Reviewed: Aug. 2, 2009

I've been making this dish for about 10 years now. It's a family favorite that has never gotten old! We like our food pretty spicy, though, so I usually add crushed red pepper flakes to ours.

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Beth

Cooking Level: Expert

Home Town: Fenton, Missouri, USA

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Reviewed: Aug. 2, 2009

I cheated. I hate heating the house up in the summer with the oven. So... While the shells cooked I made the meat filling and used a small saucepan to heat up my salsa. Then I arranged everything in a glass pie plate that fits in my microwave. I topped with the cheese mixture and microwaved for about 3-5 minutes, enough to melt the cheese. Then topped with tortilla strips I had made from old corn tortillas, sour cream and chopped avocado. It was delicious.

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CeCe Vokey

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Reviewed: Aug. 2, 2009

An excellent quickie!! I left out the chips and used manicotti tubes instead of shells. Then I topped with a layer of refried beans, shredded lettuce, and shredded cheese just before serving.

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Dave

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Reviewed: Aug. 2, 2009

I would think you could easily freeze this by making it without the cheese and tortilla chips-then add those back after reheating the dish.Then top with the sour cream as the recipe states. Save the last step of the recipe for later.

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KARIRN

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Living In: Stamford, Connecticut, USA

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Reviewed: Aug. 2, 2009

Very Good-we all enjoyed this!

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Christine

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Reviewed: Jul. 28, 2009

I'm giving this 4 stars based on the concept. I changed some things to add flavor because I knew it would be too bland for us as is. I used 4 oz cream cheese and added 1 tsp each of oregano, cumin and cayenne to the chili powder. I also replaced the taco sauce with salsa, slightly covering the bottom of the pan as well to prevent drying and sticking. I omitted the crumbled chips. Next time I will also add refried beans and olives. It was really good with the kicked up flavor!

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red1190

Cooking Level: Intermediate

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Reviewed: Jul. 27, 2009

This was a good recipe. I changed a few things though. I added garlic and onion powder to the ground beef when I was cooking it, and I also add refried beans to the meat.

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aprilb412000

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Reviewed: Jul. 26, 2009

I sprayed the dish with cooking spray and had no problems with sticking. I used elbow noodles instead of shells and mixed the meat with the noodles and pressed into the 9x13 baking dish. Poured enough taco sauce to cover the mixture. I would do this again but add some onion and green pepper. We didn't think the left-overs were that good but liked it the first day.

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food guru

Cooking Level: Expert

Home Town: Elm Grove, Wisconsin, USA

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Reviewed: Jul. 7, 2009

Easy and yummy!

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BethMarie10

Cooking Level: Intermediate

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Reviewed: Jun. 15, 2009

Really liked this one! Instead of tossing the shells in butter though, I used lime juice. Gave it a nice flavor and was healthier. I used ground turkey and also opted for a packet of taco seasoning instead of the chili powder. I mixed some cilantro into the meat mixture as well.

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Drosemon

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Reviewed: Jun. 15, 2009

VERY DELICIOUS. i also as others suggested used a taco seasoning package instead of spices. added to ground beef with the cream cheese. did not use the crumbled chips because i had none on hand. but did serve it with sour cream and additional salsa. everyone loved it.

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crazymom3

Cooking Level: Expert

Home Town: Redlands, California, USA

Living In: Yucaipa, California, USA

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Reviewed: Jun. 15, 2009

I thought this would be a variation on lasagna or tacos but really isn't. It is different twist on both and we really liked it. I did change some things - I did not use the cream cheese and made my own taco seasoning with chili powder, cumin and oregano. I pureed medium salsa and used that instead of enchilada sauce. I sprinkled black olives on just before serving and piped the sour cream on then too. I have requests to make this again soon.

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Lilcat

Cooking Level: Expert

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Reviewed: Jun. 14, 2009

A wonderfully creative twist and addition to basic Mexican cuisine! This is one creative cook to think of using large pasta shells in a Mexican dish! My hat go off to you, Grannycancook! I did follow the advise that quite a few had in using taco seasoning in place of the chili powder and salt. I used an envelope to 1 lb ground turkey. Also added 1/2 tsp minced garlic and 1 can diced tomatoes with green chilis (Rotel brand). Instead of taco sauce I substituted red enchilada sauce (28 oz) pouring a thin layer on the bottom of the baking dish before filling with a layer of the stuffed pasta shells and pouring rest of sauce to cover the shells. Once they were baked I topped with chopped fresh cilantro, sliced black olives, sliced green onions and fresh diced tomatoes. For sides I served refried beans covered with enchilada sauce and melted Mexican blend cheese and Lime Cilantro Rice following recipe from this web site. Excellent, excellent meal!

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Judi

Cooking Level: Expert

Home Town: Streamwood, Illinois, USA

Living In: Union, Illinois, USA

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Reviewed: Jun. 2, 2009

HOLY BUCKETS! This was amazing! My husband could not say enough about it. "Oh my gosh!" followed every bite he took. I used turkey rather than beef and lite cream cheese. Also reduced the amount of shredded cheese because 2 cups seemed like too much. A total keeper! THANKS GRANNY!

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BrookieCookie

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Living In: Las Vegas, Nevada, USA

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Reviewed: Jun. 2, 2009

This recipe is really simple and really delicious! I used 1lb. ground turkey instead of beef, no salt, paprika instead of chili powder, and omitted the totilla chips. I also added a little bit of the sour cream to the cream cheese and then mixed it in with the turkey because it was a little dry looking the first time I made it with just cream cheese.

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Bella

Cooking Level: Expert

Living In: Omaha, Nebraska, USA

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Reviewed: Jun. 1, 2009

Followed the recipe except added extra cumin and little extra chili pepper.Kids loved it.For me was so so.My boyfriend didnt care for it.

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Christal

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Home Town: Anaheim, California, USA

Living In: Kansas City, Kansas, USA

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Reviewed: May 29, 2009

I didn't really love this, and I love most things taco. For me pasta with taco just doesn't mesh. I'd love to experiment with this to get a rice based dish.

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KATULLY

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Reviewed: May 29, 2009

Exceeded my expectations! I added a can of black beans to the mixture and used salsa instead of sauce to coat the bottom of the pan prior to adding the shells. It was a wonderful meal. Thank you for sharing.

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Thogan

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Reviewed: May 28, 2009

Unbelievably good! I thought these sounded like they would be alright, but this recipe exceeded my expectations and then some! I used a pound of ground bison, sauteed some onion and garlic with it, and added some cumin along with the chili powder. I added about another ounce of cream cheese, as the mixture seemed to need it, and naturally I forgot to get taco sauce, so I just used salsa instead, putting a bit on the bottom of the baking dish so the shells wouldn't dry out while baking. Delicious! Thank you for sharing your wonderful recipe!

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Christine M

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Home Town: Hopedale, Massachusetts, USA

Living In: Holden, Massachusetts, USA

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Reviewed: May 25, 2009

This recipe was WONDERFUL! I only had 1Lb of ground beef, so I cooked it with the seasonings and it was wonderful. I will try using taco seasoning next time, just to test it out, but it is delicious just the way it is. I don't know if I wasn't putting enough meat in mine or not, but it took about 22 shells to use it all up, so make extra shells if you aren't completely loading the shells up=) THANKS SO MUCH FOR A WONDERFUL RECIPE! My hubby is so happy that we have another favorite, lol=)

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