Elijah Loves Tacos

My oldest son is currently infatuated with tacos.  Every mealtime, he asks me hopefully, "What are we eating?  Is it tacos?"  When I tell him no, he is crestfallen.  It doesn't matter how often we've had tacos lately--he still wants tacos, again.  One time I said with a touch of exasperation, "Elijah, you know we really can't have tacos at every meal.  That would be just ridiculous."  He reassured me, "Oh no, I wouldn't want tacos for breakfast.  Just for lunch and dinner."

Our tacos usually consist of beans (I make refried beans from scratch, or substitute canned black beans) and/or taco meat, served on flour tortillas or on taco shells, and topped with diced tomatoes, sour cream, shredded cheese, and (for the grownups) lots of diced onions and jalapenos sauteed in a little olive oil.

If you've ever looked at the ingredients list on a packet of taco spice, you've probably noticed that most taco spice packets have MSG in them.  We try to avoid MSG, so I make my own taco spice blend using the following recipe:

1/4 cup chili powder
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 tsp oregano
2 tsp paprika
2 T cumin
1 T and 1 tsp salt
1 T and 1 tsp ground black pepper
2 T cornstarch
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Blend all ingredients.

One recipe as listed above will season five pounds of ground beef.  Brown the meat and drain the fat.  Add a little hot water, swish it around, and drain that too.  Add the seasoning and a cup or so of water; cover and simmer for 20 minutes or until the water is absorbed.  Surplus meat will freeze well.

This makes a pretty spicy taco meat.  You can eliminate the crushed red pepper flakes if you prefer less heat.