Safety First

As much as I hate to share, this weekend was not all about me.  Thatboy had a work event for most of the day Saturday.  Which gave Thatbaby and I time to run all of our errands so I wouldn't have anything keeping me from my Mother's Day fun.

Since we were running all over San Diego anyway, we decided to stop by Thatboy's event and say hi.  This weekend he was working with the police department in his area with their safety fair. 

There were some celebrity appearances.  Thatbaby was starstruck.

 

And there were representatives from several law enforcement agencies.  Thatbaby got deputized by the FBI, the police, and the fire department.  He got to sit in an FBI surveillance van and get up close and personal with a firetruck. 

But his run-in with the paddy wagon was perhaps my favorite vehicle of the day.

We didn't get to stay for lunch, there was too much to do, but the smell of fresh tacos permeated the air.  Which gave me an idea for dinner.  Tacos it was!  We do a lot of chicken tacos round these parts, so I thought I would change it up a bit.  Whenever I'm looking for a way to treat pork, Bridget is my go-to source.  Somehow she just gets it.  And this recipe is no different.  The pastor tacos round these parts usually use lamb, but pork is an excellent and easy make at home solution.  And pretty much anything with the addition of pineapple is A-OK in my book!

Tacos al Pastor (From The Way The Cookie Crumbles)

1 pineapple, peeled, cut crosswise into ½-inch-thick rounds
1/2 onion
1/2 cup fresh orange juice
1/4 cup distilled white vinegar
1/4 cup guajillo chile powder
3 garlic cloves, halved
2 teaspoons coarse kosher salt
1 teaspoon dried oregano (preferably Mexican)
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 large or 2 small chipotle chiles and 1 to 2 teaspoons adobo from canned chipotle chiles in adobo
2½-to 3-pounds boneless pork loin, cut into ½-inch slices

1. Puree 2 of the pineapple slices.  Pour into a bowl and refrigerate that and the remaining pineapple. 
2. Coarsely chop the onion half and place in a blender with the orange juice, vinegar, chile powder, garlic, salt, oregano, cumin, and chipotle chiles; puree marinade until smooth.
3. Place the sliced pork in a large resealable plastic bag. Add the marinade and the seal the bag, releasing excess air. Chill at least 4 hours and up to 1 day. About half an hour before the grill is ready, add the reserved pineapple juice to the marinating meat.
4. Heat a grill to medium-high heat. Grill the pineapple slices until warm and slightly charred, 4 to 6 minutes per side.
5. Grill the pork, with some marinade still clinging to it, until it’s slightly charred and cooked through, 2 to 4 minutes per side.
6. Transfer the pineapple and pork to a work surface; chop pineapple into ½-inch cubes, discarding cores.

7. Chop (or shred) the pork. Transfer the pork and pineapple to a platter or serving bowl; toss to combine.