“It’s been hell. When I went to city council I said, ‘I should have paid attention to my mother and married a rich man.’ I didn’t know making tacos would be so difficult.” ~ Maria Corbalan, Austin Texas entrepreneur and owner of Taco Xpress

Making tacos at home doesn’t have to be difficult and, if you ask the kids, they’re even fun. Think outside the shell, and you can even divest the refrigerator of a few leftovers, as we did a few days ago. Including a bean dish means it can be a nutritious Meatless Monday option. Tacos are what we make them!

The number of options you offer on your taco bar will vary by the number of people you have participating (the more the merrier!), but everyone who is old enough to build their own taco is old enough to help assemble the feast.

Last week, our table held mashed sweet potatoes, some Texas Caviar, chopped black olives, shredded lettuce, and some leftover seitan (Chinese wheat meat). The combination of sweet, sour, salty, and bitter makes the taco especially satisfying. While some enjoy the crunchy corn tortilla shells, it is also good to provide soft flour tortillas, or the option to simply create a tortilla-free salad.

A long time ago, before salsas came to dominate grocery store shelf space, we enjoyed thick, smooth taco sauces. Sometimes we get a little nostalgic for it, but the selections are limited, so we turned to our own resources and came away pleased. Who would have thought it could be this easy and, in the end, significantly less expensive?

Old Fashioned Taco Sauce
Makes about 1 ½ cups
Time: 3 minutes

1 (15-ounce) can tomato sauce
1 tablespoon taco seasoning mix, prepackaged
OR from page 110 in the Mosaic Meals cookbook
Cayenne or ground chipotle pepper to taste ( ¼ teaspoon makes it hot)

Stir the taco seasoning mix into the tomato sauce, then taste and add pepper to suit your preferences. Allow to rest at least 15 minutes before using so that the onions and garlic in the seasoning mix have time to rehydrate. If it isn’t thick enough to suit you (brands of sauces thicken differently), pour it into a saucepan and heat to simmer for a few minutes. The cornstarch in the seasoning mix will thicken it significantly.

Add some atmosphere to your taco party with a selection of music on instruments of ancient Mexico by Martin Espino.