Hormel Chicken Taco Salad

This is an Influenster sponsored review.

I was given the Hormel Chicken Taco Meat free to try, but every opinion is 100% my own.

When I received my most recent VoxBox from Influenster,

I think I was most excited to try out the Hormel Chicken Taco Meat.

I instantly knew that I wasn't going to make typical tacos,

but instead was going to use the meat for a giant taco salad!

I posted this picture on Instagram the night I made the salad.

And now I crave the salad anytime I see this picture!

Now that I've told you how amazing it is,

let me show you how simple it was to make!

The Goods:

Hormel Chicken Taco Meat

Lettuce

Tomatoes

Avocado

Monterey Jack Cheese

Pickled Jalapenos

Black Beans

Rice*

Cilantro*

Limes*

Sour Cream

Salsa

Ranch Dressing

*I used the Rice, Cilantro and Limes to make an easy,

knockoff version of Chipotle's Cilantro Lime Rice.

Once you have all your ingredients prepped, 

you're pretty much already done with the hard stuff.

Just throw everything in a bowl and toss to combine.

And because I like my food to not only taste good, but look good too,

I put my salad into a nicer bowl and topped it with a little more cheese.

Even though this salad has quite a few ingredients,

it was one of the easiest salads I've ever made!

Hormel made it super simple for you,

because the chicken is already cooked and seasoned perfectly!

I'm really picky about the quality of meat I eat,

especially when it comes to precooked meat,

but I was pleasantly surprised and really enjoyed this!

Tacolandia 2015!

This past is a little different than normal.

I'm not sharing about anything I made,

but instead about something fun I did this past weekend!

If you follow me on Instagram,
you may have already seen some of the fun. 

On Saturday, I had the opportunity to attend Tacolandia.

Tacolandia was held in Downtown Los Angeles

and over 80 taco vendors were showing off their yummy tacos.

Keep reading to see some of tacos I ate and the fun I had!

We took the Red Line Subway from Universal City...

To Union Station Downtown!

And after a short wait to get our wristbands...

It was time to start eating tacos!!!

And of course drink some yummy beer too!

Gotta wash down the tacos somehow, right?

After trying too many tacos to count,

I was already past the point of being full...

But then we saw there was a past Top Chef serving Filthy Tacos!

They apparently get their name from the cut of brisket that's used.

Katsuji Tanabe himself was making the tacos!

And while it was the longest line we waited in all day,

they were, without a doubt, my favorite taco I tried!

At this point I was already super stuffed, 

but you better believe I ate the whole thing!

After spending a few hour at Tacolandia,

my feet were sore and my belly was more than full...

So I grabbed a Club Soda on the way out

and headed back to Union Station to catch the subway!

Saturday's event was the third annual Tacolandia.

If they have one again next year,

there's a pretty good chance I'll be there again!

And you should too!!!

Grilled Blackened Tilapia Tacos

I've made fried fish tacos many times and even blogged about it here.
Until recently I hadn't thought (or maybe wanted to) try them any other way.
With the new year, I'm trying to be extra healthy and make good food choices,
so I thought I'd be a good girl and stay away from frying the fish.

After some quick online research, I decided to grill the fish and make
GRILLED BLACKENED TILAPIA TACOS!!!

The Goods:

Tilapia

Corn Tortillas

Blackened Seasoning

Cabbage

Tomato/Onion Relish*

Avocado Cream Sauce**

Fresh Limes

I like to cut my fish into smaller pieces.

It's up to you, but I feel it makes it easier to eat.

Next, coat both sides of the fish with blackened seasoning.

Get your grill (or grill pan in my case) nice and warm over medium-high heat.

Once heated, I spray it with a lil cooking spray to prevent sticking.

Now it's time to cook your fish. 

Each side will take about 4 to 5 minutes.

Your fish is ready when the outside is blackened and flakes easily.

Next, simply assemble your tacos to your liking, serve and enjoy!

And if you have extra and feel like sharing,

 package up a to-go container for your neighbor to enjoy too!

*To make the tomato onion relish, I diced tomatoes and onions,

then combined and mixed in a bowl with fresh lime juice.

**This recipe is great, but I only used it for the sauce - not the entire meal! 

Elina and Robyn Make...Puffy Tacos!

A few months ago (yeah I know...posting this kinda late), Elina and Adam asked if I wanted to make Puffy Tacos with them.

I'd never heard of Puffy Tacos, but I was intrigued and wanted to give them a try!

I figured - I love regular tacos, so I'm sure I'll love these.

First, we portioned out the masa and rolled it into balls. 

Then, we flatted each ball using a tortilla press...

And one by one I fried them in Elina's deep fryer!

The tongs came in very handy when shaping the taco. 

Drain the tacos on a paper towel lined plate.

Then fill with whatever filling you desire!

Chicken Soft Tacos

If you haven't figured it out yet - I LOVE to cook. 

I love it even more when I can cook for a group of people like my amazing family or my close friends.

 I love searching cookbooks and online for recipes (heck - I do this for fun all the time!), I love going to the market (sometimes more than one!) to buy all the ingredients, I love the whole cooking process (yes, even all the prep work too!) and I love seeing the happiness and full bellies once the meal is all over.

 Without boring you even more about how much I love to cook, let me tell you about an amazing and SUPER EASY meal I made for myself and two of my girlfriends a few weeks ago!

I was randomly browsing recipes online one night (surprise surprise, right?) and I round a recipe for chicken tacos. I've made chicken tacos countless times, but this recipe sounded so simple and looked amazing! I called for a crock pot, a few ingredients and not much else.

I used this recipe as a starting point, but made a few modifications. I didn't use green chiles because I didn't have any. Instead of using a jar of salsa, I made my own, which is so easy too! Lastly, I used chicken thighs AND chicken tenders because...I wanted to and I did! The only thing I'd do different next time would be to use "fajita" sized instead of "soft taco" sized tortillas. Sounds odd, I know, but the "soft taco" ones are quite large.