Spicy Ground Beef Nachos

Roughly chop ½ onion. Saute onion in a dollop of oil over medium-high heat for a few minutes. Add 1 lb. ground beef and cook until browned. Drain any fat if you want. Add 2 cloves minced garlic and saute briefly.

Scrape the seeds out of 2 chipotles and mince them. Add chipotles and 1 Tablespoon adobo sauce to the beef.

Add 1 Tablespoon chili powder, 1/2 teaspoon cumin, 1/2 teaspoon salt, freshly cracked pepper, and 1/4 cup water. Simmer for a few minutes but try to keep the beef moist. Taste for seasoning (I added additional salt and cumin to this batch).

Create a single, dense layer of tortilla chips on a sheet pan. You can line the sheet pan with parchment paper for easier cleanup. Add half of the beef mixture and plenty of shredded cheese to the tortilla chips.

Bake at 400F for 5-7 minutes or until cheese is thoroughly melted. Top with your favorite fixings and serve immediately.

If you are making Avocado Salsa Verde, start by rinsing four fresh tomatillos. Roast the tomatillos in the oven at 400F until cooked through and they start to turn army green. Add the roasted tomatillos to a blender along with ½ onion, 1 garlic clove, 10-12 sprigs cilantro, and ½ of a jalapeno pepper. Pulse blend and taste for heat, adding the additional ½ of the jalapeno if you want more heat. Add the avocado to the blender and combine well. Salt to taste.

If you are making Pico de Gallo, start by finely chopping the tomato, ¼ onion, and ½ jalapeno into ¼" sized chunks. Finely dice the cilantro. Combine the tomato, onion, jalapeno and cilantro in a mixing bowl. Add ¼ teaspoon salt and the juice of a ½ lime. Mix together well and taste for seasoning. Add additional salt and lime if necessary.