Cinco de Mayo

Yesterday was Cinco de Mayo in case you didn't know. Of course this is not a very typical holiday for us to celebrate, but Drew loves Mexican food and wanted an excuse to make and eat it, and we always love to have friends over so we decided we would have a Cinco de Mayo party. The food was delicious and the company was even better. We had a few very serious rounds of guesstures (If you don't know about this game yet you have got to get it!!) and the girls won every round so for me the night ended with a bang! Here are some pictures and recipes from the party.
Darcy and I all dressed up in our Mexican garb. We tried to come up with a costume for Drew but he didn't have any frilly blouses and none of mine fit ,(...well he wouldn't even try them on) so he didn't dress up at all.
Rich and Brittany brought this delicioso dip! Here is the recipe:

1 8 oz package cream cheese
1 can chili without beans
cheddar cheese, grated

Spread cream cheese in bottom of 9 by 13 pan. Pour and spread chili evenly over top. put grated cheddar cheese on the top and bake at 350 until cheese is melted. Serve with tortilla chips.
We also had these quesadillas that were better than average because at the store they were out of regular flour tortillas and I had to buy sun dried tomato tortillas. Has anyone tried them? They are delish! I want to use those tortillas for everything now.
Drew made the main course which was absolutely magnifico! Seriously! He made chicken and beef tacos on these mini tortillas which he grilled in a frying pan so they were perfectly crispy. You can also see in the picture that he thought we needed radishes because they always have them at the taco wagons. I'm not a fan. Here is the recipe for his taco meat (He used the same spices for the beef but didn't measure them and he added brown sugar which was genius!):

Ingredients:
1 1/2lbs. boneless, skinless chicken thighs ( about 4-5 )
4 cups water
1 teas. salt
1/3 teas. pepper
1/2 teas. garlic powder
1 teas. onion powder
2 teas. chili powder
1 teas. dry oregano
1/4 teas. cumin powder

Thoroughly wash your chicken and then simply add all of the ingredients to a medium to large skillet, or, sauce pan big enough to hold everything. Bring it to a boil and boil for about 10 minutes. Reduce heat to low to medium low and simmer for about 30 minutes with the lid cracked. You’re looking for a nice little bubble.

After about 40 minutes, most but not all of the liquid should have evaporated and the chicken should be falling apart when poked with a spoon or spatula. Go ahead and shred it with your spatula or spoon and remove from heat to cool slightly. It’s ready for tacos.

We added cheese, lots of cilantro, tomatoes, sour cream, and lime juice. They honestly were soo good!
This was our homemade horchata. It turned out really awesome if I do say so myself. Here's the recipe:

Ingredients

* 1 cup uncooked white long-grain rice
* 5 cups water
* 1/2 cup milk
* 1/2 tablespoon vanilla extract
* 1/2 tablespoon ground cinnamon
* 2/3 cup white sugar

Directions

1. Pour the rice and water into the bowl of a blender; blend until the rice just begins to break up, about 1 minute. Let rice and water stand at room temperature for a minimum of 3 hours.
2. Strain the rice water into a pitcher and discard the rice. Stir the milk, vanilla, cinnamon, and sugar into the rice water. Chill and stir before serving over ice. Yield: 6 cups.
Our friends Ben and Kelly brought the desert. It was the perfect ending to a fabulous Mexican meal! Tres Leche Cake! YUMMO! Here's the recipe:

Ingredients
For the cake:

* Vegetable oil
* 6 3/4 ounces cake flour, plus extra for pan
* 1 teaspoon baking powder
* 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
* 4 ounces unsalted butter, room temperature
* 8 ounces sugar
* 5 whole eggs
* 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

For the glaze:

* 1 (12-ounce) can evaporated milk
* 1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
* 1 cup half-and-half

For the topping:

* 2 cups heavy cream
* 8 ounces sugar
* 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the cake:
Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly oil and flour a 13 by 9-inch metal pan and set aside.

Whisk together the cake flour, baking powder and salt in a medium mixing bowl and set aside.

Place the butter into the bowl of a stand mixer. Using the paddle attachment, beat on medium speed until fluffy, approximately 1 minute. Decrease the speed to low and with the mixer still running, gradually add the sugar over 1 minute. Stop to scrape down the sides of the bowl, if necessary. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, and mix to thoroughly combine. Add the vanilla extract and mix to combine. Add the flour mixture to the batter in 3 batches and mix just until combined. Transfer the batter to the prepared pan and spread evenly. This will appear to be a very small amount of batter. Bake on the middle rack of the oven for 20 to 25 minutes or until the cake is lightly golden and reaches an internal temperature of 200 degrees F.

Remove the cake pan to a cooling rack and allow to cool for 30 minutes. Poke the top of the cake all over with a skewer or fork. Allow the cake to cool completely and then prepare the glaze.

For the glaze:

Whisk together the evaporated milk, sweetened condensed milk and the half-and-half in a 1-quart measuring cup. Once combined, pour the glaze over the cake. Refrigerate the cake overnight.

Topping:

Place the heavy cream, sugar and vanilla into the bowl of a stand mixer. Using the whisk attachment, whisk together on low until stiff peaks are formed. Change to medium speed and whisk until thick. Spread the topping over the cake and allow to chill in the refrigerator until ready to serve.
I wanted to make little sombreros on toothpicks to put in the drinks, but they ended up being a lot more work than I wanted to put in for such a pointless thing. Drew helped me with the design. :)