Taco Tuesday (I know it's Wednesday...shhhh)

Question:
When is an appetizer an entree?


A.) When I say it is, because I'm the mom.
B.) When you serve it in a 9x13 casserole dish
C.) When I say it is, because this is my blog.

Answer:
All of the above.

This dish can be eaten as is, or in taco shells (as we prefer it). You can mix it up quite a bit, spinach in place of the lettuce, add jalapenos, bell peppers, or whatever else strikes your fancy. It's basically seven layer bean dip, but I put it in a really big casserole dish and call it dinner.

I make my own refried black beans, so the measurement of three cups might not exactly equal a full two cans of the canned stuff....but this is bean dip...for dinner...I don't think you have to follow the recipe too closely. Omit what you like, keep what you like, serve stuff on the side that causes your children to vomit on you.....which reminds me of a story.......

A story that should probably wait for my picky eaters post.....
I should probably just get to that recipe.



3 cups of refried beans
1/2 cup salsa
1 cup shredded cheese
1 can of sliced olives that have been drained
1 bag shredded lettuce (or baby spinach)
1 chopped roma (or other) tomato
1 diced avocado
1/2 cup cilantro (washed well, with the majority of the stems removed)
1 diced onion if desired

Corn tortillas



Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Spread the refried beans into a 9x13 baking dish.

Spread salsa on top of beans.

Sprinkle cheese and olives on top.

Bake for about 20 minutes, or until it's hot and bubbly.

I used the time to prep my toppings....
Also, if you are using corn tortillas you will want to take this time to heat them according to the directions on the package.


Once the beans are done you have a "blank" canvas of sorts......the best kind of blank canvas, one that's made of cheese!




Layer your lettuce, avocado, onion, tomato, and cilantro over the top. Add whatever else you want. Add heaping scoops of this cheesy goodness into your corn tortillas and eat!