Taco Spaghetti

Last year for Christmas, my grandma got me a subscription to Taste of Home which is basically a cookbook magazine full of  simple, yummy recipes and lots of pictures. I have a hard time trying a new recipe if I can't see the final product, so I love that it's very visual. One of my latest finds has been a Taco Spaghetti recipe. I wasn't really sold on it at first, but we had most of the ingredients and it looks quick and easy. Well, we were all very pleasantly surprised! Not only was it as quick and easy as I thought it would be, but it was really tasty. Even though quite a few of the ingredients were canned, the flavors really came together with a lot more depth than I expected. It was delicious!!

Ingredients:

• 12 oz. uncooked spaghetti (I like to use the Barilla brand with veggies here just to add a bit more veggies and you really can't taste a difference at all--this is especially great for picky eaters who struggle with veggies)
• 1 lb. ground beef (I like to replace ground beef with ground turkey, turkey sausage, or ground chicken)
• 1 envelope taco seasoning (last time I made it with Jenny-O taco seasoned ground turkey so I just excluded this and the water)
• 3/4 cup water
• 1 can (15 oz.) black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 can (10 oz.) diced tomatoes and green chilies, undrained
• 1 can (15 oz.) sweet corn with no added salt, drained (this wasn't originally part of the recipe,but it was a good addition!)
• 2 cup (8 oz.) shredded Mexican cheese blend, divided
• 3/4 cup salsa

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350. Break spaghetti into thirds (or forths, I like forths, but to each his own); cook according to package directions for al dente.
2. Meanwhile, in a Dutch oven (or whatever), cook beef over medium heat 6-8 minutes or until no longer pink, breaking into crumbles; drain. Stir in taco seasoning and water; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
3. Stir in beans, tomatoes, 1 cup cheese and salsa. Drain spaghetti; add to beef mixture and toss to combine. 
4. Transfer to a greased 13x9-in. baking dish. Bake casserole, covered, 20 minutes. Sprinkle with remaining cheese. Bake, uncovered, 3-5 minutes longer or until cheese is melted. (Personally, I prefer to top with the remaining cheese right away and cook the whole thing uncovered for 25+ minutes until it is crispy).
5. Let stand 5 minutes before serving. Enjoy!!

My son has been sensitive to dairy since he was born so I make a small, separate dish for him without cheese, and it's not quite the same. He still enjoys it, but I would say the cheese definitely makes the meal. For a dairy-free alternative I would recommend finding a good dairy-free cheese substitute rather than forgoing the cheese.