Fiesta Spaghetti Tacos

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So when the kids first told me of their idea for this meal, I was completely hesitant and in NO way wanted to make it.  I mean, spaghetti tacos, really?  It sounded terrifying to me, honestly, and I figured it was another crazy kid concoction that they invented.  Let me say how surprised I was when I was perusing my Facebook page one day and managed to see an ad to the side for SPAGHETTI TACOS!
So I caved, but only when I realized people had actually tried it out in their test kitchens and wasn't filled with strawberry jelly or something.  :)
So first thing's first.  The recipe called for 1 lb. of ground beef but I was feeling saucy and got us some ground pork!  I had my oldest son help me start to brown that.

As you can see, my son has some serious showman skills.  ;)  While he was browning that I boiled some pasta, about 5oz.  Make sure to break them in half before putting them in the water!

Once the meat was done cooking we drained it, and then I had my son add a packet of taco seasoning and a 1/2 cup of water.

We heated that until it was boiling, and then turned the heat down to let it simmer until the sauce thickened.  Once it did, we added 1 1/2 cups of spaghetti sauce and 1 cup frozen corn to the meat mix!

We let that heat until it was warmed and while that was cooking, we drained the cooked pasta. Then we added the pasta to the meat mix.

Then we got some taco shells (those awesome ones that can stand up)  and heat those up for about 45 seconds in the microwave, just to get them warm!

This next part proved to be trickier than originally thought...how to get the spaghetti INTO the tacos?!?!  My son got more on his hands than in the taco, but he really didn't mind.  He started to almost eat his fingers, he said it was so good!  I almost thought he had burned himself at first, because he had attacked his fingers so voraciously.  Then he informed me it was so delicious...:)  So, eventually I got my son to stop eating his fingers long enough to MOVE so I could finish the tacos.  I sprinkled some grated Parmesan cheese on the top.  

The recipe also suggests adding some tomatoes, which the husband and I did.  We were still both very nervous to try this, but, to be completely honest it was REALLY good!  Everyone went back for more!  And even more exciting was it was exactly 500 calories, so it still stayed within the calorie limit I like to keep at!  It was also only $3.15/serving...gotta love kid ideas!
Here's the recipe!

Fiesta Spaghetti Tacos
5oz. uncooked spaghetti, broken in half
1lb. ground beef (or whatever ground meat you prefer.  I also suggest trying ground turkey)
1 package (1oz.) taco seasoning mix
1/2 cup water
1 1/4 cup spaghetti sauce
1 cup frozen corn
1 box (4.7oz) taco shells (10 shells, preferably the standing ones)
1 medium tomato, chopped, if desired
2 tbsp. shredded Parmesan cheese

Happy cooking!!!