Loaded Nachos

Saturday is my favorite day of the week.  Aside from the fact that I don't have to get up at 5am to go to work, it's the only day that my husband and I have off together.  So Saturdays are designated for family time.  Today, we explored bits of our new town and had breakfast tacos at a local eatery (apparently breakfast tacos are a big deal down here).  So, since we had such a filling breakfast, we didn't want much for lunch but knew we'd need a little something before dinner.  One of our go-to 'slightly-more-than-a-snack-but-less-than-a-meal' foods is a nice plate of nachos.

Look at all that yumminess!!

First off, we don't just slop toppings over a big pile of chips.  We get the Scoops and carefully fill each little cup with the toppings so every single bite has every single topping.  Is it tedious?  A little.  Is it worth it?  You bet!

So first step is to lay those suckers out on a cookie sheet.  If you don't like scrapping off baked cheese, I recommend lining it with foil.  Put a pinch of cheddar in the bottom of each scoop.  Then add all your desired toppings...this time we did diced onion, red bell pepper, and leftover taco meat.  Then I top them off with a little more cheese...this time I used Monterrey jack on the tops.  Bake at 350 for 5-10 minutes depending on how melty you like em...just watch them and pull them out when they look good.

Hands off, guys, we're not ready to dig in yet...

Then we go to the cold toppings.  These are topped with diced tomatoes, greek yogurt (in place of sour cream), chojita cheese, and chopped cilantro.  I also like to dot a bit of hot sauce on top sometimes...just depends on how spicy you want them.

The sky is the limit when it comes to combinations.  It's also a great way to use up leftover meat and veggies.   And you can make as many or as few as you like.  We normally just put the pan between us at the table and dig in.  Our 2 year old son loves them too...they're just his size!  Serve with a cold glass of your favorite beverage and enjoy!

Long Time No See/Lamb with Garlic and Lemon

I'm painfully aware of how much I've neglected this blog recently.  For that, I truly apologize.  Let me fill you in on all the craziness that's been going on around here...

A few months ago, I went back to work.  It was just the right decision for our family, so as much as I miss spending every moment with my son and having more free time to work on this blog, it was something I just had to do.  So far, I'm enjoying my work and since I work from home, I'm still able to spend a lot of time with my family.  But sadly, I have less time to experiment in the kitchen...but now that I've settled into the groove of things, I plan to get back to it!

A few weeks ago, our little family moved from Florida to Texas, which believe it or not, is a really long drive.  My husband and I loaded up the largest moving truck you can rent yourself and hauled all our stuff and three dogs out to Texas in one straight shot.  It was the longest. drive. ever.  I never want to see the inside of a car again.  We got unpacked and settled in as much as possible before our son flew out (accompanied by my mother-in-law) to join us in our new home.  He's been adjusting nicely, but there is still the question of when are we going 'home' that gets a little hard to answer.

But now that we're settled and getting back to a regular routine, I have a moment to write to you all and get back in the kitchen...and I couldn't be happier about it!  My first 'real' meal in the new house was lamb chops with garlic and lemon served with sweet potatoes and spiced butter and broccoli.  It was ah-maz-ing!  Confession:  this was the first time I cooked lamb.  My husband was all, "make sure you know what you're doing--that was expensive meat!"  Yeah...no pressure.  I figured you can't go wrong with garlic right?

Ingredients: 

2 lbs lamb chops (approx 8 1" thick chops, trimmed)

10 cloves garlic, chopped

1 lemon 

2-3 tbsp fresh chopped parsley

3 tbsp olive oil

3 tbsp water

salt and pepper

1.  Add oil to large skillet and heat to medium/medium-high heat.  Season both sides of lamb with salt and pepper.  Sear both sides for about 5 minutes each (this will get them medium-medium rare).  Remove and set aside.

2.  Cut lemon in half and squeeze juice into pan, add lemon halves cut side down.  Lower temp slightly and add remainder of ingredients.  Sautee for about 3 minutes or until garlic is tender.  Keep things moving...DO NOT BURN THE GARLIC.  It gets bitter when it burns...gross.  

3.  Pour garlic/lemon/herb mixture over the chops and serve.  Don't forget to serve those caramelized lemon halves with it!  Squeeze the warm lemons over the chops...the heat will surely release some extra juice from inside there and it adds a really nice mellow pop of flavor!

Now, guys, I have to be honest...this was freaking awesome.  I'm not even a huge fan of lamb if it's not slathered in tzatzkiki sauce and I ate every last morsel of this stuff.   If you're like me and have never made lamb before, don't be afraid to try it...it's not as intimidating as it looks.  I highly recommend you give this recipe a try.  Still not interested in trying lamb?  That's a-ok...I totally get it.  Replace the lamb with your favorite cut of meat, and I'm sure the garlic, lemon, and parsley will make it equally delicious!