Fish Tacos

Put down that taco right now! That taco doesn't compair to a fish taco. If you are eating a fish taco, my apologies, carry on. If you're not eating a taco right now, why not make these fish tacos?

When most people say they don't like fish tacos it's, because they've never tried fish tacos. I'll admit that ordering fish tacos from some restaurants might be more of a gamble than ordering the carnes asada, but if you try this recipe at home, I bet that you'll be hooked on fish tacos.

There's different ways you can cook your fish, but I chose to grill my fish. Grilling is a quick and flavorful way to cook your fish. I decided to cook snapper and it turned out wonderfully, but if you can't get ahold of snapper any sort of white fish will work.

Fish Tacos

• 1 lbs snapper
• 8 white corn tortillas
• 1 mango cut into small cubes
• 1 avocado sliced
• 1/3 cup chopped red cabbage
• 1/3 cup diced red onion
• 1/2 cup sour cream or yogurt
• a small sprig of cilantro chopped
• 1 lime juiced
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon paprika

1. Place the snapper in a pan deep enough to hold the fish and the juice from the lime. Lay out your fish in the pan and pour the lime juice over it. Sprinkle the cayenne pepper, paprika, a dash of salt and pepper over the fish. Oh, did you make sure your fish is deboned? You should probably do that. Let the fish sit for a  moment. 
2. Since the fish takes almost no time at all to cook, now is a good time to cut up the mango, cabbage, onion, and avocado. 
3. Now that all the produce is cut up it's a good time to put the fish on the grill. You should only flip the fish once. Cook each side for about 5 minutes, but your grill might vary, so keep an eye on your fish so it doesn't burn. Once you've flipped your fish place the tortillas on the grill just long enough for the flames to heat them and make them soft.
4. Once the fish is finished grilling you can start making your tacos. I like to top my fish tacos with hot sauce and cilantro lime sour cream, which you can make by adding some chopped cilantro and some lime zest to sour cream. If you're watching your weight you can use plain yogurt instead of sour cream. 

Aren't you glad you finally tried fish tacos? They're just as delicious as pork or beef tacos, but they're way better for you. Enjoy!

Photos by Katy Weaver

Stacked French Toast

Breakfast for dinner is always the right choice. When I noticed I had half of a day old baguette sitting on my counter, I decided to make some French toast with French bread. I was feeling fancy so I decided to add some berry syrup and cream cheese. The result was a classier than usual breakfast dish.

Stacked French Toast

• 1 day old baguette
• 1/2 cup half & half
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 pinch of salt
• berry syrup
• cream cheese

1. Mix the half & half, eggs, vanilla, brown sugar, cinnamon and the salt in a pie pan. Slice the into slices that are a couple centimeters in width. Dip and flip the slices in the batter. Place into a skillet, which should be set at medium high. Let each side get golden brown.
2. Stack 4 slices on a plate. Between each slice smear cream cheese and drizzle some berry syrup. Top with berries, cream cheese, berry syrup, and powdered sugar. 

A simple dish made fancy by using half & half instead of milk, adding cream cheese and berry syrup, and stacking the tiny discs of bready goodness.

Zesty Bruschetta

Maybe it's just the season, but I've been adding lemon and lemon zest to lots of my dishes. Having citrus balsami vinegar in the pantry made the decision to add lemon zest to this appetizer an easy choice. The result is a fresher tasting bruschetta than usual.

Zesty Bruschetta

• baguette sliced
• roma tomatoes sliced
• mozzarella
• fresh basil sliced
• citrus balsamic vinegar
• lemon zest

1. Pre-heat the oven to 375. Place the baguette slices on a baking sheet and place in the oven for 5 minutes. Flip the slices and place a slice of mozzarella on each of the baguette discs. Let the edges of the bread brown just a bit. Take out of the oven.
2. Place a slice of tomato on each of the bread slices. Sprinkle with the basil and lemon zest. Drizzle with the citrus balsamic vinegar.

Citrus Breakfast

Having a grapefruit for breakfast every morning is a great way to shed some pounds, but it's pretty boring. Broiling the grapefruit make a boring breakfast staple into something fun, warm, and sweet.

Adding lemon berry pancakes to this breakfast was a natural choice. They complemented each other very nicely and I was able to zest part of the grapefruit for the pancakes.

Broiled Grapefruit

• 1 grapefruit
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar

1. Cut the Grapefruit in half. Sprinkle 1 tablespoon of brown sugar on the top of each grapefruit slice. 
2. Put into a small casserole dish and broil for 5 minutes or until the edges are slightly burnt. 

Adapted from this recipe.

Lemon Berry Pancakes

• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup plain yogurt
• 1/2 cup milk
• 2 tablespoons oil
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon of grapefruit zest (or lemon zest)
• 1 cup flour
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup berries (thawed if frozen)

1. In a small bowl mix together all the wet ingredients including the zest. In a separate larger bowl whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Make a well in the dry ingredients and mix the wet ingredients into the flour mixture. Fold the berries into the batter. 
2. Scoop into desired sizes onto a griddle. Cook until both sides are golden brown. Serve with butter and powdered sugar. Or you can make a lemon yogurt sauce to go over the pan cakes.

Lemon Yogurt Sauce

• 1/2 cup plain yogurt
• 1.5 TBS lemon juice
• 1 TBS honey
• 1.5 TBS brown sugar

Mix and make to taste.

Combined these two make a citrus breakfast that won't leave you bitter. 

Photos by Katy Weaver

Peach Glazed Salmon

I asked for suggestions for dinner and the response I got was, "salmon with...peaches!" After mulling it over for a while I decided to make an Asian inspired Peach Glazed Salon dish. For making it up as I went along, I say it turned out pretty damn good. I paired the salmon with some brown rice and stir fried vegetables. 

I would suggest starting the rice first.

Brown Rice with Chives

• 1/2 cup brown rice
• 1 table spoon of chopped chives

1. Make the rice and once it's finished cooking, fluff the rice and add chives to add some color and flavor.

Peach Glazed Salmon

• 1 pound salmon fillet
• 2 peaches diced 
• 2 chives chopped (mainly for garnishing)
• Juice from one lime
• 1 teaspoon of lime zest
• 4 large leaves of mint finely chopped
• 3 sprigs of lemon thyme
• 1 1/2 tablespoon of soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon of ground ginger
• crumbled goat cheese (optional)

1. In a bowl combine everything listed above expect the goat cheese and salmon. Mix and crush everything together with your fingers. 
2. Heat the oven to 375. Take out a baking sheet and some tin foil and set the salmon fillet on the tin foil. Pour the peach mixture (glaze? salsa? chutney?) over the salmon covering the top of the entire fillet. Wrap the salmon in the foil making a nice foil pocket so all the moisture doesn't escape. 
3. Bake for 25 minutes. 
4. Though it may look a little gross, leave the peaches on the salmon! That's where flavor lives. 

Stir frying vegetables is pretty easy to do just take out a skillet or a wok, turn the stove on medium and add the following ingredients in the order they're listed in.

Stir-Fried Vegetables

• Olive Oil
• Onion
• Garlic
• Mushrooms
• Carrots
• Bell Pepper
• Snap Peas
• Carrots
• Soy Sauce
• Sesame Seeds

There are two methods of plating this dish. The traditional way of piling everything into thirds on a plate and eating them separately. The other option is to make a tower of deliciousness and top it off with some goat cheese and chives. 

Option #1

Option #2

Another healthy and delicious dish!

Photos by Katy Weaver