What to make for dinner? (Chili con Queso with pictures!)

Once upon a time in a faraway place.....

Ok wrong story. 

Once upon a time in kitchens all over America....

That's better!

Here we go! 

Once upon a time in kitchens all over America men and women asked "What's for dinner?" And while Beef Checkoff would like to say "Beef, it's what's for dinner" many of us cooks don't eat beef every night (even though the average American eats beef 3-4 times per week). And let's make note that Americans eat twice the amount of meat each day (8oz) as those in most of the world...and that less meat is better for you! Check out this infographic on the amount of meat people eat. Let's remember the slogan Meatless Monday...

Ok, off the rabbit trail and back to dinner. So, "What's for dinner?" asked my husband. "I don't know" I said, hinting, hopelessly, that he would take me out to dinner. I waited for the car to pull into a restaurant, any restaurant...and the car did pull in to a destination. Our driveway. So, I sat and thought...now "What's for dinner?"

I decided I wanted a vegetarian meal. I would say about half of my dinners are vegetarian. I had to work up to this. Once upon a time my husband didn't think dinner could be anything but meat and potatoes (he is very excited about the filet migeon for dinner tomorrow). Though make note...our filets are both less than 4 oz each...and will be our only meat tomorrow (ok...my only meat. Price may eat more anyway!). 

Now, I finally decided on Chili con Queso as dinner. So. Here is what I did.

Chili Con Queso

Ingredients:
1 c. bisquick
3 eggs
1 c. grated white cheddar
1/4 c. soft goat cheese
1/3 c. heavy cream
2 small tomatoes, diced
1 can chilis (I recommend Ortega)
1 small onion, diced
1 small squash, dished
1 can drained pinto beans
2 cloves garlic, sliced thinly
1/2 tsp cumin
1 tsp dried oregano
1 1/2 tsp dried cilantro

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375. 

Spray 8x8 pan with cooking spray. In the pan, mix the tomatoes, peppers, onion, squash, pintos, garlic, cumin, oregano, and cilantro. Set aside.

In a small bowl, whisk together all remaining ingredients except cheddar. When smooth, stir in cheddar. Pour mixture over pinto mixture. 

Bake for 25-35 minutes until top is golden brown and toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Serve with lettuce, sour cream, and/or guacamole.

Enjoy!

Fish Taco Encore

Last year, when I was first starting my blog, I wrote a post about fish tacos, which you can find here. I have recently discovered a restaurant called Canelo's in Canton, NC that has amazing crunchy fish tacos. Not to be outdone, I adapted a recipe from for the home cook. Crunchy fish tacos, here we go!

Crunchy Fish Tacos (makes 4 tacos)

Ingredients:
4 flour or corn tortillas
1 box Gorton's Fish Sticks (12 count)
1 pkg prepared guacamole
1/2 c. heavy cream
1 c. sour cream
1 pkg taco seasoning
Optional Ingredients:
Spinach
Cheese
Pico de gallo

Directions:
Mix taco seasoning and sour cream, put in refrigerator to chill.
Cook fish sticks according to package directions.
Mix guacamole and heavy cream together, set aside.
Warm tortillas in a skillet or in the microwave.

To serve:
On each tortilla, add 3 fish sticks, 1 tbsp of guacamole sauce, and 1 tbsp of sour cream mix.
Top with spinach, cheese, and pico de gallo as desired.
Serve with rice and fresh fruit.

Enjoy!