Mom Made Foods Spotlight...Featuring Taco Rice Skillet with Mini Meatballs

I recently had the chance to try out a great line of healthy kid-friendly foods from Mom Made Foods. Although the company is geared toward providing healthy and delicious foods that kids will enjoy, I can vouch that kids of all ages will enjoy these all-natural products! Founder Heather Stouffer visited San Antonio a few weeks ago, so I had the chance to sit down and chat with her about her company. She was a doll...so much fun to talk with. She started Mom Made Foods when she became a mom and found the selection of healthy kid-friendly convenience foods was sorely lacking. She started her company because she believed that convenience foods didn't have to be unhealthy and filled with preservatives. Mom Made products are made with organic ingredients and meat that's free of antibiotics. 

The Mom Made Foods product line includes Munchies, Meals and Bites...all of which are perfectly portioned to fit small hands. Munchies are pastry pockets filled with goodies like pizza toppings and chunky apple filling, Meals include Spaghetti with Turkey Meatballs and Cheesy Mac, and Bites include a variety of fun and tasty bite-sized mini meatballs. I absolutely flipped for the Beef & Cheese Meatball Bites and knew that I had to create a family-friendly recipe that featured them! What I came up with was a very tasty and oh-so-easy Taco Rice Skillet with Mini Meatballs. It features all of my favorite taco flavors in a delicious one-dish dinner that kids of all ages will love. 

The base of the skillet is made with a store-bought Spanish rice mix, corn, green chile tomatoes and meatballs. It's topped with cheese and my favorite taco fixings. It's easy to tailor the recipe to fit your family's tolerance for spice. If you have little ones who like their food less-fiery, simply use mild chile tomatoes and pico de gallo. Don't like avocados? Sub in sliced black olives if you prefer. Have fun with it and top it with your family's favorites!

Taco Rice Skillet with Mini Meatballs

a Weekend Gourmet Original

Ingredients:

• 1 tbs. olive oil 
• 1/3 cup chopped purple onion
• 1 cup frozen corn kernels
• 1 1o-ounce can diced tomatoes with green chiles
• 1 5-ounce package Spanish rice [Note: I used Mahatma]
• 1 8-ounce package Mom Made Foods Beef & Cheese Meatballs
• 1 2/3 cup water
• 1.5 cups shredded co-jack cheese
• 1/3 cup store-bought pico de gallo
• 2 green onions, thinly sliced
• 1/2 small avocado, peeled and diced
• 1 cup broken tortilla chips
• Sour cream drizzle: 1/2 cup sour cream, 2 tbs. milk, 1 tsp. dried cilantro and lime juice to taste

Directions:

Step 1: Add the olive oil to a non-stick skillet with high sides and heat over med-high heat. Add the onion and cook until the onion is softened. Add the rice mix, water, tomatoes (juice and all), and corn. Stir to combine and bring to boil. Carefully arrange the mini meatballs on top of the rice. Cover and cook for 20 minutes.

Step 2: When 20 minutes have passed, turn off the heat. Sprinkle the cheese on top, recover and let sit while you prep the topping ingredients. This allows the cheese to melt and the rice to absorb any extra liquid.

Step 3: Make the sour cream drizzle by combining all of its ingredients in small bowl. Remove the lid from the casserole and sprinkle the green onions, avocado, pico de gallo and tortilla pieces on top of the cheese. Just before serving, drizzle the sour cream mixture on top. To serve, scoop into bowls.

This is a fabulous one-dish meal that everyone will love! The rice is slightly spicy, and the corn and tomatoes give it some texture. We loved the bite-sized meatballs, which tasted great and were the perfect size for easy eating. The topping contained all my favorite taco ingredients...creamy avocado, spicy pico de gallo and cooling sour cream! We crushed extra tortilla chips on top of our bowls to maximize the crunch...that's optional, but highly recommended. 

These versatile meatballs are tender and flavorful, and they're very versatile. We also enjoyed them in pasta dishes and as a quick and healthy pizza topping. If you're interested in trying out Mom Made Foods for your family, you can find them in the freezer aisle of your nearest Super Target. To find Mom Made Foods at other stores near you, simply visit the Store Locator on their website and enter your zip code. 

Disclosure: Mom Made Foods provided me with free product coupons to facilitate recipe development for this article. No other compensation was provided, and all opinions expressed are my own.

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