with Pico de Gallo, Creamy Guacamole & Hot Sauce

Yield: 2

Taquitos, also known as rolled-up tacos with a crispy outer shell. We achieve the taquito crunch factor by baking the stuffed tortillas—full of zesty pork and a blend of Mexican cheeses—no messy deep frying required. That golden crust is the perfect canvas for pico de gallo, creamy guacamole, and hot sauce.
Prep: 5 Cook: 30

• 1onion
• 1oz Tex-Mex paste (see below)
• 1lime
• 4TBS guacamole
• 10oz ground pork
• 1tbs southwest spice blend (see below)
  
• 6flour tortillas
• ½cup Mexican cheese blend
• 1tomato
• 3TBS sour cream
• 1tsp hot sauce
• salt & pepper
• 1TBS olive oil
• 1TBS cooking oil

Prep:

Adjust rack to middle position and preheat oven to 425°F. Line a baking sheet with foil and lightly oil (or coat with nonstick cooking spray). Wash and dry produce.

Halve, peel, and thinly slice onion, mince a few slices until you have 1 TBS.

Cook pork filling:

Heat a large drizzle of oil in a large pan over medium-high heat. Add sliced onion, cook for 3 minutes.

Add pork, cook, breaking up meat into pieces, until pork is browned and cooked through and onion is softened, 4- to 6-minutes.

Stir in Southwest Spice Blend, Tex-Mex paste, and 1⁄3 cup water. Simmer until thickened, 2- to 3-minutes. Turn off heat.

Assemble & bake taquitos:

Meanwhile, drizzle tortillas with 1 TBS olive, brush or rub to completely coat on both sides.

Place tortillas on a clean work surface. Once pork filling is done, add a heaping ¼ cup filling to one side of each tortilla, then sprinkle each with 1 TBS Mexican cheese blend. Roll up tortillas, starting with filled sides, to create taquitos. Place, seam sides down, on prepared sheet.

Tip: Make sure the taquitos are snug on the sheet—this will prevent them from unrolling.

Bake on middle rack until golden-brown and crispy, 8-12 minutes.

Finish & serve:

While taquitos bake, finely dice tomato. Zest and quarter lime.

In a small bowl, combine tomato, minced onion, half the lime zest, and a squeeze of lime juice. Season with salt.

In a separate small bowl, combine guacamole, sour cream, remaining lime zest, and a squeeze of lime juice. Season with salt and pepper.

Divide taquitos between plates. Top with pico de gallo, creamy guacamole, and hot sauce. Serve.

Southwest Spice Blend

4          parts garlic powder        1 TBS
2          parts cumin                     1½ tsp
2          parts chili powder           1½ tsp

Tex-Mex Paste

6          oz can tomato paste,
3          cups water,
3          TBS vinegar,
1          TBS dried onion flakes,
2          tsp salt (or salt substitute),
2          tsp cornstarch,
½         tsp cayenne pepper,
1          tsp sugar,
¼         tsp onion powder,
1          dash garlic powder

Combine tomato paste with water in a medium sauce pan & whisk until smooth.
Add the remaining ingredients & stir until combined.
Heat mixture over medium-high heat until it begins to boil.
Continue to cook for ~3 mins, stirring often. Remove from heat.
When sauce is cool enough to taste, try it.
When sauce has cooled sufficiently, pour into a sealed container & refrigerate.
Tip:
If the paste is not hot enough for you, add more jalapeños or cayenne, OR add ground red pepper.