Feed the Craving, Lose the Fat!

It's kind of  new tradition to join my workout buddies for dinner and margaritas at the Mexican restaurant next to the gym.  Effective, I know.  But worth it every time!  So since today wasn't one of our once-a-month party nights, I decided to cook a Mexican dinner for my husband at home.  I've had this recipe for a Quick Taco Salad in my online file for at least a year and realized I've been totally missing out!  This recipe takes little time, tastes amaizng and makes for easy clean up! Enjoy!

Modifications:

I used ground turkey

I mixed all of the greens (onions, cilantro and lettuce) together and kept the mixture seperate from the turkey/salsa/red bell pepper mixture

Made my own tortilla chips out of low carb corn tortillas (simply drizzle a teeny amount of vegetable oil over 4 tortillas and place on skillet or griddle until crispy)

I served the meat mixture over the greens mixture and topped with a sprinkle of reduced fat cheddar and added a dallop of Dannon plain non fat Greek yogurt (sour cream substitute)

Quick Taco Salad
Ingredients:

Photo: Becky Luigart-Stayner, via http://www.myrecipes.com/

• 12 ounces ground round
• 2 cups chopped yellow, red, or green bell pepper
• 2 cups bottled salsa
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• 4 cups coarsely chopped romaine lettuce
• 2 cups chopped plum tomato
• 1 cup (4 ounces) shredded reduced-fat sharp cheddar cheese
• 1 cup crumbled baked tortilla chips (about 12 chips)
• 1/4 cup chopped green onions

Directions:

• Cook beef and bell pepper in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until beef is browned; stir to crumble. Add salsa; bring to a boil. Stir in cilantro; keep warm.
• Place 1 cup lettuce on each of 4 plates; top with 1 cup meat mixture. Sprinkle each serving with 1/2 cup tomato, 1/4 cup cheese, 1/4 cup chips, and 1 tablespoon onions.