we just got back from visiting family in california. we went from a wet 2 degrees up to a solid 70 with sunshine. it was glorious. for maybe the first time my loyalty to the PNW wavered just a bit. especially once i bit into the juiciest, sweetest grapefruit fresh from a tree. yuuuummmm. i could live life down there.
a group of us ventured out to universal studios and fulfilled our lifelong dream of visiting hogwarts! just for a well balanced day, i faced my *worst* nightmares going through the walking dead attraction. they actually make you walk through and it is terrifying, but not as terrifying as when you get fake attacked by someone in your own group once you think you’re safe. i scream loud.
all in all it was good fun and then we went out for tacos.
there is a little taco place near the fam’s place that everyone is obsessed with. that taco place, they PILE on the guacamole and they are just overflowing with all the meat and salsa. in a totally uncharacteristic move, i didn’t take any pictures!
when we got back home i couldn’t get tacos out of my head! i found the recipe for pork adovada from The Food Lab. i used two versions of dried new mexico chilies (normal? and spicy) because that’s what i could find at the store. this makes a super saucy pot of spicy, fall apart pork. perfect in a corn tortilla, or on a pile of greens.
This recipe is from a couple of summers ago. I thought I would post this here to remind myself, and to share with you guys, this refreshing twist on fish tacos! I didn’t include precise measurements because I just whipped this up. Marinades are pretty forgiving, so just add everything according to your own preferences and enough to coat however much fish you’re preparing. Any firm white fish will work for this.
Margarita Fish Tacos
~1/2 jalapeño
~3 garlic cloves, mined finely (or grated)
1 lime, zested and juiced
1 shot of tequila
~1/3 cup olive oil
small handful of lemon mint, chopped
salt
2 fillets fish-whatever is your favorite taco fish (we used cod this time)
taco fixings (tortilla at the very minimum)
Finely chop the jalapeño, garlic cloves, and lemon mint. Add to a shallow dish or gallon bag. Add your lime juice, tequila, and olive oil. Season with salt to taste. Mix. Add fish. Marinate for up to 30 minutes. You don’t want to leave the fish so long that it cooks in the lime juice. Grill over medium heat until the fish is flaky and opaque. At this point, I chop any veggies I want in my tacos, add them to a foil packet, drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with sea salt, and throw them on the grill until nice and tender. Warm your tortillas; assemble tacos!
Microplanes are so handy! Add lime rind and use it to get ultra fine pieces of garlic.
Lemon mint from the patio garden
Lime, mint, garlic, tequila, jalapeño, and olive oil marinadeMarinate fish for about 30 minutes. Flip about halfway through to make sure everything is nice and covered.Grill over medium heat until cooked!Prepare your taco fixings! Sliced red bell pepper and onions, drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with sea salt.Assemble! We added a little bit of greek yogurt, spinach, cheddar, and avocado.
Today is grey and rainy, so I figured I would relive the sunshine of two weekends ago by posting a delicious meal I had. My dad used to go diving every weekend when we lived in Hawaii, so I ate a lot of fresh seafood as a kid. If you’ve never had it, then you should give it a try. It has a really lovely bold, briny flavor. I didn’t want to mask the naturally amazing flavor of the sea bass, so I seasoned it simply with some sea salt and fresh ground pepper and served it with a tomato and mango salsa. I grilled some zucchini and made a simple german style potato salad on the side. Add some local, organic mixed greens for a nice side salad and you’ve got a nicely rounded dinner.
Grilled Sea Bass and Zucchini with a Tomato/Mango Salsa
The fillets didn’t have skin, so I put them on foil to keep them from falling apart.
Season the fillet with sea salt and ground pepper. Lightly drizzle with some olive oil and put on your preheated grill. This fish has tons of flavor and doesn’t need a lot of help to shine. My fillet did not have skin, so we cooked it on foil. If you’ve ever tried cooking a skinless fillet on a grill, you know why. Lower the lid and cook until done! The fish will turn opaque and will easily flake apart when it is done.
For the zucchini, slice about 1/8-1/4 inch thick with a mandolin the long way. You can use a knife, or cut rounds, it just may take you a little longer. Give it the same treatment as the sea bass. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and drizzle with olive oil. Cook over medium heat 2-3 minutes per side.
Beautiful grill marks!
Tomato Mango Salsa
1 cup cherry tomatos, cut into halves or fourths depending on size
1 large, sweet Mango, diced
3 Tbsp olive oil
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
2 tsp red pepper flakes
1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
4 mint leaves
Add the garlic and pepper flakes to the olive oil in a small pan and heat gently over low heat until the garlic starts to sizzle. Don’t let the garlic brown. Turn off the heat and let cool. Whisk the balsamic vinegar into the olive oil mixture to get a nice emulsion. Toss the mangos and tomatoes together and season with salt.
Sweet and Spicy
Add a spoonful of the oil/vinegar dressing and toss to coat. Taste! Add more of the vinaigrette, to taste. It will add a nice heat to the salsa. Chiffonade the mint leaves and add.
So colorful!
Yummm! This was one of my favorite meals in a long time. The sea bass was AMAZING! The fish monger told us that a big fillet was only one serving, maybe two. It seemed ridiculous until I tasted the fish. My friends and I ate so much that we only had a little bit of leftovers for the next day!
Yesterday was another gorgeous day in the Pacific Northwest!
It matches my Kitchen Aid!
What better way to break in the grill than to throw a couple of burgers on it? It was feeling like a mushroom sort of day, so we went out and got ourselves a couple of nice, big portobello caps. I really like portobello mushrooms. Some people get really excited about steaks for the same reasons that I get excited about portobellos. They’re juicy, meaty, and the charred bits are the best! These are also infinitely more delicious than a boca burger, and almost as easy.
Grilled Portobello Burgers
2 large portobello mushroom caps
1 large clove of garlic (or to taste)
2 generous pinches kosher salt
1 Tbsp fresh rosemary, chopped
1/2 Tbsp fresh thyme, chopped
1 1/2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 1/2 Tbsp olive oil
Fresh ground pepper (to taste)
Clean your mushroom caps with a damp cloth and remove the stems my gently twisting. Be careful and don’t break them in half like I accidentally did.
Ready to go!
Finely chop the garlic. Sprinkle your salt onto your chopped garlic and chop some more. I like to give it a good smash with the blade of my knife, so the garlic is almost a paste.
Harvesting rosemary from the patio
Finely chop your herbs. I used fresh rosemary and thyme because I have a couple of flourishing plants living on my patio. Feel free to substitute your own favorite fresh herbs, or a couple of pinches of whatever dry herbs you have on hand. You’ll want to use less if you’re using dried herbs.
Mix together the balsamic vinegar and olive oil in a shallow dish that is large enough for the mushrooms to lie flat on. Since I broke one of them, the pie plate worked fine. Side note: My favorite balsamic vinegar comes from this little shop down on St. Helens Ave. in Tacoma. They make their own and it is awesome!
From Stink!
Add your garlic and herbs to the balsamic vinegar and olive oil mixture. Grind some black pepper over the whole concoction and then place the mushrooms gills side down into the mixture.
Gills side down!
Spoon some of the marinade over the top. Let it marinate for at least 30 minutes, an hour is better.
Soaking up all the deliciousness
Preheat your grill and oil the grates. I like to spoon some marinade into the gills (really get it saturated) and over the top right before throwing it on.
Again, gills side down
Cook for about 5-8 minutes or until you can see the edges start to curl and the mushrooms shrink a bit. Flip and cook for another five minutes. The texture should be still firm, but less crunchy (like a raw mushroom), more….squishy, for lack of a better word. You don’t want to overcook it to mush.
Toast your buns in the last couple of minutes.
Toast the buns!
Once you flip the mushrooms, add sliced cheese and close the lid on the girl for a minute or until the cheese is all melty.
Cheesy Mushrooms
I fried up a couple of eggs and threw them on top since this ended up being breakfast for me, along with some tomato and avocado.
Breakfast burger?
Look at this finished masterpiece! It was delicious.
Since my first foray into the culinary world, cooking has been my art of choice. Baking, in particular, is my favorite pastime. Now that I’m living on my own, I’ve started expanding my savory roots. Cookies and cake are still my favorite things to make, but as a health conscious adult, I try and reserve the decadent desserts for special occasions. I don’t compromise on ingredients when it comes to baking, because if I want a healthy dessert, I would rather eat some fresh fruit than eat a mediocre “healthified” cookie. I’m a firm believer that butter is best for baking!
You’ll find that my savory cooking style tends to be plant based and I’m a sucker for seasonal, local ingredients. For my everyday weeknight meal, I try to take comfort food classics and give them a healthy spin. I wage a constant battle against my love of bread and butter and wanting to fit into my skinny jeans! For my first ever blog post, I give you a favorite comfort meal! To make this a little more weeknight friendly, I use a pre-packaged pie crust. If you have the time, feel free to substitute your favorite pie crust recipe. If you’re trying to cut down on calories, leave off the bottom crust. You can easily substitute your favorite veggies and beans in the filling.
Easy Chickpea Pot Pie
1 package pre-made pie crust
1 can garbanzo beans
1 8 oz packaged crimini mushrooms, quartered
1/3 cup chopped onions
2 cloves chopped garlic (or more if you love garlic)
2/3 cup frozen peas
2/3 cup frozen corn kernels
1 medium sweet potato
2 handfuls of spinach (more or less to taste)
2 cups vegetable broth (bouillon based is fine)
3/4 cup milk (use whatever you have. Soy or almond works great)
3/4 cup flour
3/4 cup water
TBSP Poultry Seasoning (or to taste)
Salt, Pepper, pinch of chipotle powder(optional)
Preheat your oven to 450° F. Unroll the bottom pie crust into your favorite pie pan. I use a 9-inch deep dish because I like a lot of filling.
Peel the sweet potato. Wrap it in a damp paper towel and place on a plate. Microwave for 5 minutes or until the potato is tender. Chop into bite sized pieces. You could also boil the potatoes until tender, but I like the convenience of not having to use another pot to boil water.
Sauté the onions and garlic in a little bit of oil until onions are translucent. Add the quartered mushrooms, peas, and corn. Cook until mushrooms shrivel up a bit and the peas and corn are warmed through. Add the vegetable broth and milk. Dump in the spinach, garbanzo beans, and sweet potato. Add your seasoning. Depending on how salty your broth is and what type of milk you used, you might need to add more or less to bring out the flavor. I love chipotle, so usually add a splash of chipotle hot sauce or a pinch of chipotle flavor to add some heat.
Mix the flour and water together until the mixture is lump free. Add to your filling while stirring constantly to prevent lumps. Bring to a boil. The mixture should be pretty thick.
Pour your filling into the pie crust. Put the top crust on, crimp sides, and cut steam holes. Place on a baking sheet and bake for 20-25 minutes, or until the top crust is golden brown.
A Chance of Sprinkles 