Half-Baked Taco Salad

I've always adored taco salad, but I wanted to find a way to retain the large portions that the meal typically offers, retain the sharp flavor of the cheeses and meat mixture, but reduce the complexity and calories involved in having a bread product. This is the result and I'm quite addicted to it. I made slight changes to 'Taco Seasoning I' for the spicing, but otherwise hit upon the idea of pre-baking the salad before applying meat, tomato, and salsa, and quite like how the romaine gets crispy along the edges.

• Preparation Time: 15 mins
• Cooking Time: 35 mins
• Total Time: 50 mins
• Calories: 565 Calories

Ingredients

• ½ cup water
• ½ teaspoon garlic powder
• ½ teaspoon onion powder
• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
• ½ teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 cup salsa
• 1 ½ teaspoons ground cumin
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
• ½ teaspoon sea salt
• ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
• 2 heads romaine lettuce, chopped
• 1 ounce finely grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 (15 ounce) can no salt-added kidney beans
• 4 tomatoes
• 1 pound 93% lean ground beef
• 4 large green bell peppers, sliced
• 4 ounces coarsely grated extra-sharp Cheddar cheese

Recipe Instructions

Step 1

Combine chili powder, cumin, black pepper, garlic powder, sea salt, paprika, onion powder, cayenne pepper, and oregano together in a bowl.

Step 2

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil or parchment paper.

Step 3

Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook and stir beef in the hot skillet until browned and crumbly, 5 to 7 minutes. Mix spice mixture into ground beef until evenly coated; add water. Simmer beef until liquid is evaporated, 10 to 15 minutes. Add kidney beans and simmer until beans are heated through, about 10 minutes.

Step 4

Cut each tomato in half down the middle. Slice 1 of each half into thin, round cross sections. Chop the remaining halves.

Step 5

Spread romaine lettuce onto the prepared baking sheet; top with green bell peppers and tomato slices. Sprinkle Parmesan cheese over tomato layer.

Step 6

Bake in the preheated oven until edges of romaine lettuce are crisp but not burned, 10 to 20 minutes.

Step 7

Top salad with taco meat mixture, Cheddar cheese, chopped tomato, and salsa. Transfer salad to a serving plate using a spatula.