Barbacoa Beef

Matt & I love Chipotle, maybe a little too much, we were very sad when we discovered how many calories were in our favorite burritos. I won't tell you how many but if you want to calculate your meal click here. I figured if we could make our food at home we could sub in low fat sour cream & cheese that would help. After a little searching I found the recipe for the beef. It has quite a few specialized ingredients but it could become your favorite! Serve on a salad, in a burrito or in tacos with all the fixings.

4 guijillo chiles

2 teaspoons cumin seeds

1 teaspoon ground cloves

10 allspice berries

1/3 cup Mexican oregano

12 sprigs fresh thyme

6 garlic cloves

1 Spanish onion, roughly chopped

1/3 cup cider vinegar

1 (6 to 8-pound) beef roast

Salt and pepper

1 (2-pound) package dried avocado leaves

Large tortilla for wrap, beans, rice and vegetables of your choice.
Instructions:
Toast chiles, cover with boiling water in a deep bowl and set aside for 20 minutes. Grind cumin, cloves, allspice, and oregano in coffee grinder. Drain soaked chiles, puree in blender the chiles, ground spices, thyme, garlic, onion, vinegar, and 1/2 cup of water. Process until smooth. Push mixture through a sieve, season beef with salt and pepper. Rub paste all over the meat. Arrange in a bowl and allow to marinate for 4 hours, refrigerated. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. In a deep roaster pan, scatter half of the avocado leaves on the bottom, place meat on top of the avocado leaves and scatter the remaining leaves over the meat. Cover the pan tightly with aluminum foil. Cook the beef 6 to 7 hours until meat is falling off the bone. If using lamb shoulder cook for 4 hours. Note: Fresh avocado leaves are toxic - they must be dried to be used for cooking.