Mini Taco Hors D’oeuvres with Roasted Red Pepper and Tomato Salsa

To download a copy of this recipe for Mini Taco Hors D’oeuvres with Roasted Red Pepper and Tomato Salsa, click HERE!

Hors D’oeuvres may not be the first thing that comes to mind in a discussion of good food, but if you’ve ever been to a really good cocktail hour you know that, taken all together, those mini-treats you snare from the trays of the servers as they go past can make a pretty good meal on their own. And although I’m as fond of cocktail franks dipped in mustard as anyone (maybe even fonder, if New Year’s Eve here is any indication), sometimes you just have to shake things up a bit and do something different and interesting.

Enter Mini-Taco Hors D’oeuvres with Roasted Red Pepper and Tomato Salsa. They’re made with seasoned taco meat and cheese placed inside a fresh-baked mini-shell, and dipped in a tasty salsa, so eating them is both delicious and fun.

Some Cook’s Notes before we begin.

• The salsa portion of this recipe makes about 1-1/2 cups, which is more than you’ll need for the mini-tacos. Don’t worry; you’ll find something to do with it. Just use it within a couple of days, since it has a short shelf-life, or use proper canning procedures to hold it longer.

• This recipe makes mild-medium salsa. Adjust amount of jalapeno pepper to desired heat level.

• If you prefer not to make tortillas from scratch, just use a cookie-cutter to cut 3” rounds out of purchased corn tortillas.

• Since corn flour does not contain gluten, it will not be damaged by being overworked while making the tortillas.

This recipe makes about twenty-four 3” mini-tacos.

First we’ll make the salsa.

Roast a red bell pepper on the stove top till blackened on all sides.

Wrap the blackened pepper in foil and let it steam in its own moisture till cool enough to handle.

Peel the blackened skin from the red pepper. Mince half of the pepper. Store the other half in a sealed container or storage bag and use in the next day or two.

In a non-reactive bowl, combine the salsa ingredients: the minced red pepper; 1 can (14.5 ounces) of diced tomatoes, drained; 1/4 cup cooked sweet corn; 1/4 green bell pepper, minced; 1/4 cup onion, minced; 2 garlic cloves, minced; 1/2 tsp minced jalapeno pepper; 1 Tbsp chopped fresh cilantro (or 1 tsp dried); 1/2 Tbsp fresh lime juice; 1/2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice; 1 – 3 Tbsp of tomato paste to desired thickness; 1/4 Tbsp salt; and a pinch fresh ground black pepper. Mix and set aside at least 30 - 60 minutes.

Next, our fresh tortillas. (If you’re using purchased tortillas cut to size, you can skip this step.)

In a bowl, mix 1 cup masa harina (corn flour with “lime” [calcium hydroxide]; use Maseca or similar); pinch of salt; and 1 cup of warm water until a soft, moist dough forms.

Divide dough into 24 balls. Cover with plastic wrap or a damp cloth to keep from drying out.

Place one dough ball at a time between plastic sheets (such as a cut food storage bag) dusted with corn flour, and use a tortilla press or a rolling pin to make tortillas about 3” in diameter. (Use the tortilla press if possible; rolling these by hand can be done, but it’s time consuming and labor intensive.) Make them only 3” – 3-1/2” in diameter; if you press them larger, they’ll be thin and too fragile to handle for cooking.

Carefully peel off the tortilla and put on a dry, non-stick medium hot skillet. Cook for about 30 seconds on each side. While the tortilla is cooking, start to press the next one.

As the tortillas finish cooking, place in a sealed container until ready to use.

Now for the filling meat:

Begin preheating the oven to 375 degrees. Heat a little olive oil in the same sauté pan you used for the tortillas, and sauté ½ a diced medium onions until lightly browned.

Add the ½ pound of ground turkey, ½ tsp salt and 1 minced garlic clove, and brown for about 4 minutes. Be sure the ground turkey is chopped into small pieces.

Add the 1-1/2 tsp chili powder; ½ tsp cumin; ½ tsp dried basil; ½ tsp dried oregano; and ¼ tsp fresh ground black pepper. Mix till combined. Add ½ cup of chicken broth and 2 Tbsp corn flour, and mix well. Simmer uncovered about 3 minutes until the liquid thickens a little.

Place one of the tortillas on a parchment lined baking sheet. Add some filling and cheese.

Fold the tortilla over to form the taco. Hold the tortilla closed with a water-soaked toothpick or with a water-soaked skewer that will hold several tortillas.

Repeat until all the tortillas have been formed into tacos.

Bake for about 15 minutes until the taco have started to get crisp.

To serve, trim any excess melted cheese from each mini-taco and serve with salsa for dipping!

To download a copy of this recipe for Mini Taco Hors D’oeuvres with Roasted Red Pepper and Tomato Salsa, click HERE!

 

Make these unusual treats for your guests, or for yourself and  your family, and enjoy!

See you next week with another home-made, kitchen-tested recipe! Till then, stay well, keep it about the food, and always remember to kiss the cook. ;-)

Oven-Fried Marinated Beer Batter Mushroom Tacos with Mexican Corn

Although fish tacos have been a staple in Southern California for decades (and, in a purer form, in Mexico long before that), it’s only in recent years that they’ve become quite the fashion throughout the U.S. Generally consisting of deep-fried battered fish (cod or similar) with shredded cabbage, a spiced, creamy sauce, and a few other simple toppings wrapped in a tortilla, it’s no wonder fish tacos in the Southern Californian style are so popular; they’re delicious. Unfortunately, that deliciousness comes at a price: deep fried fish topped with creamy sauce will generally be on the fatty side.

But fear not, dear readers. In this week’s recipe we’ll make Oven-Fried Marinated Beer Batter Mushroom Tacos, a fish-taco inspired version that uses marinated portabella mushrooms instead of fish, and that reduces the fat by oven-frying them in a beer batter and topping them with a low-fat creamy sauce.

There’s also a quick, simple Mexican Corn side dish.

As usual, some Cook’s Notes before we begin:

• Oven frying is very much like breading and baking except it has more crunch. I’ve experimented with many coatings over the years, and crushed cornflakes are the best coating I’ve found, much better than bread crumbs or panko. (Although you can buy crushed cornflakes in the bread crumb aisle, I recommend buying regular corn flakes in the cereal aisle and going over them with a rolling pin as shown below. It costs a lot less to do it that way, and you also get to control the size of the crushed pieces.)

• Traditional fish tacos include shredded red cabbage. You can do that here too, but since we need only a small amount, and I didn’t want to waste most of a large red cabbage, I used radicchio in its place.

• The heat in the sauce is mild. If you like it hotter, just increase the amount of hot sauce.

So let’s get started making this reduced-fat take on a Southern California classic that’s, like, totally awesome, dude!

This recipe makes eight soft tacos, which will usually be about four servings.

First, let’s marinate our mushrooms.

Slice 4 portabella mushrooms into strips about 3/4” wide.

Make the marinade by combing ¼ cup cider vinegar; 1 clove garlic, minced; ½ tablespoon of dried basil; ½ tablespoon of dried parsley; ½ tablespoon of dried oregano; ½ teaspoon salt; and ¾ cup olive oil. (Add the olive oil by drizzling it into the other mixed ingredients while whisking to keep a smooth consistency.)

Pour marinade into a gallon-size tight-sealing plastic bag. Place the sliced mushrooms in the bag with the marinade. Let them marinate for about 30 minutes, turning periodically for evenness.

Next, we’ll make our beer batter.

In a bowl, combine the following and mix until a thick, smooth batter forms: 2-1/2 cups all-purpose flour; 1 teaspoon salt; ½ teaspoon ground white pepper; 12 ounces beer; and 2 egg-substitute eggs.

While the mushrooms are marinating, prepare the breading station.

Using a rolling pin, make 4 cups of crushed cornflakes in a gallon-size tight-sealing plastic bag.

Place 1-1/2 cups of all-purpose flour in a gallon-size tight-sealing plastic bag. Place the bowl of batter to the right of the flour. Place the crushed cornflakes to the right of the batter.

To bread the mushrooms, working one mushroom slice at a time:

Place the mushroom slice in the flour and toss to coat.

Dip each mushroom slice in batter till coated. Shake off the excess batter.

Place each coated mushroom slice onto a baking sheet lined with parchment or a silicon baking sheet. After all the mushroom slices have been placed on the baking sheet, cover it loosely with plastic wrap and let it rest in the refrigerator for 15 – 20 minutes.

While the mushrooms are in the refrigerator:

Begin pre-heating the oven to 400 degrees.

In a bowl, combine the following till well-mixed to form the sauce: 6 ounces fat-free plain yogurt; ½ cup low-fat mayonnaise; juice of ½ lime; ½ teaspoon ground cumin; ½ teaspoon dried basil; ½ teaspoon dried parsley; ½ teaspoon dried oregano; ¼ teaspoon hot sauce (add more for a spicier sauce); ½ teaspoon garlic powder; ½ minced jalapeno (seeds removed); ¼ cup fresh chopped cilantro; ½ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon ground white pepper.

When the mushrooms are ready to bake:

Spray the mushrooms with cooking spray and bake for about 11 minutes. Turn the mushrooms over and reverse the position of the baking tray for even baking. Wrap eight 8” low-fat tortillas in foil and place in the oven. Bake the mushrooms and the tortillas for another 11 minutes until the mushrooms are cooked through and the coating is crisp.

While the mushrooms are baking:

Prepare the Mexican Corn by combining 3-1/3 cups (about 1 pound) corn niblets (fresh or thawed frozen corn drained well); 1 green bell pepper, finely chopped; 1 red bell pepper, finely chopped; and 2 tablespoons chopped scallions in a very lightly oiled non-stick pan. (We want to brown the corn, not fry it.) Cook on the stovetop over medium heat until cooked through and some of the corn is slightly browned. When done, toss in a bowl with salt, pepper, butter substitute, and a squeeze of lime juice.

Prepare the following toppings: 1 radicchio, shredded; 1 bunch scallions, chopped small; chopped cilantro; and sliced fresh lime. (To shred the radicchio, just quarter it, remove the core from each quarter, and cut each quarter into 1/4" strips.)

To serve the tacos:

Along the center of each warmed tortilla, place some radicchio, two or three slices of mushrooms, some scallions, cilantro, and sauce.

Roll the tortilla and wrap in parchment or foil, with some of the taco sticking out.

Seal the roll by twisting the bottom.

Serve on a plate with the corn on the side, as shown in the photo at the top.

You can enjoy these soft tacos for lunch or dinner. (If you have any of the breaded mushroom strips left over, they’re also great heated up the next morning and served alongside some eggs for breakfast!)

To download a cookbook-style copy of this recipe, click here.

See you next week with another tasty recipe! Till then, stay well, keep it about the food, and always remember to kiss the cook. ;-)

Buffalo Tortilla Chips with Blue Cheese Dressing

Chicken wings being such a wonderful part of so many great summer picnics, it seems like a good time for a snack recipe inspired by one of the most popular - Buffalo wings. Although buffalo, while happy to roam the range and watch the deer and the antelope play, do not normally have wings, the unique, delicious taste of Buffalo wings was named not for the animal, but for the city in far western New York State where they were first created.

Today’s recipe, Buffalo Tortilla Chips with Blue Cheese Dressing, pays homage to this classic treat. It combines the distinctive spicy-sweet tang of Buffalo wings with the taste and crunch of homemade corn tortilla chips. Garnished with celery and carrot sticks, and dipped in blue cheese dressing, is a worthwhile change of pace from the usual snack chip. And, to the best of my knowledge, you won't find them in the snack aisle of your local supermarket.

The only special equipment you’ll need is a tortilla press although, truth be told, if you have a rolling pin you can even get away with using that. A couple of important Cook’s Notes:

• As noted in the recipe, use corn flour as described, not corn meal.
• As with most things involving hot sauce, use more or less to adjust the heat. The quantities in this recipe make for what I would consider a medium heat that mixes beautifully with the cool blue cheese dressing.
• Since, unlike wheat flour, corn flour does not contain gluten, the tortilla dough will not be toughened if overworked.

This recipe makes 72 chips (about 6 normal servings, or 2-3 teenage servings).

First we’ll need to make our Buffalo tortilla sauce:

Whisk together 1 cup melted butter substitute; 3 tablespoons of Tabasco or similar hot sauce; 2 tablespoons of honey, and  1/2 tablespoon of garlic powder.

To make the tortilla:

Combine the following tortilla ingredients and mix for about two minutes to form a soft dough: 1-1/4 cups of the Buffalo tortilla sauce you made in the previous step; 2 cups of masa harina (corn flour with “lime” (calcium hydroxide), either Maseca or a similar brand); and 3/4 teaspoon of salt. (If the dough seems a little dry, add warm water, 1 tsp at a time, until the proper texture is reached.)

Divide the dough into 12 – 16 balls, and cover with a damp cloth or paper towel while you form and cook the tortillas.

Using a tortilla press lined with heavy plastic (such as a flattened food storage bag), parchment, or corn-floured wax paper, or using a rolling pin, press one of the balls out into a tortilla 5” – 6” in diameter.

Place the raw tortilla in a non-stick pan (no oil or butter) over medium heat. Cook for about 30 seconds on the first side, flip and cook for 60 seconds on the other side, then flip again and cook the first side for another 30 seconds. (A small amount of browning is desirable.) While the tortilla is cooking, press the next one. As you stack the finished tortillas, keep the stack covered with a damp cloth or paper towel to prevent drying out.

When all the tortillas have been cut and stacked, cut the pile into sixths to make chips. Spread the chips out in a single layer on two large ungreased baking sheets.

Bake the chips until golden brown and crisp, about 12-15 minutes. (Rotate the baking sheets half-way through if using more than one shelf.) Keep in mind the chips will get a little crisper when they have cooled.

Allow to cool before serving. Serve with celery and carrot sticks (not pictured in the top photo, but you know what they look like) and blue cheese dressing for dipping.

All that’s left now is to enjoy them!

For a cookbook style, notebook-ready copy of this recipe, just drop me a note or a comment, make sure I have your e-mail address, and it shall be done!

Thanks for visiting; hope  to see you next week! Till then, stay well, keep it about the food, and always remember to kiss the cook. ;-)