a close up of Sausage, Bean, and Cheese Nachos in a cast iron skillet

A few months ago, I subscribed to Martha Stewart's Everyday Food magazine.

I rarely pay for magazine subscriptions, but I paid for this one.

I thought it would be nice to flip through each month, and I knew in advance that the recipes would use everyday ingredients.

I thought my recipe repertoire could use some expanding.

You know, beyond the 39 cookbooks in the kitchen that I never open.

I found the following recipe (written by Emeril Lagasse) in the January/February issue. It's not the most healthy food, but I've made some adjustments to improve that.

Have a Nacho Picnic

I think these nachos would be really nice for a special weeknight treat. Wouldn't it be fun to serve this on the floor of the living room or outside on the back porch? A living room picnic or a backyard picnic, complete with a salad and some iced tea would be a perfect mid-week siesta.

Enlist Your Kids

Get the kids to help prepare these nachos! Grace is almost 3, and I can see a lot of steps that she'd be able to do. I marked them below.

Recipe

Sausage, Bean, and Cheese Nachos

5 from 3 votes

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Servings

Ingredients

1 pounds fresh pork sausage casings removed, crumbled (the original recipe, calls for hot sausage, but I don't think Grace would eat that. We used turkey sausage instead. It has less fat.)
4 scallions chopped, green and white parts separated
2 cloves garlic pressed
2 15-oz cans black beans rinsed and drained
¾ cups low sodium chicken broth or water
½ teaspoon chili powder
¼ teaspoon ground cumin
¼ teaspoon coarse salt
slices jalapeno optional
12 ounces large tortilla chips we baked our own tortilla chips for a much healthier option
3 ounces grated pepper jack sharp cheddar, or a combination
salsa sour cream, and guacamole, for serving

Instructions

Preheat oven to 450.
Heat a large skillet over medium-high. Add sausage and cook, breaking apart with a wooden spoon, until sausage is cooked and fat is rendered (meaning that the fat has separated from the meat), about 5 minutes.
Using a slotted spoon, transfer the sausage to paper towels to drain off any remaining fat.
Add scallion whites and garlic to the skillet. Cook until fragrant and soft, about 20 seconds. Stir in beans and cook 1 minute. Add broth, spices, and jalapenos (if using). With a potato masher or the back of a spoon, mash beans until they are "chunky-smooth." (That's Emeril's term, not mine.)
Reduce heat to medium, and cook until heated through, 1 to 2 minutes.
Assist your small person in spreading half of the tortilla chips in the bottom of a large baking dish. Top with half of the beans, half of the sausage, and allow your helper to sprinkle on half of the cheese. Repeat with remaining ingredients.
Bake until cheese melts and nachos are hot, about 5 minutes.
Assist your helper in sprinkling scallion greens over the nachos.
Serve with sour cream and salsa.