[1] Homemade hard taco shells with gourmet fillings, at ABC Cocina in New York City (photo © ABC Cocina).

[2] (photos #2 and #3 and video © Laura Fuentes | Momables).

[3] You can pack lots of filling with this broader shape.

[4] Corn tortillas (photo © Mex Grocer).

[5] Fusion food: sashimi tacos! Here’s the recipe (photo © Haru | RA Sushi).

[6] Ice cream tacos for dessert. Here’s the recipe (photo © Taste Of Home).

It’s National Taco Day, October 4th, and it coincides with Taco Tuesday! (Plus, January 25th is National Fish Taco Day and March 21st is National Crunchy Taco Day.)

Here’s how to make crunchy taco shells. It couldn’t be easier, and there’s just no comparison in flavor between the packaged hard taco shells and freshly-made home shells.

Laura Fuentes of MOMables has created an easy way to turn flat corn tortillas into hard, crunchy taco shells. Her shells have two added benefits:

 
> The history of tacos and Taco Tuesday.

> Hard tacos vs. soft tacos.

> There are 20+ more taco recipes below.
 
 
RECIPE: BAKED HARD TACO SHELLS

Note that you must use corn tortillas; flour tortillas don’t work.
 
Ingredients

 
Preparation

You can see the process in the video below.

1. LINE the bottom of the oven with foil to catch drippings. Place one oven rack in the middle position of the oven and one rack on the bottom. Make sure that there is at least 4” of room between the two racks.

2. PREHEAT the oven to 375°F.

3. MICROWAVE 4 corn tortillas in the microwave for 15 to 20 seconds to make them pliable. Transfer them onto a baking sheet and repeat the process with the remaining tortillas.

4. SPRAY both sides of the tortillas with cooking spray.

5. PULL the oven racks out, one at a time, and using tongs, drape each tortilla over two bars of the oven rack. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes until the tortillas are golden and crispy. Carefully remove them from the oven onto a clean baking sheet. You’re ready to fill and serve.
 
 
21 MORE TACO RECIPES: TRADITIONAL & CREATIVE

 
Plus, For Dessert:

 
 
 
 

Video: How to make crispy taco shells.

Love smoothies? October 3rd is Global Smoothie Day, A beverage of fruit and yogurt with the consistency of a milkshake, but much healthier.

While the first smoothies marketed in the U.S. were combinations of fruit and fruit juice, yogurt was later added to the recipe. The concentration of calcium and beneficial bacteria in the yogurt, blended with the fiber and vitamins in the fruit, creates a guilt-free snack.

Wheat germ, grains*, and other nutrients can be added. But for a starter recipe, just blend 1/2 cup of diced fruit with 3/4 cup of yogurt and 1 cup of milk.

National Smoothie Day is June 21st.

> The different types of yogurt.
 
 
THE HISTORY OF SMOOTHIES

The smoothies that are popular in the U.S. today, made with yogurt and fruit, are an American invention, although they are an evolution of puréed fruit beverages that date back centuries.

Mediterranean and Eastern cultures have long served pureed fruit drinks. The concept jumped from there to South America, where it became a type of “fruit slush,” with juice and fruit puréed with ice.
 
Smoothies In America

The concept of what became known as the smoothie first appeared around the 1930s when health food stores on the West Coast began adapting Brazilian recipes for puréed fruit drinks [source].

With the invention of the blender and affordable home refrigerators in the 1920s and 1930s, many American households could now enjoy blended drinks at home.

 
These blended fruit drinks took another leap forward in the 1960s, thanks to hippies seeking healthier foods. Some got the idea to add yogurt—then sold in its original, plain form, as a health food—to the fruit and juice mix. They referred to the drinks as smoothies.

But “smoothie” was not yet a nationally-known term.

In 1970 a lactose intolerant man named Steven Kuhnau began to make shakes from fresh fruit, fruit juice, nutrients, and ice. In 1973 he opened a health food store, naming his business after the drink he had heard from hippies: “The Smoothie King.” In 2018, the company opened its 1001st store.

Prior to Kuhnau’s “Smoothie King,” the term “smoothie” was used beyond beverages, to describe everything from bras and girdles, to ballpoint pens and car paint. There was even a band named “The Smoothies” [source]. (The original brand folded in 1960, and now there’s at least one other with the name.)

Today, you’ll find smoothies in non-fruit flavors (chocolate, peanut butter, vanilla); but they mostly include crushed ice, frozen fruit, and a sweetener (like the Brazilian “fruit slush”); and often contain yogurt or milk.

As soon as a newly fashionable ingredient comes along—chia, hemp seeds, matcha, nondairy milk, etc.—you’re bound to find it in a smoothie near you.
 
 
SMOOTHIE RECIPES

[1] Blood orange smoothie. Here’s the recipe (photo © Wife Mama Foodie).

[2] Beet smoothie and orange (photo © Beetology).

[3] Red, white and blue smoothie (photo © Crazy Richard’s Peanut Butter).

[4] Blueberry mango smoothie. Here’s the recipe (photo © Blueberry Council).

*Oats, millet, and quinoa, among other grains, add a protein punch as well as fiber to smoothies. They also add more creaminess.

[1] Pork ragù over polenta (photos #1, #2, #4, and #5 © DeLallo).

[2] Ingredients for the recipe.

Pork Shoulder[/caption]
[3] Pork shoulder, also known as Boston butt (photo courtesy Food Nutrition Table).

[4] Instant polenta is ready in 5 minutes‡‡. You can buy it online from DeLallo.

[5] These San Marzano tomatoes sold by DeLallo are imported. You can also find domestic brands.

In this recipe from DeLallo, the ragù is served Italian-style, atop polenta. But you can use it over pasta, rice, or other grains; and for a great brunch, serve it over scrambled eggs.
 
 
WHAT’S A RAGÙ?

A ragù (rah-GOO) is a meat-based sauce. The Italian word derives from the French ragoût, from the verb ragoûter, “to revive the taste.”

Ragù can be made with any meat or game, but it’s especially good for the less expensive tough cuts that can be made soft and silky with a few hours of simmering.

A ragù is usually made by adding meat to a soffritto*, a mixture of chopped onions, celery, carrots, and seasonings (garlic and fresh herbs such as parsley or sage), that is partially fried in olive oil.

(Soffritto is the progenitor of the French concept of the mirepoix‡.)

The vegetables are then simmered for a long time with tomato sauce. Two famous Italian ragùs for pasta:

 
For National Pork Month, October, we made this Polenta & Pork Ragù recipe for Sunday dinner.
 
 
> Pork cuts and pork products glossary.

> Another recipe: Wild Boar Ragù With Pappardelle.

> Turn leftovers into a ragoût stew.
 
 
RECIPE: POLENTA WITH PORK RAGÙ

In this recipe, a tough pork shoulder is transformed into delicious, fall-apart goodness with a silky sauce.

Prep time is 10 minutes, cook time is 3 hours 35 minutes.

We added a sprinkle of fresh herbs because herbs fresh always add a lovely layer of flavor.
 
Ingredients

 
Preparation

1. SEASON the pork with salt and pepper. Heat the oil in a large heavy pot over medium heat. Cook the pork, turning often until evenly browned, 10-12 minutes. Transfer to a platter and pour off the drippings.

2. ADD the onion and garlic to the pot and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is starting to brown and caramelize, 12-15 minutes. Add the tomato paste and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5-8 minutes.

3. ADD the wine and cook, scraping up any browned bits, until the liquid is reduced by half, 5-8 minutes.

4. ADD the tomatoes, crushing them with your hands as you go. Then add the basil, oregano, and bay leaves. Stir in 2 cups of water. Add the pork with any juices accumulated on the platter, and season with salt and pepper.
 
5. BRING the liquid to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer, covered, until the pork is falling apart tender, the sauce is thickened, and the flavors have melded, 2½ to 3 hours.

6. USING 2 forks, break up the pork into pieces. Taste and season with salt and pepper. Meanwhile…

7. COOK the polenta according to package instructions. Stir in the butter and cheese.

8. SPOON the polenta into bowls and top with the pork and sauce. Sprinkle with the herbs, or pass a ramekin of snipped herbs so people can add their own.

*Soffritto is sometimes called battuto in Italian, and usually refers to the uncooked mix of vegetables. It’s different from the Spanish sofrito, which may include garlic, bell peppers, tomato paste (or tomato sauce), and spices.

†Mirepoix is a mix of aromatics, made from finely diced vegetables. The mix of vegetables can vary by country. The vegetables are cooked in butter or oil, cooked low and slow to sweeten the ingredients rather than caramelizing them with faster, high heat cooking. These slow-cooked aromatic vegetables form the first layer of flavor in many recipes.

‡For herbs, rosemary, sage, and thyme are classic pork pairings. But you can use basil or parsley if that’s what you have on hand.

‡‡Instant polenta is more finely ground and therefore cooks in as little as five minutes (as opposed to regular polenta which requires at least 40 minutes cooking time). Instant polenta is often less textural and, depending on the brand, can have less flavor when cooked.
 
 

October 1st is National Pumpkin Spice Day. What is pumpkin spice? It’s a blend of ground cinnamon, clove, ginger, nutmeg, and sometimes allspice (photo #2). It was first used as a seasoning for pumpkin pie.

While for many years the baker of a pumpkin pie measured each particular spice from its jar, enough pies were being baked to warrant a blend.

While “pumpkin pie spice” is mentioned in cookbooks dating to the 1890s, blended pumpkin pie spice was introduced commercially by McCormick & Company in 1934 [source].

The blend eliminated the need to measure four or five ingredients separately…and to make sure that you had those ingredients on hand.

There are additional pumpkin spice recipes below.
 
 
WHAT DID THE FIRST BAKERS OF PUMPKIN PIE USE?

Pumpkin is an American fruit, pie knowledge came to America with the Pilgrims, who put the two together.

An early “pompkin” pie recipe used a spice mix of ginger, mace, and nutmeg. Here are two recipes from the first known published American cookbook, American Cookery, by Amelia Simmons, published in 1796:

Pompkin

No. 2. One quart of milk, 1 pint pompkin, 4 eggs, molasses, allspice and ginger in a crust, bake 1 hour.
 
 
RECIPE: PUMPKIN PIE SPICE BLEND

Says The Spice House: “Some people prefer to make their own pumpkin pie spice so they can tweak the measurements and create a flavor that’s unique and perfectly crafted for a certain recipe. You can make your own pumpkin pie spice and store it in a sealed jar for up to 6 months to use whenever you please.”

It can be used in recipes both savory and sweet.

To make ¼ cup of pumpkin spice, start with these measurements:

 
Then, after you’ve made your cookies, crème brûlée or pudding, grains, granola bars, ice cream, latte, muffins, nut mix, oatmeal, pie, pancakes or waffles, ravioli, smoothie, soup, or stew…you can decide if you’d like less cinnamon, more ginger, whatever.
 
 
PUMPKIN SPICE BECOMES A “THING”

While fall always meant that food producers would present seasonally spiced goods, pumpkin spice as a “thing” owes its thanks to Starbucks’ Pumpkin Spice Latte, which debuted to fanfare in January 2003. Suddenly, a good number of Americans were rabid fans of the “PSL,” as they nicknamed it.

It became Starbucks’ most popular seasonal beverage [source]. Here’s the detailed history of the creation of the PSL.

Was it the cinnamon perfume in a steaming hot coffee beverage topped with whipped cream…or the spiced sugar syrup that made it so addictively good (rhetorical question)?

Seeing Starbucks’ success, product lines that did not previously have a fall pumpkin flavor—everything from Kit Kat Bars to Goldfish Crackers (photo #4) to Chobani Greek Yogurt—got on the bandwagon.

While some brewers had traditionally produced a pumpkin ale or beer for the fall-winter season, other beverage producers realized they had been missing out on pumpkin-spiced drinks.

Today you can find:

[1] First there was pumpkin pie. Here’s a sophisticated version from Bien Cuit Bakery in Brooklyn photo © Bien Cuit).

[2] Then came blended pumpkin spice (photo © The Spice House).

[3] And then, the PSL, Starbucks Pumpkin Spice Latte (photo © ).

[4] Even Goldfish Crackers get into the act (photo © Pepperidge Farm).

And that, ladies and gents, is why you can’t turn in any direction in a supermarket without bumping into a pumpkin spice special for the season.
 
 
MORE PUMPKIN SPICE RECIPES

Summer may be over, but Baileys is keeping s’mores alive with its new Baileys S’mores Limited Edition Irish Cream Liqueur.

For a sweet break, we’ve always turned to Baileys Original Irish Cream or one of the other flavors:

 
Sipping just one shot glass of Baileys is the perfect little indulgence.
 
 
BAILEYS S’MORES, A LIMITED EDITION

According to Baileys, the new flavor “blends the nostalgic flavors of toasted marshmallows and sweet graham crackers with a chocolate finish for the whole s’mores taste experience.”

We didn’t get much graham cracker flavor (we detected a hint of nuttiness more than graham cracker).

But the chocolate and marshmallow flavors are so lovely that we didn’t miss the grahams.

While the new liqueur is heavenly just sipping from a glass, you can of course mix it into cocktails (there are many on the brand’s website). Think of it in a White Russian instead of the cream!

But also try it:

 
 
S’MORES SKILLET KIT

Baileys has partnered with the Los Angeles-based artisan s’mores bakeshop, S’moreology, to create created a S’mores Skillet Kit, perfect for gifting or for your own fall gatherings (photo # 3).

The kit includes all of the ingredients to bake a melty, hot s’mores dip including:

 
The kit is available now at Goldbelly, while supplies last.
 
 
> The history of Baileys Irish Cream Liqueur.

> The history of s’mores.

[1] Baileys S’mores is delicious by itself, or added into your favorite beverages (all photos © Baileys | Diageo).

[2] Dessert: Baileys over ice cream or pudding, as shown here..

[3] The skillet set from Baileys and Smoreology, available at Goldbelly.