Servings: 6 Prep: 1 min Cook: 20 mins Total: 21 mins

A really common question is, “What to do in place of a tortilla?” One obvious answer is Mama Lupe’s tortillas. And, while these are great, tasty and obviously fit the bill, they are also made of wheat products and qualify as a processed food. I’ve got a decent cheddar cracker which does a solid job of replacing the taste and texture of a wheat based cracker, but without grains! This tends to fill the void for some. For others, there’s always the old, “Wrap it in a leaf!” Baby romaine leaves, leaves of Bibb lettuce, iceberg lettuce and even cabbage all make for nice handy little holders for your taco fixin’s. Again, this answer doesn’t satisfy those that pine for the CRUNCH of a crispity taco shell.

For you, I offer this cheddar based taco shell!

These shells can be a bit fussy to make and hot oil tends to get everywhere, but they are also a lot of fun to make! They’re delicious and quite toothsome, to boot! The crunch isn’t quite is quick-to-crisp, as a baked or fried corn tortilla taco shell, but … come on … let’s be realistic, here. This is a taco shell made ENTIRELY out of fried cheese!

Is this REALLY that much of a sacrifice? *wink*

Serving Size Note: 2 lbs of cheese should make about 12 shells, depending on thickness and size.

Nutrition Information: I don’t really know how to calculate this. Easily half of the fat (and calories) are rendered from the cheese and poured off. These are not as calorically dense as the nutrition information will have you believe.

Ingredient Calories Fat Protein Carbs SA’s Fiber Net Carbs 2 lb (908g) cheddar cheese, grated 3609.7 297.4 224 11 0 0 11 Grand Totals (of 6 servings): 3609.7 297.4 224 11 0 0 11 Totals Per Serving: 601.6 49.6 37.3 1.8 0 0 1.8 g

Cheddar Taco Shells 5 from 2 votes Print Prep Time: 1 minute Cook Time: 20 minutes Total Time: 21 minutes Servings: 6 Servings Author: DJ Foodie Ingredients 2 lb cheddar cheese grated Instructions Take a large pot and place it on the counter top, with a thick wooden spoon forming a bridge through the center of the open space. You will eventually hang your melted cheese on this "spoon bridge". (I have a really thick handled wooden spoon, which is also somewhat flat. This works PERFECT, in that it's about 3/4-inch wide and forms taco shells with flat bottoms. They stand up on their own!)

Heat a small to medium sized non-stick sauté pan over medium heat.

Evenly sprinkle your grated cheese around the base of the pan. Continue to cook over low-medium heat. The cheese will melt and melt together. It will eventually begin to fry and darken. Once the cheese has a firm "crispy" look to it, but before it burns, pry it out with a heat resistant plastic spatula and IMMEDIATELY drape it over your spoon and quickly adjust it so that equal portions of the cheese are hanging down both sides of the spoon. Be VERY careful as the pan also likely contains a lot of hot oil. Let this oil drip into the pot (and not on yourself).

Allow it to rest for a few minutes, or until it's sufficiently chilled.

Repeat the process to make more taco shells.

Enjoy!

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