Crockpot Tamale Casserole

Is the crockpot the most wonderful invention ever or what? I mean, whomever invented this had to have busy moms in mind. The luxury of starting your dinner in the morning and coming home to the smell of something delicious simmering away and best of all, no dinner prep to be done! It is actually so wonderful, it makes me want to cry. It is like having a personal chef who is taking care of the cooking so you can just hang out with your kids and relax.

There are two things I HATE and I stress, HATE about crockpot recipes. The first is simple. Sometimes I feel like they all taste the same. I think you need something really different and unique to get out of the “chicken simmering in campbell soup” type of recipes. Not that those aren’t good sometimes, it is just when you make more than one, they begin to taste like the same meal, just recycled. The second thing I really, really do not like is when the recipes instruct you to cook the whole meal on the stove top FIRST before placing it in the crockpot. I mean, what is the point of a vessel that cooks your meal for you, if you have to cook it all first? So, when I am looking for great crockpot recipes, I am looking for ones that I can pretty much throw everything in there and call it a day. This is one of them. Besides the initial assembling of ingredients and some last minutes add ins, this is a cook all day, no fuss meal that you and your family will love.

I love you crockpot. I really love you.

Crockpot Tamale Casserole

1 lb. ground turkey or very lean ground beef (if you prefer beef with more fat in it, you do need to cook and drain it before putting it into the crock pot)

1 15 oz can tomato sauce

1 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes

1 packet taco seasoning or 2 tblsp of your own blend

1 1/2 cups frozen corn

1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

1 8.5 oz box corn muffin mix

1/3 cup milk

1 egg

Salsa, olives, sour cream

Place ground turkey in crockpot. Break up with spoon. In small bowl, combine tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, and taco seasoning. Pour over ground turkey. Gently mix in corn. Place lid on crockpot and cook on low for 8 hours. During last hour, sprinkle cheese over top of casserole. Mix cornbread mix with milk and egg. Spoon on top of cheese on casserole. Cover and cook for last 45 minutes of cooking time or until cornbread topping is fully cooked through. Serve with salsa, sliced olives and sour cream.