Chicken Taquitos

These go like hot cakes at my house. I always hope there are a couple left over. There never are. I found this recipe years ago in a book called 365 Easy Mexican Recipes. I've modified a couple things.

Chicken Taquitos
1 pint homecanned chicken
3 TBSP vegetable oil
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1/2 tsp dried oregano
4 oz cream cheese
1/2 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
12 -14 corn tortillas

Combine chicken, onion and a bit of vegetable oil in skillet. Cook until onion is limp. Add in cream cheese and oregano. Stir until cream cheese is melted and chicken mixture is thoroughly combined. Set aside.
Heat 3 TBSP oil in another skillet. Using tongs, soften tortillas 1 at a time by dipping in hot oil for about 2 seconds on each side. Add additional oil if needed. Drain tortillas between paper towels.
Fill tortillas by placing about 2 TBSP chicken mixture in 1/3 of tortilla. Roll up tightly. Secure with toothpick and lay seam side down on plate. Repeat with all tortillas. Fry taquitos a few at a time, seam side down. Turn until all sides are lightly browned. Drain on paper towels. If making to use as appetizers - cut each taquito in half after removing toothpicks. If using as a meal - leave taquitos whole.

Chicken Wraps

I had some leftover tortillas and leftover chicken that needed to be used. This is what I came up with for lunch a few days ago.

Chicken Wraps
1 tortilla per person
Chicken or tuna
mayonnaise
grapes
apples
walnuts
lettuce

Line the tortilla with lettuce. Mix up the chicken or tuna to suit your taste with some mayo. Cut up desired amount of grapes and apples. Toss in a handful of walnuts. Place some chicken salad on the lettuce/tortilla and roll up and enjoy!

Tortilla Bowls

I was on the lookout for tortilla bowls. So I turned to my favorite recipe website and found out how to make them in the microwave! I made these with my homemade tortillas. The family liked the idea but not the thickness these tortillas have. The shell was pretty hard and not crunchy like restaurant shells. I will be making these again with store bought tortillas just to see the difference.

Tortilla Bowls

This recipe comes from janem at recipezaar.com. She found it from "Healthy Heart One Dish Meals."

You will need:

1 tortilla per person

Line a 1 1/2 qt glass bowl with one tortilla. Prick a few holes in the tortilla with a fork. Microwave for 1 1/2 - 2 minutes on high or until the tortilla is crisp. Remove from microwave. Allow the tortilla to cool for a bit in the bowl before removing. Repeat for each tortilla.

Sandwich Wraps

We had these for dinner tonight. The idea comes from Happyfrog in Oregon. I changed some things in her recipe to make it work for us. I put everything out on the table and let everyone create their own wraps. It was a huge hit! Russell is even taking one to work tomorrow for lunch. I was impressed as I associate wraps as being "girly" lunches.

Sandwich Wraps (per person)
desired amount of leaf lettuce
shredded carrot
2 strips of bacon, cooked and chopped
dash of garlic powder
1/2 cup softened cream cheese
1/4 cup ranch dressing
mustard
lunch meat, your choice
2 slices favorite cheese
1 burrito size tortilla

Mix cream cheese, garlic powder and ranch dressing very well. Add enough mustard to add color. Spread mixture on tortilla peanut butter style. Next add lettuce, carrot, bacon, meat then cheese. Fold up bottom third of tortilla. Roll tortilla up starting on one side ending on the other.

*I didn't think these would be very filling - but one was enough for me! My filling choices were chicken for the meat and provolone for the cheese. :)

Black Bean and Tortilla Bake

We thought this recipe was a great summertime one. Everyone loved the flavors. We served it over rice. Russell especially liked it and wants to know when we are having it again. This recipe comes from spatchcock on recipezaar. This person comes from the Mississippi area.

Black Bean and Tortilla Bake

1 garlic clove, minced

1/2 cup chopped onions

1 cup chopped tomatoes

1/2 cup chopped green onions

1/2 tsp chili powder

2 tsp cumin powder

1 8oz can tomato sauce

1 16oz can black beans, rinsed and drained

1 TBSP chopped cilantro (I didn't have any so didn't use it)

salt and pepper to taste

12 soft corn tortillas

8 oz cheddar cheese, shredded, reserving 2 TBSP

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a large skillet with cooking spray. Add garlic, onions, tomato, green onion, cumin and chili powder. Cook on medium heat until onion is tender. Add tomato sauce and cook 5 minutes more.

Stir in beans, cilantro, salt and pepper.

Spray a 9 inch square baking dish with cooking spray. Layer 4 tortillas, 1/3 cheese, and 1/3 of the bean mixture; repeat 2 more times.

Top with reserved 2 TBSP of cheese.

Bake 20 minutes, covered, then 10 minutes uncovered or until bubbly.

Homemade Tortillas

I am a sucker for homemade tortillas. I can't even tell you when the last time was that I actually bought them from the store. It's been a long time. These are so easy to make. If you can mix, roll and put on a griddle - then you can make these.
Homemade Tortillas
3 cups flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 cup hot water
1/4 cup vegetable oil

In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder and salt. Stir in water and oil. Turn dough onto lightly floured surface and knead for 2-3 minutes until it is smooth and has no lumps. Cover dough with a towel and let it rest for 15 minutes.

Divide dough into 10 pieces. (You can do 12 if you really want to. I like my tortillas thicker.) Roll into balls.
Roll each tortilla into a circle about 8 inches round. You are allowed to roll these babies as thick/thin as you like. I like them thick.
Place on hot griddle. Turn over when these brown spots begin to appear.
Tacos anyone? How about enchiladas? Quesadillas? What was that you said? You wanted a cheese quesadilla with taco soup? Okay. :)