Shell-Less Tacos

Who says you can't eat tacos when you're trying to eat low carb (at least during the week)?

Last weekend Matt's sister Missy told us how she had been making shell-less tacos, using Romaine lettuce leaves instead of taco shells or tortillas, and I immediately added the idea to my dinners list for this week. I love lettuce cups but have only ever used them for Asian style wraps, and really, why have I never thought of this before?

For background, last night just screamed for Mexican food. I had a busy day at work, Riker was acting like a crazy person who hadn't napped in 3 days (not sure why since he actually did have a good nap at daycare yesterday), Butters was barking at every living and non-living thing and making my ears bleed, and Matt was a bit of a grump since his mountain biking buddy canceled on him for biking today. We were one loud, grumpy family in need of something good for dinner.

Tacos. And a cold beer. Eaten at the bar in front of the TV.

Riker needed to immediately eat and go to sleep, so I fed him spaghetti and put his butt to bed while giving directions to Matt on prep work to be done for the tacos. I have to say, he did a pretty amazing job pulling them together.

In the "tacos":

- Tequila lime shrimp (barely marinated, sauteed in a bit of oil with a splash of the good stuff)
- Cilantro lime slaw (made with a head of "cone cabbage" my mom left here last week, and with the addition of garden jalapenos)
- Chopped tomatoes from the garden
- Avocado (smashed lightly with lime, salt and pepper)
- Shredded cheddar cheese
- Hot sauce

I have to say, the lettuce shells were awesome. They were crunchy and held everything together just fine, and after eating them I did not feel stuffed and bloated the way I normally do after taco night.

The beer was not my idea. Buttt it was just what Matt needed, and when he said he was opening a bottle of the precious Pliny we got in California, I had to have a sip to wash down my tacos. I had just a smidge - it was a Monday after all - but it was just the right amount and the citrusy IPA went perfectly with the tacos. Plus, not eating carby shells left plenty of of room for the more important glass of carby beer, right?

Big bite!

These will definitely be on the dinner menu again.