Tacos

I know that homemade cheesecake is hard to follow but it must be done. We have a very simplistic approach to tacos at our house - whole wheat tortillas, rice, beans, corn, cheese, tomatoes, peppers, sour cream, onions, olives... Each person gets to make their own tacos with whatever they like. Here are some taco basics:

Tortillas - Homemade and whole wheat tortillas are easy to make from scratch. I started with this recipe but have modified it by subbing out the shortening for butter. Here is my version:

Homemade Whole Wheat Tortillas

4 cups whole wheat flour
1/2 teaspoons salt
1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 cup butter
1 to 1-1/4 cups water

1. In a large bowl combine the flour, salt, and baking powder. Cut in butter. Then add water, a little at a time. After each addition stir the dough with a fork until it forms a cohesive ball of dough. Do not add too much water.
2. Knead dough ball about 20 times. Cover and let rest for about 10 minutes.
3. Divide dough into 20 pieces and roll into balls. Roll out the balls into thin circles about 7-8 inches in diameter*.
4. To cook, place tortillas one at a time in a hot dry skillet. Cook about 30 seconds per side. They should be dry and have a few brown spots on each side.
5. To make tortillas more pliable, place warm tortillas in a plastic bag and close it up – the steam will make them softer, and more flexible.

*To save tortillas for later, separate rolled out dough with wax paper and place in plastic bag and freeze (try to keep them flat).

Makes 20 servings
2000 total calories (100 Calories per serving)


Beans - Cooked Dry Beans are very simple. For tacos we often use black beans but sometimes I just use a combination of beans. If you make one pound of beans you can use half (or less) and freeze the rest. First you will need to soak the beans. One way to soak dry beans is to rinse one pound of dry beans, pour them into a large pot and cover with water about 2-inches above the top of the beans, bring the beans to a boil and let boil uncovered for two minutes. After the two minutes is up, turn off the heat, cover with a tight-fitting lid, and let them sit for at least 2 hours. OR you can rinse the dry beans, place them in a large bowl cover them with water and let them sit overnight in the refrigerator.

Once your beans have been soaked drain the water off, rinse the beans, and recover with water (in a large pot such as a stock pot because as you cook them they will grow). Bring the beans to a boil and allow to simmer for 1-2 hours. Do not put a lid on the beans or they will boil over (don't ask how many times it took before I learned that lesson). You will also need to watch to be sure the water doesn't boil off - the beans should be covered with water at all times. If you want to add more flavor to your beans, feel free to add a few cloves or garlic and/or onions (I use dehydrated onions). Voila! Now you have beans.