Crunchy Taco Cups

I seriously enjoy some Pinterest! I will go weeks without it, but when I log back on, hours of my life are gone just sifting through recipes, organization tips, and other things that make me happy! I've tried the occasional recipe, but usually I find the pictures are a lot prettier than the actual meal (and I'm not a terrible cook). I had seen the recipe for Crunchy Taco Cups before, but this time, they stuck in my head. Off to the store...

The cups are pretty simple to make: brown some meat, stir in a packet of taco seasoning and a can of Rotel, top with cheese. Repeat (this recipe has them double-decker).

Spray down a muffin tin with Pam (or whatever non-stick spray you have) and line the tins with wonton wrappers. I admit, this was the tricky part... not the lining of the pan, but actually finding wonton wrappers in my grocery store! Turns out, they're on a refrigerated shelf, tucked away behind random cookware, right next to my favorite yogurt (Stoneyfield), which I also had been unable to find until this trip!

Bake at 375 for about 12 minutes (ten for me because my oven runs hot) and voila! Crunchy taco cups! Sort of. My cups turned out soggy on the bottom. About ten minutes out of the oven they were not quite as bad, but not exactly crispy. The tops were great, thought! Just as advertised!
I think maybe I might have gone a little heavy on the meat mixture before adding the top layer, which may have contributed to the mushiness.

I topped them with sour cream and scallions.

Despite the bottoms being a bit moist, these were pretty yummy! I would totally recommend them to anyone looking for a fresh spin on traditional tacos. They were pretty calorie-heavy though, about 175 per cup, according to the recipe I used. You could probably cut that down a bit by making them single cups, not stacked.

The Taste of Comfort

Mamaw and me (1980)

The holidays from my childhood were all the autumn colors of yellow, orange, brick red, green and brown. The time between Thanksgiving and Christmas smelled like musty boxes from the attic, pine cones that had been doused in some sort of cinnamon oil years earlier, rogue glitter and a little bit of plastic.

The transition between pine needle-filled scarecrows and cotton-stuffed santas always felt epic.

But the taste of the holidays. Oh, how everything tasted!

Zucchini with a hint of Rachael Ray

I tried a new recipe, one given to me by my friend Kickingitwithmycrohnies via text message.

It went like this:

Yum, indeed!

My friend is super smart with food and recipes. As evident by her text, she's kind of a ninja at winging it in the kitchen. And as evident by the title of her blog, she's kind of had to be. I can't imagine a Crohn's diagnosis and the kind of guts it takes to fight every day. Yeah, I made a Crohn's joke. She will laugh.

So armed with her best explanation, I winged it and came up with a dinner for one that was pretty great! I under-seasoned which was a rookie mistake. Lesson learned.

Dining solo isn't my favorite thing. In 2007 I moved (back) to Louisiana, my home state and ate alone often. I truly believe it does something to your spirit to eat alone too much. And I think other people can tell. In a completely unsolicited (I swear!) moment, a friend said to me, "You've eaten too many meals alone lately."

It's also never a good sign when the woman in the Whataburger drive-thru recognizes you and lauds you as one of her favorite customers. That's when you know it's time to find a dinner date.

I didn't grow up in a house where I was taught to cook, much less wing it. Whenever my dad prepared his amazing meals, I just sat on the counter and talked his ear off, too wrapped up in my own gossip to bother learning any of the things he was doing. I did learn that he does one heck of a Julia Child impression.

So in my 30's I can't even credit my own dad with teaching me how to cook. All my thanks goes to Rachael Ray and the gang over at Food Network, without whom I might have no idea how to hollow out zucchini.


Here's how I did it:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees
• Saute half an onion and one clove of garlic until onions are translucent
• Add 3/4 lb of ground beef and brown (salt and pepper to taste)
• Remove from heat and drain
• While mixture cools enough to handle, slice two zucchini in half
• Hollow out with a spoon, removing the flesh and seeds
• Mix half a cup of sour cream and half a cup of shredded cheddar into the meat mixture until it is a consistency you like (test for seasoning!)
• Spoon into the zucchini and sprinkle with breadcrumbs (and extra cheese if you'd like)
• Bake filled zucchini for 20 minutes

***Mine weren't browning as much as I'd like, so I kicked on the broiler and let that do the work for about two minutes.  I also served with a tiny scoop of sour cream on the side for extra sass!

Bon Apetit!

Also, if you're a Rachael Ray fan like I am, check out this Wall Street Journal article for a look inside her actual kitchen! And PS, her cabinets are almost the same color as mine!