Taquito Double Take

You've no doubt heard the saying, "Why reinvent the wheel?" but I've never been a real strong follower of this adage.  The wheel, of course, is mainly for function (unless you're a teenage boy, then it is apparently a status symbol of utmost importance, or so my friends who parent them say,) so sure, you might as well stick with what works.  So many other things, however, cry out to be reinvented, if for no other reason than it's fun!  That's my only explanation for why I've redecorated my living room no less than 6 times in the last 8 years, why I rarely wear the same outfit twice to the same place, and why I subject my family to a new recipe (or 3) almost every night of the week.  Of course, some things are so great that they don't really need much improvement and any reinvention is simply for variety, not necessity. Such is the case with this taquito recipe.  You may recognize it from my previous steak taquitos post, because it's very similar, except this one uses chicken and has an awesome dipping sauce to go with it!  This is slightly spicier, with the addition of a serrano pepper, but that could easily be excluded.  I've seen similar recipes that are called flautas instead, so I did some googling to figure out which was the correct term for a filled, rolled, and baked flour tortilla.  I got more answers than there are recipes for it, so I'm sticking with taquito because I like the way it rolls off the tongue - almost as much as I like the way it tastes on it!

Chicken Taquitos with Avocado Crema

Prep time: 20 min   Bake time: 15 min
Makes 10

Taquitos
12 oz shredded cooked chicken
1/2 cup shredded jack cheese
1/2 cup shredded cheddar
1/2 cup corn kernels
2 green onions, sliced
4 minced cloves garlic, divided
1/3 cup salsa
1 tsp cumin
1 Tbs lime juice
1 tsp salt
1 serrano pepper, seeded and minced
1 (6 oz) container plain or Greek yogurt
10 small flour tortillas
1/4 cup oil

Sprinkling
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp dried cilantro
1/2 tsp chili powder

Avocado Crema
1 avocado, mashed
1 (6 oz) container plain or Greek yogurt
1 Tbs lime juice
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp chile powder

Preheat oven to 400. Combine the chicken, cheese, corn, green onions, 2 minced garlic cloves, salsa, cumin, lime juice, salt, pepper, and yogurt.

Heat 1/4 cup oil and two minced garlic cloves in a small saucepan over medium heat. When the oil is hot, turn off the heat and let the garlic infuse into the oil for 5-10 minutes. Assemble the tortillas by adding about 2 Tbs of the filling along the lower third of the tortillas -- feel free to sprinkle with a bit more cheese on top if you like it extra cheesy! Roll up and place seam-side-down on a baking sheet lined with parchment or a Silpat.

Brush the taquitos with the garlic oil and sprinkle with salt, dried cilantro, and chipotle chile powder. Bake for 10-15 minutes, flipping over halfway through cooking so both sides are able to brown and crisp.

While the taquitos bake, combine the avocado crema ingredients in a small bowl.

Approximately 300 calories for one taquito with sauce.