Fish Tacos

I made fish tacos this week to satisfy a mexican food craving. I combined a few recipes and the end result was a delicious and flavorful taco. Although it is not pictured, the cilantro-lime crema is ESSENTIAL. Adapted from Cooking Light. Serves 4.

TACO INGREDIENTS
1 1/2 pound flakey fish (tilapia, red snapper)
1 lime, juiced
2 tablespoons orange juice
2 tablespoons taco seasoning
2 cups shredded cabbage
cilantro-lime crema
8 corn tortillas

Mix together the lime juice, orange juice, and taco seasoning and pour into a large ziploc bag. Add the fish to the bag, and seal the bag, taking all the air out. Marinade for 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, head the oven to 425 degrees and spray a cookie sheet with non-stick spray. Take the fish and place in a single layer on the cookie sheet and bake for ~9 minutes, or until flakey.

While the fish is in the oven, make the cilantro-lime crema by stirring together the following ingredients.

Cilantro-Lime Crema Ingredients
4 tablespoons sour cream
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
1/4 cup green onions, thinly sliced
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
1 teaspoon lime zest
2 teaspoons fresh lime juice
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 garlic clove, minced

Once fish is cooked and cilantro-lime crema has been prepared, heat the tortillas according to package directions. Flake the fish and place into hot tortillas, top with shredded cabbage, and lime crema. Serve with any other toppings (guacamole, salsa, etc.) and enjoy!

Chicken, Corn, and Sour Cream Enchiladas

I've made these twice now in the past two weeks and they are seriously delicious. They are easy to make and can be doubled with little effort if you need to feed an army. They are also very forgiving, so if you don't like an ingredient or ran out of something before making, just replace it with something else.

INGREDIENTS
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon taco seasoning
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
2 ears of corn cut off the cob
1 onion, chopped
1 teaspoon chipotle in adobo sauce
8 ounces sour cream
2-4 ounces diced green chiles (canned)
2 green onions, diced
8 ounces colby-jack cheese, grated
8 ounces pepper jack cheese, grated
2 cups enchilada sauce, canned
12 small tortillas (corn or flour)

Heat the oil in a large skillet. Meanwhile, mix together the cumin, garlic powder, and taco seasoning in a small bowl. Sprinkle each side of the chicken with salt, pepper, and spice mixture. Place chicken in skillet and cook chicken breasts for about 4-5 minutes per side, or until cooked through. Remove from pan and shred once cooled. Place chicken in a medium-large bowl. Set aside.

Keep the pan on medium heat and add the onion, corn, and salt and pepper and saute, stirring, until onions are softened. Add the adobo sauce and stir together. Remove from heat and add the corn/onion mixture to the chicken.  Once somewhat cooled, add the sour cream**, diced green chiles, green onions, and 1/3 of the grated cheese. Stir together and set aside.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Spread 1/2 a cup of enchilada sauce in the bottom of a 9x13 pyrex. Heat the tortillas so they are more pliable. Place some of the filling in the middle of the tortilla, sprinkle some cheese on top, and roll tightly like a burrito. Place seam-down in the pan. Repeat with rest of tortillas, filling, and cheese, leaving about 1/2 a cup of cheese for the end. Pour the rest of the enchilada sauce evenly on top of the rolled enchiladas. Sprinkle remaining cheese on top. Bake for about 20-30 minutes, or until sauce is bubbly and cheese is melted.

Remove from oven and serve with a dollop of sour cream on top and rice and beans on the side. Mmm.

** So, another option to make these rich and creamy is to take out half of the sour cream and replace it with half of a can of condensed cream of chicken soup. May sound gross, but its to die for.

Smokey Lentil Soup with Grown-Up Grilled Cheese

This is a recipe that I found from a William Sonoma recipe section of their most recent catalog. They suggest that you make this in one of those classic William-Sonoma-One-Purpose-Gadgets where its a pot/blender/soup bowl/waste of money all in one... Yeaaa, I just did it the old fashioned way with separate appliances. Worked juuuuust fine. Both the soup AND grilled-cheese were great and I would serve each together or separately again!

SOUP INGREDIENTS
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 yellow onion, diced
1 carrot, 1/4 inch dice
1 celery stalk, 1/4 inch dice
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon tomato paste
2 teaspoons smoked paprika
3/4 cup split red lentils, rinsed
1/3 cup diced canned tomatoes, drained
4 cups chicken broth
1 teaspoon white vinegar
salt and pepper to taste
sour cream
3 strips bacon, crumbled (optional)

Heat the oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the vegetables, tomato paste and paprika. Cook covered, stirring every few minutes, until vegetables have softened- about 25 minutes. Add the lentils, tomatoes, and chicken broth. Cover and cook on medium-low for about 35-40 minutes, until lentils are softened. Pour into a blender and blend briefly. Pour back into pot and reheat until ready to serve. Add the vinegar and taste for salt and pepper. Serve in bowls with sour cream and crumbled bacon on top. Serves 4.

GROWN-UP GRILLED CHEESE 
2 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for brushing
1 yellow onion, sliced
8 slices sourdough bread (for 4 sandwiches)
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1 teaspoon dijon mustard, stirred into butter
8 ounces gruyere, sliced thin
3/4 cup arugula

Heat the olive oil in a large grill-pan and caramelize the onions (will take about 30 minutes). Remove from heat and wipe the pan with a paper towel. Brush the outside pieces of each sandwich bread with olive oil. Brush the insides with the butter/dijon mixture. Layer gruyere on the inside of the sandwich, followed by caramelized onion, and then more gruyere. Put the other piece of bread on top and place in heated grill pan and cook for about 2-3 minutes per side. Remove from pan and open sandwich, quickly placing arugula inside. Place bread back on top and cut sandwiches in half. Serve with soup.

Chicken and Sausage Paella

I’ve been craving a hearty rice dish recently. Usually my go-to recipe is some kind of risotto, however, I wanted to try something new tonight (that also wasn’t quite as heavy as risotto). I have never made paella before (and I’m not sure that I’ve actually eaten it in a number of years), so I can’t really say what made me think of it….. but, alas, I did. I’ve been looking online at a variety of recipes and then last night I opened the April issue of Bon Appetit and low and behold, there was a paella recipe (fate). SO, I used that recipe as a base and added/took out a few ingredients… and it turned out really well! Adapted from Bon Appetit, April 2010

• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 1/4 cup white wine
• 2 cups white rice (I used long-grain)
• 1/4 teaspoon saffron threads
• 3 cups chicken broth
• 1 cup diced tomatoes with juice
• 2 large skinless, boneless chicken breasts, cut into 1 1/2 inch pieces
• 6 ounces sausage (chorizo, or something with a spicy kick)
• 1 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1/4 cup sliced roasted red pepper (from a jar)
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 cup frozen peas
• 1 teaspoon lemon zest

In a very wide/large pan heat 2 tablespoons of oil. Add the garlic, red pepper flakes and rice and stir for about 2-3 minutes. Add the wine and stir until incorporated. Add the saffron threads, broth, and tomatoes with juice- stir to combine. Bring liquids to a boil, then cover and reduce heat to a simmer. 

In a separate nonstick skillet, over medium heat, slightly brown the chicken pieces on each side. Add remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil, roasted red peppers, onions, and smoked paprika into the pan and cook 3 minutes longer. Add sausage and stir, cooking another 2 minutes. Remove from heat. 

After about 13 minutes take the top off the rice and add the peas and lemon zest. Stir and put the cover back on and cook for another 5 minutes. Remove top and stir in chicken/sausage mixture. Serve and enjoy!!

Enchiladas!

I made these enchiladas the other night and they were amazing! I really love mexican food of all kinds and this did not disappoint. I was at the grocery store and they were having a sale on cheese (best day ever) and so I bought a few different kinds of Monterey jack cheese and figured I’d mix them all up and see how it turned out. Then when I got home I threw a few things in as I went, based on what I had in my fridge… and I didn’t seem to mess them up! So, I think these would be good with just about any filling you’d like. This is what I did…….

• 8 corn tortillas
• 2-3 oz. monterey jack cheese, grated
• 2-3 oz. pepper jack cheese, grated
• 2-3 oz. colby jack cheese, grated
• 4 oz. goat cheese
• 1 zucchini, diced
• 1/2 red onion, diced
• Shredded chicken breast (cooked)… I used rotisserie chicken
• enchilada sauce or yummy salsa (I used a combination of store-bought red enchilada sauce and guacatillo salsa, which I think is a mix between guacamole and tomatillo salsa… and yes, it is as amazing as it sounds)

Saute the zucchini and red onion in a pan with a bit of olive oil until onion and zucchini are tender. Remove from heat and set aside.

Take the corn tortillas and layer in between each with a damp paper towel. Heat in the microwave for about 20 seconds, just to get them more foldable, so they don’t crack and break when you roll them. 

Layer a bit of enchilada sauce/salso on the bottom of an 8x8 pan. 

To assemble the enchiladas… take a tortilla from the pile and put a bit of goat cheese on the bottom… maybe about 1 1/2 teaspoons per tortilla? Then add the veggie mixture, and the chicken. Sprinkle with some of the jack cheese. Roll together and place fold down in the pan. Continue the same way with the others, placing them close together in the pan. Pour remaining sauce/salsa on top and sprinkle with cheese.

Bake for about 30 minutes in 350 degree oven. Serve with sour cream, rice, beans, whatever you’d like! 

***Note: I made these vegetarian once by not using chicken and adding spinach and they were amazing! If you like mushrooms, you could add them and they might taste good (that is, if you don’t mind eating rubber… eh hem, clearly I do not like mushrooms). Very adaptable recipe. Try ‘em out!

Kung Pao Tofu with Broccoli

• INGREDIENTS
  • 1 pound firm tofu, chopped into cubes
  • 1 head of broccoli, cut into florets
  • handful of peanuts
  Marinade
• 4 tablepoons soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon white wine
• 1 tablespoon rice or red wine vinegar
• 1 tablespoon sesame oil
• 1 inch cube of ginger root, peeled and grated
• 2 cloves garlic, grated

Put the tofu cubes in a bowl with the marinade. Stir around to coat and let sit for at least 30 minutes. Once sufficiently marinated, place the tofu pieces on a cookie sheet and put under the broiler until browned and crispy (about 15 minutes). Remove from oven and set aside.

Meanwhile, steam the broccoli to your preferred tenderness. Set aside

Sauce

• 3 tablespoons hoisin sauce
• 1 tablespoon hot bean sauce (found at an asian grocery store)
• 1 tablespoon rice or red wine vinegar
• 2 tablespoons peanut oil or vegetable oil

In a heavy wok or large saute pan mix ingredients for the sauce and heat. Add the tofu and the broccoli and saute until hot and sauce is evenly incorporated.

Serve over rice. Sprinkle with peanuts (which I forgot to do, but wish I had done). Eat and enjoy!