Oven Baked Beef Tacos

This recipe has been all over Pinterest.  I modified it a bit to fit our tastes.  There are so many ways to adapt it.

Ingredients:
1 pound ground beef 
1 small onion, diced
1 small can diced green chilies
1/2 teaspoons chili powder
1/8 teaspoon each, garlic powder, onion powder, red pepper flakes, oregano
1/4 teaspoon paprika
3/4 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 (4 ounce) can  tomato sauce
 1 (8 ounce) can  refried beans 
1/4 to 1/2 cup water
2 cups shredded  Monterey Jack, or Mexican Cheese blend
12 hard taco shells 

Shredded lettuce
Salsa
Guacamole
Black Olives
Sour Cream

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
• Brown ground beef and onion. Add chilies, seasonings, tomato sauce and beans.  Cook until thickened.
• Stand taco shells open side up in a 9 x 13 baking dish, or smaller--whatever will allow the shells to stand upright. 
• Sprinkle a bit of the cheese in the bottom of each shell. 
•  Fill shells with meat mixture and sprinkle with remaining cheese.
• Bake for 10-12 minutes until cheese is melted. 
• Remove from oven and top with optional condiments, as desired

Pita Bread

This takes a little time, but they're so much better than store-bought.  They'll keep for a couple of days.

Ingredients:

3 cups flour, plus 1/2-3/4 cup more as needed
1 ½ teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon sugar 
1 packet instant yeast
1 ¼ to 1 ½ cups water, at room temperature
2 tablespoons olive oil

Directions:

• Mix the yeast with the flour, salt, and sugar.  Add the olive oil and 1 ¼ cup water and stir together with a wooden spoon.  All of the ingredients should form a ball.  If some of the flour will not stick to the ball, add more water.
• Once all of the ingredients form a ball, place the ball on a work surface, and knead the dough for approximately 10 minutes.
• When you are done kneading the dough, place it in a bowl that has been lightly coated with oil. Form a ball out of the dough and place it into the bowl, rolling the dough around so that it has a light coat of oil on all sides. Cover the bowl with  a damp towel and set aside to rise until it has doubled in size, approximately 90 minutes.
• When it has doubled in size, punch the dough down and divide it into 12 equal pieces. Roll each piece into a ball, cover the balls with a damp kitchen towel, and let them rest for 20 minutes. 
• While the dough is resting, preheat the oven to 450°. If you have a baking stone, put it in the oven to preheat as well. If you do not have a baking stone, turn a cookie sheet upside down and place it on the middle rack of the oven while it is preheating. 
• After the dough has relaxed for 20 minutes, spread a light coating of flour on a work surface and place one of the balls of dough there. Sprinkle a little bit of flour on top of the dough and use a rolling pin or your hands to stretch and flatten the dough. You should be able to roll it out to between ¼ – 1/8” thick – 6 inches in diameter. 
• Place discs on waxed paper or parchment paper and let rise, uncovered, until barely doubled in thickness, about 30-45 minutes.
• Open the oven and place as many pitas as you can fit on the hot baking surface. They should be baked through and puffy after 3 minutes. If you want your pitas to be crispy and brown you can bake them for an additional 3 to 5 minutes.

Chocolate Zucchini Bread

This falls somewhere between bread and cake, but still counts as a healthy breakfast food because it's made with zucchini!

Ingredients:

 4 cups grated, drained zucchini
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa 
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 eggs
3/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
1 cup chocolate chips (optional)

Directions:

• Grate the zucchini using large holes of a box grater.  Allow to drain in a colander for 30 minutes.  
• Using a cotton tea towel or cheesecloth, squeeze the excess water from the zucchini
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease two 9"x5" loaf pans
• Whisk the flour, cocoa, soda, salt and cinnamon until clumps are gone
• In a large bowl, combine the sugar and eggs stirring with a large wooden spoon until smooth.
• Add the melted butter and extract.  Beat until smooth.
• Add the zucchini
• Add the flour mixture in three additions, stirring after each.
• Stir in chocolate chips, if desired
• Divide equally between loaf pans and bake for 50 minutes at 350 degrees. Check with a toothpick to determine if done
• Remove from oven; cool in pan on wire rack for 5 minutes.  Remove from pans and cool completely on wire rack.
• This bread will freeze well if wrapped in foil and placed in a ziploc bag when completely cooled.

Hummus

I've made this with and without the tahini, depending if I had any on hand.  It's great either way.  Adjust seasonings to taste.

Ingredients:
2 (15 ounce) cans Chick Peas, drained - rinsed (save 4 tablespoons of chick pea "juice")
4 tablespoons chick pea juice
4-6 tablespoons fresh lemon juice 
3-5 tablespoons lime juice 
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons Tahini paste (If you don't have it, it's ok to leave it out, this hummus recipe has a lot of flavor without it.)
2 cloves minced garlic (or 1 tsp crushed garlic from jar)
1 1/2  teaspoons garlic powder
1 1/2 teaspoons  toasted sesame oil
1 teaspoon ground cumin
3/4 teaspoon ground coriander
dash cayenne pepper
2 dashes ground black pepper
salt to taste

Directions:

• Blend in blender or food processor until combined
• Serve with fresh pita bread, pita chips or bagel chips

Chicken Spread

This is an old recipe--1960's, I think--but very tasty.  Everyone seems to make a buffalo chicken dip, but I'm a fan of this "retro" spread.  Yes, it uses canned chicken, a processed food, but it won't kill you!  Allow to chill for several hours or overnight for the best flavor.

Ingredients:

8 ounces of cream cheese
1 small onion, minced
1 small (4.25 oz) can of chicken
1 tablespoon mayonnaise
1 tablespoon worchestershire sauce

Directions:

• Blend all ingredients with a hand mixer until combined
• Chill until ready to serve
• Great with Ritz crackers or spread on toasted breads

Smoked Gouda Dip

You can spice this up with more tabasco if you'd like.  It's best made several hours before serving to let the flavors meld.

Ingredients:
1 pound smoked gouda
3 tablespoons minced onion
1/4 cup of mayonnaise
1 teaspoon tabasco sauce
1 teaspoon worcestershire sauce
1/2 to 1 teaspoon smoked paprika

Directions:

• Grate the gouda
• Add all ingredients adjusting to taste and spreading consistency
• Serve with crackers, toasted baguettes or veggies

Blueberry Muffins

Moist, dense and not overly sweet, blueberry muffins.  It's possible to use defrosted, frozen berries with an extra tablespoon of flour to absorb the liquid, but I prefer fresh.

Ingredients:

3  cups flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
10 tablespoon unsalted butter (1 1/4 stick), softened to room temperature
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 cup plain yogurt
1 teaspoon lemon zest
1 1/2 pints of blueberries

Directions:

• Whisk flour, salt, soda and baking powder in a large bowl.  Set aside.
• In a large mixing bowl, beat butter and sugar until combined.  
• Add eggs and lemon zest.
• Alternate adding dry ingredients and yogurt, mixing just until combined.
• Gently fold in blueberries.
• Line muffin pan with liners and divide dough amongst pans.  I use an ice cream scoop and a rounded portion.  Fill them high.
• Bake in a preheated 375 degree oven for 20-25 minutes.  Use a toothpick to check if done.
• Cool in pans for 3-4 minutes.  Remove from pans and cool on wire racks for 10 minutes.  Best served warm.

Yields:  16-18 muffins