BEEF TINGA TACOS

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IMG_6141I found this colorful hand-embroidered runner at an estate sale.  The handiwork was quite neatly done:IMG_6142I used to love to do needlepoint and crewel, but this is a perfect example of why I don’t do it anymore.  I see tons of needlepoint, cross-stitch, crochet, and crewel items at estate sales.  They seem to have very little sentimental or other value.  It’s one thing to do it to while away the hours, but I can assure you that anyone that thinks their handiwork will become a treasured heirloom is deluding themselves.

Runners like these, and their cousins doilies, are a thing from days gone by.   I picture this runner gracing a table or dresser in an elderly woman’s home.  Maybe there’s a few small glasses for sherry sitting on it.  There would probably be a little bell nearby, for summoning staff or family  (like Hector Salamanca in Breaking Bad).  Can’t you hear it — that faint little “ting-a-ling, ting-a-ling?”

With “ting-a-ling” on my brain, I was inspired to make Beef Tinga Tacos.  Well, that and the fact that Cinco de Mayo is just around the corner.  As the haters are quick to point out, it is a common misconception that Cinco de Mayo celebrates the day Mexico won its independence from Spain (that day is celebrated on September 16 — mark your calendars).  Cinco de Mayo commemorates the anniversary of the Battle of Puebla, a relatively small battle that resulted in Mexico’s victory over France in 1862.  In Mexico, Cinco de Mayo is not widely celebrated outside of Puebla.

So if Mexico doesn’t celebrate Cinco de Mayo, why do we?  According to several sources, Cinco de Mayo was first celebrated in the U.S. in 1967, when some students from California State University decided to commemorate the battle as a way to celebrate Mexican culture. Yet another step closer to being Cliff Clavin

So Cinco de Mayo is kind of a made up holiday.  To which I say so what?  I live in Texas — we don’t need much of an excuse to eat tacos.  These Beef Tinga Tacos are effortless, which leaves that much more time for drinking margaritas and busting piñatas.  And I promise, you will not have to ring a bell to get your family to come running for these.

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BEEF TINGA TACOS
Author: 
Recipe type: Beef, Main Course
 
Ingredients
  • 2 pounds brisket, trimmed of fat
  • 1 medium onion, diced
  • 4 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1-1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
  • 1-1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
  • 1-1/2 teaspoons ground coriander
  • 14-ounce can beef broth
  • 15-ounce can tomato sauce
  • 2 tablespoons adobo sauce from canned chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
  • 1 teaspoon honey
  • Flour or corn tortillas
  • Minced onion
  • Chopped fresh cilantro
Instructions
  1. Cut brisket into 3 pieces and place in slow cooker. Add onions and garlic. In a medium bowl, mix together cumin, oregano, coriander, broth, tomato sauce, adobo sauce, and honey, and pour over brisket. Cook on high until meat is tender and shreds easily with a fork, 7-8 hours. When cool enough to handle, shred meat using two forks. Transfer shredded meat and cooking liquid to a large stockpot, and bring to a boil over high heat. Cook until liquid is reduced and meat is still moist but not soupy, approximately 5 minutes, stirring frequently.
  2. To serve, spoon filling into flour or corn tortillas, and top with minced onion and chopped fresh cilantro.

 

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 Cut the brisket into three pieces

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Add onions and garlic

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 Pour the liquids and spices over the brisket

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Set on high and go do something else for 7-8 hours 006Tinga-ling!

BIG OL’ BISCUITS

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I found this oak biscuit barrel at an estate sale.   This definition of biscuit barrel from the Collins English Dictionary sums it up pretty concisely: “an airtight container of circular section equipped with a lid and used  for storing biscuits.”  The same source offers this use of the term in a sentence:  “She looked with favour at the contents of his biscuit barrel.”  (Snicker.)  I’ve got quite a few biscuit barrels that I’ve picked up at estate sales, in cut crystal, oak, and silver plate.  Most of them are in my kids’ rooms, where they hold “collections” of all sorts, including glass buttons, miniature Pokemon figures, ribbons, and coins.  I bet “she” would not look “with favour” at these contents.  About the only thing we don’t store in them is biscuits.

Recently my daughter and I treated ourselves to one of the giant biscuits with jam and crème fraiche at Blacksmith:

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Biscuits aren’t something we indulge in very often, and that big biscuit, with its fluffy interior and craggy exterior was worth the calorie splurge.  Inspired by the biscuit barrel and the monster creation at Blacksmith, I thought I’d surprise my daughter by making homemade biscuits for breakfast.  I looked at a bunch of recipes, in search of one that would be suitably tender inside and craggy outside.  Tips for biscuit success include using well-chilled butter, working quickly to keep the butter from softening, not overworking the dough (to prevent tough biscuits), and baking at 400 degrees or higher (for high-rising biscuits).

The recipe I wound up working from was billed as the “best, fluffy, flakey, buttery biscuits ever.”  I want to stop here and say that I chose the recipe because the picture with it looked like what I was looking for, and NOT because someone declared these the “best ever.”  Don’t you find it obnoxious when someone declares something the “best ever?”  How about just saying your family or your guests loved these, or they disappeared quickly, or you like them best of all the recipes you’ve ever tried in your whole life?  But “best ever?”  No.

The same is true for “amazing,” one of the most overused words around.  How is your coffee?  Amazing?  Really?  A-ma-zing?  I noticed a while back that “super” had slipped into our vocabulary, as in “super cute” and “super fun” and “super easy.”  What does “super” add, other than the impression that you are perhaps 12 years old?  And yet, there are apparently some things that even “super” won’t adequately describe, and lately I’ve been seeing “beyond” replacing it, as in “that outfit is beyond cute” or “I am beyond blessed.”  Like “super,” tacking on “beyond” adds nothing, and is best saved for describing that area of the bed and bath store that doesn’t neatly fit into either the bed or bath category.

So were these the best, fluffy, flakey, buttery biscuits ever?  I have no idea.  But I did think they were really good, although perhaps not beyond amazing (wink).  Slathered with butter and jam, warm out of the oven, they made a pretty indulgent breakfast.  “She” would look with “favour” at these.  🙂

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BIG OL' BISCUITS
Author: 
Recipe type: Breads and Muffins
 
Ingredients
  • 2 cups flour
  • 3-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon cream of tartar
  • ½ cup salted butter, cut into small pieces
  • ⅔ cup half and half
  • 1 tablespoon honey
  • 2 tablespoons melted butter
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees
  2. Place flour, baking powder, salt, and cream of tartar in a food processor and pulse briefly to combine. Add butter and pulse until pea-sized. Transfer to a large mixing bowl. Add the half and half and honey, and stir until a shaggy dough is formed.
  3. Transfer dough to a lightly-floured surface and knead several times. Pat dough into a circle about ¾" high. Cut out biscuits using a 2" biscuit cutter. Transfer biscuits to a baking sheet, spacing them approximately 2" apart. Bake for approximately 10-12 minutes, until tops are golden brown. In the last minute of baking, brush tops of biscuits with melted butter. Remove to serving platter and serve warm.

 IMG_5911Biscuits on the rise

A brush with butter is better than a brush with danger

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 Big ol’ biscuits with butter and jam 

butterWe used this Hand Rolled Butter, which has been showing up in grocery stores lately (including Kroger).  Not sure why hand-rolling is special, but the butter was sweet and creamy and had a smoother texture than the sticks we usually buy.