Tuesday, March 25, 2014

Fish Tacos with Black Bean Salsa




I have discovered that I really enjoy recipes from Emeril Lagasse.  He is a chef, restaurateur, and best-selling author of multiple cookbooks.  His recipes are easy to follow and quick to accomplish.  These tacos are a delicious way to begin cooking from his recipes!  


Fish Tacos with Black Bean Salsa


1 (15-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
¼ cup olive oil
1 jalapeno, minced (you can seed it if you prefer for a milder salsa—I seeded half of it but left the other half)
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lime juice
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1/2 teaspoons salt
2 pounds skinless firm white fish fillets (such as snapper), trimmed and cut into 3-inch pieces
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
½ cup cornmeal
½ cup olive oil
Eight 6-inch flour tortillas
3 cups thinly sliced or shredded romaine lettuce
4 lime wedges
½ cup sour cream (if desired)

1.     In a medium bowl, combine the black beans, ¼ cup of the olive oil, and the jalapeno, lime juice, garlic, and ½ teaspoon of the salt.  Set aside.

2.     Season the fish fillets evenly with the remaining 1 teaspoon salt and the black pepper.  Dredge quickly in the cornmeal, shaking to remove any excess, and set aside.

3.     Heat a 12-inch sauté pan over high heat.  Toast each of the tortillas for 30 seconds on one side in the hot sauté pan.  Transfer to a plate and cover loosely with a clean kitchen towel to keep warm.

4.     In the same sauté pan, heat the remaining ½ cup olive oil over medium-high heat.  Add half of the fish fillets, and sauté until just cooked through, about 2 minutes per side.  Transfer them to paper towels to drain.  Repeat with the remaining fillets.


5.     To assemble the tacos, place 2 tortillas on each plate, and divide the shredded lettuce among them.  Spoon the black bean mixture onto the lettuce, and divide the fish fillets among the tortillas.  Squeeze the lime wedges over the fish, dollop with the sour cream, and fold the tortillas to close.  Serve immediately.

Raspberry Lime Rickey

We made this delicious drink to serve with fish tacos.  We weren't originally planning on having a special drink with dinner, but we decided at the last minute to add this drink to our menu.  Luckily--this is really fast to make.  We put the syrup into the mixture into the freezer so it would cool quickly.  Plus, the ice in the glasses helps make sure everything is icy and delicious. This delectable drink had even our naysayer of carbonation going for seconds!!!!!! 

Raspberry Lime Rickey


3 cups frozen raspberries (one 12-ounce package)
2 cups sugar
½ cup water
4 teaspoons grated lime zest
½ cup juice from 4 limes
Seltzer or club soda, chilled
Ice

1.        Make syrup:  Heat raspberries, sugar, and water in saucepan over medium heat until raspberries begin to release their juices, about 5 minutes.  Mash with potato masher until berries break down, then stir in lime zest and juice.  Simmer until mixture is slightly thickened, about 5 minutes.

2.       Pour raspberry mixture through fine-mesh strainer set over bowl, pressing on solids to extract liquid (you should have about 2 ½ cups).  Discard berry solids.  Refrigerate syrup until completely cool, at least 30 minutes or up to 1 week.  To serve, combine 3/4 cup seltzer and 2 tablespoons syrup in tall, ice-filled glass.

Friday, March 21, 2014

Pad Thai

This is a vegetarian version of Pan Thai, but in the picture I added in cooked Shrimp.  It was delicious!



8 oz rice noodles, flat
1 Tbsp canola oil
2 cloves garlic, minced through garlic press
2 cups shredded Savoy cabbage
2 carrots, julienned
5 egg whites, lightly beaten
3 cups bean sprouts
1 cup green zucchini, julienned
1 cup green onions, chopped
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped for garnish

3 Tbsp rice vinegar
1/4 cup tomato paste
2 Tbsp reserved noodle water
2 Tbsp molasses
2 Tbsp low-sodium soy sauce


Cover rice noodles with boiling water in a a ceramic bowl.  Cover and let stand for 20 minutes to soften noodles.  Drain, reserving 2 tablespoons noodle water.

In a small bowl, whisk together all sauce ingredients.  Set aside.

In a large skillet, heat oil over medium heat.  Stir in garlic, cabbage and carrot.  Stir-fry for 5 minutes.  Make a well in the middle of the pan and scramble the egg whites.  Add noodles and sauce and cook for 5 minutes.  Add bean sprouts, zucchini and green onion and cook a little longer to heat through.  Remove from heat and serve.  Garnish each dish with chopped cilantro.  Serves 8

Coconut Macadamia Halibut

Tonight I made up my own recipe, I thought it was yummy.



I dipped the halibut in beaten egg white, and then dipped it in a mixture of raw shredded coconut, chopped macadamia nuts and a little bit of creole seasoning.  I then baked it in a 350 degree oven until flaky, turning it over about halfway through.  I served it with a little bit of mango salsa.  Very delicious!

Mango Sticky Rice

I love this little Thai restaurant on 12th street in Ogden.  Everything I've tried there I love, but my favorite is their Mango Sticky Rice dessert.  Basically its sticky rice, with a half a fresh mango and a yummy coconut sauce.  I crave this dessert!  So when I made Pad Thai at home, I figured I could also make me some dessert.  This is my version of the sauce


The Coconut Sauce

1 can coconut milk
1 can sweetened condensed milk

Mix and heat until warm.  Serve over fresh cut mango and rice.

This sauce is actually good on strawberries and raspberries and just about everything.



Saturday, March 1, 2014

Broccoli Beef

We'll be making this again soon. It is SO good and it's much better than what you can buy at a Chinese restaurant!

http://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/broccoli_beef/