Yesterday, I told you to make extra taco meat for a quick enchilada dinner another night, but it also works in reverse. Anytime you are making enchiladas, make extra meat and have tacos the next night. We generally eat our tacos in soft, warm flour tortillas. Those hard, cold corn taco shells that come in a box at the grocery store were always the most disappointing part of taco night as a kid. They were too hard to stuff, they cracked and fell apart, and they tasted like cardboard.   Making homemade taco shells is a fun, tasty way to get your crunchy taco on. The homemade crunchy shells are crunchy but they are also warm and chewy: a world away from their boxed counterpart.

Soft corn tortillas are a huge pain to work with. Handle them gently at first and know that it takes a few tries to get the hang of it. Never fear, once you figure it out it is not hard at all. Just be sure you have plenty of extra the first time you make them!

Crunchy Taco Shells

• soft corn tortillas
• hot oil for frying

1. In a frying pan heat enough oil to cover a tortilla.
2. Using tongs, gently lift a corn tortilla and place half the tortilla in the hot oil. The oil should be hot enough to immediately start turning the tortilla golden. If it isn’t hot enough the tortilla will melt and break.
3. Once the bottom half is getting brown and puffy in spots (it won’t be long!), let go of the top with the tongs allowing it to fold closed. Flip the tortilla so the top is now frying and hold the already fried half above the oil in the typical taco shell form.
4. Once the bottom is fried, gently place your shell over a stack of paper towels like an A to drain while you make the next shell.

Don’t freak out if your tortillas tear or crack a little, the frying process really helps them keep their shape even with a few cracks.

In Texas there are two kinds of of people: born and raised Texans and those of us who got here as soon as we could-like myself. It has been an interesting adjustment, food-wise and otherwise, but one I am so glad to have experienced. Growing up in the Midwest, I thought the Chili’s by the mall was Mexican Food. However, down here Mexican Food often means an entirely different thing. Even more confusing is the Tex-Mex spin most foods encounter where they become an entirely independent cuisine that the locals are fiercely loyal to. When I first decided to try my hand at making enchiladas I knew I needed to go to the right source for a recipe. Mr. Chaos is one of those fiercely loyal native Texans who would spot an impostor enchilada a mile away.

So here’s the thing about enchiladas in Texas: Everything goes on top! I know, you were thinking: stuff the tortillas with meat and cheese the cover with some more cheese and bake, done! That’s not, however, how they make them down here. Here the tortillas are stuffed with cheese and then everything else you want goes on top. But that’s not all-because it wouldn’t be Texan if it wasn’t covered in some kind of gravy. They make a special chili enchilada gravy that covers the enchiladas first. Only then do you get to put your meat and more cheese on top.

Tex-Mex Enchilada Gravy

makes 1 cup, cook time 15 min, adapted from the Los Barrios Family Cookbook

• 2 tbsp oil
• 4 tbsp flour
• 1 tsp chili powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp garlic
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1 cup water

1. Heat oil over medium high in a small sauce pot.
2. Sprinkle flour over and stir, cook until flour is golden and toasted.
3. Stir in spices and cook until dark but not burned.
4. Stir in water and lower heat to boil gently for 15 minutes.

Once you’ve made the gravy the construction is very easy. Dip corn tortillas in hot oil, being careful not to tear them. Let the oil run off, place them on a paper towel lined plate and sprinkle your cheese down the middle. Roll the tortilla up and place seam side down in a large baking dish. The hot oil should have made your corn tortilla warm and pliable without making it fall apart or tear when you try to roll it. You can use any good melting cheese you like or a combination-Asadero, Sharp Cheddar, Monterrey Jack, and Queso Fresco all work great.

Once you’ve filled your baking dish with cheese stuffed tortillas, spread the gravy evenly over the top. Then top with your favorite taco meat: spicy shredded chicken, pulled pork or taco beef (ground beef). When you make the taco meat make it a little saucier than you normally would-maybe using a 1/2 cup of water with the spices instead of a 1/4 cup. Then cover with additional shredded cheese.

Bake your enchiladas for about 10 minutes at 350°F until the cheese is melted. I like to top it again with fresh pico de gallo, because all that heavy meat and cheese needs something a little bright and fresh to contrast with.

Enchiladas can be a great fast meal, even if they sound labor intensive. Next time you make tacos, make extra meat and put it aside in the freezer. Or double the enchiladas on a weekend and place one dish in the freezer while you bake the other. In a few weeks simply thaw it in the fridge and pop it in the oven for a fast, fresh enchilada dinner.

Ok so in this post I went on and on talking about how I hate making more than one tray of a dessert and blah blah blah and then I proceeded to post two more dessert recipes that make an astronomical number. For example, yesterday you said, “Chocolate Stout Cupcakes?! I must have them!” But then you saw the recipe makes four dozen and you were disappointed that our relationship was not what you had thought.

Well, because I am touched and humbled that anyone out there is interested at all in what I am doing here, I adjusted and tested and scaled down and tested the chocolate stout cupcake recipe to make, yes-that’s right-one tray. One dozen delicious, rich chocolate stout cupcakes. I also tried this batch with a simple chocolate ganache and liked it much better. The cupcakes are so deeply flavored that I wanted an icing that wouldn’t compete with their complexity. (Also try this amazing Vanilla Bean Cream Cheese Frosting)

Chocolate Stout Cupcakes (small batch)

• 1/2 cup stout beer
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (Dutch-process)
• 1 cup flour
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 egg
• 1/3 cup sour cream

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Prepare cupcake pan.
2. Bring stout and butter to a simmer on the stove top.
3. Stir in cocoa powder until smooth, remove from heat.
4. Combine dry ingredients in a bowl.
5. In a mixing bowl beat eggs and sour cream until combined.
6. Slowly beat in chocolate mixture.
7. Add dry ingredients and stir to combine.
8. Pour into cupcake molds and bake for 15 minutes or until a tester comes out clean.

Chocolate Ganache

• 1/2 cup whipping cream
• 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips or pieces

1. Bring cream to a simmer on the stove top.
2. Remove from heat and stir in chocolate until smooth.
3. Refrigerate until thick and pourable or longer for spreadable.
4. Ice cupcakes once they have completely cooled.

There are now over 100 posts on chaos in the kitchen and I really do want to thank everyone who has left me comments and encouragement over the last few months. I read every comment and they mean so much to me. Cooking only brings me joy to the extent that I am able to share it with others. So thank you for reading and know that I love hearing from you in comments and emails. You can also find me on twitter if that’s your cup of tea. I am looking forward to the next 100 posts. Leave me a note if there’s anything special you’d like me to make or discuss!

Ever since I saw this post at Pinch My Salt a few weeks ago, I knew I had to try a chocolate stout cake. I am not a huge sweet fan (I know you could tell) but there was something about combining rich, dark chocolate and creamy, malty stout beer that I knew would be incredible.

And it was, let me tell you. Deep and complex chocolate flavor without the sugary sweetness found in many chocolate cakes. The cake is moist and delicate and not too sweet. There is no bitterness or hoppiness from the beer, just rich dark chocolate flavor. It’s no sickly sweet, need a glass of milk cake, for sure. These are earthy, dark, have with a mug of black coffee cupcakes.

This recipe makes a ton and is originally intended to make a large three layer cake. I made cupcakes-because I wanted to be able to give most of it away (lest I not fit into my pants). I made exactly 4 dozen cupcakes or approximately 12 cups of batter. It is difficult to measure exactly because I actually dug in with a spoon for a bit while the first batch was baking. I mean, seriously, it is incredible.

Chocolate Stout Cupcakes

• 2 cups stout ( I used Young’s Double Chocolate Stout, you can also use Guinness)
• 2 cups (4 sticks) unsalted butter
• 1 1/2 cups unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
• 4 cups all purpose flour
• 4 cups sugar
• 1 tablespoon baking soda
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 4 large eggs
• 1 1/3 cups sour cream

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Prepare cupcake or cake pans as desired.
2. Bring beer and butter to a simmer, stir in cocoa powder until smooth. Remove from heat.
3. Combine flour, sugar, baking soda and salt in a large bowl.
4. In a large mixing bowl (12+ cups!) beat together eggs and sour cream.
5. Slowly pour in chocolate mixture. As any time you are adding a hot liquid to eggs, dribble it in very slowly at first so you do not curdle your eggs.
6. Beat to combine then stir in flour mixture, scraping sides and ensuring batter is well mixed.
7. Pour batter evenly into lined cupcake pans and bake for approximately 15 minutes or until a tester comes out clean.
8. Allow cupcakes to cool completely before frosting.

I frosted these with a cream cheese and kahlua buttercream which didn’t impress me much. Next time I think I would prefer a simple whipped cream or ganache topping.  Here is the recipe reduced to 1 dozen cupcakes (with chocolate ganache) and here is my favorite vanilla bean cream cheese frosting (also go here to see how I learned to make pretty frosting swirls).