It is a truth universally acknowledged* that almost every meal can be improved with the addition of grated cheddar cheese. It really is true, just ask my kids. If they turn their nose up at one of my loving prepared homemade meals, the offer of some cheese to put on top usually does the trick in convincing them to eat it, although my 3 year old has been known to be tricksy about it, scooping off all of the cheese without touching the meal below and then asking for more. Boy after my own heart!
*in my head anyway
You may have seen the fun 'Rules of Cheese' TV ads from Cathedral City - the nations favourite cheddar - recently. I think they're great, they make me crave cheese every time I see them and I wholeheartedly agree with all of the rules! I've been invited by Cathedral City to share my own 'Cheese Rule' today, with which I opened this post - grated cheddar cheese makes every meal better, without a doubt! Spaghetti bolognese, chilli con carne, vegetable soup, tomato sandwiches, burgers, omelette... all are elevated to a higher plane with the addition of some delicious grated cheddar cheese!
I can't think of a better way to demonstrate the truth of my cheese rule than with a delicious cheesy recipe, so today I'm sharing my family friendly, deliciously healthy, fully loaded hidden vegetable chilli nachos, yum! My chilli recipe is stuffed full of healthy vegetables and served on a base of homemade tortilla crisps, topped with delicious, melty, golden Cathedral City cheddar, perfect for a family meal. Don't be put off by the long list of ingredients, they're all easy to find and you might well have most of the spices in your cupboard anyway.
Hidden Vegetable Chilli Con Carne
Ingredients:
- 1 large onion
- 1 red pepper
- 1 tbs vegetable oil
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1 tbs cumin
- 2 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 tsp mild chilli powder
- pinch dried chilli flakes (to taste)
- 500g lean beef mince
- 150g mushrooms
- 1 medium carrot
- 1 small courgette
- 1 tsp dried mixed herbs
- 1 tin chopped tomatoes
- 2 tbs tomato puree
- 1 beef stock cube
- 1 tsp cocoa powder
- pinch sugar
- 400g tin kidney beans in water
- 200g tin sweetcorn in water
To serve:
- Homemade tortilla crisps (see recipe below)
- 100g Cathedral City Mature
- Salsa
- Guacamole
- Sour Cream
Method:
Prepare the vegetables; peel and chop the onion, chop the red pepper, mince the garlic. Finely chop the mushrooms, scrub and grate the carrot and courgette.
Heat the oil in a large pan then gently fry the onion and red pepper until starting to soften. Add the garlic, spices and chilli flakes and cook for a further minute.
Push the onion and peppers to one side of the pan and crumble in the minced beef. Brown the beef all over, breaking it up with a wooden spoon as it cooks.
Once the beef is brown, add the chopped mushrooms, grated carrot and grated courgette to the pan and stir to combine all of the ingredients. Add the chopped tomatoes and tomato puree, then crumble over the stock cube. Fill the tomato tin with water and add it to the pan, then give everything a good stir. Bring to the boil then turn down the heat and simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally as it cooks.
After 15 minutes, add the cocoa powder and a pinch of sugar to the pan, then drain and rinse the kidney beans and sweetcorn and add them in too. Give everything another good stir, then cook for another 15 minutes until the chilli mixture has reduced and is nice and thick. Season with salt and black pepper to taste.
Meanwhile, make the homemade tortilla crisps (see recipe below) and leave to cool a little. Preheat your grill (broiler) to a medium-high heat and grate the cheese.
To serve, pile the tortilla crisps into a large oven-proof dish, dollop over a generous serving of the chilli and top with the grated Cathedral City Mature cheddar cheese.
Pop under a grill for 5 minutes or so until the cheese starts to melt and bubble.
Serve with the salsa, guacamole and sour cream on the side.
Healthy Homemade Tortilla Crisps
Ingredients:
- 3 wholemeal tortilla wraps
- spray oil
- salt & pepper to taste
Method:
Start by preheating your oven to 180°C (Gas mark 4/350°F). Spray or brush a couple of baking trays with oil.
Pile the three wraps on top of each other, then cut into 4 wide strips. Cut the strips into triangles.
Separate out the triangle shapes and place them in a single layer on the baking trays. Spray or brush them with oil and season to taste.
Bake in the oven for 5-10 minutes until the triangles are starting to brown round the edges and are crispy. Do keep a sharp eye on them as they cook because they can burn very easily.
Once baked and crispy, remove from the oven and leave to cool for a few minutes, before transferring to a serving dish.
NOTE: The chilli recipe is deliberately very mild to ensure that it is child friendly. If you'd like a bit of heat to it, add a finely chopped red chilli, use hot chilli powder or increase the amount of chilli flakes you add to the recipe. You might also like to add sliced jalapeno peppers to the finished dish before topping with the grated cheese, or you can serve them on the side so that adults can add them to their own servings if wanted.
Do you love cheese? Join the club! You can find Cathedral City over on Facebook or join the conversation on social media with the #CheeseRules and #LoveCheese hashtags. I'd love to hear your cheese rules too - comment below to tell me all about them!
Grace
Disclosure: This recipe and blog post was commissioned by Cathedral City. I was compensated for my time and the cost of ingredients, however all opinions expressed in this post are my own.
Hidden Vegetable Chilli Con Carne
Ingredients
- 1 large onion
- 1 red pepper
- 1 tbs vegetable oil
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1 tbs cumin
- 2 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 tsp mild chilli powder
- pinch dried chilli flakes (to taste)
- 500 g lean beef mince
- 150 g mushrooms
- 1 medium carrot
- 1 small courgette
- 1 tsp dried mixed herbs
- 1 tin chopped tomatoes
- 2 tbs tomato puree
- 1 beef stock cube
- 1 tsp cocoa powder
- pinch sugar
- 400 g tin kidney beans in water
- 200 g tin sweetcorn in water
- To serve:
- Homemade tortilla crisps (see recipe below)
- 100 g Cathedral City Mature
- Salsa
- Guacamole
- Sour Cream
- Healthy Homemade Tortilla Crisps
- Ingredients:
- 3 wholemeal tortilla wraps
- spray oil
- salt & pepper to taste
Instructions
- For the Chilli Con Carne: Prepare the vegetables; peel and chop the onion, chop the red pepper, mince the garlic. Finely chop the mushrooms, scrub and grate the carrot and courgette.
- Heat the oil in a large pan then gently fry the onion and red pepper until starting to soften. Add the garlic, spices and chilli flakes and cook for a further minute.
- Push the onion and peppers to one side of the pan and crumble in the minced beef. Brown the beef all over, breaking it up with a wooden spoon as it cooks.
- Once the beef is brown, add the chopped mushrooms, grated carrot and grated courgette to the pan and stir to combine all of the ingredients. Add the chopped tomatoes and tomato puree, then crumble over the stock cube. Fill the tomato tin with water and add it to the pan, then give everything a good stir. Bring to the boil then turn down the heat and simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally as it cooks.
- After 15 minutes, add the cocoa powder and a pinch of sugar to the pan, then drain and rinse the kidney beans and sweetcorn and add them in too. Give everything another good stir, then cook for another 15 minutes until the chilli mixture has reduced and is nice and thick. Season with salt and black pepper to taste.
- Meanwhile, make the homemade tortilla crisps (see recipe below) and leave to cool a little. Preheat your grill (broiler) to a medium-high heat and grate the cheese.
- To serve, pile the tortilla crisps into a large oven-proof dish, dollop over a generous serving of the chilli and top with the grated Cathedral City Mature cheddar cheese.
- Pop under a grill for 5 minutes or so until the cheese starts to melt and bubble. Serve with the salsa, guacamole and sour cream on the side.
- For the tortilla chips: Start by preheating your oven to 180°C (Gas mark 4/350°F). Spray or brush a couple of baking trays with oil.
- Pile the three wraps on top of each other, then cut into 4 wide strips. Cut the strips into triangles.
- Separate out the triangle shapes and place them in a single layer on the baking trays. Spray or brush them with oil and season to taste.
- Bake in the oven for 5-10 minutes until the triangles are starting to brown round the edges and are crispy. Do keep a sharp eye on them as they cook because they can burn very easily.
- Once baked and crispy, remove from the oven and leave to cool for a few minutes, before transferring to a serving dish.
Notes
I hope you will want to try this quick and easy recipe, please pin it if you do! For more easy family friendly dinner ideas and recipes, check out the Family Friendly Meals section here on the Eats Amazing blog or pop over and follow the Eats Amazing recipes Pinterest board for fresh and seasonal inspiration all the year around!
Charlotte says
This looks so yummy, I have always wanted to make my own tortilla chips
Grace says
Thank you, they're so easy to make, we love them!