One thing I'll never understand is how anyone eats nachos with that nasty fake cheese sauce. I mean, seriously? How on Earth can anyone stomach that stuff? For Halloween, I created these deliciously cheesy dinner nachos as a treat for Jake and I to nibble on. Paired up with Spanish Rice and Andrea's guacamole, they were little bits of crunchy, salty, spicy heaven. Loads of veggies, spicy meat and cheese make them go from junk food to almost healthy!
1 large bag of nacho chips
1 onion, chopped
1 lb lean ground beef
1 (19 oz) can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 1/2 tsp chili powder
1 1/2 tsp cumin
1 large sweet red pepper, chopped
1 large tomato, seeded and chopped
about 2-3 cups of aged cheddar cheese (more or less, if you need)
chopped fresh cilantro
Pre-heat oven to 350 F.
Spread the tortilla chips out on a rimmed cookie sheet, sprinkle with cheese, and set aside.
In a fry pan, saute the ground beef with onion until cooked through and no longer pink. Add the chili powder, cumin, salt, and pepper, stirring and tasting to correct for seasonings. Stir in the drained black beans and set aside to cool.
Set the cookie sheet with the tortilla chips in the oven for a few minutes, watching carefully, until the cheese is melted and bubbly. Remove from the oven. Sprinkle with the cooled beef/bean mixture, diced tomato, diced peppers, and cilantro. You may not need all the beef/bean mixture, so you can put it in the freezer for another day. Or, just load it all up-whatever works for you!
Serve with fresh guacamole, salsa, and Greek yogurt or sour cream to greedily dip into, licking the salty goodness off your fingers.
Serves 4-5.
