Fiery Fish Tacos with Crunchy Corn Salsa

This is my belated "Cinco de Mayo" Post.  I got this fab recipe from my bestie who made this for us while visiting one night.  The flavors are so perfect together.  And, when I say Fiery Fish... I mean it....the fresh veggies, sour cream, and avocado do cool it down a tad, but this recipe is not for the faint at heart.  This recipe was adapted from allrecipes.com. 

1 cup corn

1/2 cup diced red onion

1/2 cup diced red bell pepper

1 cup fresh cilantro leaves, finely chopped

1 can black beans, rinsed

1 lime zested and juiced

1T. cayenne pepper

1/2 T. ground black pepper

1 T. salt

4 fillets tilapia

1 1/2 T. olive oil

8 corn tortillas, warmed

2 small avocados, sliced

1. Preheat grill for high heat.
2. In a medium bowl, mix together corn, red onion, red bell pepper, beans, and cilantro.  Stir in lime zest and juice.
3. In a small bowl, combine cayenne, pepper, and salt.  Brush each fillet with olive oil, and sprinkle with spices.
4. Arrange fillets on grill, and cook 3 minutes per side.  For each taco, top with fish, sour cream, corn salsa, and avocado.

THE VERDICT:  We all thought the flavor was excellent, but they were hot.  I handled them fine but my hubby suggests a gallon of milk to be included in the recipe.  Don't let him scare you.....They were great.  

Chicken Fajita Salad with Poblano-Buttermilk Dressing

Healthy Green Dinner for Earth Day!!!

This recipe was nice and light for a 95 degree day.  I also wanted to make something Green for Earth Day.  All the ingredients in this recipe are natural, including the homemade tortillas.  We also used cloth napkins for dinner, which is something we need to continue to reduce waste.

I got this recipe from my most current issue of Everyday with Rachael Ray Magazine.

Juice of 2 limes

2 skinless, boneless chicken breasts (about 1 lb)

1/4 cup plus 2T. EVOO

salt and pepper

2 poblano chiles, halved and seeded

1 sweet onion, thickly sliced

1/2 cup buttermilk

4 medium flour tortillas (made my own)

1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper

1 large head of romaine lettuce, torn into bite size pieces

1. Preheat a grill or grill pan to medium. In a shallow bowl, pour all but 2 teaspoons of the lime juice over the chicken. Add 1 tablespoon olive oil and turn to coat; season with salt and black pepper. Cover and let marinate at room temperature for 15 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, in a large bowl, toss the chiles and onion with 2 tablespoons olive oil; season with salt and black pepper. Transfer the chiles to the grill and tent with foil. Grill, turning occasionally, until softened, 10 to 15 minutes. Transfer to a large bowl, cover and let stand for 15 minutes. Meanwhile, grill the chicken and the onion, turning once, 5 to 6 minutes on each side; let cool.
3. Peel the chiles and slice. Using a food processor, puree one-third of the chiles with the buttermilk, 1 tablespoon olive oil and the remaining 2 teaspoons lime juice; season with salt and black pepper. Transfer the remaining chiles to a medium bowl. Coarsely chop the grilled onion and add to the sliced chiles.
4. Brush the tortillas with the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil and season with the cayenne, salt and black pepper. Grill, turning once, until crisp, about 2 minutes; cut into wedges.
5. In a large bowl, toss the romaine lettuce with half of the poblano dressing. Slice the chicken and serve on top of the romaine. Add the chile-onion mixture and the remaining dressing; serve with the grilled tortilla chips.

THE VERDICT:  I thought this was really good, and a perfect summer meal.  You get plenty of serving of veggies with this meal.  The recipe is for 4, but I made it all for 3 and we are stuffed.

I am going to submit this to Joelens Foodie Films for May, where they are featuring the movie Tortilla Soup. Here is the link check it out.

Light Chicken Enchiladas

This is our favorite enchilada recipe.  It's, of course, from Cooking Light, and one I make over and over again!

Filling:

3 cups water 

1/4 tsp. salt

8 black peppercorns

1 onion, quartered

1 bay leaf

1 lb. skinless chicken breast halves

3/4 cup monterey jack, shredded, divided

3/4 cup reduced fat cheddar, shredded, divided

1/2 cup chopped onion

Sauce:

2/3 cup skim milk

1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

1/4 cup egg substitute

1/8 tsp. salt

1 11oz. can tomatillos, drained (I can only find crushed in the can)

1 4.5 oz. can diced green chiles, undrained

Remaining Ingredients:

corn tortillas (6-inch)

low fat sour cream

1. To prepare filling, place first 6 ingredients in a Dutch oven; bring to a boil.  Cover, reduce heat; simmer 45 minutes.  Remove chicken from pan; cool.  Remove chicken from bones and shred with two forks.  Discard bones.  Reserve broth for another use. (yay free broth!)
2. Preheat oven to 375.
3. Combine shredded chicken, 1/2 cup monterey jack and cheddar cheeses, and 1/2 cup chopped onion in a bowl; set aside.
4. To prepare sauce, place milk and next 5 ingredients in a food processor; process until smooth.
5. To prepare tortillas, fill a medium skillet with 1 inch of water; bring to a simmer.  Dip 1 tortilla in water using tongs.  Leave for a couple seconds; then remove.  Spoon 1/2 cup filling in center of each tortilla.  Roll tightly, and place in an 11X7 inch baking dish.  Repeat with remaining tortillas and filling.
6. Pour sauce over enchiladas.  Cover and bake for 20 minutes.  Uncover and sprinkle with 1/4 cup each monterey jack and cheddar.  Bake additional 5 minutes or until cheeses melt.  Top with sour cream.   

THE VERDICT:  They are gone!  That is one indication that they are good!  

Per Serving: 502 calories!  That is 2 enchiladas and trust me that is a lot of food!

Chicken Salsa Verde Bake

Haha like my Texas shaped chips!!

1 T. Canola oil
1 lb. Skinless, boneless chicken breasts
1 16oz. Jar salsa verde
1 15oz. Can kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1/ 2 Onion, finely chopped
1/2 cup Sour cream light
2 cups Crushed tortilla chips
1 8oz. bag 2% Mexican-style shredded cheese

1. Preheat oven to 375. In a large skillet, heat oil over medium heat. Add the chicken and cook, turning once, until cooked through, 10-12 minutes. Let stand until cool, then shred meat in a large bowl. Stir in salsa, kidney beans, onion and sour cream.
2. Grease a 8 X 12-inch baking dish, scatter with 1/2 cup tortilla chips on the bottom and top with half of the chicken mixture, and half of the cheese. Repeat layers and cover with the remaining tortilla chips. Bake until cheese is bubbly, about 30 minutes.

The Verdict: Good Comfort food on a cooler day. Easy to prepare. Everyone had seconds.

Recipe adapted from "Everday with Rachael Ray"

Black Bean Tortilla Pie

Ingredients

4 flour tortilla (I use fresh southwest tortillas from HEB)

1 T. Canola oil

1 large onion, diced

1 jalapeno, minced

2 garlic cloves (or 3 :) )

1/2 tsp. ground cumin

coarse salt and ground pepper

2 cans black beans ( I used 1 can no salt added and 1 can spicy black beans)

12 oz. beer

1 pkg. frozen corn (10 oz.)

4 scallions, thinly sliced, plus more for garnish

1 pkg. shredded cheddar (8 oz.)

1. Preheat oven to 400.


2. Heat oil in skillet over medium heat. Add onion, jalapeno, garlic, and cumin; season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until onion is softened, 5 to 7 min.


3. Add beans and beer to skillet, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium; simmer until liquid has almost evaporated, 8 to 10 min. Stir in corn and scallions, and remove from heat. Season with salt and pepper.


4. Fit a tortilla in bottom of springform pan. ( I use a casserole dish, and you may have to trim tortilla), layer with 1/4 of the beans and 1/2 cup of cheese. Repeat 3 times, using 1 cup of cheese on top layer. Bake until hot and cheese has melted, 20 to 25 min. Unmold pie (or not) sprinkle with scallions. Slice into wedges to serve.

THE VERDICT: Always a winner!!