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Quick Fish Tacos with Baja Cream

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I have several magazine subscriptions and the ones that aren’t entirely devoted to food and recipes do include recipes and by the time I’ve gone through them, they are inevitably bristling with pieces of paper I’ve used to mark those I want to try and never do.  Every once in a while, however, a recipe jumps out at me and I can’t stop thinking about it until it has been made.

Enter the May edition of Everyday Food.  As soon as I saw these fish tacos on the cover, my heart began to sing.  They were so colorful and seemed a perfect spring/summer meal.  I had to make them.

I mostly followed the recipe except I did something a little different with the sour cream, using a recipe from my friend, Kitty, whom I owe a sincere thanks to.  It is the closest thing she’s found to the cream they serve on fish tacos in Baja California and while I wouldn’t have a clue as to whether it tasted the same or not since I’ve never been to California, I can attest that it is delicious on these tacos!

From start to finish, this meal was on the table in fifteen minutes.  So easy!  So simple!  So gorgeous!  So light!  So delicious!  I often forgo simple recipes like this, believing that the more time and effort and ingredients that is involved makes the end product that much better.  As this recipe proves, that’s not always the case.

Quick Fish Tacos
Printable recipe
Printable recipe with picture

1 pound boneless, skinless tilapia fillets, cut into 2-inch pieces
2 Tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
coarse salt and fresh cracked pepper
12 corn tortillas
1/2 small head red cabbage, thinly sliced
1 cup fresh cilantro
1 small white onion, finely chopped
lime wedges, for serving

Baja Cream
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup sour cream
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1 teaspoon (packed) finely grated lime peel
Pinch of salt

Heat broiler, with rack in highest position. Pat fish dry with paper towels and gently coat with oil on a rimmed baking sheet. Season with salt and pepper. Broil until fish is browned on top and flesh is opaque throughout, 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, mix the Baja Cream ingredients together and set aside. Toast corn tortillas over a kitchen burner using tongs or wrap a stack of 6 at a time in damp paper towels and heat in the microwave for 40 seconds to 1 minute. Divide fish evenly among tortillas and top with cabbage, cilantro, and onion. Serve with Baja cream and lime wedges. SERVES 4.

Per serving (3 tacos): 440 cal; 14.9 g fat (4.2 g sat fat); 35.9 g protein; 42.8 g carb; 6.9 g fiber (NOTE: NUTRITIONAL STATS ARE BASED ON THE ORIGINAL RECIPE, WHICH ONLY USES 1/4 CUP OF SOUR CREAM. I know, who could possibly only use ONE teaspoon of sour cream on their taco?! I need at LEAST a tablespoon-hahahahaha!)

Recipe source: adapted from “Fish Tacos with Cabbage & Lime” from Everyday Food, May 2010

Italian Green Beans

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I’m often prone to exaggeration, but I’m telling you the honest-to-goodness truth when I say I eat these green beans a minimum of five times a week. The green beans and olive oil are so healthy and adding in the seasonings just makes them wonderful. I love them so much and they’re so easy to make, I bring them with me every day for lunch! In fact, my green bean infatuation has become a long-standing joke with my co-workers. They used to make bets on whether or not I’d brought the green beans but now they don’t bother. They know that no matter what else I’ve brought, the green beans will accompany it. They watch me heating my food with knowing smiles and slowly shake their heads as I take my seat.

I smile back and eat them in blissful reverence.  They wouldn’t mock if they knew what they were missing.

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Italian Green Beans

Printable recipe
Printable recipe with picture

1 lb. green beans (fresh, frozen or canned all work)
2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 packet Italian dressing mix

Cook/heat the green beans, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle the dressing mix over the top. Toss together and serve hot. To make an individual serving, I heat a can of green beans (yes, a serving to me is an entire can!), drizzle with a little EVOO and then sprinkle as much dressing mix as I want.

Recipe by Veronica Miller

Easy Peanut Clusters

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These are incredibly easy to make and come together so quickly.  Perfect for holiday gifts!

Oh, and did I mention they’re delicious?  Because they are.  Enjoy!

Easy Peanut Clusters

1 (12-oz) bag semi-sweet chocolate chips
6 squares white almond bark*
1 lb salted, roasted peanuts

Melt the chocolate chips and white bark together in a glass bowl in the microwave.  Zap it for a minute, stir, then continue in 30-second intervals, stirring in between, until the mixture is smooth and thin.  Stir in the peanuts & drop spoonfuls onto a wax-paper lined baking sheet.  Let sit or refrigerate until firm, then package or put on a serving plate.

*Update 12/7/09: I have now made these using chocolate almond bark in place of the white and while both versions are good, I like this one better because the chocolate flavor is a little stronger.

Easy Peanut Clusters made with chocolate almond bark instead of white

Dark Chocolate Peppermint Fudge


I’ve made a lot of fudge this year and I’ve finally come up with a basic fudge recipe that I really like.  It is non-temperamental, doesn’t require that you heat it to a certain temperature, doesn’t get grainy, and is rich and dense and gooey.  You can use it as a base and add different things like nuts, liqueur, or candy.  Here’s the basic recipe and notes on how to turn it into the dark chocolate peppermint fudge (my picture shows just the regular fudge with the peppermint but I later tried using dark chocolate, which I think tastes better with the peppermint).

Veronica’s Basic Fudge

1 (12-oz) bag semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 1/2 cups mini marshmallows
1 (14-oz) can sweetened condensed milk
2 tbsp. butter
1 tsp. vanilla
1 cup chopped nuts (optional)

Fill a medium saucepan about 2 inches deep with water.  Bring to simmer over medium heat.  Meanwhile, dump everything but the vanilla and nuts in a metal bowl and set it on top of the saucepan so that it’s suspended over the hot water.  Stir the contents intermittently while it heats, until everything is melted and thoroughly combined.  Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla and nuts (if you are using).  Pour into a buttered 8×8″ pan and refrigerate at least overnight before cutting.  Makes about 2 lbs.  Lasts forever (I’ve kept some up to two months without it getting dry or going bad) tightly covered at room temperature.

Dark Chocolate Peppermint Fudge: substitute dark chocolate chips (I use Hershey’s Special Dark) and sprinkle Andes peppermint baking chips on top once the fudge is poured in the dish and smoothed.  You don’t have to wait for it to cool first.  You could also use crushed peppermints if you don’t mind crunchy fudge.