chorizo & potato tacos

I love Mexican food. I love the idea of street food and authentic recipes. So of course, I love these Chorizo & Potato Tacos. The typical taco night in the U.S. consists of browning ground beef, adding some packaged taco seasoning, and topping with lettuce and an overload of dairy - cheese and sour cream. Authentic tacos don't include any of these things. While I am definitely a huge dairy fan, especially cheese, you don't even miss it from this meal. The homemade-chorizo, fresh red onion, and cilantro pack such powerful flavors into this DELICIOUS taco!

chorizo and potato tacos

adapted from Food & Wine

Serves 4

1 1/2 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes

3/4 lb ground pork

1 tbsp sea salt

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 tsp sweet paprika

2 tbsp chopped chipotle chiles in adobo

1/2 tsp coriander

1 tsp dried oregano

2 tbsp cider vinegar

4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

12 6-inch corn tortillas - choose an authentic mexican brand

Tomato salsa, red onion, cilantro, and lime wedges for serving

• In a large saucepan, cover the potatoes with 4 inches of cold water and bring to a boil. Simmer over low heat for about 20 minutes, or until tender. Drain and mash, leaving some chunks. 
• In a large bowl, combine ground pork, salt, garlic, paprika, chipotle chiles, coriander, oregano, and vinegar. Fold in potatoes. 
• Heat half of olive oil in a large cast-iron or non-stick skillet. Add half of chorizo and potato mixture to the skillet and press into an even layer. Cook over medium-high heat until a crust forms on the bottom, about 6 minutes. Turn the mixture in sections and cook until both sides are browned and crusty. Repeat for second batch. 
• Serve on corn tortillas with tomato-based salsa, diced onion, cilantro, and a squeeze of lime. 

key rack

I was over having our keys sitting on the kitchen counters, dining room table, or worse - not being able to find keys, so it was time for a key rack. You can find all sorts of key holders at home stores and on the internet, or could even just put standard hooks on the wall to hang out keys, but I of course was set on making something.

So I came up with this! I bought everything at Target for it, and got a lot of great deals. The entire project came in under $9!

Frame:   $2.95
Discounted because the glass had a crack in it. I didn't want glass anyway! Originally had a flower print in it.

Fabric:  $2.50
One out of a pack of 4 napkins ($9.99). I really like this print, and it helps to incorporate more yellow into the kitchen.

Hooks:   $3.09
Heavy duty towel and robe hooks. Two in each package.

american craft beer & national burger week

Wow two things I love have their very own "week" this week... well, I guess they are sharing this week, but that is just fine by me. Who doesn't love a burger and a beer?

Tonight we definitely enjoyed both. We had Sierra Nevada's Pale Ale, one of America's more popular craft beers, but delicious none the less, with a lightened-up Western-style burger.

We consider ourselves to be kind of beer-connoisseurs and rarely drink any beer that isn't craft beer, so this wasn't too out of the ordinary.

lighten-up! western burgers

Serves 4

turkey burgers
1 lb ground turkey - we use 96% fat-free
3 tbsp barbecue sauce
1/4 panko bread crumbs
Salt & Pepper
1/2 tsp garlic powder
4 slices low-fat cheddar cheese

• Combine all ingredients and form into burger patties. 
• Grill until cooked completely. Top with cheese and leave on grill until melted.

oven-friend onion straws

adapted from Ellie Kreiger's onion ring recipe

1 vidalia onion

1/2 c. skim milk

1/4 c. flour + 2 tbsp

1/2 c. panko bread crumbs

Salt & Pepper

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees. 
• Mix milk and 1/4 c. flour in shallow bowl. Set aside. 
• Mix bread crumbs, salt, and pepper in a separate shallow bowl. Set aside. 
• Slice onion in 1/4 to 1/2 inch circles, then cut each circle in half. Toss onion with 2 tbsp of flour to coat. 
• Working with 4-5 pieces of onion at a time, dip in milk mixture, then toss in bread crumb mixture. Place on sprayed baking sheet. 
• Bake for 20 minutes, or until crisp. 

assemble

We don't always have burger buns on hand, but I love to use whole-grain bread instead anyway. Toast 8 slices of bread.

Smear each slice with barbecue sauce. We used Ole Ray's Kentucky Gold Bourbon Barbecue, a yellow mustard-based barbecue that we picked up at the Indiana Artisan Market last month. The more common reddish barbecue sauces are tomato or ketchup-based. 

Top with onion straws.

cincinnati chili

As a Cincinnati native, I've always loved Cincinnati-style chili. You may have had this type of chili at Skyline Chili. It is quite different than your typical chili, served over spaghetti, and not as soup-y. You eat it with a fork, not a spoon. Or eat it on top of a hot dog and call it a "Coney."

The greater Cincinnati area has more chili parlors per capita per square mile than anywhere else in the country. Cincinnatians consume more than two million pounds of chili each year.
-The Greater Cincinnati Convention and Visitors Bureau

From Wikpedia:
Ordering Cincinnati chili is based on the series. The number before the "way" of the chili determines which ingredients are included in each order.

• Two-way: Chili and spaghetti
• Three-way: Chili, spaghetti, and cheese
• Four-way: Chili, spaghetti, cheese, and onions
• Five-way: Chili, spaghetti, cheese, onions, and beans

cincinnati chili
Serves 4-6
adapted from thekitchn.com

1 pound ground beef
1 onion, minced
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 tbsp chili powder
3 tbsp natural unsweetened cocoa
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp allspice
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp chipotle pepper
1 tsp salt
2 bay leaves
2 tbsp Worcestershire
1 tbsp cider vinegar
2 cups tomato sauce
1 cup chicken broth
1/2 cup water

• Heat a large skillet over medium heat with a teaspoon of olive oil (or use a non-stick pan). Add ground beef, onion, garlic, and chili powder. Cook for 8-10 minutes or until meat is browned.
• Combine cocoa, cinnamon, allspice, cumin, chipotle, and salt. Add to meat mixture and cook for 2-4 minutes, until fragrant. 
• Add bay leaves, Worcestershire, vinegar, tomato sauce, broth, and water. Cover and simmer on low for at least an hour. 

Serve on top of hotdogs for Coneys, or whichever "way" sounds best to you. I'm partial to the four-way. 

what i'm reading...

I recently finished Half Broke Horses (I'm behind on blogs!) by Jeannette Walls. I read Walls' first book, The Glass Castle, a few years back and absolutely loved it, so when I heard she had finally came out with a second book, I couldn't wait to get my hands on it.

While I am behind on blogs, I read this one so fast that there wasn't much time between starting it and finishing it to actually blog about. I couldn't put it it down!

Following up her previous book, the hugely successful memoir THE GLASS CASTLE, Jeannette Walls is back with another family saga, this time a novel that features her grandmother Lily. Walls delivers a compelling, plainspoken performance that conveys every emotion of the novel. It's easy to imagine the family stories being told and retold, polished and shaped, as Lily gave them their own cadence, clearly defined emphasis, and tempo. The story starts off with a bang as Lily rescues herself and her siblings from a flash flood in Texas and goes on to recount her fierce determination to get an education and become a teacher, along the way facing down tornadoes, drought, and the Great Depression, Walls brings her grandmother's indomitable character vividly to life. -Audiofile

folkal pulse

Last night was the first night of Folkal Pulse, a folk and bluegrass series that James organized. Here is the poster I created for the event.

Elephant Revival was amazing last night! I can't wait to see them again. And guess what? You can listen to the entire set by clicking here.

New Old Cavalry did a great job getting everyone going for the night. We hope to work with The Irving Theatre again, so look for more shows from Wuhnurth Entertainment to happen there in the future! It is great to have another venue option in the Indianapolis area, and even better that it is all ages.

Tonight is Greensky Bluegrass and our friend, Mikial Robertson, at Birdy's Bar & Grill.

Tomorrow is the Dead Winter Carpenters, with Sean Shiel and our good friend Megan Maudlin getting the afternoon started at Flat12 Bierwerks, one of our favorite local breweries.

Come check it out!