Tacos al Pastor- easy and good!

What can I say. Smoky, earthy chunks of pork. Handmade corn tortillas. Fresh juicy tomatoes tossed with lime, creamy perfect avocados, garlic and cilantro. Wrapped up and fit perfectly to the hand. Tacos al pastor and a simple and totally satisfying little taco and couldn't be easier. I served the tacos with grilled zucchini spears and yellow peppers tossed with black beans and lightly seasoned. When the weather is toasty these perfect tacos just need a beer for the other hand and all is well!

The marinade came together in the blender. I used 1/4 of an ancho chile pepper that I ground up in the spice grinder. Fresh is really best since you can really get the full flavor. If you can't find whole dried ancho chile peppers you can use a dried chile powder like New mexico or pasiilla, not cayenne!
Enjoy!

1 pork tenderloin, diced in chunks
1 large white onion, roughly chopped
3/4 cup fresh squeezed orange juice
1/4 cup white vinegar
1/4 cup chile powder
3 tbl ancho chile powder
1/4 tsp cumin
1 tsp dried oregano
3 garlic cloves, peeled
pinch of salt

In a blender combine onion through salt. Pour over pork in a bag and marinate for at least a few hours or over night. I had a little marinade left over which I plan to use on chicken for enchiladas next week!

Heat grill pan to med high heat with a touch of oil. Add pork and some marinade to coat all over. This stuff is good! Saute until cooked through 5-9 min, depending.

Serve in a corn tortilla with you favorite salsa, avocados or guacamole. Cilantro, lime wedges and a side of veggies.

spicy chicken and veggie tacos

nothing too special here for this dish. today was one of THOSE days. hot, allergies, hives...all for the mom this time...so a tired and cranky momma bred a tired and cranky boy today. since its finally freakishly hot here we decided after one nice long nap to high tail it to the nearest greasy mall and ride the carousel 172,838,3939 times. after the heat died down i figured it was a good time to get something started. this is such an easy weekday dish to throw together a bit before and then easy as pie later. not a lot of measurements going on so adjust to your tastes.
*pics later..the battery is toast again*
enjoy!

a bunch of boneless, skinless chicken breasts
cumin
cayenne, pinch or more
sea salt
pepper
onion powder
2 garlic cloves, minced
cilantro, handful and chopped
parsely, handful and chopped
olive oil

mix everything together and marinate as long as you need.

a couple scrubbed zucchini, thick julienned
1 small yellow onion, sliced thinly
1 yellow bell pepper, sliced thin
mushrooms, as you like them
3 garlic cloves, sliced thinly
sea salt and pepper
cumin
chili powder
cilantro, handful and chopped
parsely, handful and chopped
olive oil

mix together and marinate.

handmade whole wheat tortillas from trader joes, yummy!
1 or 2 avocados, sliced
fresh grated organic cheese
black beans
fresh corn kernels

when ready heat up the grill pan and slice the chicken up; saute the chicken. when done toss in the veggies and mix up and cook until juicy and done. toss in some of that corn.

warm up a tortilla, spoon in some chicken and veggie mixture. top with avocado, beans and cheese and eat!