Taco Braid

Have I ever mentioned how much I love delicious, easy recipes???

I do.

And this is one.

Taco Braid
Ingredients

• Lean ground beef (80/20)*
• 2 cans crescent rolls
• Mexican blend cheese
• taco seasoning

*You can use as little as 1 lb and probably as much as you want.  I used about 1.5 lbs.

1. Brown ground beef and drain.  Then add taco seasoning as you would when making tacos.

2.  While taco meat simmers, lay out your crescent rolls, (large ends are placed on the inside) and press together.

3. Fill in the center with the taco meat.

4. Sprinkle with the cheese.  (Another great thing about this recipe...how much you use is TOTALLY up to you.  The original recipe doesn't even put cheese on the inside.  I thought that was nonsense.)

5. Fold in the ends, and bake at 350* for 20 minutes or until golden brown.  Then sprinkle more cheese on top, and bake until melted.

I think I was too excited about eating this to take a picture once it was baked and the cheese was melted.  Plus, someone was home from work and wanted to eat so....

I made a packet of the Knorr Spanish Rice sides with this, and it was great!  You can also serve with taco toppings: salsa, sour cream, taco sauce, lettuce, etc.  Scott put salsa, taco sauce, and the rice all on top of this, and he loved it!  I tried it as is, and I loved it that way, too!  Make it your own! :)  You can have it as an appetizer, a side, or a main dish.  It's great for pot lucks, too!  You could cut slices and then cut them in half by going straight down the middle!

I made this taco braid on the tray from my Celebrating Home hospitality set in the Simply Summer stoneware pattern.  This used to be a piece that only hostesses could get after two friends booked parties.  In our Fall/Winter 2014 catalog, we have them available in two stoneware patterns: Berry and Sonoma Villa.

3-Piece Berry Hospitality set (bowl, tray, stand)

3-Piece Sonoma Villa Hospitality Set (bowl, tray, stand)

Microwave Brownie

One of the best things about my Bean Pot is that you can make things in the microwave that you probably wouldn't think of.  Cake, brownies, corn on the cob, even a whole chicken! 

I finally have a microwave big enough for my Bean Pot.  The one we had before was so small that it wouldn't even fit when I turned the lid upside down! 

My friend, Anna, held a Pinterest Themed Celebrating Home party for me, and she decided to make a chocolate peanut butter chip brownie in her Bean Pot in the microwave.  (We have the same Bean Pot.)  It was SO yummy!  I decided to make it for my Celebrating Home team meeting a couple of weeks ago.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Chip Brownie

Ingredients

• 1 box brownie mix (plus ingredients listed on the back of the box- mine were 2 eggs & oil)
• peanut butter chips

1. Mix brownie mix, ingredients from the box, and 2/3 of the bag of peanut butter chips directly in your Bean Pot.

 

2. Place the lid on the Bean Pot and put it in the microwave and bake for 8-12 minutes.  (I'm giving you kind of a large time window here.  Anna cooked hers for 12 minutes and stated that the edges were a little hard/overdone.  I tried 10 minutes.  The entire thing was a little crunchy on the outside, but while it was warm, it was super easy to scoop and eat, and it tasted delicious.  When it cooled, it was rock hard.  I actually needed to pour some milk in it and reheat it a bit.  Next time I make this, I'm going to try 8 minutes.)

Celebrating Home Bean Pot in Simply Summer $39.

 

3.  Remove the Bean Pot from the microwave, and sprinkle with the remaining peanut butter chips.

Do you like my Bean Pot???  This is a spring/summer exclusive pattern called "Simply Summer."  Celebrating Home has a lot of other patterns to choose from!  You can snag your own by using the link below to be taken directly to the Celebrating Home website so that you can participate in my Blog Party!  You have a chance to win FREE MERCHANDISE!!  Visit the Blog Party link for all of the details.

http://www.celebratinghome.com/parties/blogparty519744/PWPHome.aspx

The party runs until July 8th!

It's a Party!!

Hello, Blog Friends! 

Do you like free merchandise??  Do you like WINNING contests??  Then please read on....

Many of you know that I am a designer with a company called Celebrating Home.  Celebrating Home is an amazing company with products for home décor, decorative Stoneware items for cooking, and accessories like jewelry and handbags for YOU with Penelope Ann!  I've shared many of recipes for my Bean Pot.  See my Celebrating Home tab for my recipes.

Source

Not only do I think you would all love a Bean Pot in one pattern or another, I also need your help.  My business has been down lately, and I have a personal goal to reach $1000 in sales during the week of July 7-13.  By reaching this goal, I will achieve special recognition at a national Celebrating Home rally that I will be attending in July!  So starting today, I am having a Blog Party Mystery Hostess Event!

What does that mean to you?

It means that you can win the hostess benefits of having a Celebrating Home party.

How??

All you need to do is visit http://www.celebratinghome.com/parties/BlogParty519744 from now until July 8, 2013 and place an order.  I will be notified with only your name and the items you've ordered.  If you place an order, you will be entered into the mystery hostess drawing.  The party will close on July 8th, and I will contact the winner no later than July 10th. 

Our hostesses ALWAYS earn 20% free merchandise.  So the more orders I receive, the more FREE merchandise YOU can win!  There are also hostess-exclusive items you will be eligible to add to your purchase.  The mystery hostess will also receive our July hostess promotion from Penelope Ann: My Main Squeeze handbag.  (IF we reach $300 in sales!)

I want to thank you in advance for your help, and I wish you luck in winning the drawing!!!

Happy shopping!