Taco Hotdish with Doritos

If you're from Minnesota you know there's nothing like a good hotdish!  And when you combine tacos with a bonanza of dairy products & top it with Doritos you have a recipe for simplistic success.  Thank you Two Maids a Milking for the idea!

1 lb. ground beef
1 pkg. taco seasoning--I didn't have taco seasoning on hand, so I winged it with chili powder, paprika, salt, pepper, garlic powder & red pepper flakes.
1 onion, diced
1-8 oz. can tomato sauce
1-14.5 oz. can diced tomatoes, undrained
1 can seamless crescent rolls
8 oz. sour cream
1-2 cups shredded cheese
¾ bag Doritos

1. Brown ground beef & season with taco seasoning or seasoning substitutes.  Add onions, tomato sauce & diced tomatoes to browned meat & allow to cook slightly; add a small amount of water if needed.

2. Spread crescent rolls onto the bottom of a glass 9x13" baking dish or cake pan.

3. Layer: meat, sour cream, shredded cheese & crushed Doritos.

4. Bake for 30 minutes @ 350º.

We topped ours with taco sauce when serving.

Would also be good with shredded lettuce, and other misc. taco toppings.... olives, tomatoes, etc.

Time Out Hotdish

This recipe came from the family I nannied for when I was living in Duluth. It was always a perfectly warm & filling supper after a long, cold day. Packed with Minnesota staples, this meal is a crowd-pleaser at our house no matter what the temperature outside.


1-2 lbs. ground beef
8 oz. wide noodles, cooked
1 can creamed corn
1 cup ketchup
1/2 lb. sharp cheddar cheese, grated
1 Tbsp. chili powder
1 large onion, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced

1. Brown ground beef in a 2 quart pot & drain fat.

2. Return browned beef to pot and add onion, chili powder, garlic, corn, ketchup & green pepper. Mix in noodles.

3. Fill casserole half way full with hotdish, cover with cheese, fill casserole with hotdish, then top with cheese.

4. Bake at 350° for 30 minutes, or until cheese is melted & hotdish bubbles.

Depending on the size of the casserole you use, you may be able to fill two casseroles. I can usually fill one large, and one small.

Beef Taco Skillet

From start to finish this takes about 25 minutes to make. The prep work is minimal and the payoff is big. It was a gigantic hit with my family, especially Geoff. I'm definitely adding this one to the rotation.

1 lb. ground beef
1 can (10 3/4 oz.) tomato soup
1/2 chunky salsa
1/2 cup water
6 flour tortillas (6"), cut into 1" pieces
1/2 cup shredded Cheddar cheese

1. Brown beef in skillet over medium-high heat. Drain fat.

2. Return beef to skillet, then stir in soup, salsa, water & tortillas in skillet and heat to a boil.

3. Reduce heat to low and cook 5 minutes, stirring often. Top with cheese and serve when cheese has melted over top.

Serves 4.

Chicken Stuffing Hotdish

This is a simple dish that proves tasty any time of year, and you usually always have the ingredients on hand. It can also be make with holiday left-overs if you're looking to repurpose that untouched turkey & stuffing.

1 pkg. (6 oz.) Stove Top Stuffing Mix for Chicken
1-1/2 lb. chicken, cooked & cubed or shredded
1 can (10-3/4 oz. condensed cream of chicken or mushroom soup*
1/3 cup sour cream (optional)
1 bag (16 oz.) frozen mixed vegetables, thawed & drained

1. Preheat oven to 400°. Prepare stuffing mix according to directions on package & set aside.

2. Mix chicken, soup, sour cream (if desired), & vegetables in 13x9" baking dish; top with prepared stuffing.

3. Bake for 30 minutes, uncovered.

Serves 6

*Because my lovelies cannot eat canned cream of mushroom soup, I prepare my own by sauteing mushrooms in butter, adding flour to brown, and then stirring in milk. Cook down to desired thickness. To prepare cream of chicken soup, use the pan you cooked your chicken in, which will use the drippings from the chicken. Add a chicken bouillon cube for additional flavor if desired.

Taco Hotdish

This is a quick and easy hotdish, inspired by a recipe I got from my girlfriend, Mindi. What isn't better with crescent rolls?!

1 tube Pillsbury Crescent Rolls
1 lb. ground beef
1 packet taco seasoning
1 cup sour cream
1 tomato, diced
1/2 onion, diced
1/2 cup cheddar cheese, shredded
1/2 cup Fritos chips, crunched

1. Brown ground beef and prepare with taco seasoning according to directions on packet.

2. Unroll crescent rolls and line bottom of a cake pan or casserole dish, seamlessly.

3. Cover uncooked crescent rolls with taco meat, sour cream, tomatoes, onions, shredded cheese, then Fritos.

4. Bake @ 350° for 20-25 minutes.

Serve with salsa or taco sauce, if desired.

Cornbread & Chili Hotdish

This is a baked alternative to chili. But in the interest of full disclosure, this is not Geoff's favorite dish, primarily because of the cornbread. Since the girls and I are big fans of cornbread, you can usually count on the three of us joining the clean plate club when this meal is served.

1 lb. ground beef
15 1/2 oz. kidney beans, drained
14 1/2 oz. Rotel tomatoes
11 oz. corn with red & green bell peppers, drained
8 oz. chunky salsa
1 3/4 oz. pkg. chili seasoning
8 1/2 oz. box corn muffin mix to serve 6
1/2 cup Monetary Jack cheese, shredded
1 cup fresh cilantro, minced (optional)

Heat oven to 400°. Brown ground beef in skillet, drain grease. Stir in kidney beans, tomatoes, corn, salsa & chili seasoning. Simmer for 10 minutes until slightly thickened.

Prepare corn muffin batter to package directions and set aside.

Spoon hot chili into the center of a 2-quart casserole. Spoon cornbread batter around edge of chili. Bake for 20 minutes. Sprinkle with cheese, and bake an additional 5 minutes, until cheese is melted and cornbread is deeply golden.

Garnish with cilantro if desired.

Good served with chips & salsa.

Norb McGrady Hotdish

In honour of St. Patrick's Day, an easy hotdish that will have everyone cheering for the Irish!

1 lb. hamburger
1 can tomato soup
1 onion, chopped
6 cups (about half a head) cabbage, chopped

Brown hamburger with chopped onion. In the bottom of a 9x13" casserole dish place 3 cups cabbage. Add browned hamburger & onion mixture and top with 3 cups cabbage. Pour 1 can tomato soup on top. Bake for 1 hour at 350°.

Reuben Hotdish

As any Minnesotan will tell you the word 'casserole' is not part of our vocabulary; instead we call it a 'hotdish'. There are millions of hotdish recipes floating around Minnesota kitchens. This is one I like to take credit to introducing to my home state. I made it for different family members various times when they came to visit us in Massachusetts and it got rave reviews. It's a great treat for Reuben lovers!


8 oz. wide noodles, cooked
1 lb. sauerkraut, drained
2 cups chopped corned beef
2 medium tomatoes, peeled & chopped
1/2 cup Thousand Island dressing
10 oz. Swiss cheese, shredded
4 crisp rye crackers, crushed
1/2 tsp. caraway seed

In a greased 9x13" pan, layer buttered noodles, sauerkraut, corned beef & tomatoes. Dot with Thousand Island dressing, and sprinkle with cheese. Top with cracker crumbs and caraway seed. Bake for 1 hour @ 350°, or until bubbly.

Top with Thousand Island dressing if desired.
Serves 6-8 people.