Taquitos aren’t just for college kids and Deadpool… Taquitos are for everyone, so Treat Yo Self!

I used ground beef for this recipe, but if you’re a chicken lover, like my husband, you can substitute shredded chicken for the beef… Also, if you want to make this meal even healthier, you can substitute ground turkey for a very low-calorie option… The Taquito Possibilities are endless, and all of them are tasty! Plus, these taquitos make a phenomenal “leftover lunch” the next day!

How Long it Took: 45 Minutes / Recipe Yielded: 16 Large Taquitos

What you’ll need – INGREDIENTS:
2 pounds 80/20 Ground Beef
1 White Onion, diced
1 Red Bell Pepper, diced
4 tablespoons Taco Seasoning, store-bought or  Homemade (Recipe Here)
8 ounces Cream Cheese (1/3 Less Fat), softened
1 1/2 cups 0% Greek Yogurt
4 tablespoons Fresh Squeezed Lime Juice
1 can (4 ounce) Diced (or chopped) Green Chilis
16 large Tortillas
8 ounces Shredded Mexican Cheese
Salsa, for serving (get Avocado Pineapple Salsa recipe here)
Pam, or other cooking spray

INSTRUCTIONS:
Preheat the oven to 350F. Then chop the onion and red bell pepper…

Put the 2 pounds of ground beef in a skillet over medium high heat. Throw in the chopped onion and red bell pepper. Mix the ingredients together and cook until the beef has browned; 5-7 minutes.

As you wait for the beef to brown, you can make the creamy taquito filling… So put 8 ounces of room temperature/softened cream cheese in a bowl….

And add 1 and 1/2 cups of %0 Greek Yogurt…

Followed by approximately 4 tablespoons of lime juice… freshly squeezed, please.

And then toss in the diced green chilis…

… and stir it all together.

Now, back to the main attraction; the ground beef! At this point it should be beautifully browned… However, as a doctor’s wife, I’m required to tell you to drain off the excess fat before you move ahead with the recipe…

Now, reduce the heat to a low simmer and add 4 tablespoons of taco seasoning… or a little more, if you like things really spicy!

I made my own taco seasoning. Get the recipe here; Taco Seasoning on a Snow Day.

Add approximately 6 tablespoons of water to the ground beef mixture, and give it a really good stir. Then allow it to simmer for around 3 minutes.

So beautiful… So glorious… So colorful… And it smells great too!

Dump the cream cheese mixture on top of the ground beef…

And stir to mix it well…

Now, I like to set up a “Taquito Rolling Station”… Please, ignore the Cran-Grape Juice, that was just for me… I drink it out of a fancy wine glass… It’s very tasty!

Spoon 3 tablespoons of the beef mixture along the edge of the tortilla…

And top it off with a small handful of cheese.

And roll the taquito up…

Place the taquitos seam side down on a greased baking sheet…

Then lightly spray the top of each taquito with cooking spray.

Bake the taquitos until they are golden brown on top; approximately 25 minutes.

*Sneaky Housewife Note: There are only 8 taquitos in this photo; keep in mind the recipe yields 16… I hid the remaining taquitos so I could send them to work with my husband the next day.

I served the taquitos with some homemade Avocado Pineapple Salsa (get recipe here), a recipe that I got from Trisha Yearwood’s Cookbook; trisha’s table… It. Was. Amazing.

… and here is a photo of the taquitos-to-go!

Packed and ready to go to the doctor’s office, for hungry workers to eat…

*Recipe Source: I got the inspiration for this recipe from Brooke Griffin’s book; Skinny Suppers, although… I changed the recipe so much that I don’t think I can call it a “Skinny Meal”… Oops. Maybe next time!

Cook Long and Prosper, the Uncustomary Housewife