A Fun Summer Meal

One of our favorite dinners for warm weather months is taco dip.  My husband's extended family generally makes this for an appetizer for holiday meals, but we eat it for dinners.  Paired with fresh grapes and tortilla chips, taco dip is an easy, but delicious dinner.  Since I make the dish hours before dinner, it also is a convenient meal for those times when I need to serve something quick.

Taco Dip

Ingredients
1 pound ground meat (I use turkey, but beef works as well)
1 pkg taco seasoning
sour cream
salsa
shredded lettuce
diced tomatoes
shredded mozzarella (fresh is best, but bagged works as well)


1.  brown ground meat, season with taco seasoning by following the directions on the package
2.  place meat in a 9" pie dish, create an even layer

3.  cover and place in the refrigerator for a couple hours to cool completely
4.  once meat is cool, spread a thin layer of sour cream evenly over the meat

5.  top with a thin layer of salsa

6.  cut lettuce into thin pieces (shredded) and place on top of salsa layer (may need to push down lettuce layer with back of a spoon)

7.  dice tomatoes and cover lettuce

8.  shred mozzarella cheese and place on top to complete the taco dip

9.  cover and refrigerate until it is time to serve
10.  To serve, spoon individual portions onto plates with tortilla chips.  We use the tortilla chips to scoop up the taco dip.  Grapes as a side dish complete our taco dip meal. 

*Origin of recipe unclear, but someone in New England served this at a company picnic my mother-in-law attended, and it has been a family favorite ever since.