Once upon a time in a land far far away (the next city over) at a fine dining establishment (Bj’s brew house) there was an exotic (southwestern) dish that I came to fall in love with. It was a brief (about 30 minutes) spicy (blackening seasoning) affair that my heart (my taste buds) have longed for ever since.
Since I have two small, rambunctious boys who don’t like to sit still for more than 2.2 seconds, fulfilling my long-lost desires for restaurant dishes of the past is pretty much outta the question.
But that didn’t stop me! I decided to try to recreate the recipe at home (with a little tweaking to fit the budget of course 🙂 ).
Ok, so here is how I need you to prepare yourself. 1. Put on a show (VeggieTales was my preference but I think Dora won). If you don’t like letting your kids watch tv (this is how I used to feel until I had kids and tried to get things done, then the tv became my ally) then maybe a craft of some sort. 2. Put your 9 month old in his high chair and start feeding him massive amounts of Cheerios to keep him happy. 3. Pour a LARGE glass of wine….it has been a long day.
Alright. Here. We. Go!
The Cast
Could you please pretend that this picture also includes shredded cheese; this is what happens when you have not followed step 3 of the above instructions yet. Thanks!
Here is the cheese. Post wine. I remembered.
1 Head lettuce
1 Tomato
1 Red Bell Pepper
1/2 Onion
1/4 cup Cilantro
1 cup Corn (cooked, drained and chilled)
1 cup Black Beans (cooked, drained, rinsed and chilled)
1/2 cup Shredded Cheddar Cheese
2 Ripe Avocados
Handful of corn chips crushed
2 tbsp Taco seasoning
4 tbsp Ranch dressing ( ** after eating this I realized that my preference would have been for sour cream instead of ranch. I am not a huge ranch buff, I know, I am the only one in the world, have I mentioned that I am a bit on the “different” side? If you like ranch…you will love it. Promise)
Stage Directions
Shred lettuce and add it to a festive colored bowl.
Feed your child a few more Cheerios.
Dice tomato
and a red bell pepper
and an onion; please cry a lot like I did and toss ’em on in.
Feed your child some more Cheerios
Rinse and loosely chop cilantro. Add it to the bowl.
Did you know that I am pretty much obsessed with cilantro?? Just thought I’d let you know….
Add corn….mmmm corn…
black beans….mmmm black beans….
and cheese….mmmm cheese….
I think I am a little bit hungry….
Toss salad until well mixed.
Cut an avocado in half and remove the seed.
Run a knife through the avocado lengthwise and then again cross wise making sure not to actually cut through the skin, or your hand for that matter…
please do not cut through your hand.
Place salad mix into individual bowl and top with lots of that amazing avocado goodness.
Remember how I love avocados too????
Now for the dressing – in a small, brightly colored bowl (I do own some normal colored cooking things, for real!) combine taco seasoning and ranch dressing. Mix until well blended and dump onto each of the salads.
Top with some corn chips and eat!!!!
And eat and eat and eat!!!
Oh, I almost forgot one thing! Go pour yourself another glass of wine, maybe a light white, pinot grigio perhaps; and congratulate yourself…you survived another day 🙂
Printable below (ok remember my version of printable is copy and past into a word doc, then print 🙂 )
Ingredients
1 Head lettuce
1 Tomato
1 Red Bell Pepper
1/2 Onion
1/4 cup Cilantro
1 cup Corn (cooked, drained and chilled)
1 cup Black Beans (cooked, drained, rinsed and chilled)
1/2 cup Shredded Cheddar Cheese
2 Ripe Avocados
Handful of corn chips crushed
2 tbsp Taco seasoning
4 tbsp Ranch dressing
Preparation
Shred lettuce and add to bowl. Dice tomato, red bell pepper and onion; add to the bowl. Loosely chop cilantro; add to the bowl. Add corn, black beans and cheese. Toss salad until well mixed. Place salad mix into individual bowls. Top with diced avocados and crushed corn chips.
For the dressing – in a small bowl combine taco seasoning and ranch dressing. Mix until well blended. Drizzle on each of the salads. Yields about 8 servings.
One Mad Housewife 