I have always been a soft taco person. Specifically, soft tacos made with flour tortillas. In my experience, hard tacos are awkward to assemble and shatter as soon as you bite into them. And, although I love corn chips and cornbread and all manner of other "corn-y" things, soft corn tortillas just never quite taste right to me. They seem like they should taste good, but I always find the flavour just slightly disappointing and off-putting. So, for years, whenever we've had tacos, it's always been with soft flour tortillas. Occasionally I'll pick up a few soft corn tortillas for TF to use since I know he likes them. But hard tacos? Never.

Until now!

America's Test Kitchen has rocked my world yet again! The most recent issue of Cook's Illustrated delved into the origins of the hard taco and introduced "tacos dorados" (golden tacos). This is apparently what the crispy taco was meant to be before it got Americanized and boxed up into taco "kits" as a convenience food. And it's brilliant!

Rather than starting with a sleeve of pre-fried hard taco "shells", you do, in fact, start with soft corn tortillas. Tortillas that get gently warmed to make them extra soft and pliable, filled with flavourful spiced beef, and then fried to make them crispy and delicious.

Yes, that's right, you fry them after you fill them. Mind blown! Not only does this make them easier to fill, but the outside gets wonderfully crisp while the spine remains pliable enough to open (for adding toppings) and eat without the whole thing shattering and pouring meat and grease all over your hands! Tacos dorados aren't significantly more difficult or time-consuming to make than either hard or soft tacos and they're definitely both more delicious and less messy than either. I have found my taco happy place!

(Oh, and just in case you were wondering: the frying and crisping does seem to perk up the corn tortillas and do away with the disappointment I'd experienced with them in the past.)

Tacos Dorados

Slightly adapted from Cook's Illustrated July/August 2018

Ingredients

• 1 Tbsp. water
• 1/4 tsp. baking soda
• 1 lb. lean ground beef¹
• 7 Tbsp. peanut oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 4 1/2 tsp. chili powder
• 4 1/2 tsp. paprika
• 1 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
• 1 1/2 tsp. cumin seeds, ground
• 1/2 tsp. coarse sea salt
• 2 Tbsp. tomato paste
• 1/2 c. shredded Cheddar + extra for topping
• 12-16 corn tortillas (6-8" diameter)
• shredded lettuce
• chopped tomato
• sour cream
• pickled jalapeños

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400F.
2. Combine water and baking soda in a large bowl. Add beef and mix well. Set aside.
3. Cook onion over medium heat in 1 Tbsp. of oil until softened.
4. Add chili powder, paprika, garlic powder, cumin, and sea salt and cook for 1 minute.
5. Add tomato paste and cook for an additional minute.
6. Add beef, breaking up into small chunks and mixing with onion and spices.
7. Although the recipe didn't call for it, I also chose to add a splash of water at this stage. I think I put ~1/3 c. I find it helps with getting the meat evenly coated with spices and adds a bit of moisture and sauciness without making it "sloppy" or overly messy.
8. Using 2 tbsp. of the oil, brush tortillas to lightly coat with oil on both sides. Bake at 400F for 5 minutes.²
9. Once meat is cooked through, remove from pan and add 1/2 c. shredded cheese. Mix to combine.
10. Wipe out pan and add 1/4 c. oil.
11. Fill the tacos. Use ~2 Tbsp. of filling for 6" tortillas or 3-4 Tbsp. for 8" tortillas. Spread the filling over half the tortilla and then fold it over (it will be open on the sides, this is fine and expected).
12. Gently place your filled tacos into the pan with the hot oil (you'll have to work in batches). Cook for 2-3 minutes per side until both sides are dark golden-brown, but not charred or burnt.³
13. Remove fried, crispy tacos from pan. You may now dress them up as you see fit. Thanks to the flexible spine you should be able to open them up like a book to add sour cream, extra cheese, jalapeños, or whatever else your heart desires!
14. Once topped and garnished to your satisfaction, close it up and enjoy the perfectly crisp, non-shattering goodness of a golden taco!

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¹ Recommended 90% lean. <sup>Back

2</sup> I think I'd try cutting this down to only 3 or 4 minutes next time. It might also be interesting to see if warming them in the microwave (either with or without oil) yields similar results. <sup>Back

3</sup> I had some trouble with the whole "not burnt" aspect. Don't worry! Even the burnt ones were delicious. The not-burnt ones were, however, slightly more delicious, so I do recommend not burning if at all possible. ;P ^Back

Butter tart cinnamon roll banana monkey bread

Via foodnetwork.ca, a dessert for when you can't decide if you want cinnamon rolls, banana bread, or butter tarts. Thanks to the monkey bread ancestry, you can pull it apart and eat it with your hands, but expect your fingers to be very sticky afterwards.

This is the recipe as we cooked it; symbol's notes on future modifications are at the end.

Ingredients

• 256mL brown sugar
• 128mL corn syrup
• 64mL unsalted butter, melted, plus solid butter for greasing pan
• 2 large eggs
• 10mL white vinegar
• 10mL vanilla extract
• 2.5mL salt
• 2 ~500g refrigerated canned cinnamon roll dough cylinders (e.g. Pillsbury's)
• 2 ripe bananas, peeled and sliced into 1cm slices

Procedure

1. Preheat oven to 375°F.
2. Grease a bundt pan with butter. (Do not flour.)
3. In a large bowl, whisk together the brown sugar, corn syrup, melted butter, eggs, vinegar, vanilla, and salt.
4. Pour ~1/3rd of the sugar mix -- 180mL or so -- into the bundt pan.
5. Separate the cinnamon roll cylinders into individual roll discs, then squish each one into a ball.
6. Put the cinnamon balls and banana slices into the bowl and toss to coat with mixture.
7. Pour everything in the bowl into the bundt pan and bake for 40 minutes.
8. Let stand 10 minutes, then release from pan and eat.

Symbol's notes

• The salt doesn't add anything, and can be safely omitted.
• The banana cooks nicely, but doesn't really adhere to the rest of the bread; this means each mouthful gets you either bread or banana, but not both. It may be better to make the cinnamon rolls from scratch, puree the bananas, and spread them into the rolls along with the cinnamon.

Patra Kadhi

Another 660 Curries recipe, like the other patra recipe we make this one with frozen bags of patra rather than making it from scratch. This makes it a quick and easy weekday meal and oh so delicious. It refrigerates and reheats well, too, unlike most dairy sauces.

Ingredients

• 1L buttermilk¹
• 30mL chickpea flour
• 5mL white sugar
• 2.5mL coarse salt
• 2.5mL turmeric
• 2 fresh thai chilis, stems removed, sliced crossways
• 2 fresh thai chilis, stems removed, cut in half lengthways
• 30mL canola oil
• 5mL mustard seeds
• 6-8 medium fresh curry leaves
• 400g patra rounds (~1 frozen bag)

Procedure

1. In a bowl, whisk the chickpea flour into the buttermilk to make a homogenous, slightly frothy liquid.
2. Whisk in the sugar, salt, turmeric, and sliced chilis. Set aside.
3. Heal the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the mustard seeds, cover, and cook until the seeds stop popping, ~30 seconds.
4. Throw in the remaining two chilis and the curry leaves, cautiously.
5. Add the patra rounds in a single layer. Cook until browned, 3-5 minutes. Flip and continue cooking until the other side is browned as well.
6. Pour the buttermilk sauce over the patra and wait for it to bubble (which should happen almost immediately). Reduce heat to medium and simmer, uncovered, without stirring, until thickened, 10-15 minutes.
7. Serve over basmati rice or a similar delicious, absorbent starch.

¹ Or, if you're feeling frisky, cream or a mix of milk and cream. If you don't have buttermilk but want that tanginess, mix in some plain yoghurt -- but if you don't have any handy, it tastes just fine without, too.

Molagha Tanni (tamarind broth with pureed pigeon peas and black pepper)

Not to be confused with mulligatawny, this is the thin, peppery-but-not-spicy soup that it's based on. It's best served over white rice or another starch that can soak it up and absorb the flavours.

It doesn't have any inclusions as written, but you can cook vegetables into it if you want something a bit more substantial. Ayer recommends bell peppers, pearl onions, and/or tomatoes. I think asparagus might work well.

Ingredients

• 60mL skinned split yellow pigeon peas (toovar dal)
• 60mL finely chopped fresh cilantro
• 10mL Rasam powder
• 5mL coarse salt
• 5mL tamarind paste
• 2.5mL ground asafetida
• 2.5mL ground turmeric
• 15-20 fresh curry leaves
• 30mL ghee or canola oil
• 5mL black or yellow mustard seeds

Procedure

1. Place the pigeon peas in a small saucepan. Repeatedly fill with water, turn the peas with your hands, and drain until the water runs clear, 3-4 iterations. Drain.
2. Add 250mL water and bring to a boil, uncovered, over medium high heat. Skim off foam.
3. Reduce heat to medium low, cover, and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the peas are tender, ~20 minutes.
4. Meanwhile, pour 1L of water into a medium saucepan. Stir in half of the cilantro and all of the Rasam powder, salt, tamarind, asafetida, turmeric, and curry leaves.
5. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, then reduce heat to medium and simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally, for 15 minutes.
6. Transfer the cooked peas and their water to a blender and puree.
7. Heat a small skillet (or just re-use the saucepan from step 1) over medium high heat and pour in the ghee and mustard seeds. Cover until the seeds have stopped popping, ~30 seconds.
8. Scrape the ghee/mustard mix and the pea puree into the simmering broth and stir them in.
9. Top with the remaining cilantro.

Rasam Powder (roasted spice blend with black pepper)

This spice mix from 600 Curries is used in brothy, soupy curries from southern India. This recipe makes quite a lot; I halved it when making Molagha Tanni and still had a massive surplus.

Ingredients

• 60mL coriander seeds
• 60mL black peppercorns
• 30mL cumin seeds
• 30mL fenugreek seeds
• 30mL yellow split peas (chana dal)
• 5mL whole cloves
• 5mL canola oil

Procedure

1. Combine all ingredients in a bowl and toss to coat evenly with the oil.
2. Roast in a skillet over medium-high heat until the split peas turn light brown, the coriander, cumin, and fenugreek reddish brown, and the peppercorns ash-black, 3-4 minutes.
3. Transfer immediately to a plate and let cool to room temperature.
4. Grind finely in a spice grinder or coffee grinder (you will probably need multiple batches).
5. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 months.

While I haven't actually sat down and worked out the nutritional information, based on the ingredient list, this pancakes look much healthier and more virtuous than your traditional buttermilk pancake. They have whole grain and fruit built right in and no added sugar or fat. That's gotta count for something, right?

Although you can give these the standard pancake treatment and douse them in maple syrup, I've found that my favourite way to have them is actually slathered with a generous quantity of plain Greek yogurt and drizzled with a bit of honey. (Spread with Nutella comes in at a close second.) I haven't gotten around to trying them with dulce de leche yet, but I suspect that would be quite excellent as well.

Banana-Oat Pancakes

Slightly adapted from Smitten Kitchen

Ingredients

• 2 large, ripe bananas, mashed
• 3/4 c. quick oats
• 1/4 tsp. coarse sea salt
• 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1 large egg¹
• 1 Tbsp. baking powder
• 3/4 c. whole wheat flour²
• 1/4 c. milk
• 1/2 c. sliced strawberries (optional)

Directions

1. Stir oats and salt into mashed bananas.
2. Add cinnamon and egg, followed by baking powder.
3. Stir in the flour, then thin out the batter with milk.
4. If using strawberries (or other inclusions), they can be stirred in now.
5. Lightly oil a pan and pre-heat it over medium-low³ heat.
6. Dump several 1/4-c. blobs of batter into the hot pan, flattening slightly if they look like they need it.
7. Cook until you start seeing small bubbles in the batter, then flip and cook the other side until edges look dry.

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¹ I ended up using two eggs the second time around because my eggs were quite small. The batter came out a little thinner than the first time around and tasted a bit less biscuit-y⁴, but was otherwise the same. <sup>Back

2</sup> I used all-purpose whole wheat flour because that's what I had easily to hand, but I think plain/pastry/soft whole wheat flour would work just as well here, if not better! <sup>Back

3</sup> I usually cook pancakes on medium heat (or even medium-high on occasion). I made the mistake of attempting to cook these ones on medium and ended up with several burnt pancakes. Deb was right: medium-low is definitely the way to go! <sup>Back

4</sup> I use "biscuit" here in the American sense of the word. ^Back

The instruction booklet that came with my ice cream maker contains a recipe for chocolate cherry frozen yogurt. It calls for semi-sweet chocolate and maraschino cherries. I thought that sounded pretty good, but... I feel like if you're gonna put chocolate and cherries together, it really wants to be dark chocolate. And, as much as I love maraschino cherries — and I really love maraschino cherries — I also felt like regular dark, sweet cherries would bring more of that cherry-y goodness to the table. The nice thing that maraschino cherries add to the mix (aside from a lot of sugar and red food colouring) is almond. Cherry + almond is a great combo. So is almond + chocolate. And, as noted, chocolate + cherry. You see where this is going...

So, after a bit of tweaking, I ended up with a pretty excellent batch of rich, luscious dark chocolate-cherry-almond yogurt all ready to go into the ice cream maker for churning. It came out wonderfully! But, I have to admit, it was really hard not to just sit down and eat the unfrozen chocolate yogurt with a spoon! It was divine!

Dark Chocolate-Cherry-Almond Frozen Yogurt

Adapted from Cuisinart Instruction and Recipe Booklet

Ingredients

• 1/2 c. heavy (35%) cream¹
• 1/4 c. 1% milk
• 130g dark chocolate, chopped
• 2 c. fat-free plain Greek yogurt
• 2 Tbsp. maraschino cherry juice
• 1/4 tsp. almond extract
• 1/2 c. sugar
• 1/2 c. pitted sweet cherries
• 1/2 c. slivered almonds

Directions

1. Combine cream and milk and gently heat to a simmer. Remove from heat.
2. Add chocolate pieces and stir until melted.
3. Add yogurt and stir until well-combined and homogeneous.
4. Mix in cherry juice, almond extract, and sugar.
5. Chill in fridge for at least two hours.
6. Pour into ice cream maker and churn for 20 minutes.
7. Add cherries and almonds and churn for an additional 5 minutes.
8. Transfer to an appropriate container and store in the freezer.

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¹ The original recipe called for 3/4 c. whole milk, but I had some heavy cream that was going begging in the fridge so I used what I had left and just added enough 1% milk to make the 3/4 c. called for. Use whatever milk or cream you have on hand for this with the caveat that low-fat milk will result in a firmer freezing, slightly more icy and less creamy end product. ^Back