whole new issue. Oh, a quick note here I think I will add: if you do not want to use canned beans or vegetables you can just substitute following the directions for dried beans and such things like that. I know that there are many that can do these from scratch and I do believe there are even some condensed soup recipes out there. If that is what you do, by all means go for it. Let me know how it worked out. Afterall one of the great things about cooking is the number of people with all of their advice and tips. We who hate to cook are willing to let you step in and take over, but more importantly we do like to store up tricks and ideas that help us better plan and budget so that we spend less time in the grocery store and kitchen and more time doing things we really enjoy.
I love that so far a lot of these recipes are the kind you pop in the oven and gives me a chance to straighten up or try to catch up on very far behind posts. Or play on Pinterest. Whichever comes first.
So far I am winning in the kitchen as there have been more successes than flops. This is a good thing. I have found that while I may still hate to cook like Peg, I can at least be confident when I cook.
Stayed tuned for the next installment of Misadventures in Cooking (cue dramatic music) where we examine the next adventure and ask: "Are we asking too many useless questions? What surprises are in store with the next meal?”
Please let me know what you think of this? Did you try it? What changes did you come up with? Please comment, rate, share. Until next time have fun and stay Flamboyant my Flamingo friends.
**Bracken, P. (1960). The I hate to cook book. (pg. 7). New York: Harcourt, Brace & World.
