Taquitos with Chorizo and Potatoes

We had a huge birthday party today at the house for my boyfriend's niece. There were probably close to 100 people here today..I think she invited all her classmates, their parents and family friends. There was so much food but it was funny how my boyfriend and I couldn't eat any of it. I've never really noticed what an important part food plays in gatherings until I went vegan. I did promise myself that I would never bother anyone with having to make a separate dish for me and that I would always bring my own food.

So for the event today I made about 20 taquitos that were served with guacamole and salad. These were so good and the Soyrizo tasted just like the real thing. Not something that I would make on a daily basis because I do hate the fact that you have to fry them. But they do work out great for family gatherings or whenever you just need a comforting meal.

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Ingredients
* 1 pound potatoes
* 4 cloves garlic, chopped
* 1 Tb peanut or vegetable oil
* 1 small onion, diced
* 2 tsp dried Mexican or ordinary oregano
* 1/2 tsp ground cumin
* 2 links Soyrizo sausages
* 2 Tb lime juice
* 1/2 tsp salt or to taste
* Freshly ground black pepper
* 2 Tb finely chopped fresh cilantro
* 12 to 14 corn tortillas
* Vegetable oil, for frying

Directions
1. Clean and scrape any eyes or discoloration from skin of the potatoes, then chop into bite-size chunks. In a large soup pot, combine the chopped potatoes and enough cold water to cover by 3". Cover and bring to a boil over high heat, lower the heat to low, and simmer for 25-30 minute, until the potatoes are extremely tender and easy to mash when pressed with a fork. Turn off the heat, reserve about 1/4 of the potato cooking liquid, and drain the potatoes.

2. Meanwhile, in a large skillet over medium heat, fry the garlic in the peanut oil until the garlic starts to sizzle, about 30 seconds. Stir in the onion and cook for 6-8 minutes, until tender and translucent; stir in the oregano, cumin and Soyrizo, and fry for 5 minutes. Add the drained potatoes, lime juice, salt, and ground pepper, and use a potato masher to mash the potatoes with the vegetables and Soyrizo to completely mix them together. Turn off the heat and stir in 2 Tb of the potato-cooking water and the cilantro. Stir the ingredients well and taste the mixture; adjust the seasoning with more lime juice and salt, if necessary. The potatoes should be very firm but a little moist; if too dry, stir in additional potato cooking water to moisten. Let the potato filling cool just enough to handle but use while still warm.

3. Create a taquito assembly line by first heating a corn tortilla, then filling and rolling it, and finally frying it. First, preheat a cast-iron skillet over medium heat. Take a corn tortilla, place it on the heated griddle for 30 seconds, then flip it over and heat until the tortilla is hot, soft and pliable. It's important to keep the tortillas warm and moist, as they may crack if cooled while rolling the taquitos.

4. To shape a taquito, place about 2 heaping Tb of filling in a line down the center of the hot tortilla, patting the filling all the way to the edges. Over medium heat, fry the taquito in 2 Tb of vegetable oil in a large preheated cast-iron skillet. Place the taquito seam side down in the hot pan; it's important to fry the seam side first, as this will help hold the taquito together as it cooks. Cook on the seam side for about 2 minutes, or until golden and firm, then gently roll over the taquito and cook on the other sides for 1 to 2 minutes each, or until golden. Assemble and repeat with all the taquitos, frying up to 4 at a time. Add another Tb of oil to the pan whenever the taquitos need more browning. Transfer the taquitos to serving plates and eat immediately or to a pan in a 300 F oven and keep warm until ready to serve.