Taco salad in a do-it-yourself tortilla bowl

My family and I love tacos, so any new way we can experience tacos we are ready to try it.  Today I decided to try making my own crunchy tortilla bowls out of 8 inch flour tortillas and a muffin pan.  They turned out great and are so simple and fun.  I hope you give this recipe a try and enjoy it as much as we did.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit

Ingredients for tortilla bowls

- 1 bag of 8 inch tortillas (I used flour tortillas because that is what we had here, but I am sure you can use which ever kind you prefer. Also pick up a bag that will suit the number of diners you are having)

- Cooking spray (I use my Pampered Chef self pump spray bottle, which I fill with vegetable oil)

- 1 muffin pan (large muffins, not the mini muffin pans)

1) Spray the bottom side of the muffin pan with cooking spray and place 1 tortilla between four of the "muffin cups", so that they look like little bowls.  

2) Place in your preheated oven for about 10 minutes or until the edges are slightly brown and the tortilla seems crunchy. Remove and set aside until you are ready to use them.

Ingredients for taco salad

- Ground beef (I used 2 lbs of 80/20 ground beef today, but you can use how ever much you need to feed your group)

- Taco seasoning/water (I use a bottle of bulk taco seasoning, since we use it so much, which the ratio is 1 lb of meat to 3/4 cup of water and 1/4 cup of taco seasoning)

- 1 15.25 oz can of corn

- 1 15 oz can of black beans

- 1 16 oz tub of sour cream

- 1 or 2 ripe tomatoes (I like to use tomatoes on the vine, and depending again on how many guests you have vary how many tomatoes you will need)

- 1 head of romaine lettuce

- 1 8-16 oz bag of shredded mexican blend cheese (if you have block cheese and would prefer to shredded it yourself, by all means please do, I prefer that myself actually)

- 1 15 oz can of southwest style tomatoes 

- 1 jar of salsa (whichever kind you prefer)

1) Brown your beef in a large skillet on medium heat, stirring occasionally. When the beef is browned, drain the fat and return to the beef skillet.

2) After returning the beef to the skillet, add water and taco seasoning. I used 2 lbs of ground beef, so I used 1 1/2 cups of water and 1/2 cup of taco seasoning.  Simmer on medium/low heat for about 5-10 minutes or until most of the water is gone.

3) While you are browning your beef you can prepare any additions that you would prefer.  Shred the romaine; dice the tomatoes; open and drain the can of corn; open, drain, and rinse the black beans; and open the can of southwest tomatoes but do not drain. (The list of what I used is in the ingredient list, which I suggest to use; they are so good!)

4) Once all your ingredients are prepped and your beef is ready, assemble your taco salad in your freshly made tortilla bowl. (I prefer the beef on the bottom and the rest of the ingredients on top, but I say you should do it whichever way you prefer; there is no wrong way)

There it is. These are rather simple and quick to prepare and always a crowd pleaser here in our home.  If you would like you can prep extra tortilla bowls and ingredients so you can have leftovers.  

One recommendation that I do have, is that when you are dicing your fresh tomatoes, use a spoon to remove the pulp and seeds of the tomatoes.  It will help the tomatoes to stay fresher longer and they will not be as runny or watery as they would be with the seeds and pulp.

Enjoy!!