Recipe: Kitchen Sink Nachos

What do you do when you have leftover bags of chips from your Super Bowl Party and a bunch of other leftovers in the fridge? You make nachos with everything BUT including the kitchen sink! The result? Total goodness! Messy goodness! Gooey goodness!!

This was the case a few weeks ago. I hated the idea of throwing away some of the little leftovers I had. Not enough for individual eating but if I could come up with a way to put them together it could work. I remember a few months back when we had went to dinner at The Rock Wood Fired Kitchen. We had nachos that were so good. I thought this would be a perfect way to use up the leftovers. 

My initial thought was to make it on a cookie sheet, but then I thought if I did it in my cast iron skillet it would hold together when it melts better. It worked well, BUT some of the chips got a bit "soft", which wasn't that big of a problem, it still tasted awesome. So maybe I wouldn't layer it quite so thickly next time, or I'd go ahead and use a cookie sheet or a little bigger skillet. Either way, they were awesome. 

Basically use whatever leftovers you have that would work, begin layering and bake. 

Here is what I used:

Chips
brown rice
black beans
sauteed peppers and onions 
taco meat
cheese
mushrooms
chicken
olives

Begin with chips on the bottom, layer items half at a time..for example: chips, brown rice, beans, meat, cheese, more chips, peppers, meat, mushrooms, olives, more chips then cheese. 

The key at this point is cooking it enough to make sure all the cheese melts and ingredients are warmed through...you could heat them first before layering, but I didn't want to take the time. I chose to put the last layer of cheese on last, baking nachos for about 15 minutes before adding final layer. I started out at about 350, then added cheese and upped temp to 400. Times may vary and you may need to play with your temperature. I think if they were put on a cookie sheet it wouldn't take as long if they were spread out more. 

Serve with sour cream, salsa and/or guacamole. You won't be disappointed. This is a filling meal and worth making. 

On another note, I am loving using my cast iron skillet and would like to purchase a few more. Do you use a cast iron skillet? What is your favorite thing to make in one?

With Joy UNquenchable,