Happy Cinco de Mayo

May 5th, Cinco de Mayo, which commemorates the Mexican army’s 1862 victory over France at the Battle of Puebla during the Franco-Mexican War (1861-1867). A relatively minor holiday in Mexico.  In the United States Cinco de Mayo has evolved into a celebration of Mexican culture and heritage and to celebrate we served Huevos Rancheros Tacos. One of the guests was gluten intolerant so we used a corn tortilla, but if you don’t have that restriction you can use any type of tortilla. Unlike most tacos you may be familiar with, you will need to use a knife and fork because when you break the soft egg yolk it oozes and coats the filling. Prep and cooking time is about 20 minutes and if you are preparing more than four of them it is almost a two person job to assemble them and serve them while they are still hot. Fortunately, I had my loyal assistant Kathy assembling them while I was cooking the dozen eggs. The below recipe serves 4 single tacos or if you have a hungry crowd you can give each person two tacos.  Depending on your preference you can use pico de gallo OR salsa for the tacos.  We used salsa because I didn’t know if our guests wanted onions for breakfast.  Another alternative would be to put both on the table and let the person decide on the pico de gallo or salsa.  You can purchase salsa and pico de gallo at the grocery store or you can make your own.  Below is a recipe for pico de gallo.  As a table centerpiece we placed a pinata on the table.

Ingredients:

• 4  6 inch toritllas
• cooking spray
• 1/2 cup shredded reduced fat 4-cheese Mexican blend cheese
• 1/2 cup black beans, rinsed and drained
• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 4 large eggs
• black pepper to taste (eggs)
• 1/4 cup fresh pico de gallo  OR
• 1/4 cup salsa
• 2 tablespoons Mexican Crema
• 1/2 ripe peeled avocado, chopped
• 1/4 cup fresh cilantro leaves
• 4 lime wedges

Directions:

1. Preheat broiler to high.
2. Arrange the tortillas on a baking sheet
3. Lightly spray the tortillas with cooking spray
4. Broil for two minutes then remove from oven
5. Turn the tortillas over on baking sheet, top each with 2 tablespoons cheese and 2 tablespoons beans.
6. Preheat large non-stick skillet on stove on medium high heat.
7. Return tortillas to oven and broil for one minute or until cheese melts then remove from oven.
8. Add oil to skillet, swirl to coat then crack eggs into skillet.
9. Cook eggs two minutes uncovered then two minutes covered our until eggs are set.
10. Place cooked egg in center of each tortilla and salt and pepper to taste.
11. Top tacos evenly with pico de gallo OR salsa, crema, avocado and cilantro.
12. Serve with a lime wedge.

Pico de Gallo Ingredients: