Mexican food, wether it be traditional or American-ized, is something most people like. What’s not to like about it? It’s flavorful, creamy, cheesy, spicy goodness. Even if you aren’t a five pepper, gives you a headache it’s so spicy spice lover like me (I’m more on the half pepper spicy-meter), most people can still get on board with Mexican food. At least with my friends when we are trying to figure out where or what to eat if someone mentions Mexican as an option, more often than not the response is “Oh yeah, I could do Mexican.” (Stop it. Get your head out of the gutter. We are talking about food here.)
I didn’t grow up eating Mexican food though. Having moved to Florida from Argentina with my parents and baby brother when I was 5 1/2 years old, Mexican food was not something my mom made at home. At the time in Argentina it wasn’t really a popular food choice with little if any restaurants offering Mexican food. Even now I’ve only seen a couple of Mexican restaurants in Buenos Aires and those are the tourist traps put there specifically for the American traveler.
I don’t think it was until college that my love of Mexican food really set it. I lived in the sorority house from half way through my freshman year until I graduated. I ate most of my meals there. About twice a week the house cook would make something that was Mexican inspired. Wether it was simply rice, beans & salsa, to quesadillas (your choices were cheese or chicken & cheese) or to everyone’s favorite: taco bar! Other favorites were grilled cheese & tomato soup day, fried chicken fingers day, chili day, mac n cheese day… It’s not a wonder we all gained the freshman 15 and didn’t lose it until we graduated. I remember seeing girls who were older than me come back for a football game after they had graduated and marvel at all the weight they lost in the course of a few months. It all makes sense now.
Back to the Mexican food. Last night I made Chicken Taquitos. They were simple and delicious. But the truth is what made them really delicious was the creamy wonderful dip I made to go along with them. This dip could pair well with any Mexican food or be served on it’s own with tortilla chips. It’s really so yummy. Oh and the good news: it’s healthy! It’s creamy and full of flavor and wonderful and the only fat comes from the good-for-you-fat from avocado. Plus, I packed it with parsley which is not only one of my favorite things in the world, but it’s also one of the best things in this world for you. Many people disregard parsley as simply a flavorful herb or garnish, but ya’ll, the health benefits are so high from this wonderful little green leaf that we should be eating it by the barrel. The problem of course is that the taste of it is so distinct that no one wants to eat a parsley salad, that’s why if I can find a way to sneak it into my food, I do. Also, did you know that if you put the left over parsley in a glass of water in the fridge it’ll keep longer? Well it’s true. Try it.
The taquitos are very simple but be advised the chicken is cooked in a crock pot so give yourself 3 hours to make this recipe. This recipe is pretty filling from all the protein in the chicken and in the dip because of the Greek yogurt, so I’d say a serving size is about 3-4 taquitos per person (I ate three and was full for hours, and I’m a pretty good eater…)
Crock Pot Chicken Taquitos
Prep time: 15 minutes Cook time: 2.5 hours Serving: Makes 6 taquitos
INGREDIENTS
- 2 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
- 1 heaping teaspoon onion powder
- 1 heaping teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 heaping teaspoon cumin
- 1/4 teaspoon chili pepper (add more for more spice, this is a a mild recipe)
- 1/2 cup vegetable or chicken stock
- 6 taco size whole wheat tortillas
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
INSTRUCTIONS
- Add chicken, onion powder, garlic powder, cumin, chili pepper and stock into crock pot. Cover and cook on high for 2 hours.
- After 2 hours, turn oven to 425 degrees. Grease a baking sheet with cooking spray.
- Use two forks to shred the chicken while still inside the crock pot. Cover and continue to cook for 15 more minutes while the oven heats up.
- Meanwhile, lay the tortillas out and sprinkle with cheddar cheese.
- Add the chicken, roll tightly and place face down on the baking sheet. Spray generously with more cooking spray and bake in the oven for 15 minutes.
- Serve warm with the Creamy Greek Avocado Ranch dip and salsa.
If you want to double (or triple) this recipe for a bigger party or for leftovers, when re-heating the taquitos simply cover them in tin foil and pop them back in the oven. They work great the next day, not quite as juicy as the first day, but still good!
As good as the taquitos are, what really makes them delicious is this dip. So don’t skip it! I also made some home made tomato & onion salsa to go along with it to add color and variety.
Creamy Greek Avocado Ranch dip
Prep time: 5 minutes Cook time: 2 minutes on the blender Serving: less than 1 1/2 cups
INGREDIENTS
- 1 large or 2 small cloves of garlic, minced
- 1/2 jalapeño, seeded & diced (if you want more spice, add more jalapeño and if you are really brave, keep the seeds!)
- juice of half a lime
- 1 cup low or non fat plain Greek yogurt
- 1/2 packet of dry ranch dressing
- 1/2 avocado
- 1 cup packed parsley
INSTRUCTIONS
- Place all the ingredients in a blender and blend until creamy
- Pour directly into a serving bowl. Any leftovers you can put in a mason jar and store in the fridge for up to a week.
