Fish Tacos

I'm the first to admit that I don't know much about fish tacos except that there's a place in town called Bend Fish Company that makes a pretty good and spicy version. I came across this recipe last summer and tucked it away in my file, waiting for the day I'd get inspired to try it. So glad I did. These fish tacos were so yummy, combining the sweet flavor of mango, the creamy avocados, earthy corn tortilla, flaky tender fish and the sweet/sour radish and red onion pickles. We devoured our dinner and were sad the ingredients ran out. We'll definitely be making these again sometime soon.


Fish Tacos (serves 4)
1/2 cup red wine vinegar
1/3 c. sugar
1 tsp. chili powder, divided
1/2 sliced red onion
6 thinly sliced radishes
1 lb. tilapia fillets
1/4 c. plus 2 Tbsp. fresh lime juice
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 peeled firm ripe mango, cut into thin slices
1 sliced peeled ripe avocado
fresh cilantro leaves
canola or vegetable oil
1 pkg corn tortillas (6 inch size)
taco condiments: sour cream, salsa, salsa verde etc...

combine the red wine vinegar, sugar and 1/4 tsp. chili powder in a small saucepan, bring to boil. Remove the pan from heat, and stir in the red onion and radishes. Let stand, uncovered, 10 minutes or until cooled
rinse fish, pat dry. Gently toss with 1/4 c. lime juice, 1/2 tsp. chili powder, and garlic in a shallow glass dish. Marinate for 10 minutes at room temperature.
Gently toss mango and avocado in small bowl with remaining 1/4 tsp. chili powder and 2 tbsp lime juice.
Preheat a lightly oiled grill rack or grill pan.* Remove fish from marinade, and grill, turning once, 2-4 minutes per side or until cooked through and golden brown. Transfer to a plate, cover and keep warm.
Grill tortillas lightly until pale golden and slightly crisp. Transfer to serving plate.
Fill tortillas with fish, pickled vegetables, avocado and mango mixture, cilantro and other condiments as desired.

*Note: we didn't grill our fish. Instead we sauteed it in a pan on the stove. Next time we make it, I'll definitely try using the grill

White Wine Coq Au Vin

5:15 pm I have a confession to make. Usually when you hear those words you expect something terrible to follow. I hope this is the exception...
Here's the confession: I hadn't tried this recipe before I started to compile this post. I came to the computer right after I set the pot of coq au vin to simmer. I was expecting an outstanding outcome before I'd even tasted it. Why? The ingredients for one thing. How can you possibly go wrong with wine and bacon. The other? The smell filling the kitchen from the steaming pot was so appetizing I just knew I had a winner on the stove. Am I wrong? We'll have to see....
6:06 pm Oh my gosh, this dinner was so incredibly delicious!! You definitely taste the wine but you also have the salty bacon, the tender chunks of chicken, sweet carrots and the thick broth is so comforting. In the words of my family: It's a keeper! It's blog-worthy. Please try this white wine coq au vin for yourself and tell me what you think. :)


White Wine Coq Au Vin (serves 4)
4 1/2 Tbsp flour
salt, pepper to taste
1 1/2 tsp herbes de Provence
4 slices bacon, chopped
1 lb. skinned, deboned chicken thighs (I used chicken breasts)
2 Tbsp. olive oil
1 1/2 cups baby carrots
3 stalks of celery
1 medium onion
1 1/3 c. chardonnay
2 c. chicken broth
1/2 c. flat leaf parsley sprigs, chopped
1/4 c. tarragon sprigs, chopped

In a plastic bag, shake flour with salt, pepper and the herbes de Provence, set aside.
In a large pot over med heat, brown bacon, stirring occasionally about 5-7 minutes. Meanwhile, cut chicken into 1 inch chunks, the shake in flour to coat.
With a slotted spoon, transfer bacon from pan to paper towels. Brown half the chicken in bacon fat, stirring occasionally, 3-5 minutes. Transfer to a plate. Repeat with remaining chicken, adding oil to pan. Meanwhile, cut carrots in half lengthwise and cut celery into slices. Chop onion.
Add vegetables to pan with salt and pepper and saute until onion is golden about 5 minutes.
Add wine to vegetables, making sure to scrape up all the browned bits at the bottom of the pot. Add chicken stock, chicken and bacon. Cover and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat and simmer covered until vegetables are tender, about 15 minutes. When ready to serve, add parsley and tarragon. Enjoy!

Beet and Citrus Salad

So, you've probably heard it said that we eat with our eyes first, right? This salad is a rainbow of beautiful colors and fresh tastes. You've got the bright orange from the clementines, the green from the mint, the crisp white from the fennel slices, the deep purple from the beets, the dark olives and the pink from the grapefruit. This salad is so beautiful you may be tempted not to eat it. Fall into temptation (this time) and you'll be glad you did. The flavors are so bright and sweet, it's pure delight. Seriously. Chris had to ask me to stop making "MMMMM MMMMM" sounds through dinner. It's delicious and it's good for you, what more could your eyes and stomach ask for?

Beet and Citrus Salad (serves 2 adapted from Simply Delicioso)
4-5 roasted or cooked beets *I buy a pkg of cooked beets from Trader Joe's
2 clementines (you could substitute 1 large orange or blood orange)
1 ruby red grapefruit
1/4 small red onion, halved and thinly sliced
1/4 c. olives, sliced
10 mint leaves, coarsely chopped
1/2 fennel bulb, thinly sliced
salt and pepper to taste
extra virgin olive oil
2-4 lime wedges

Peel and segment the clementines and grapefruit and place in a large bowl along with the onion, fennel, mint, and olives. Toss together with some salt and pepper.
Cut the beets into 1/4 inch wedges and add them to the bowl. Lightly toss.
Place on plate and drizzle olive oil over the top (I used about 1 tsp. per serving) and squeeze a lime wedge (or two) over the salad. Serve and eat immediately.

Greek Style Couscous Pearls

I'm pretty sure most people have seen and tried couscous- you know those tiny granules of semolina that are steamed. But have you tried Israeli couscous? They are also made of semolina pasta but resemble pearls or white peas. Israeli couscous are larger than traditional couscous and has a much creamier texture. I recently tried it for the first time and absolutely love it!! You need to toast the couscous with a little bit of olive oil (much like you do for risotto) until it is nicely golden brown. This is a critical step and shouldn't be skipped because it's this toasting that gives the Israeli couscous such a wonderfully nutty flavor.
After I bought the couscous, I went looking for the perfect flavors to go with it. I had a recipe for Greek salad and since Greek salad is sometimes paired with pasta, I thought the two would go together nicely. I was in for a big surprise. This dish was so tasty and all the varied textures were amazing together.
Chris asked to bring the leftovers back to work with him after he came home and ate a big bowl of it for lunch! Two hours later, I receive a text from him that said one word: yummy

Greek Style Couscous Pearls (serves 4)
1 1/2 cups Israeli couscous
1 Tbsp. of olive oil
1 3/4 cup plus 2 Tbsp. water, broth or stock
for salad:
1 cucumber, seeded and diced 1/4 inch thick
1/2 red bell pepper, diced 1/4 inch thick
1/2 yellow bell pepper, diced 1/4 inch thick
1/2 pint cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
1/4 red onion, diced small
1/3 c. feta cheese, crumbled
1/3 c. kalamata olives, pitted and sliced
for vinaigrette:
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp. dried oregano
1 tsp. dijon mustard
1/4 c. red wine vinegar
salt, pepper to taste
1/2 c. extra virgin olive oil

Drizzle 1 Tbsp. olive oil in a sauce pan over medium heat. Add couscous, stir until evenly coated with oil. Toast until lightly brown (about 5 minutes). Slowly add the liquid (water, stock or broth) and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to med. low and cover. Simmer for 12 minutes or until liquid is absorbed. Remove cover and take off the heat.
Meanwhile, make vinaigrette and then pour over warm couscous.
Place all remaining salad ingredients into a large bowl. When couscous is cooled, add to bowl and toss all together. Set aside for 30 minutes to allow the flavors to blend. Serve at room temperature and enjoy! :)

Ruby Port Sparklers

Who doesn't enjoy cocktail time every now and then? A nice glass of wine is perfect with dinner most nights, but for those times when I'm having a night in with girlfriends or want something special before or after a meal, cocktails are perfect. They're festive, generate lots of excitement and range in taste from a citrus-y zing to smooth and mellow.
I recently came across this recipe in Sunset Magazine. It was featured in an article titled A Bite Size Chocolate Party. Now I don't know about you, but I am a chocoholic. I absolutely adore dark and semi-sweet chocolate. I also enjoy a nice glass of port wine after dinner and this recipe combined both flavors. Perfect! I had a bottle of port and also the bottle of Godiva chocolate liqueur on hand, so all I needed to get was the sparkling wine.
This drink is sublime. I've made it for a recent book club gathering last weekend and I'm having a glass tonight. Try this recipe and I think you'll agree, sometimes it's nice to drink your dessert ;)

Ruby Port Sparklers (serves 1)
For each cocktail, pour 2 Tbsp. each Godiva Chocolate liqueur and ruby port into a champagne flute. Top with sparkling wine. Garnish with a lemon or blood orange zest strip. Cheers!

Buttermilk Pancakes with Maple Syrup Apples

This weekend I decided to make something special for breakfast. I looked in the refrigerator and saw some buttermilk I had left from another recipe and that gave me the idea for buttermilk pancakes. I came to the computer for some inspiration and came across two separate recipes that sounded interesting. One was for cakey buttermilk pancakes on food network and the other was for pancakes with maple syrup apples on epicurious. The match was brilliant. The pancakes were soft and slightly tangy and the apple topping was sweet, spicy and oh so delicious! The girls and I ate our fill of pancakes, then froze the rest for a quick breakfast on school mornings.

Buttermilk Pancakes with Maple Syrup Apples (4-5 servings)
1 1/4 c. all purpose flour
1 1/4 c. well shaken buttermilk
1/2 c. melted unsalted butter, plus 2 Tbsp for cooking
2 large eggs
3 Tbsp. granulated sugar
1 tsp each of baking soda, baking powder and salt

2 Tbsp. butter
3 large apples- cored and diced into 1/2 inch pieces
1 Tbsp. plus 1/2 C. pure maple syrup (Don't skimp! Has to be pure maple!)
1 tsp ground cinnamon
dash of nutmeg

Maple syrup apples: Melt butter in pan over med. heat. add apples and 1 Tbsp of the syrup; saute until apples are tender, about 4-6 minutes. Mix in remaining 1/2 c. maple syrup, cinnamon and nutmeg. Remove from heat.


Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, whisk together all ingredients except 2 Tbsp of butter until evenly combined and moistened thoroughly (some small lumps will remain). Set mixture aside to rest while griddle heats.
Heat a large pan or griddle. Melt 1 Tbsp. butter in pan. When it foams, ladle approx. 1/4 c. batter for each pancake and cook until bubbles cover the top and edges look set. Flip and cook until golden brown, another minute. Repeat with remaining batter. Serve immediately with maple syrup apples and enjoy! :)

Baked Shrimp Scampi

We've all had shrimp scampi that's been cooked on the stove. I'm a big fan of easy to make, delicious dishes and I came across this recipe in Ina Garten's new cookbook Back To Basics. The lemony and garlic flavor really shines through with the delicate shrimp and is complemented by the crunchy panko crust. It's so good. It's going back for seconds, so good. Super simple because you don't have to babysit it on the stove, you just assemble everything, pop it in the oven and finish off with a squeeze of fresh lemon juice just before serving. We served our scampi over a bed of couscous, but you could always serve it with the traditional pasta.

Baked Shrimp Scampi (serves 4)
1 1/2 lbs raw shrimp *
3 Tbsp. olive oil
2 Tbsp. white wine
salt and pepper to taste
1 stick butter, softened at room temperature
4-6 garlic cloves
1/8 c. minced shallots
2 Tbsp. parsley
1 tsp. minced fresh rosemary leaves
1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
1 tsp. grated lemon zest
2 Tbsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice (plus more for a finishing squeeze)
1 extra large egg yolk
2/3 c. panko

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Peel, devein and butterfly the shrimp, leaving the tails on (*I used a smaller count shrimp since thats what we had on hand, so I didn't butterfly it). Place the shrimp in a mixing bowl and toss gently with the olive oil, wine, salt and pepper. Allow to sit at room tempaerature while you make the butter and garlic mixture.
In a small bowl, mash the softened butter with the garlic, shallots, parsley, rosemary, red pepper flakes, lemon zest, lemon juice, egg yolk, panko, salt and pepper until combined.
Place shrimp in a single layer inside a 14 inch oval gratin dish. Pour the remaining marinade over the shrimp. Spread the butter mixture evenly over the shrimp. Bake for 10-12 minutes, until hot and bubbly. Place under the broiler for a minute or so, to brown the top. Squeeze a fresh lemon over the finished dish and serve.