The Nacho Revolution

Both Daddy and I grew up loving baseball in all forms: playing it, watching it, collecting baseball cards. It was one of the things that attracted us to each other and keeps us together -- today, we center our vacations around MLB cities and home games (Twins this year, whoohoo!). So, you can imagine our delight when we discovered that Elli seems to be falling for our beloved sport. Case in point, the other night she fell asleep clinging to her Disney princess-themed bat and ball set. What better way to commemorate her initiation into the Baseball Fan Club than to have her help make a ballpark staple dish. Say it with me: "Mmmm, nachos." But ordinary nachos are so, well, ordinary, not to mention rather unhealthy. So, I went the Jamie Oliver Food Revolution route and decided to reinvent this fan favorite, substituting virtually everything about traditional nachos with a healthier alternative....except the Velveeta. Sorry, Jamie, there is no substitute for Velveeta when making nachos. May I introduce you to... The Nacho Revolution 1 pound ground turkey (instead of ground beef) 1 small onion, chopped (for added flavor and veggies) 1/3 packet Williams Chilli seasoning mix (sodium-free alternative to taco seasoning) 3 medium peppers, seeded and cut into bite-size pieces (instead of tortilla chips...just go with me on this one) 1 can black beans, heated (instead of refried beans) 8 oz Velveeta, cubed 1 1/2 cups salsa Light ranch dressing for drizzling (instead of a dallop of sour cream) 1/2 cup crushed low-fat tortilla chips for topping (adds just a taste of salt; try all-natural Tangos Fire Roasted Veggie -- 1/3 cup veggies serving per ounce) Cook turkey and onion until meat is browned and onion is tender; blend in seasoning mix until meat mixture is evenly coated; remove from heat. Combine Velveeta and salsa in microwave-safe dish; heat in microwave for 5-6 minutes or until Velveeta is melted, stirring halfway. For individual servings, spread pepper "chips" onto plate, top with meat, then black beans, then Velveeta-salsa mix. Drizzle lightly with dressing and top with a handful of tortilla chips. The pepper "chips" were inspired by Elli. She loves, loves, loves peppers raw. As you may remember she once tried to eat one whole through the produce bag. I thought maybe she would enjoy this use of the peppers. For this recipe, I pretty much did all the prep, and brought Elli in when the cooking and cutting was done. In other words, she came into the kitchen with two of her favorite things gleaming like jewels in front of her on the kitchen counter. "Cheese!" she exclaimed, climbing up her steps to reach the counter. "That's not all, Elli. Look at this." I pointed at the spread of yellow, red and green pepper "chips." She smiled and crammed the first chip into her mouth. "Just don't eat them all right now," I said. "We have some cheese to move." She helped me transfer the cubes of Velveeta into a Corelle dish. The salsa was next, and I just happened to have just about the right amount of salsa left in a jar. So, Elli took the reins, commanding the salsa jar like a pro. And don't even think she did any less impressive in getting the black beans in a small dish. Did I mention she loves black beans. Like, l-o-v-e-s them. As far as she is concerned, that's the only thing worthwhile at Mexican restaurants. When everything was warmed up, Elli's role became assembly line worker. "First, we put down the peppers," I said, showing her how to place the peppers in a group on her plate. "Now, we put down the meat." Mommy handled that part. And for the black beans, it was back in Elli's court, with Mommy helping guide the spoon from the dish to the plate to minimize the bean juice spillage. Then I drizzled some Velveeta-salsa combo onto the pile -- just enough to give some taste, but not so much everything was swimming in orange. She helped me squeeze just a swirl of the ranch dressing onto the top, again just enough for a little kick. Last but not least came the crown of crushed tortilla chips. I handed Elli a cereal bowl full of crushed chips and showed her how to take a pinch and lovingly scatter it onto the pile of nachos. drop it on the pile of nachos.

What a gentle touch! Of course, the big test for such a recipe is whether it will please the traditionalist palate. Although some of you may have thought the pepper chips sounded asinine, believe me when I say that they work beautifully! They add the crunch without the calories. And they are mild enough that the flavor you get it from the other ingredients. If anything, the yellow pepper adds just a hint of sweet to the scene.

The nachos really were good. But don't take my word for it. From Daddy: "It's really good." And from Elli: Couldn't agree more, sweetheart! Overall Ratings for The Nacho Revolution (5 being the best): Elli-friendly cooking: 4 (assembly was more her speed than the actual cooking part) Elli-friendly eating: 5 Simple: 5 Fast: 4 Frugal: 5 Plea of the Week: Check out Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution and his petition for healthier school lunches!