Wednesday, March 23, 2011

Taco Salad with Pancho's Dressing


When Tony and I can't decide on any new meals to try for the week, we usually fall back on one of our quick easy favorites like taco salads.  Our favorite part of this salad is the dressing.  I used to buy this dressing a lot when I lived in Memphis, but I don't have easy access to it since moving away.  I found a copycat recipe for it years ago, and have been making it often ever since.  Feel free to tweak the recipe to your tastes.  I usually end up adding a little extra vinegar and oil.  Also, it's better after it sits for a little bit so make it early in the day or a day or two ahead of time.  If you have any leftovers, it makes a great dip for tortilla chips...yum! 

For the taco shells, we use burrito-sized flour tortillas that we heat up in the microwave between damp paper towels (to make them easy to fold).  Once heated, we lightly ball up some aluminum foil and lay the heated tortilla over the foil ball.  We spray the tortilla lightly with cooking spray and place in a 300 degree oven for about 15-20 minutes.  Our favorites for inside the shells include:
  • Black Beans seasoned with cumin, garlic powder, and chili powder
  • Shredded Iceberg Lettuce
  • Diced Tomatoes
  • Shredded Cheese
  • Sour Cream
  • Diced Avocado or Guacamole
  • Pancho's Dressing

Monday, March 7, 2011

Broccoli Cheddar Soup


Over the weekend, we experienced a bit of a cold spell in Alabama.  For the last couple of weeks, we've been having a lot of days where the highs reach the 60s, and we've even seen a few 70s.  Yesterday, that all changed when the temps barely reached 40 degrees.  We decided it would be a perfect day for bowl of soup.  I have tried several broccoli cheese soup recipes over the years, but this one from Annie's Eats is our favorite.  We use whole milk to make it a little creamier.   

Thursday, February 17, 2011

New Brews - Irish Red and Honey Weizen

Wow...it's been a long time since I've updated the blog!  Tony has brewed a couple of batches of beer since my last post.  Lately we've tried brewing an Irish Red...



 And a Honey Weizen...