Nom Nom From The Tonight Show With Conan O’Brien: I Eat Your Choco Taco

Last night’s premier of The Tonight Show with Conaaaan O! Brieeeeeen! had led to some mixed reviews. “Oh he’s not like Leno!” “Oh it was a cheap Letterman impression!” “Oh what is wrong with his face?” etc, etc. The show did, however, give something of a shout out to the long-suffering late night suburban gluttonous Latino demographic by continually using the phrase “choco taco” throughout the night in reference to Supreme Court Justice, Her Realness Sonia Sotomayor.

Writes one dissatisfied blogger:

During his opening monologue, after showing a doctored video of Vice President Biden asking Supreme Court Justice-designate Sonia Sotomayor if she had any Mexican food with her, O’Brien engaged in an off-the-cuff exchange with announcer Andy Richter about Choco-Tacos that quickly moved from brief aside to awkward silence. It lasted just a moment… and it wasn’t anything different than what Conan was doing at 12:30. But it was enough to make me wonder… My parents are Leno’s audience, will they think a too-long discussion of Choco-Tacos is funny?

When are choco tacos not funny?

We thought the joke was a good mix of something relatively topical that people could easily grasp ahold of and O’Brien’s signature slightly absurd humor (not to mention a rather, we think, clever  way of commenting on discussions revolving around tokenism and xenophobia). 

A choco taco [chocolis tacolis], for the uninitiated who can still claim full, unobstructed use of their bowels, is a dessert food commonly made of hydrogenated oils, preservatives and squirrels. It consists of a taco shell, usually either covered in a layer of chocolate or itself chocolate-flavored, ice cream and perhaps some sort of fudge and/or nut situation. 

Because we love you, here is a recipe:

Ingredients

For crepe taco shells:
2 eggs
1/2 cup sugar
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 to 3 teaspoons milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/3 cup flour
1/8 teaspoon salt

For chocolate syrup:
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1 cup sugar
1 cup water
1 teaspoon vanilla
Dash of salt

Chocolate chip ice cream (vanilla also works)
1 cup peanuts

Directions

1. For crepe shells: In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the eggs and sugar. Gradually add in the milk, vanilla, and melted butter, stirring to combine. Add the flour and salt. Beat until smooth.

2. Heat a lightly oiled, small griddle or frying pan over medium high heat. (We used a tiny 6-incher for easy maneuvering.) Pour about 1/4 cup of the batter onto the pan for each “shell,” tilting to make sure the liquid coats the surface evenly.

3. Cook the crepe on each side for about 2 minutes, until light brown.

4. This is the fun part. Pick a book. We went with Franz Kafka’s The Trial. Oh yeah, make sure it’s a pretty clean book. Shape the crepe around the bookbinding so it forms a taco shell mold. Freeze this contraption for ten minutes. Be careful when setting up; these are delicate.

5. Continue cooking crepe shells, shaping them around books, and freezing.

6. For the chocolate syrup: Combine cocoa, sugar, and salt in a saucepan. Add water. Mix until smooth. Bring to boil for one minute, then remove pan from heat. Once cooled, add vanilla.

7. After the first frozen shell is pretty sturdy, pull it out and drizzle inside with this (not burning hot) chocolate syrup. A paintbrush comes in handy here. Throw syruped shells back into the freezer so chocolate can firm up.

8. Wait at least five minutes before pulling them out. Delicately stuff them with ice cream, then return them to the freezer for another ten minutes of firming-up.

9. Remove proto-Choco Tacos and drizzle them with extra syrup. Crush peanuts and throw those on top too.

The 10th, and most adorable step, is “Happiness.”

Aw.

How to Make a Choco Taco [Serious Eats]