'pink taco' salad.

i remember the first time i tried taco salad. my friend cass showed up to a party with this mangia cake salad, made with chips and ground beef and catalina dressing. reluctant to try it, i gave it a whirl and was shocked by how good it was. i then proceeded to have several helpings, as if i had just smoked 25 joints and it was my last meal on earth. fast forward a few years to my girlfriend neena's apartment in toronto. we ordered pizza and whipped up a pimped out version of cass's famous taco salad, and that was that. i brought this baby to a potluck at work last week, and by the end of the day, had four email requests for the recipe in my inbox. a perfect side for bbq's, and a great alternative to that same old same old salad you bring to every friggen' potluck you have ever attended, this taco salad was perfected with love by two of my favourite girlies. hence, aptly named, 'pink taco' salad.

how we do: 'pink taco' salad

{serves 12-15 starving co-workers/2-3 people stoned out of their tree.}

prep time: 20 minutes

cook time: 10 minutes

eating time: how high are you?

you will need:

1 head of iceberg lettuce

1/2 head of red cabbage

5 stems of spring/green onions

1 can of black beans

1 jar of jalapenos

2 cups of cheddar cheese (add more if you like a little extra cheese in your taco)

1 pound of extra lean ground beef

1 package of 'hot & spicy' taco seasoning

1 bag of plain tortilla chips

catalina dressing

this is one of those recipes that is easiest when you are prepped and ready to go. you don't want to make it too ahead of time, as it will get wilty and mingin. get all the ingredients ready to go, and then whip this bad boy together right before you serve it. start by getting your ground beef going in a frying pan, and strain off any excess grease once it's fully cooked. add your 'hot and spicy' taco seasoning and mix well. you could use the regular taco seasoning, but its' not going to be hot and spicy. 

and what's the point of that?

because there are 300 ingredients in this beast, you want to chop everything up into smallish sized pieces so you can get a bit of everything with every bite. i love red cabbage when it's a little bigger, as it's the crunch that makes the whole salad. shred your iceberg lettuce, and chop your green onion.

beans, beans the magical fruit, the more you eat them, the more you want to punch the person you are sleeping next to, but damn they are good! wash and strain your black beans, and leave them to dry as you prep the rest of your ingredients.

assembling this bitch is really up to you. there is no method to the madness, as it's all going to be tossed together anyways. if you want to make it ahead of time, say the night before a potluck, you would want to assemble it so the heartiest ingredients are at the bottom: beef, beans, red cabbage, cheese, jalas, green onion, iceberg lettuce and then add your tortilla chips and dressing on top when you are about to serve it. plate this baby up and enjoy it like you're cheech and fuckin' chong.