Taco Soup

John's aunt made this recipe when we visited over Thanksgiving; I think it came from their church recipe book. I love having this recipe on hand. All the ingredients come from the pantry or freezer. I have the ingredients stocked up for when our fresh produce is gone and it's time to go shopping. Also, this was my first go-to recipe for the slow cooker. It made me a little less scared of trying new recipes after we had some recipes that were awful several years ago.

I make some changes to the recipe from what I wrote below. It makes it a little more involved but hopefully also a little healthier. The changes include: cooking dried beans instead of using canned (just guess at amounts, it's not exact); using frozen corn; and mixing my own taco seasoning and ranch dressing (see below). These changes help reduce sodium and other unnecessary ingredients that often come from canned goods. Also, instead of ground beef, feel free to leave the meat out or substitute leftover meat, such as chopped chicken, pork, or beef. Another reason why this recipe is so great is because you can do almost anything to it, and it still tastes great. If after adding all your ingredients, you want a little more liquid, add a couple cups of water. It will be full of flavor after it's done cooking.

Taco Soup from family in North Carolina

INGREDIENTS
1 lb ground beef, browned and drained
2 cans corn
2 cans rotel
2 cans hominy
2 cans chopped tomatoes
2 cans pinto beans
2 cans navy beans
1 package ranch dressing mix
1 package taco seasoning mix

METHOD

1. After browning and draining the meat, put everything in the slow cooker and cook on low for about 6 hours or on high for 3-4 hours.
2. If desired, serve with tortilla chips, shredded cheese, and sour cream.

Yield: 8 servings

Taco Seasoning: Mix together 1/4 C oregano, 3 TBSP chile powder, 2 tsp cumin, 2 tsp garlic powder, 1 TBSP onion powder, 1 tsp salt, 1 pinch ground cloves, 1 pinch ground cinnamon. Use a couple heaping tablespoons for the recipe above.

Ranch Dressing: This is less exact as I change what I throw in each time, but sprinkle in some variety of salt, black pepper, sugar, paprika, parsley, and dried onion as you feel led.