Crescent taco bake
A flaky crescent crust topped with taco beef, salsa, melted cheese and crunchy chips, cut into squares like a taco pizza pie.
- 40 min total
- 20 min hands-on
- Anyone can make this
- Serves 6
- About $2.09 a serving
- 460 calories
Dolly says: Most of the time here is hands-off, so you can sit down while it cooks.
Ingredients
For 6 servings.
- 1 can refrigerated crescent rolls
- 1 lb 85/15 ground beef
- ½ yellow onion, diced
- ½ cup salsa
- 1½ cups Mexican blend cheese
- 1 cup tortilla chips, crushed
- 1 cup shredded lettuce
- 1 tomato, diced
From your pantry
- 1 tbsp chili powder
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp paprika
- ¾ tsp salt
- ⅓ cup water
Each serving has about 460 calories, 25 g protein, 24 g carbs and 29 g fat, and costs about $2.09 at typical US grocery prices. Both are estimates from what the recipe uses.
Missing something?
- No 85/15 ground beef? 90/10 ground beef works.
- No yellow onions? White onions or red onions work.
- No salsa? Pico de gallo works.
- No Mexican blend cheese? Shredded cheddar or cheddar cheese or Monterey Jack cheese works.
- No shredded lettuce? Iceberg lettuce or romaine lettuce works.
- No tomatoes? Roma tomatoes work.
Steps
Tap an underlined word for a quick explanation.
the oven to 375°F.
Preheat. Preheating means turning the oven on before you start, so it’s fully hot when the food goes in. Food that starts in a cold oven cooks unevenly and doesn’t brown the same.
How you’ll know: The oven beeps or its light clicks off, usually 10 to 15 minutes after you turn it on.
Unroll the crescent dough into a 9x13-inch baking dish, press the seams together, and push it ½ inch up the sides. 8 minutes, until puffed and pale .
Bake. Baking means cooking in the oven with dry heat all around the food. It cooks evenly from every side, so you can mostly leave it alone.
How you’ll know: It’s golden on top and passes the recipe’s check, like a clean toothpick or the right temperature.
Golden brown. Golden brown is the color of good toast, somewhere between yellow and light brown. It means the outside is cooked and crisp but not burnt.
How you’ll know: It looks like toast and smells toasty; dark brown with a bitter smell means it went too far.
Timer: 8 min
Dolly’s tip: Pinch the perforations closed so the filling can’t leak through.While it bakes, cook the beef and onion in a large over medium-high 7 to 8 minutes, breaking up the beef, until no pink is left. Spoon off the fat.
Skillet. A skillet is a frying pan: wide and flat with low, sloped sides. The shape lets steam escape, so food browns instead of stewing.
How you’ll know: It’s the pan you’d fry an egg in, and a 10 or 12 inch one handles most recipes.
Medium-high heatTimer: 7 min 30 sec
Food safety: Ground beef, pork and lamb are done at 160°F. When it’s cooked through there’s no pink left anywhere in the pan.
Stir in the chili powder, cumin, garlic powder, paprika, salt and water, and cook 2 minutes, until saucy.
Medium heatTimer: 2 min
Spread the beef over the crust, spoon the salsa over it, and top with the cheese and crushed chips.
12 to 15 minutes, until the crust is and the cheese is .
Bake. Baking means cooking in the oven with dry heat all around the food. It cooks evenly from every side, so you can mostly leave it alone.
How you’ll know: It’s golden on top and passes the recipe’s check, like a clean toothpick or the right temperature.
Golden brown. Golden brown is the color of good toast, somewhere between yellow and light brown. It means the outside is cooked and crisp but not burnt.
How you’ll know: It looks like toast and smells toasty; dark brown with a bitter smell means it went too far.
Melt. Melting means gently heating something solid, like butter or cheese, until it turns liquid. Low or medium heat keeps it from browning or burning.
How you’ll know: It’s smooth and liquid, and butter may foam a little but hasn’t turned brown.
Timer: 13 min 30 sec
Top with the lettuce and tomato, cut into squares, and serve warm.
Plan this in Dollop, and get the grocery list
Dollop puts this dinner on a night that suits your week, lists only what you still need to buy, and walks you through each step while you cook.
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