Mexican Tater Tot Casserole

This is a great freezer recipe!  It's one I came up with to give a little bit of a mexican flavor to a staple - the tater tot casserole.  My family definitely prefers this version!

Ingredients
2 lbs ground beef
2 packets taco seasoning
1 can corn
1 can kidney beans
1 can sliced mushrooms, stems and pieces
1 can sliced olives
Tater tots
Shredded cheese (I use a combination monterey jack and cheddar cheese)

Directions
Brown beef, drain.  Add taco seasoning and water according to packet, simmer until water is absorbed. 

Open and drain cans.  Remove meet from heat, add ingredients from can and mix well.

Spray 9x13 pan with non-stick spray, put one layer of tater tots on the bottom.  Add meat mixture.  Sprinkle with desired amount of cheese.  Add another layer of tater tots.  You can cover the entire top, or just a row or two as a border.  Sprinkle with more cheese.

Cover with tin foil and bake at 400 degrees for about 50-60 minutes, remove foil the last 10 minutes.

Serve with salsa and sour cream.

Enjoy!

Mexican Shepherd’s Pie

Mother Hubbard Recipe
Remember that old nursery rhyme? The one we’ve all related to a time or two when we’ve looked blankly into our kitchen cupboard and fridge wondering what to put together for dinner? Well, I’ve dubbed those recipes that I come up with during those days “Mother Hubbard Recipes”. Fortunately for my family, they tend to fare better than the dog in the rhyme.

So, without further ado:

Mexican Shepherd's Pie

Ingredients
• 1lb Ground beef
• Taco Seasoning
• 1 can corn, drained
• 1 can kidney beans, drained
• 2 cheese packets from 2 boxes of mac n cheese
• 1 cup milk
• 1 package of Corn bread mix (I <3 Marie Callender’s brand)

Directions
• Pre-Heat oven to 350 (or as directed on corn bread package)
• Brown ground beef, drain, add seasoning and 1 cup water, simmer.
• In a separate bowl, mix cheese packets with 1 cup milk, whisk until creamy.
• Add cheese sauce, drained cans of corn and kidney beans and mix well on stove.
• While that simmers, combine corn bread mix as directed on package.
• Spray casserole dish with non-stick spray, then add the meat mixture. Spoon Corn Bread mix over meat and bake for 30-40 minutes or until corn bread is lightly brown on edges and cooked.

Yup, I put a nice sized dollop of sour cream on mine. SO very good! There are lots of different ways to vary this up depending on what mix ins you desire (or have in your cupboard). Enjoy!