Happy Cinco de Mayo.  For years I was not sure what Cinco de Mayo was.  Probably because I was living in the UK.  You may not know what it is either.  Now that I am living back in North America, I thought it was about time I learned about it!

Cinco de Mayo happens every year on the 5th of May. It is a holiday that commemorates the Mexican army's victory at the Battle of Puebla during the Franco-Mexican War. Although a relatively minor holiday in Mexico, the day is a popular celebration in the United States. And what better way to celebrate than to eat delicious Mexican food?  

I may not be Mexican or American, but I do love Mexican food and any excuse to eat seems like a great idea to me! In honor of it I thought I would share my favorite Tex Mex recipes with you today.  All are delicious or I wouldn't be sharing them. Who knows, you may discover a new favorite of your own! 

ENCHILADAS CALABAZA -  These are my favorite enchiladas. Totally vegetarian the filling is made with roasted butternut squash, cheese, spring onions, etc  

The delicious filling is then rolled in corn tortillas and then topped with some tomato salsa and more cheese before baking.  These are quite simply fabulous!   

MEXICAN CHICKEN SPAGHETTI - I really REALLY love this dish. Not only does it contain pasta and chicken, two of my favorite things, but it is also one of those recipes that cooks all in one pan. No fuss no muss!

Add to that really fabulous Tex Mex flavors and you have a winner winner chicken dinner!  (Sorry could not resist!)

CHEESY CHICKEN ENCHILADA CASSEROLE -  This is a simple and quick recipe to make, which involves layering chicken, cheese, and enchilada sauce between layers of corn tortillas, along with some onion and green chilies.

I also include a recipe to make my own from scratch homemade enchilada sauce. Its really simple to make and very delicious.

EASY CHILI MAC & CHEESE -  This is quick, easy and really delicious. Its  a store cupboard meal that is a bit of a cheat but nobody seems to mind.

Boxed mac and cheese, canned chili, salsa and plenty of cheese.  Simply yummilicious! 

BEEF BARBACOA TACOS WITH SWEET PICKLED ONIONS - Something I came up with to use up leftover cooked roast beef. These are delicious to say the least! 

You can make the onions up the day before if you wish. They will keep for quite a while. If you don't have any leftover roast beef, you can use ground beef and just cook as per the recipe.

CHIPOTLE LIME CHICKEN FLATBREAD TACOS - A baked taco with a fabulously tasty chicken chipotle lime filling. Just fill and bake in a casserole.

Delicious served with your favorite toppings. I created a lush chipotle sour cream sauce to serve on top with some guacamole and spring onions!  Very tasty!

MEXICAN CHICKEN CLUB FLATBREADS - This is like a Tex Mex, Latin American Open Faced Chicken Club Sandwich.  This is a flatbread topped with a layer of saucy black beans,  melted cheese, topped with some zingy chicken, my own special sauce, crisp bacon, another drizzle of sauce and garnished with guacamole and sour cream.  Whew!

Now that's one tasty mouthful of fusion cooking at its best! 

BBQ FLAT CHICKEN TACOS FOR TWO -  Blistered wheat tortillas slathered in a rich spicy BBQ chicken, topped with plenty of cheese, sprinkled with red onions and baked.  

I like to serve these with a saucy coleslaw which adds color and crunch! 

TIJUANA TACOS -  Blistered flour tortillas folded around a delicious spicy beef filling with refried beans, onions, peppers, crushed tortilla chips, olives, etc.  Served with sour cream, spring onions, cheese and more crushed chips for crunch.

Deliciously simple and a great way to use up the bits and bobs in the refrigerator at the end of the week! 

GREEN CHILI CHICKEN ENCHILADAS - I make the filling with plenty of chopped cooked chicken, grated cheese, some spices and seasonings and green enchilada sauce. Wrapped up in wheat or corn tortillas, placed into a casserole dish, slathered with more sauce and cheese and baked.

Delicious served hot with sour cream and a splash of green tabasco.  You could also use pork instead of chicken if you wanted to  This is a small batch recipe that is very easily doubled to feed more.

CRISPY TWO POTATO TACOS - for the vegetarian in your life, but so delicious even the carnivores will be fighting over them!

These vegetable tacos are fabulously tasty with both white and sweet potatoes, and plenty of zip. Serve with your favorite taco accompaniments for a real family pleaser!

CHEESY TACO PUFFS - I have never had anyone turn their noses up at being presented with one of these fabulously tasty hand pies.

No small wonder with a crisp flaky biscuit/scone type of pastry filled with a spicy beef filling and cheese.  Baked until crisp, they always go down a real treat! Children love them also!

CREAMY WHITE CHILI - This is my absolute all time favorite chili recipe. This is an incredibly flavorful version of a white chili filled with  hearty beans, tender juicy pieces of chicken, green chilies and a delicious variety of spices.

With some crusty rolls, or tortillas on the side and a mixed salad, it makes for one beautiful weeknight supper!  I  like to serve it with some white rice and cheese for sprinkling on top.

QUICK AND EASY CHILI - Its simple. It uses store cupboard ingredients.  Its quick and easy. Most important of all, its DELICIOUS!  With beef, beans, tomatoes, etc.

Quick, easy, delicious.  It doesn't get much better than this!  With some cornbread or garlic bread for sopping up all that tastiness, it makes for a fabulous rib sticking meal.

And finally dessert, because it makes every meal that little more special! 

MEXICAN CHOCOLATE LAVA CAKES - These lush chocolate puddings are meant to be enjoyed warm, with or without a scoop of ice cold vanilla on top.

The perfect ending to any meal Trust me on this. Moreish.

And there you have it, some of my absolutely favorite of the favorite Tex Mex dishes. It is by no meals all of the Tex Mex recipes on my page.  I could have kept going forever, but . . . to be honest, if you can't find something to whet your appetite amongst this bunch, then there is no hope.  Happy Cinco de Mayo!

This content (written and photography) is the sole property of The English Kitchen. Any reposting or misuse is not permitted. If you are reading this elsewhere, please know that it is stolen content and you may report it to me at: mariealicejoan at aol dot com 

Thanks so much for visiting! Do come again!

This week for my Meals of the Week, I challenged myself to forgo going to the shops and eat entirely from out of my store-cupboard, freezer and refrigerator.  I am lucky in that I have a pretty healthy store-cupboard!  So much so that if I don't really start to using some of it, then some might not be at its optimum. Hence the challenge for myself.

I can be rather lazy sometimes and I will forget to take some protein out of the freezer to cook and I end up picking up more at the shops.  I need to train myself to use what I have before I buy more, especially in these modern times when the cost of food is escalating with every day that Passes.

These meals are just what I had for my suppers and I can promise you that everything I used was things I already had in house!  I made good use of frozen vegetables and meats, tinned beans, dried fruit, and even stale bread.

For lunches I had salads or a sandwich and for breakfast toast or granola/cereal.  As you can see I ate rather well.  I do eat out one night a week with my father and his friends, but for that day I shared a delicious salad that I had for my lunch with a lush blue cheese dressing.

I share these meals because perhaps some of you, like myself, struggle from time to time to find inspiration for your meal times.  As a person on my own, the temptation can be to just eat a frozen dinner or to pop open a can.  I do not want to be that person.

Instead I want to prepare for myself delicious, well balanced meals that I enjoy, both in the cooking and in the eating!  Streamlined for the smaller family for the most part.  I hope some of you find this useful as well!

 

MONDAY, MAY 8th - Cheesy Chili Pork and Rice

I used some of the leftover roast pork and combined it with a few store cupboard ingredients to make a delicious casserole.  Cooked rice, canned chopped chilis, sour cream, cheddar cheese.  

Simple to make and quite delicious. You can adapt this tasty casserole to any kind of leftover cooked protein. Quick and easy, I served this along with some sliced ripe tomatoes and steamed string beans.

TUESDAY MAY 9th - Teriyaki Steak Stir Fry

I used a piece of steak that I had in the freezer that as  not overly large to create a delicious stir fry sized just for two people. You can very easily double it.  The steak is marinated in some soy sauce and black pepper while you prepare your vegetables. You can use any vegetables that you have, even frozen.

The star of this dish is that delicious homemade Teriyaki Sauce.  Sweet and spicy and salty, this sauce would go with just about any protein or vegetable. This was a delicious meal that I served with some brown rice. A tasty way to use up some of the veggies in the veggie in in my refrigerator.

WEDNESDAY, MAY 10th - Tossed Salad with Martha's Creamy Blue Cheese Dressing

I normally go out for supper on Wednesday nights with my father and a few friends. This week was no different.  I made myself a delicious salad for my lunch however as I wanted to use up some of the salad fixings in the veggie drawer.

To go with them I made a lovely Blue Cheese Salad Dressing. I had seen Martha prepping this on YouTube a few weeks ago and mentally bookmarked it to make at a later date. It went down a real treat.  I love this simple dressing. Rich and creamy with just the right amount of blue cheese.

THURSDAY, MAY 11th - Amish Chicken & Stuffing

This has to be one of my all time favorite meals. I love stuffing of any kind, but mix it with some cooked chicken and turn it into a main dish and I am in paradise.  

This is a simple and easy recipe, that is a great way to use up stale bread or rolls. You can also use leftover cooked chicken in it, but generally I will poach chicken specifically to use in this,  which is what I did today, using two chicken breasts from my freezer. 

Delicious with some boiled potatoes and cooked frozen broccoli and cauliflower. You can also make a simple gravy to ladle over top.  Tastes just like Thanksgiving.

FRIDAY, MAY 12th - Pub Cheese Open Faced Burger 

Day six of my store cupboard challenge saw me enjoying a tasty  homemade open-faced burger.  A ground steak burger, sitting on top of a Parmesan Cheese toasted slice of sour dough bread.  Topped with some moreish strong cheddar cheese spread, also known as pub cheese and grilled onions, this went down a real treat!  

I enjoyed some lettuce and tomato on the side.

SATURDAY, May 13th - Frankly Chili

I had my father over for supper on Saturday night. My father likes really simple food. Two of his favorites are hot dogs and beans. I decided to combine the two and serve him a hearty bowl of my Frankly Chili.  He loves chili too, so I thought I would kill three birds with one stone by serving him this delicious bowl of red.  He loved it. 

This is an old prize winning recipe from a contest put out by Maple Leaf Weiners back in the 1970's.  Its simple and its delicious. I baked some cheddar corn muffins to go along side and for dessert he had a piece of banana cake with some squirty cream on top. 

He was one very happy camper!

So there you have it.  My meals for this past week. As you can see I was not deprived in the least and ate very well indeed!!!  Hopefully you will be inspired to want to do the same! 

This content (written and photography) is the sole property of The English Kitchen. Any reposting or misuse is not permitted. If you are reading this elsewhere, please know that it is stolen content and you may report it to me at: mariealicejoan at aol dot com .