Easy Flavorful Nachos Recipe!

We've all had the nachos made with cheap queso made from processed (fake) cheese which is asking for a stomach ache, but in these nachos we use real cheeses and tons of fresh, ingredients making them a delicious and satisfying recipe fit for dinner.

Sure they still may be a bit of splurge but sometimes it's just worth it. Note though, if you are interested you can see my notes below on how to make them healthier. Then if you really want to indulge add some extra cheese!

These are perfect for weekends and game day too. I mean who doesn't love nachos?

Just be sure to enjoy them at their prime, warm from the oven with a gooey melty cheese and a hot filling for the best nachos!

Great for busy days where you can come home to dinner ready to eat!

Slow Cooker Chicken Fajitas

For almost 5 years these Slow Cooker Chicken Fajitas have been one of the most popular recipes on my blog. Because we all love an easy delicious recipe don't we? This is real life and we are busy people.

With this simplified recipe you get to skip marinating, and you also get to skip sauteing veggies and chicken in batches (and therefor tending to it). Instead here, the crockpot does most of the work.

And not only that, cooking it in the slow cooker allows plenty of time to for the flavors to meld together and really soak into the chicken and veggies, plus it will leave you with perfectly tender chicken every time.

It's a delicious family friendly recipe and it makes plenty so you may be lucky enough to have left overs for lunch the next day!

Then for the days you didn't plan ahead for a slow cooker dinner try my Sheet Pan Chicken Fajitas, everything cooks together on one sheet pan. So easy and so good!

Cilantro Lime Rice

My family loves this rice and I love that it's one of those things we can all agree on. Nothing fancy, nothing too bold just simple rice with a nice zip to it.

It makes perfect left over rice so you could definitely make it a day in advance and just rewarm it the following day, I'd say the texture is even better after it has rested a while in the fridge.

It also makes a great filling for your favorite burritos, it's perfect in a taco bowl, it's makes a delicious side to grilled salmon, and it even makes a tasty topping on a Mexican salad too. Like I said, such a versatile side dish!

Make a batch this week! And while you're at it pile avocado slices on top, because why not? Everything is better with avocado!

Cilantro Lime Shrimp and Cauliflower Rice Packs

This is officially my first time making cauliflower rice and I'm now totally a believer!

These are packed with delicious flavor and also prove that there are healthy, tasty alternatives to plain white rice.

I can't get enough of the foil packs lately. They are the perfect thing to make during the summer and I love that they are ready to serve in individual portions. And as always - that easy clean up. Who doesn't love that??

I recently made these Shrimp and Asparagus Foil Packs with Garlic Lemon Butter Sauce and I loved them so much I decided we needed another shrimp foil packet recipe so here we are.

And now I can't choose which I like better so I guess I'll just have to add them both to the dinner rotation!

I'm totally smitten with all the fresh Mexican flavors in this one (Mexican food is the best!) and I also love how it's hearty and filling with the triple veggies, black beans and shrimp.

This is my kind of dinner and I can't wait to make these again!

How to Make Cilantro Lime Shrimp Packs

• Preheat a gas grill over moderately high heat.
• Prep cauliflower rice.
• Toss shrimp, black beans, corn, green chilies, green onions, garlic, olive oil, lime zest, lime juice, and cumin.
• Cut sheets of foil.
• Divide shrimp mixture evenly among foil and wrap.
• Grill packets until shrimp has cooked through, about 9 - 11 minutes.
• Carefully open each packet and toss in cilantro. Serve warm with avocado slices.

What if I Don't Own a Food Processor?

If you don't have a food processor, no worries.

• Simply grate the cauliflower instead of pulsing it in a food processor (leave it whole if grating, don't cut individual florets) then chop it up a little more with a knife so it's a finer texture.
• Or use store-bought frozen, thawed cauliflower rice.

More Shrimp Pack Recipes You'll Love

• Shrimp Boil Packs
• Shrimp and Asparagus in Foil
• Shrimp and Summer Veggie Foil Packs

Vegetable Soup with Fresh Mexican Flavors

This soup is low in fat and packed with good for your ingredients, so this could definitely be considered a diet friendly soup (just don't serve it up with the tortilla chips like I did).

It's like a traditional vegetable or minestrone soup with a hint of Mexican flavors and if you're lucky enough to have any left it will make for perfect lunch the next day.

Cilantro Lime Chicken

This has got to be one of the easiest dinners I've ever made! Not only that but it's healthy, completely delicious and everyone loved it, kids included! This is one of those recipes I know I'll turn to time and time again because it's so easy to prepare yet its so flavorful and it's totally filling.

You'll love that it's cooked all together in one pan because it's faster to prepare and there's less mess to clean up!

Creamy Chicken Tortilla Soup

Since it's starting to warm up a little I decided I better get my last good soup days in. Don't get me wrong, I still eat soup all summer long, not quite as frequently, but it is much more enjoyable on a cold snowy day or a cloudy rainy day than it is on a hot, sunny summer day.

I think of this soup as a hybrid of two southwestern soups that I love, this Slow Cooker Chicken Tortilla Soup and this Chicken Enchilada Soup. But, this one has something neither of those do - the creaminess. Aren't creamy soups the best? Especially when they are smothered with a generous helping of cheese.

There are many different variations of Mexican lasagna, there's the enchilada lasagna, the ground or shredded beef Mexican lasagna, or a chicken and white sauce Mexican lasagna, but this time around I decided to go with a chicken, corn and salsa version.

Despite the long list of ingredients, this one is so easy to make and it's loaded with delicious South Western inspired flavors.

How do You Make Mexican Lasagna?

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• In a bowl mix sour cream, 1 cup salsa, green chiles, cilantro, spices and shredded chicken.
• Spray baking dish with cooking spray and spread 1/3 cup salsa evenly in bottom of dish.
• Layer 15 tortilla quarters evenly over salsa.
• Spread 1/2 of the chicken mixture evenly over tortilla layer the sprinkle 1/2 cup corn evenly over chicken mixture layer.
• Spread 1/2 cup Monterey Jack and 1/2 cup Cheddar evenly over corn layer, the repeat layering process once more.
• Cover with foil bake 40 minutes, then remove foil and bake 20 minutes longer.
• Serve with toppings.

If I had to choose one type of food to live on for the rest of my life it would probably be Mexican food. I could hardly live without it. Lately I've been looking for a good Queso Blanco Dip recipe, just like what you get at a Mexican restaurant.

Most of the recipes I found contained White American cheese in them. I'm not a big fan of processed cheese so I decided to go with one of my favorite cheeses that is commonly found in Mexican cuisine - Monterrey Jack cheese. It melts smoothly, it has a wonderful flavor and of course, it's not processed.

I created my own recipe and decided to start the recipe out with a roux, not only to thicken the cheese sauce but to add a starch to the mixture to prevent it from separating and curdling.

You can easily adjust this recipe to suite your taste. For example if you like a little heat you could saute some diced fresh jalapenos along with the onion or add pickled jalapenos at the end of cooking.

If you don't like jalapenos you could just use cayenne pepper for a little heat. You could even replace the optional ingredients with a bit of chunky salsa (just strain of some of the liquids).

And as noted below you can leave out all the chunky ingredients if you just want a simple and velvety smooth cheese sauce.

This dip is unbelievably good and it's surprisingly so simple to make. I'm pretty sure it would be hard to find someone who didn't love this dip at the next party you're hosting. Cheesy, carb heavy, Mexican food goodness. Enjoy!