Double Decker Tacos

Schmambs needed ideas on what to make for dinner.  "Tacos!" I said.  She said she needed something that hubby could take to work and eat for lunch.  "Taco Bake!"  My mind had one track, and that track was tacos.  I was struck by the craving the other night when trying to figure out what to eat.  Instead of fulfilling the craving, I opted to go somewhere that had a drive-thru.  Lame for settling, I know.  I think Schmambs got the message because she suggested double decker tacos and asked if I wanted to go over for dinner.  I figured if she was planning on making tacos, then it was an invitation I couldn't refuse.

Tacos are pretty easy.  Most pre-packed/pre-mixed taco seasoning packets have directions on how to make the taco meat.  Use one packet of seasoning per pound of meat.  We used ground beef, although you can always substitute ground turkey or ground chicken.  The first step is to brown the beef.

    

The next step is to drain the oil from the beef.  In the midst of chit chatting, entertaining a six year old, and trying to get everything prepared and ready for dinner, we forgot to drain the beef before adding the other ingredients.  Oops.  So we added Ortega Taco Seasoning and 3/4 Cup of water for each packet of taco seasoning (we used two packets) to the meat.  But it wasn't that bad!  See!

    

Now that the meat was taken care of, it was time to prepare the shells.  The best shells, in my opinion, for the double decker taco is Old El Paso Stand 'n Stuff Taco Shells because it gives you more shell to wrap the tortilla around.  Plus it stands.  Enough said.

               

Obviously in order to have the tortilla stick to the crunchy taco shell, it needs an adhesive.  In this case, it's beans and cheese.  Schmambs choose to use Ortega Refried Beans.  I'd show you a picture of the actual beans, but it kind of looks like mush and I want to make you hungry, not lose your appetite, so I've included a picture of the can.  Look at how pretty the beans look in the picture on the can!  Once the beans have been heated up and spread evenly over the flour tortilla, Schmambs sprinkled some cheese over the beans to provide an extra layer of adhesive.  Pop it in the oven for a few minutes until the cheese is melty.  Then you stick the crunchy taco shell in the middle of it all to make the double decker.  And since the Old El Paso Stand 'n Stuff Taco Shells have more shell to them, there's more room for the yummu fillings that make a taco a taco.

    

Schmambs had chopped up some lettuce before I arrived.  She used romaine which give it a nice crunch (aside from the crunchy taco shell).  She had also diced up some tomatoes which is one of my favorite parts of the taco!  So much so, that Schmambs' hubby caught me methodically adding tomatoes to strategic areas of my taco so that I could get a piece in every bite.  To top everything off, there was sour cream.  

    

Usually Schmambs would have guacamole kicked up a notch with Tabasco brand Chipotle Pepper Sauce, however, the avocados weren't ripe and she was fresh out of Chipotle Pepper sauce.  Didn't matter since everything was absolutely delish.  Unfortunately, because of the beans and the cheese and the tortillas being slightly bigger than the crunchy taco shells, I had to assist in keeping the final product together to get the final picture.