Category: Mexican

Sweet Braised Pork Empanadas

Mexican, Pork

Hey guys! Happy Sunday! On my meal plan this week I had empanadas. I had wanted to make the dough, but remembered that my trusty food processor had bit the dust. Luckily, I had some back up puff pastry in the freezer, so I rolled with it. This was pretty yummy; sweet and a bit spicy. I made half spicy and half non-spicy. The hubby had the spicy and the girls and I had non-spicy, but I added some hot sauce and jalapenos to my sour cream, so mine had a nice kick to it. I think next time I will do beef or chicken with a different seasoning. Hopefully by then I will have a new food processor and can make homemade dough.

Sweet Braised Empanadas – I got this recipe from http://www.dinneralovestory.com/coke-braised-carnitas/ and tweaked it a bit. Was meant for carnitas, but I thought it would still be amazing in an empanada. I was right. =)

3 pounds pork loin
2 tablespoons peanut oil (olive oil is fine if you don’t have peanut)
2 cans coke (or enough to go half-way up the pork)
1 tablespoon hot sauce or Sriracha
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 container of beef broth

Preheat oven to 325°F. Over medium-high heat, brown pork in peanut oil in a Dutch Oven on all sides. (Don’t skimp on this part. You want a nice brown crust.) Add remaining ingredients and bring to a boil. Cover and place the pot in the oven with lid slightly askew. Turn every 30 minutes or so, and remove after about three hours. Remove pork from liquid and shred on a cutting board using two forks. Place pork in a bowl or platter as you go. Toss with a little bit of the braising liquid — just a little, it’s very sweet.

Defrost some puff pastry. Cut in squares. Add a spoonful of pork and shredded Mexican cheese. I made half of them spicy- I added a couple of shakes of hot sauce and some diced jalapenos. For the non-spicy, I just added the pork and cheese. I brushed all with an egg wash and poked them with a fork.

Becca really loved the puff pastry, so I told her I would make her apple turnovers soon. Be on the lookout =)

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Fish Tacos 2 Ways

Mexican, Seafood
Posted by amybtwink in Mexican, Seafood and tagged with , , January 11, 2015

Howdy kids! So if you read my meal plan for the week, you saw tonight was fish night. The girls ate their fish sticks, Annie’s Mac and Cheese, and corn. My hubby wanted to have a fish (tilapia) taco to go along with his leftover Mexican chicken dish. I made myself some salmon and pesto. Good enough on its own, but seeing those tortillas made me want to experiment with salmon tacos. I truly believe that you can make anything into a taco..challenge accepted!!!!!

Tilapia Tacos

1 piece of tilapia- mix 1 teaspoon each of salt, pepper, cumin, and chili powder- mix well and add to both side of the fish. Add oil to a med. hot skillet. Cook about 4 minutes on both sides.  You should end up with nice flaky fish.

Add to your tortilla and favorite toppings.

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Salmon Tacos with Pesto

Yeah…you are just going to have to trust me on this…

1 piece salmon- salt and pepper each side

Pan fry in a bit of oil. Cook skin side down for 4 minutes. Turn over for another 4 minutes. You should end up with a nice pink center and flaky flesh. YUM!

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I added some pesto to mine.

Spinach Pesto

Directions- Mix the following ingredients in a food processor and stream in olive oil to make smooth and creamy;
1/2 container of pine nuts
1 bunch spinach
1/2 container of parmesan cheese
2 cloves of garlic
salt and pepper to taste

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Never took a pic of the actual tacos. Totally forgot until we were chowing down on them. Oh well… use your imagination!

Steak Tacos

Beef, Mexican

Hey guys! Hope you all had a great weekend! Here is a super fast meal that was a bit hit with the family.

Steak Tacos

1 flank steak (you could use this rub on any steak)

Steak Rub-
1 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 1/2 teaspoons paprika
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 1/2 teaspoons ground coriander
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 tablespoon olive oil

Rub your steak with the mixture. Grill the steak on a screaming hot cast iron grill pan. Cook for 8 minutes on the first side. Flip over and finish cooking for 3 to 5 minutes, depending on your desired doneness. Remove from the grill to a cutting board and let rest, lightly covered, for 5 minutes.

Add your meat to some tortillas and add your favorite toppings!
Plenty of leftovers for another meal or two.

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Baked Enchilada Farro with Beans and Corn

grains, Leftovers/ Freezer Meals, Mexican, One pot meal, potatoes, Side dishes...veggies, Vegetarian

Happy Tuesday, ya’ll! So the other day I made this.
https://funfoodiefamily.com/2014/08/30/enchilada-farro-with-beans-and-corn/

It is super healthy and delicious, but after a few servings, I needed to find a way to change it up. So, I made it into tacos. Yum. Then I made it into this cheesy bake. All I did was add a another small can of enchilada sauce and 1 jar of salsa to the mix. Then I spread it into a sprayed casserole dish and topped it with shredded cheese. I baked it at 350 until all the cheese was melted and bubbly, about 30 minutes. Freezing half of this for my future. 

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Baked Tacos

Mexican, Party Time

Evening kids! Taco night is upon us, so I thought I would change it up a bit. So, you know those crunchy taco shells you are supposed to bake in your toaster oven or oven before you all all your ingredients? Well, most of the time, some of them get burned or not at all cooked through. I saw this idea on Pinterest and decided to add my own spin. Turned out great! The girls gobbled up their tacos. The awesome part about tacos is you can really add your own likes in that tiny shell. You could add a combo of black olives, black beans, refried beans, or ground beef. Mine are made with straight up cheese and ground beef.

Baked Tacos

1 package crunchy tacos
Ground Beef with Homemade Taco Seasoning- See below
shredded Mexican cheese blend

Directions-
Preheat oven to 350
Make your ground beef. Drain and cool a bit.
Put your shells in a long casserole dish. Put cheese on the bottom. Add in a spoonful of beef to each taco. Top with more cheese. Bake for 15 minutes or so until shells turn golden brown and cheese is all melted. Add your favorite taco toppings. You could make a ton of these for a party and set out a taco bar!

ENJOY!

Homemade Taco Seasoning-

Sautee 1/2 a chopped onion and 2 cloves chopped garlic in a bit of oil in your hot pan. Take out the onions and brown a pound of meat. Once browned, take it out and strain it. Add it back in the pan with your onions and add your taco seasoning.

Seasoning- Of course, you can always add more of less of these ingredients. I am using real sautéed onions and garlic, but you could use ground onion and garlic if you have it.
1 teaspoon of salt
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon of ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon of red pepper flakes
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon corn starch
Add your seasoning to the beef and about 1/2 cup water over the heat until it absorbs, about 5 minutes

 

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