Super Easy Tostadas

Necessity is the mother of invention and this mother here is always in need of something in the kitchen.  No matter how carefully I plan my menu each week, there always comes a day when I'm out of something I need for making dinner.  One time I was hurriedly making tacos for dinner and realized we didn't have taco shells.  Luckily we did have tortillas, but since the kids aren't fans of soft tacos I was left in a quandary on how I could get this dinner onto the table pronto!  That's when "Super Easy Tostadas" were born.   I just crisped up the tortillas (two options listed below) and added a layer of refried beans to hold all the toppings on the shell.   My family was happy with the yummy new dinner and I was happy to add a fun new creation to the quick dinner arsenal.

Click here for printable recipe. 

The ingredients:

1 can refried beans
3/4 lb. ground beef (or turkey)
1 pkg. taco seasoning
6 flour tortillas
favorite taco toppings:  shredded lettuce, chopped tomatoes, sour cream, shredded cheddar cheese, salsa, black beans (drained)

Directions: 
You have two options for cooking the flour tortillas into tostada shells:

Option #1 results in a super easy, crisp plain tostada shell:  Heat oven to Broil and place tortillas onto a baking sheet.  Broil until tops are crisp and brown (you will have to watch them VERY closely.  This step usually takes 2-3 minutes at most.)  When tops are brown, remove from oven and flip the tortillas.  Place back in the oven and remove as soon as they are brown and crispy.  The second side generally takes a minute or less, so be careful not to leave them unattended.  Note:   They will bubble up while broiling.

Option #2 takes a littler longer, but ends up less crisp and tastier:  Preheat a griddle and grease with a stick of butter.  Add tortilla and cook until the bottom is lightly browned and slightly crisp, then flip.  Sprinkle cheddar cheese over the browned side of the tortilla and cook until bottom is browned and cheese is melted.

 

Cook tostada shells and set aside.  Brown meat and season with taco seasoning as directed on package (mine says add 3/4 cup water and seasoning packet and simmer).

Layer each tostada shell with refried beans as the base layer (this gives all the rest of the ingredients something to stick to, so it won't fall off the shell as easily.)  Then top with meat and favorite taco toppings.  Makes 6 tostadas. 

Enjoy!