Days 1 and 2

Howdy, folks!  I hope everyone's had a good couple of days of tacos!  We certainly have.  I've even stuck to my cooking plan for 2 (and tomorrow's already taken care of, so 3) days in a row!  It doesn't seem like much, but I assure you I've usually deviated far from my cooking plan by Monday.

Ok, so pictures.  Here's day 1:

Slow Cooker Beef Barbacoa Tacos

This Barbacoa Recipe was super duper delish.  I cut the recipe on that blog in half, since 30 tacos sounded like a few too many for just the two of us.  I also used skirt steak instead of brisket because they didn't have any brisket at Kowalskis and the butcher told me skirt steak would work well, too.  (I'm only 80% sure about the whole "skirt steak" thing, it could have been something else like that).  The lesson here is to buy meat from a store with a butcher, 'cause those guys know how to make good meat.
Next time I'd probably use more chipotles in adobo, but DAMNIT it was good.  Derek made the soft shells (he sure is good at that) and we topped them with cilantro, shredded cheese, and green onions.  On the side was a spinach salad with green apple/asian pear slaw and goat cheese crumbles.  I figured out a quick recipe, but it was all Derek's idea (other than the goat cheese crumbles...goat cheese is always my idea).  I suppose I'll share it with you, since this is sort of a food blog, and I went to all the trouble of taking a picture of it.

Green Apple and Asian Pear Slaw

1 green apple, julienned
1 asian pear, julienned
1 small handful cilantro, chopped
Juice of 1 lemon
Dash of salt and pepper
Several handfuls of baby spinach
Goat cheese crumbles

1. Be very careful while julienning the apple and pear.  Round fruit is awkward to cut, and sharp knives WILL remove finger...and finger nail...and then you'll have to look like this, and you'll have to answer a lot of questions:

ok, so this happened a month ago, not while
I was julienning apples yesterday, but I sure was nervous
about doing this to myself again.

2. In a large bowl, toss together apple, pear, cilantro, lemon juice, salt, and pepper.
3. Add a few handfuls of the spinach and toss them all together to incorporate.
4. Sprinkle goat cheese on when serving.


Aaaaaand, here's Day 2:

Cilantro Lime Pesto Chicken Tacos

That recipe is here.  I loved how bright-green the pesto turned out, and there's plenty left over for use at a later date.  We topped these with shredded cheese, diced tomato, and a little extra drizzle of the pesto.  In the background, my sweet potato and carrot fries lay, quietly waiting to be so much spicier than I thought.  I've made these things a few times before, but I made 'em without the recipe this time, and it turns out that dumping cayenne, chili powder, and cumin onto them with wreckless abandon is a questionable decision. 

Questionable indeed.

But the chicken was really good, and Derek killed it with the tortillas again.



Can I just tell you guys that here, on day 2, we've almost made it through 2 bunches of cilantro already?  That's a lot of cilantro.  Plus, like, 3 limes.  In 2 days!  Also, there seems to be a lot of cheese-shredding involved. 

But I knew that would happen. 

I'd like to keep talking to you guys, but this blog entry is getting a little long and I don't want to set a precedent (no, I didn't have to look up how to spell precedent...shut up).

OK, so you guys keep on tacoin', and I'll be back with some more pictures and words soon!