Ancho Turkey Tacos

Serves 8 Tacos

Recipe Level: Medium

Okay, I know everyone has a taco recipe, but it is really worth giving these a try. These are so much better than using any powdered taco mix and don't contain all the extra sodium and preservatives. The flavor here is much deeper and hits all the notes on your tongue...a little sweet, tangy, spicy, without being too spicy.

Ground Turkey - 1 pound
Cumin - 1 tsp.
Dried Ancho Peppers - 3 whole large
Chicken Stock - 1 cup
Water - 1/2 cup
Yellow Onion - 1 medium
Garlic - 3 cloves
Cherry Tomatoes - 4-5 small or 1/2 of a regular tomato
Serrano or Jalapeno - 1 pepper w/ seeds removed
Agave Nectar or Honey - 1 tbsp.
Red Wine Vinegar - 2 tbsp.
Salt - 1 & 1/2 tsp.

1. Re-hydrate the ancho pepper using the chicken stock and water. This can be done in a sauce pan on the stove top or in the microwave in a microwave safe dish with a tight fitting lid. If doing on the stove top, place water, stock and peppers in pan and bring to boil. Once the water boils, remove from heat and cover with lid, let sit for 20-30 minutes or until the peppers are tender. If doing in the microwave, put peppers, water and stock in dish and microwave for 2 minutes or so, then cover with lid and let sit for 20-30 minutes.

3. Once the anchos are tender, you'll want to remove the stem and seeds but don't discard the water/stock mix you re-hydrated them in. There is tons of flavor here! To remove the seeds, just go to the sink and remove the stem then run them under running water to rinse them out. Once the ancho peppers are seeded, place them in a blender or food processor. Add 1/2 the onion, the garlic, cherry tomatoes, serrano pepper, agave, red wine vinegar and 1 tsp. of the salt. You don't have to worry about chopping because the blender will take care of that for you. For the onion, you may want to cut into big chunks just to help the mixture get going, but everything else can be added whole. Add in about 1/2 cup of the water/stock fluid that you saved to the blender. Pulse and as mixture comes together, add another 1/4 cup if needed. You are looking for a consistency of BBQ sauce. Set mixture aside.

4. Chop the other half of the onion and add to a skillet over medium heat. Then add your pound of ground meat to the pan. Season with 1/2 tsp. of salt and 1 tsp. of cumin. Chop up the meat and continue to stir until it is mostly browned.

5. Add the ancho mixture from the blender to the skillet and mix thoroughly making sure all the meat is coated. Turn the heat down to medium-low and simmer the meat in the sauce for 15-20 minutes or until any excess moisture is cooked off. Taste it as it is reducing and if you'd like added sweetness, you can add more agave. Do you want more tang? Add more red wine vinegar. Or added heat? Add some cayenne. Tasting your food is the more important I can give to any novice cook!

6. Serve the mixture hot with soft corn tortillas, low-fat shredded cheese, fat-free plain Greek yogurt (in place of sour cream), and load on all the veggies you want....lettuce, tomato, onion, cabbage or slaw, cilantro, and salsa. I highly suggest you try these with my spicy mango salsa if mangos are in season.

Nutrition Information per taco from Myfitnesspal.com
Ancho Turkey Tacos (on soft corn tortilla, with cheese, yogurt and veggies) - 206 calories, 10g. fat, 18g. carbs, 13g. protein

Spicy Mango Salsa

Serves 4

Recipe Level: Easy

Mango - 1 large ripe
Serrano or Jalapeno - 3 small Serrano or 1 Jalapeno
Green Onion - 3 small or 2 large
Cilantro - 2 tbsp chopped
Lime - 1 whole
Cayenne Pepper - dash
Chili Powder - dash
Salt - dash

1. Dice mango into small cubes. First peel the mango with a paring knife or vegetable peeler. The mango has a core so it's best to approach it the same way you would an apple. Stand it up and cut it on one side, leaving about 1/4 to 1/2 inch from the center for the core. Rotate the mango and slice down the next side. Doing this should leave you with 4 pieces of mango. Then just dice them into small chunks.

2. Dice the peppers into very small pieces, almost making confetti out of them. If you don't want it too spicy, you can remove the seeds from the pepper. I usually leave them in for an extra bite.

3. Chop the green onions into 1/2 inch pieces, slightly on a bias. I use both the white and green part of the onion, just not the roots and if there are any flimsy tops, I don't use those either.

4. Chop the cilantro as fine as you can. Then add the mango, peppers, green onions, and cilantro to a bowl.

5. Zest the lime and add to the mixture. Then squeeze one half the lime onto the mango mixture. Then taste the mixture. If it is to your liking, you can consume it just like this. If not, you can add a little salt or more lime juice to bring out more flavor and some chili and cayenne to kick up the spice. I use a little of all of them for my taste.

6. Enjoy on tacos (like my Ancho Turkey Tacos), burritos or your favorite Mexican dish or with baked chips or sweet potato tortilla chips or even veggies.

Nutrition Information per serving from Myfitnesspal.com
Spicy Mango Salsa - 38 Calories, 0g. fat, 10g. carbs, 1g. protein