Taco Bell Chicken Quesadilla Copycat

No need to leave the house when you have a perfect copycat recipe on hand!

I love Taco Bell Chicken Quesadillas so much. It used to be my go-to combo meal to get and I've made this recipe over and over again. I think I finally got it to where I liked it, so I have adjusted the old recipe from 2010 to reflect the changes I've made. I combined the old sauce recipe with another person's recipe and then tweaked it a little by what I felt tasted more authentic.
 
Update 7/15/16: In the near future, I am hoping to update the sauce recipe. I made it with Greek yogurt to appease Nick (he hates mayonnaise) and it tasted a lot closer to the sauce Taco Bell uses.

Update 12/14/12: Made these again. Somehow the sauce was a little too sweet, so we will try again next time to mess with the sauce. But here are some newer pictures, not taken by my cell phone. :)

Cheesy Garlic Pull-Aparts

A perfect side dish for spaghetti or serve it as an appetizer with pizza sauce!

I love cheese and I love garlic. Add it to carbs and you've made yourself a lifelong friend in me. :) I've made this recipe many times, but never as an appetizer. It occurred to me that with the option of serving it with pizza sauce, it would be a great appetizer. I always make it when I make spaghetti because Nick and the big kids love to dip it into their spaghetti sauce.

Tatortot Hotdish

I grew up eating this Minnesotan casserole regularly and make it often now as an adult.

I don't think I talk about it too often on the blog, but I was born and mostly raised in Minnesota. I spent just short of 12 years there and loved every minute of it. Even though I don't plan on moving back to the small town I grew up in (population around 300), I do love to make foods that remind me of home. Tatortot Hotdish is a staple of a Minnesotan childhood. The word hotdish I think throws people off, but it is a casserole. This is something that I make often because it takes few ingredients and it's failproof. I've never messed up this hotdish. Ever. It very well may be the first thing I learned how to cook on my own. I always eat mine with ketchup. It's how my mom ate hers and I followed suit. Nick likes to top his with buffalo sauce. Honestly, top it with what you want - or don't top it with anything. I won't judge!

Chicken Fiesta Salad

When you want something different for Taco Tuesday, try this salad with fajita seasoned chicken and veggies!

I love tacos and make them at least once a month, but it's so nice to have something different and usually I alternate beef and chicken on Tuesdays. I love chicken fajitas, but I do like salad a whole lot too. I think I finally convinced Nick and the kids to be okay with salad for dinner, especially when it has a lot of protein on it and is fairly filling.

Taco Bell Mexican Pizza Copycat

This homemade Taco Bell Mexican Pizza is only a few steps more than regular tacos - but just as easy to make!

When I discovered copycat recipes, I was unbelievably excited and made a ton of recipes. Most of them were Taco Bell copycats and I think it's because even if you mess it up, it's still gonna be dang good "Mexican" food. Obviously, it's not authentic Mexican cuisine, but it's very much like the fast food restaurant and that's what matters in these copycats. I love how easy this Mexican Pizza is to make. It's honestly only a few more steps than regular tacos - you fry the shells and bake after assembling them. It doesn't really take that much longer to do it because you can fry while the meat cooks. I've made this recipe so many times and highly recommend it if you're looking for something slightly different on Taco Tuesday!

Cheesy Potato Bacon Packets for the Grill

These potato packets are my absolute favorite side dish to make when I'm grilling because they go with everything!

  

These potato packets are something I could make with my eyes closed because I've made them so many times. Any time we have a cookout, I make these packets. It's a pretty simple thing to throw together too and it can even be done ahead of time. I also have made these in the oven when our grilling days get rained out.

Steakhouse Shepherd's Pie

Not your momma's shepherd's pie, this version contains no veggies but has hearty steak with gravy topped with potatoes!

I remember making this recipe for the first time and how when I saw Steakhouse and sirloin, I thought I was grabbing steak. I had no idea ground sirloin was the very lean 90/10 mix of beef. In my defense, I was just starting out really making recipes and straying from things I knew how to make. However, I will say that this misunderstanding in terminology made for a wonderful recipe and I have never made it with ground sirloin. I also did not include the mushrooms or blue cheese because I don't like those things and for the most part, no one in my house does either. Cami likes mushrooms, but she's our lone wolf. :)

From time to time, I will buy the real bacon bits instead of cooking bacon. I do have bacon grease in my fridge, so I can spoon out some of that when reserved bacon grease is needed. All-in-all, I really love how this is still such a comfort meal without the veggies and love the steak instead of ground beef for a change.

Why-I-Joined-Zaar Carrot Cake

This recipe was a result of someone searching for a long lost recipe for carrot cake. You'll have to try it to know why it was searched for so fervently!

**BETTER PIC TO COME**

Weird name, right? I got this from a site that was formerly known as the Recipe Bazaar. This is what I used to make my birthday cake and it's the most delicious carrot cake I've ever had!!

Creamy Chicken with Noodles

This crockpot chicken pasta "sauce" is the best comfort meal ever!

I have made this recipe more times than I can count and it never ceases to amaze me. Somehow it turns out almost like an alfredo, but somehow more delicious. It's buttery and the seasoning of the dressing mix is just everything with the cream cheese. It's total comfort food.

Update 10/11/2017: I have once again made my favorite crockpot chicken pasta recipe and this go-around I decided it was missing something and that thing was roasted grape tomatoes. I simply tossed them in olive oil and seasoned them with salt and pepper. Then I roasted them for about 10 minutes at 425 degrees until they started to burst. I topped individual servings with tomatoes (because Matthew isn't a fan, so I leave them out for him). It was exactly what this recipe needed and I am so happy I tried that.

Hamburger Pizza

This pizza is a childhood favorite that my mom made all the time!

Growing up, my mom made pizza a lot, but we never really had pepperoni pizza. She always made hamburger pizza. It was very simple with pizza sauce, cheese, cooked ground beef, and green olives. I made this pizza with the same base, but added some extra toppings like bacon, pepperoni, and green bell peppers.

Taco Ring

This recipe is a fun new way to serve up tacos and is perfect for a party or get-together.

This Taco Ring recipe is from Pampered Chef, although I think I may have found it on Food. It was extremely good! You can put a green bell pepper in the middle of the ring and fill it with salsa. Or you can put the lettuce and all toppings in the middle. Or you can do like we did and put it on a plate then add toppings to the individual portions. It looks a lot more complicated than it really is. Since updating the pictures, I decided to keep the old pictures that showed how to make the ring even though they aren't the best quality.
Picture update 10/11/2017  

Man Dip

This hearty dip probably got its name from the amount of meat in it, but it is not strictly for men at all!

Man Dip is one of those recipes that I have made plenty of times, but never quite got a new picture to update my post. I am bound and determined to update it soon (as I write this in 2017 while updating my old posts) because it is such a ridiculously good recipe. With 2 lbs of meat, this is a meal instead of an appetizer!! Not really, but it is such a hearty appetizer. In my mind, it is perfect for game day because of its heartiness. It is called "man dip" but ladies can enjoy it too. I know that I always have because it has all my favorite things in it: onion, garlic, cheese, AND jalapenos. Those are all banging ingredients that all appetizers should have! I hope you all get to try out this recipe and enjoy it as much as we do!

Banana Pudding

This banana pudding is rich and creamy and so dang tasty!

Picture Updated 12/13/2013

Banana pudding is almost my favorite pudding (tapioca is my most favorite) even though I don't really like bananas raw. I had made a dirt pudding recipe that I really liked. It was very rich and creamy and I thought it deserved to be made into a banana pudding recipe. It's a pretty easy recipe to make and it's definitely different than other banana puddings I have had.

Skyline Chili Copycat

This copycat chili has some ingredients that you wouldn't normally find in chili and it's served over spaghetti!

Picture update 12/13/2013
Before I begin...this was probably the most nerve-wracking recipe to make because I knew I had to get it PERFECT!!! My husband hails from Cincinnati and his mom makes it all the time. Now years later (as I update my old posts), I have had real authentic Skyline chili and although this is a great recipe, I do think my mom-in-law's is closer. I will link to her recipe at the end of this post. The two recipes are just slightly different, but hers is a little closer in taste and method. I tend to make recipes as they are written, so don't shoot the messenger. Still, this is a great tasting recipe that will make for a great dinner!

Cheddar BBQ Chicken Breasts

This 5-ingredient chicken is made in one dish with little effort and comes out tasting bangin'!

**NEW PIC TO COME** 

I love regular barbecued chicken, but was really excited to find a recipe that amps up plain barbecued chicken...especially if it has cheddar cheese and bacon. It's a relatively simple recipe to put together and only uses one pan. Less mess to clean up later, am I right? The bite of the green onions really offsets the salty and sweet combination of the cheese and bacon with the BBQ sauce. So don't skip out on those.