Lighten up nachos.........the opposite of the truth

I lied. I am being honest with you when I say I fibbed. I told you I would lay off the Mexican thing......well, not quite. In my defence this is probably about as Mexican as I am, but there are tortillas, spice, lime and more than a passing resemblance to nachos. Only much much better....

Lighten up Nachos (from that well known suburb of Mexico City, Ellerslie, 11,500 miles to the south)

Firstly bake off some fresh corn tortillas to make your nacho chips. You can use packet ones of course, but I buy big packs of fresh corn tortillas and keep them in the freezer. Simpy defrost if needed, brush very lightly with vegetable oil, and cut into triangles (no protractor required, an approximation is fine). Bake on an oven tray for 10 mins or so at 170C until crispy.

I use lean sirloin steaks for my nachos rather than mince, which I brush lightly with oil, and sprinkle  with some of the following spice mix

2 tsp ground cumin
2 tsp chilli flakes
1 tsp cayenne pepper
2 tsp paprika
1 tsp oregano
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp sea salt
½ tsp black pepper
Pinch cinnamon

Mix together, and store in an airtight tin or jar. I use this in place of the brought Mexican spice mixtures, which tend to contain a lot of salt (and sometimes strange unpronouncable things and numbers....) You can add more or less of any of the spices to taste, so if you like more chilli go for it.

Griddle the steaks, then leave to rest for five minutes or so while you assemble your supper. Spread the corn chips on a plate or in a shallow bowl, sprinkle on some lettuce and/or rocket leaves, sliced spring onion (soak in a squeeze of lime juice for 10 minutes to soften up if you like) , cherry tomatoes and spring onions.
Slice you steaks thinly on the diagonal and scatter on top. Over that drizzle some sour cream or cream fraiche into which you have beaten a couple of tiny drops of sesame oil and soya sauce, and a pinch of cayenne pepper. You can also add some sesame seeds if you have them . I know it sounds weird but it tastes good. If you cant be bothered plain sour cream would be just fine also.
A scatter of Parmesan cheese flakes (I know, Mexico city by way of Asia with a quick trip to Italy, don't say I don't take you places with food.......) and a wedge or two of lime  finishes things off nicely.

This is filling yet light, and really full of flavour. Plus it looks pretty, which is always a bonus.

 
After all that savoury can I tempt you with sweet?  Clever wee Pease Pudding (a great blog full of fabbo recipes) is starting up The Afternoon Tea Club, her first event, a beautiful high tea,  is on Sunday 12 December, check out the link. If her strawberry donuts are anything to go by it will be rather divine indeed!
 

 
I thought I would share a photo of my biggest fan, Pru. Actually she treats me mostly with disdain, saving her affections for the man of the house. But when I am in the kitchen she knows there may be a tidbit or four coming her way (I vainly try to bribe my way into her affections, with little success thus far) so she stands patiently behind me. A couple of time I have actually stepped back and fallen over her (this could explain the disdain?) but for the most part she manages to avoid my tootsies.
 
As you can see, no one in my house is underfed......