Mini Tacos and Cheeseburgers

My friends, Juliann and Alli, came over last week for a "Girl's Night Sleepover."  We decided that we were going to have a theme of "kids night," which meant we were going to watch kid movies and have kid food.  I was in charge of the menu and I decided to make Mini Tacos, Mini Cheeseburgers, veggie sticks and dip, and apples with caramel dip. 

I found the recipe for the Mini Tacos from Recipezaar and once again, that website didn't fail me.  These were super easy and surprisingly very good.  The tacos are won ton wrappers, filled with taco seasoned meat (I used ground turkey), salsa and cheese.  Yum!

Ingredients.

Just out of the oven.

For the Mini Burgers, I saw Ms. Paula Deen make them on one of her shows and they looked great.  They are little beef patties (with mustard and ketchup baked in) topped with cheese and baked inside puff pastry.  Now let's take a moment and talk about puff pastry.  Apparently, it's NOT the same thing as phyllo dough!  Did anyone else know this?  Because I didn't and I bought phyllo dough and though the burgers were still good...they were "interesting" with the phyllo dough bun/crust.  So, we'll just leave it at that...make sure to buy puff pastry and NOT phyllo dough.

Both these recipes were very easy and very taste.  If you have kids or if you're like us and just want some "kid" food, I highly recommend both these recipes. 

Enjoy!

Ingredients.

Ugly burger in phyllo dough...but still tasty!

Mini Tacos, by Recipezaar

Ingredients

• 24 wonton wrappers
• 1 lb hamburger
• 1 (1 1/4 ounce) package taco seasoning
• 1/2 cup salsa or picante sauce
• 3 tablespoons salsa
• 1 cup shredded cheese
• sour cream (optional)
• olives (optional)
• guacamole (optional)

Directions

1. Cook hamburger until browned. 
2. Drain the fat.  Stir in taco mix ans 1/2 cup salsa/picante sauce.
3. Simmer for 3-5 minutes.
4. Press wonton wrappers into mini muffin cups.
5. Spoon beef mixture in cups and top with the 3 tbs of salsa and cheese, evenly divided.
6. Bake in preheated 425°F oven for 8 minutes, or until the wontons are nicely browned.

7. Serve with extra salsa, sour cream, olives and guacamole if desired.

Mini Burgers, by Paula Deen

Ingredients

• 8 ounces ground beef
• 2 teaspoons ketchup
• 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• All-purpose flour for dusting
• 1 sheet (from a 17.5-ounce package) puff pastry
• 2 ounces (about 1/2 cup) Cheddar, shredded
• 1 large egg, beaten with 1 teaspoon water

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper; set aside.
2. In a large bowl, mix together the beef, ketchup, mustard, salt, and pepper. Form the mixture into 8 equal-size patties. In a large skillet, over medium-high heat, brown the patties for 1 to 2 minutes.
3. On a lightly floured surface, unfold the pastry and roll out. Cut the pastry lengthwise into 4 equal strips, then cut strips in 1/2 crosswise. Place 1 patty on each strip and top with cheese. Fold the pastry up around the burgers and pinch the edges together to seal, molding to fit around the patties. Brush the tops of the pastries with the egg mixture.
4. Place the mini burgers on the prepared baking sheet. Bake for 12 to15 minutes or until puffed and golden. Let stand for 5 minutes before serving.