Often times when Friday night rolls around I am not quite in the mood to cook. And, I am most definitely not in the frame of mind that wants to clean up after a big meal. Sometimes we will get our favorite take out, which includes a delicious Chinese Chicken Salad. But, this past Friday, I decided to use what we had on hand and create our own salad. And, it fit the bill of being easy, not too messy, and able to be made ahead.
Here is what I did:
Ok, this is the most difficult step…and it isn’t difficult…Brown your ground beef with 1/2 yellow onion and 3 chopped scallions. 🙂
Once it is browned, add in your favorite taco seasoning and cook for another minute or so. Add in 1/3 cup water.
Add in a large handful of spinach and some garlic powder and allow the spinach to wilt in the hamburger.
Meanwhile…chop up everything you enjoy having in a taco salad. I used spinach, romaine hearts, cheddar cheese cubes, tomatoes, multi-colored peppers, olives, avocado and fried tortilla strips. Yum!
I also mixed up a dressing that included 1 part of our favorite (Penzey’s) Ranch dressing and 1 part fresh medium salsa and a squirt of Sriracha to spice it up.
Here is the glamour shot. 🙂
I was iffy the first time I made a meal salad for my family…but, there really was no reason to be. They are now a favorite and are packed full of delicious raw veggies. What a great way to up the nutrition count of the food we are eating and it is very nice to enjoy a lighter meal that can mostly be made ahead of time and is easy to clean up.
Blessings!
