Beef Taco Pot

I have a confession to make. Since Atticus was born in February our dinners at home have mainly consisted of Velveeta Cheesy Skillets and Hamburger Helpers. At first it was because I needed quick food options I could prepare with a newborn. Then it just turned into laziness. I mean, it was done in 30 minutes! When I get home from work the last thing I want to do is cook for an hour. That's just masochistic. Once Atticus was more independent and fine sitting in his high chair while I cooked I decided to bite the bullet and start cooking from scratch. It's healthier, tastier, and more budget friendly- all of which are things I need more of in my life. But a lot of the recipes weren't quicker. Tasty? Yes. Healthy? Yes. Inexpensive? Yes. But not faster. I pinned this little number thinking it would be another 45min-1hr production. The blogger who created it is one of my favorites; she does inexpensive and healthy-ish. Plus she's a New Orleans blogger who likes spice! The recipes of hers that I have tried have been quite delicious but have taken varying amounts of time to prepare. But even with frozen meat (I forgot to take it out to thaw last night) this only took 30 minutes!

Here is the original pin: 

Nice enough picture


Here's my picture:

I never said it would be pretty.

It was pretty simple and straightforward. I made a few adjustments because of what I had on hand and needing to get rid of things in my fridge, but it was quite tasty. Here's the recipe and my adjustments.

Ingredients

• 1 Tbsp olive oil 
• 1 small onion 
• 1  2 clove garlic 
• ¾ 1 lb. lean ground beef 
• 1 Tbsp chili powder 
• ½ tsp ground cumin                       I used 1.5 T of my homemade taco seasoning; here's the recipe
• ½ tsp dried oregano 
• ⅛ tsp cayenne pepper (optional) 
• 1 (15 oz.) can diced tomatoes        I used 2 10-oz cans of medium Rotel tomatoes with chilies
• 1 (4 oz.) can diced green chiles 
• 2 cups beef broth*
• 8 oz. wide egg noodles 
• 1 (2.25 oz.) can sliced chopped black olives 
• 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
• 2-3 green onions, sliced

Instructions

1. Dice the onion and mince the garlic. Cook both in a large pot with the olive oil over medium heat for 2-3 minutes, or until they begin to soften. Add the ground beef and continue to cook until the beef is fully browned.
2. Add the chili powder, cumin, oregano, diced tomatoes, and diced green chiles  taco seasoning and Rotel tomatoes (do not drain the tomatoes and chiles). Stir to combine with the beef.
3. Add the noodles and beef broth. Stir to combine and push the noodles down until they are mostly submerged under the broth. Place a lid on the pot and allow it to come up to a simmer. When it begins to simmer heavily, turn the heat down slightly (just above low) and allow it to continue simmering for 10 minutes. Stir every few minutes to keep the pasta from sticking to the bottom of the pot.
4. After about ten minutes the pasta should be fully cooked and most of the broth absorbed. If it is still slightly watery, let it continue to cook for a minute or two without the lid. Taste the pasta and if it is not spicy enough for you, add the cayenne pepper.
5. Drain the can of black olives and stir them into the pasta. Add the cheese and stir it in until it is fully melted. Slice the green onions, sprinkle over top, and serve.

Notes

*I use Better Than Bouillon soup base to make my broth rather than using canned or boxed broths. It is much less expensive.
*Instead of using separate cans of diced tomatoes and diced green chiles, you can use one can of Rotel or a similar diced tomato & green chile product.
*Instead of using individual spices, you can use one packet of taco seasoning.

I obviously took her notes to heart.

In the future I'm thinking to cut out some of the meat and add a can of black beans instead. But overall, this was a definite repeat.

And to make up for my ugly earlier picture here's a picture of my handsome little sous chef. I'm thinking to turn into a calendar.