This version of chile relleno casserole is made with ground turkey in one skillet and has just a few ingredients! I love this for a low carb Mexican dinner, or serve this with my favorite red rice for a yummy burrito bowl variation. This tastes like a chile relleno in a bowl and is SO yummy and easy to make!
Definitely the easy weeknight dinner we have been waiting for: blanket it with melty cheese and call it GOOD.
...NO CHOP. This is how we dinner. No fresh, no chop, no effort, just massive flavor with pantry staples that we know and love.
With Cinco de Mayo on a Sunday this year, I'm definitely not going to be drinking/eating tacos all day and night. I'll be doing laundry and packing lunches and I'm completely fine with that, you know? This, to me, is a perfect Sunday meal. Cozy and comforting but still light, and full of flavor.
...It is three and a half weeks until Cinco de Mayo. And, in very inappropriate cultural appropriation, I'm super into this holiday for zero reason besides I REALLY like Mexican food. Like, top three flavor profiles for sure. Indian food ranks too.
It's also, of course (not to most people, I know), Master's week, and snacks for this weekend are an absolute must. This pepita salsa is gluten free and vegan (if you eat honey or use agave) so can appeal to a ton of people, but has huge flavor and SPICE because we use a whole jalapeno, we don't take the seeds out, and we live for it, JVN style.
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We are making chips for dinner a thing. Because we survived the hurricane!
Kidding. The rain did zilch here, which of course is a good thing, and it definitely did some huge damage elsewhere. And honestly even if you aren't in hurricane-land chips for dinner just sounds like a perfect idea, right? You know it does, admit it.
Chilaquiles is a generic Mexican dish that varies from region to region and household to household. It mostly involves sauce and fried tortillas. In this case we're using leftover chips, the few handfuls at the bottom of the bag, the leftovers from takeout, you get it. This version is super simple: you can make your own chicken OR use leftovers, and the sauce comes from a can. I love all things verde, but red enchilada sauce would be delicious here as well. The result is a 30-ish minute meal that includes chicken, veggies, and chips, so a well-rounded meal with tons of flavor and precious little effort.
We win Monday!
...I'm on a very annoying and very necessary mission. 
The mission is to reduce waste, and you're joining me today. I HATE food waste. I hate all waste, really, but I also know that it's a part of life (don't even get me started on the unnecessary packaging that is involved in having children), and since I'm not yet ready to go full no-waste (have you seen documentaries about those people? It's inspiring and also seems hard), food waste is really where I focus my efforts, mainly because it's easily avoidable compared to other things. A little bit of thought and creativity can go a long way, and today we're tackling condiments. Specifically, salsa! I was rummaging around the fridge a few weeks ago and realized we had four types of salsa. Some in little ramekins from takeout (you can use that stuff you know...) and a few jars with an inch or two of salsa. Not quite enough to put out for chips and dip, but not bad or old at all.
By the way, expiration dates literally have nothing to do with food going bad or being unsafe, even with meat and dairy. Literally nothing. They are dates used for the producer to "talk" to the grocer and to give the consumer (you) some information about when the food might not be perfect anymore. Imperfect food is not unsafe to eat, and usually doesn't even taste different. This is not my opinion, this is a fact. Food is bad when it has a strange smell, grows mold or something else, or has a physical sign that it is bad. You of course are in charge of when you throw things out, but throwing things out because they have passed an arbitrary date is willful waste, so keep that in mind when doing purges and cleaning out. If nothing else, it's a money saver to not constantly throw away things you purchase.
SO WITH THAT, I had all of this salsa and no plan for it. And I had chicken, and I always have rice. So I made this super duper quick seared chicken, reduced the salsa together into a sauce, and served it over rice in half an hour. I've made this several times since with other salsa, and the fun thing about this is that it tastes different but familiar each time. Salsa usually involves a base of onions and garlic which add tons of flavor without any chopping on your part. I've also chopped up extra onions, peppers, and random veggies (see: no waste!) and simmered them in the sauce, and they turn out delicious as well with zero effort. This is all about use-what-you-have, with delicious results. It feels GREAT to get a few items out of the fridge without throwing them straight in the trash.
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