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–+ servings
Sheet pan of nachos topped with refried beans, sour cream, cheese, guacamole and salsa.

Healthy Nachos with Beef & Refried Beans

easyhealthyrecipes.com/healthy-baked-nachos/
These loaded, cheesy yet still Healthy Nachos are loaded up with ground beef, refried beans, cottage cheese queso, melted cheese and all of your favorite toppings for the perfect Game Day treat!
Prep: 15 minutes
Cook: 30 minutes
Total: 45 minutes
Recipe makes approximately 4

Ingredients Needed

  • 1 large bag of tortilla chips (we use organic to make ourselves feel better OR plantain chips OR chicharones)

Beef & Bean Mix

  • 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
  • 1 pound ground beef
  • 1 packet taco seasoning
  • 1 can refried beans
  • ¼ cup water

Cottage Cheese Queso

  • pinch ground cumin
  • ¼ - ½ teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup cottage cheese
  • 2-3 teaspoons pickled jalapeño juice (from the jar)
  • ¼ cup shredded pepper jack cheese
  • 1 tablespoon chopped pickled jalapenos (optional)

Toppings

  • 1 ½ cups shredded cheese blend
  • 1 cup pico de gallo (store-bought or homemade, plus more for topping)
  • ¼ cup chopped cilantro
  • 1 fresh jalapeño, sliced (or pickled jalapeno slices)

Optional toppings

  • Guacamole
  • Salsa
  • Sour cream
  • Canned black olives
  • Sliced green onions
  • Shredded lettuce
  • Corn
  • Hot sauce

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 400℉.
  • To make your cottage cheese queso, blend all of the ingredients together except for the pickled jalapenos. Warm through in a saucepan over a medium low heat until the pepper jack cheese has melted. Stir in the pickled jalapeños, if using. The give you a tang and little kick that really takes this up a notch. They’re optional though!
  • To make the beef and refried bean mix, heat the vegetable oil in a skillet on medium high heat until it begins to shimmer. Add the ground beef to the pan and season it with all of the taco spice blend. As the meat cooks, use a spoon to break the meat up into crumbles. Cook for about 8 minutes until the meat has browned and drain the fat using a colander.
  • Return the meat to the pan and add the refried beans and the water. Heat the mixture until the beans are smooth and warmed through. Reduce the heat to low and keep the beef-bean mixture warm while you prepare the chips.
  • To the parchment-lined baking tray, add half of the tortilla chips. Sprinkle the chips evenly with half of the ground beef mixture, half the queso, half the shredded cheese. Top with the remaining half of tortilla chips, ground beef mixture, remaining shredded cheese, and remaining queso.
  • Bake at 400℉ until the cheese is melted and bubbling, about 6-10 minutes.
  • Remove from the oven and add your choice of toppings. Serve immediately and enjoy!

Recipe Notes

Switch up the queso: If you want to speed up this recipe by skipping the cottage cheese queso, or you have a favorite recipe already the queso can easily be subbed for store-bought or your usual go-to queso recipe.
Use different chips: Up the veg (or at least, fruit) content by subbing out the tortilla chips for plantain chips. You can also lighten this up by using baked tortilla chips if you have a brand you prefer.

Nutrition Info (Approximate)

Calories: 1322kcal | Protein: 43g | Fat: 62g | Saturated Fat: 19g | Trans Fat: 1g | Total Carbs: 33g | Fiber: 15g | Sugar: 10g | Net Carbs: 18g | Vitamin C: 22mg | Cholesterol: 126mg | Sodium: 1433mg | Potassium: 1339mg | Calcium: 382mg | Iron: 4mg