at home with ann

For a family that loves tacos as much as we do, I can't believe I haven't made something like this before.  A layered casserole like lasagna, but with taco filling instead of marinara and tortillas instead of pasta.  Use whatever taco filling you like.  I chose ground chicken and onions and peppers, but any ground meat would work, as would beans, sweet potatoes, or tempeh. I went a little crazy buying corn tortillas because the package of 24 was on sale for 69 cents.  Needless to say, we had a lot to use up, and they aren't actually all that wonderful with tacos because they break and explode toppings all over your hands. They are perfect in this casserole, though. Taco-sagna Olive oil 1 medium onion, chopped 1 bell pepper, chopped 1 clove garlic, chopped 1 pound ground chicken 14 oz. can tomato sauce 2 Tablespoons ground cumin 1 Tablespoon ground chili powder 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper ~12 corn tortillas 1 1/2 -2 cups shredded cheddar cheese Toppin...

If you've been reading for a while (or a week), you know that tacos are the number one requested food around here.  This recipe combines tacos and the crock pot, it's a match made in easy-dinner heaven. These met with rave reviews from my two taste-testers, although Matt scoffed at my cheapo-crock pot and declared his much better.  I am going to give his a try and see if it really is better with it's fancy digital timer and locking lid and auto-shutoff.  I don't see why you wouldn't want a crock pot that has a lid that rattles when steam tries to escape so that you think there is an animal rampaging around your kitchen.   Colin even helped get them started around noon, by which I mean he didn't totally freak out when I put him in his chair in the kitchen so I could deal with raw chicken. I hesitate to call this a recipe because it's so unbelievably easy. Shredded Chicken Tacos 1 package chicken breasts (mine was about a pound) 8 ounce can tomato sa...

We've never met a taco around here we didn't like.  These fish tacos were no exception.  The last time we had fish tacos , I broiled the fish.  Our oven is in even worse shape than it was a few days ago, and needs to be pulled out from the wall to access some sort of wires in the back to install the new heating element.  Needless to say, no broiling was happening last night.  The cover of this month's Cooking Light has a picture of fish tacos, which look amazingly good, and inspired this dinner.  Fish Tacos recipe inspired by Cooking Light 3/4-1 pound tilapia 1 Tablespoon cumin 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon paprika 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper 1 garlic clove, minced, or 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder 1 Tablespoon canola oil 8 tortillas, flour or corn Toppings: 1 mango, chopped Guacamole: 2 avocados, 2 Tablespoons finely diced red pepper, juice of 1 lime, 1/4 teaspoon salt Pickled jalapeno slices 1-2 chopped green onions Hot sauce Heat...

As you know, I get requests to make tacos a lot.  A LOT.  Jon and I planned to have dinner together on Tuesday night, big excitement around here, even though it ended up with me having dinner with the back of a laptop, so I thought it would be good to celebrate with tacos.  I usually just throw spices in haphazardly, but here is an actual recipe with actual quantities.  It turned out well. Ground Turkey Tacos 2 Tablespoons canola oil 1/2 red onion, chopped 1 lb. ground turkey 2 cloves garlic, minced 2 Tablespoons chili powder 2 teaspoons ground coriander 2 teaspoons ground cumin 1 8 oz. can tomato sauce 8 oz. water Optional toppings: shredded lettuce, tomatoes, green onion, cheese, sour cream, guacamole, hot sauce, salsa, mango, tortillas or chips In a large pan, heat canola oil over medium heat. Cook onions for about 2 minutes until starting to soften. Turn up the heat to medium high and add the ground turkey to brown. When the meat is brown and mos...

At long last, we had Taco Night this past weekend.  As some of you know, tacos are my husband's favorite food, and he would be happy if we ate them every week.  I like tacos quite a bit myself, but we need some balance.  This makes enough to serve at least 4.  We usually eat the tacos in tortillas the first night, and taco salads for the leftovers. Ground Turkey Tacos Ingredients: 1 pound ground turkey Canola oil 1 onion, chopped 1 clove garlic, chopped 1/2 red bell pepper, chopped 1 8 oz. can tomato sauce 1 Tablespoon each cumin and chili powder 1 teaspoon coriander 1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne or habanero pepper Tortillas Shredded lettuce Chopped tomato Shredded cheese Sour cream Hot Sauce Other topping ideas: pickled jalapenos, avocado, mango, salsa In a saute pan, or large frying pan, brown the meat.  Drain in a colander and wipe out the pan. Heat canola oil over medium heat, add onion, garlic and bell pepper and saute a few minutes. Re...

I have really only discovered fish tacos in the last couple years. The idea of fish in a taco just never did it for me before, but now I can't get enough of them.  They have all the good stuff associated with tacos, but the fish somehow lightens it up a bit so you don't feel like you have a rock in your stomach after eating.  Also, wild cod was on super sale at the market yesterday, so I bought an entire pound.  Start by preheating your broiler to high.  Cover a broiling or baking sheet with tin foil (for easy clean-up, and also to get rid of the rest of the roll you accidentally unrolled onto the floor and shoved back in the cabinet).  Coat lightly with cooking spray.  Pat your fish dry.  I used about half a pound.  Top with a mixture of spices, I sprinkled somewhat liberally with chili powder, cumin, coriander, cayenne and salt. Broil for 6-8 minutes, or until fish is opaque and flakes easily with a fork.  Use a fork to completely flake...

This post is part of my vacation series highlighting some amazing recipes from my favorite bloggers! How Sweet It Is - Crispy Shrimp Tacos I still have half a head of cabbage to use up, tacos are the perfect reason!  Plus, any kind of taco will make my husband very happy. Pioneer Woman - Two Crab Dips Crab dip is one of my favorite summer appetizers.  I'd probably add Old Bay into both these recipes, because I only ever use it for crab dip, but you can never go wrong with PW.