Shepherd's pie tacos

The Shepherd's pie experiment left me with a ton of leftovers.

So, this morning I decided on Shepherd's pie tacos. They were not really a Shepherd's pie taco since I left out the mashed potatoes but I did include the Shepherd's pie meat mixture.

The assembly:

Red cabbage, Shepherd's pie meat mixture, avocado and white corn tortillas.

A spoonful of the Shepherd's pie meat mixture.

A little bit of shredded red cabbage.

A slice or two of avocado.

A bit of sour cream.

A generous sprinkle of fresh chopped cilantro.

At this point I realized I had a tomato on top of the fridge that was on the verge of being over ripe.

The dogs got to enjoy some chunks of the avocado (great for shiny coats!) and the surprising event of the morning centered on the tomato.

Connor loves tomatoes (for who knows what reason) and while I always offer Abby a piece, she inevitably turns her nose up in disgust.


This morning I handed her a piece of the tomato and she sniffed it delicately. Then her ears swung forward like rotating satellite dishes. She immediately gobbled it down and asked for more.

That got me interested in the tomato. I tried a piece and it was the sweetest, most full flavored tomato I have ever tasted.

Apparently, Abby does like tomatoes she just has incredibly high standards:-)

Oh, and a certain someone (brace yourself for a fuzzy dog photo)-

The smart boy.

-figured out how to unscrew the top to the dog food bin last night.

And I took that shot of him this morning. He has a stomach ache but he looks supremely proud and a little pissed off because I strapped down the lid with duct tape so the endless food supply was cut off.

Think he will ever forgive me?

 

Mole soup

Mole soup.

I promised you mole soup and here it is.

It was earthy, rich and redolent of chocolate. Not in a sweet way, of course, but in a deep satisfying kind of way.

Oh, yeah, and it had espresso in it.

Yup, espresso.

I know, I am more interested at this point too!

No formal recipe here because I think this soup should be altered to your particular taste.

I will tell you the ingredients (a dish for 1):

- 1/4 cup of canned kidney beans, rinsed and drained
- 1/4 cup of black beans, rinsed and drained 
- 1/4 of a yellow onion, chopped
- 1 cup of chopped tomatoes with some of the juice
- 1 clove of garlic, minced


Oh, wait I should stop here and show you the star of the show:

- little less than 1/2 a cup of the mole paste
- 2 cups of chicken broth
- 1/2 a teaspoon of instant espresso

Put that all into a soup pot and let it get all friendly and comfortable (ie. let it simmer for a good 30 minutes). 

Ladle into your favorite bowl, top with some sour cream and cilantro and enjoy!

Enchirittos

I was planning on making chicken enchiladas tonight but, unfortunately, I forgot to pull the chicken out the the freezer this morning to defrost.

So, I had to make do with what I had on hand.

Green onion, baked beans, cheese, corn tortillas, enchilada sauce.

I spooned some of the enchilada sauce to cover the bottom of a pan.

Then I mixed together the chopped green onion, the shredded cheese and the rinsed beans.

I smeared some of the enchilada sauce on top of a corn tortilla and then spooned some of the bean mixture on top.

Then I rolled it up and put it seam side down in the pan.

I continued the process until the pan was filled.

A little bit of cheese, green onion and some more enchilada sauce on top.

They went into a 350 degree oven for 15 minutes.

They came out of the oven with the cheese nicely melted.

I added a dollop of sour cream on top.

Even though it wasn't the dinner I had planned, it turned out great!

And since they were a cross between enchiladas and a burrito I called them enchirittos.