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Expert Q&A

	By Dawn Wise Dawn Wise Chef Author: The Online Cookbook, Wise Publications

My daughter hates anything spicy. Do you have any creative suggestions for Mexican foods that can be divided before seasoning?

One of the easiest things to divide up is the meat that goes into many Mexican dishes. I brown about 1 pound of either ground beef or turkey, drain it and then add a 4-ounce can of tomato sauce, 1 to 1 1/2 teaspoons of ground cumin and salt and pepper to taste. This gives the meat a real nice flavor without adding any heat or spiciness. You can then divide the meat as needed and be free to add spices to the portions you wish. This meat is good in tacos, Nachos and many other Mexican dishes.

For nachos, I heat a can of cheddar cheese Soup. This to can be divided into a separate portion for your son. I then add about a teaspoon or so of Tabasco sauce to the cheese soup to give it a wonderful nacho flavor. I layer meat, taco type fixings, and the cheddar cheese on top of tortilla chip for a fun meal the kid enjoy.

For a dish such as enchiladas, it's no real extra work to assemble a separate serving. Just prepare your meat as described above, add the cheese, then assemble with the tortilla and roll up. Add a little plain tomato sauce to the top and it's ready to bake in a separate dish, next to the rest of the enchiladas. Keep an eye on your child's portion as it may finish baking sooner.

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