Taco Tuesday: Yogurt Spiced Chicken and Roasted Veg

Holy taco night Batman! All this traveling has made me a fiend in the kitchen. Tuesday is typically taco night at many of our local Mexican restaurants, but this past Tuesday we brought the tacos home. I was eyeing a package of guacamole in the frig and decided what better way to eat my favorite Mexican dip than with homemade chicken tacos! We went all out. Husband even invented a new pickle by repurposing the leftover juice from our pickled jalapeños to pickle some carrot sticks. I pulled out my magic jar of Crisco, which I use maybe once a year, and whipped up homemade tortillas (which are surprisingly simple to make) that we stuffed to the brim with tender chicken marinated in a seasoned yogurt, crisp pickled carrots, roasted peppers, chopped spinach, my favorite guacamole, cheese and a spicy creamy topping. A few coronas later and we were rubbing our satisfied bellies.

Homemade Tortillas with Baha Baked Fish = Taco Night!

There is something rather magical about fresh, hot homemade tortillas turning taco night into TACO NIGHT! And I just don’t know why I never tried to make them myself before because as it turns out, they are ridiculously easy to pull together. We’re talking easy as pie folks, well, easier than pie! I won’t extol on the innumerable health benefits of making your own tortillas not to mention the money saver it is as I presume you can assume those on your own. Putting all that aside, the sheer taste of these toothsome tender tortillas are worth it enough for me.

Now it was actually the baked fish morsels that I found a recipe for which brought this whole meal together in the first place. And the fish is really really good, but the tortillas are what I have been lusting over ever since the last one met its final moments in my stomach. So I present to you my homemade tortillas and baha baked fish taco night fiesta of recipes. This is a very easy meal to pull together but one with serious wow factor.

Seven Layers of Dip Bliss

My mom’s seven layer dip is completely addictive. It’s an easy, party friendly dish that always disappears with a quickness. It’s just so hard to stop eating it! And it’s also pretty darn easy on the wallet, which I love.

You can customize it to your liking (lower in fat or higher in heat) but no matter what, you will find your friends asking for this one time and time again. We make it for super bowl every year, which I thoroughly enjoy more for the super food than the actual bowl. Regardless, this and my Game Day Chili are the best and easiest combo deal for sports fan get-togethers, or really any get-together. When having people over, which we do a lot, I always try to make stuff that is no fuss. Why spend the whole time in the kitchen? Take three minutes to put this dip together and you’ll have people happy and fed for at least the first half  (then you break into the chili).

Seven Layer Dip
(Adapted from A Girl and Her Kitchen’s Mom)

1 can refried beans
1 8oz container sour cream
½ cup mayo
½ package of taco seasoning
1 ½ cups guacamole
1 ½ cups shredded sharp cheddar
12 cherry or grape tomatoes , quartered or halved depending on size
2 scallions, sliced thin
Handful of black olives, sliced
Handful of canned sliced jalapeños (optional)
Tortilla Chips
In a small bowl mix the sour cream, mayo and taco seasoning until well combined.

On a large flat (preferably round or oval) platter, spread the can of refried beans in a thin layer (about 1/8 – 1/4 inch thick). Then spread the guacamole in an even layer. Next, smooth on the sour cream mixture. Cover with shredded cheddar. Sprinkle tomatoes, scallions, olives and jalapeños (if using) over the top. Serve with tortilla chips. Enjoy!