Christmas in July – Homemade Taco Seasoning
For my second gift idea this week, I went with a simple gift. Remember those crockpot chicken tacos I made last summer? With the homemade taco seasoning? Hubby and I love that taco seasoning. We use it anywhere you would normally use a packet of store-bought taco seasoning. We love it so much we thought it would be great to share with our family and friends.
So we mixed up a VERY large batch of the seasoning. I ordered some cute little jars and again put labels on them including instructions of how to make the taco seasoning when people ran out. I saved the label files if anyone is interested in them. Just shoot me an email.
One Year Ago: Monkey Bread and Boston Cupcake Crawl
Two Years Ago: Tomatoes stuffed with Salmon Dill Dip
Homemade Taco Seasoning
Yield: 2 1/2 Tbsp is equal to one packet from the store
Ingredients:
3 Tbsp chili powder
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp dried onion flakes
3/4 tsp garlic powder
3/4 tsp oregano
1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp paprika
1 1/2 Tbsp cumin
2 1/2 tsp kosher salt
1 Tbsp black pepper
Directions:
Mix it all together! The mix can be stored in an airtight container for up to a year!
Recipe from Sweet Life Kitchen









I am Jen the Beantown Baker. Engineer by day and baking maven by night. Hubby serves as my #1 fan and official taste tester. We got hitched back in 2006. Barefoot. In the sand. With the waves crashing behind us. It was one of the best decisions we’ve ever made. 






I love this!
http://www.simplysweeter.blogspot.com
Fantastic idea, I will have to give this a go x
What a great idea! Now I just have to think of what to pair this with to give as gifts.
Hi Jen,
Great minds think alike!! I have been brewing vanilla extract for months for Christmas gifts.
I thought I’d answer your question here. I love your idea for frosting. It would be heavenly!
Laura
What? You can just add more vodka to your supply? I had no idea! I just used the last of my homemade vanilla, and it was soooo deliciously dark 🙂 Now that I know that, I’ll have to remember when I make my next batch! Do you have a favourite type of bean? I used Tahitian the last time, and it didn’t have that “normal” vanilla scent to it… I’ll have to find which beans give that traditional scent (though, really… any vanilla works for me!)
This is definitely on my gift giving list.
I received homemade vanilla once and it is still one of my favorite gifts.
I have always wanted to try this!! My brother did it once but that was before I was into cooking and I totally didn’t appreciate it. I would now! Thanks!
I think it’s the perfect idea for a gift and never even thought of making it myself. Of course, if I do end up making it, I’ll probably just end up using it all before I give it away! 🙂
how many beans did you put in the vodka bottles to start?.. love the idea.. Thanks
jmanley – I put 24 beans in each bottle of vodka. They were the big bottles of vodka. As you can see in the pictures, I used skyy, which is great, but I couldn’t watch the color of my vanilla change! Definitely try to get clear bottles or pour the vodka into a clear jar so you can tell when it’s ready.
thanks for the quick response.
Love your website:)
what type of vanilla bean did you use – does it matter?
KV – The type of bean you use will have an impact on the flavor. I used Bourbon-Madagascar beans for my vanilla.