Fish Tacos with Tomatillo Cream Sauce

Miss F and I are loving our summer of seafood.  She is mildly obsessed with the green sauce at Pappasitos and I make a quick version of equal parts tomatillo salsa and sour cream to appease her.  I have been wanting to use it on fish tacos forever, just never got around to it.  I do miss our seafood selections in Houston, the seafood counter is much more limited here in the mountains of Colorado.  I am still a little bitter that trout is so hard to come by.  These tacos are the perfect summer meal and couldn't be any easier.

Fish Tacos with Tomatillo Cream Sauce

¼ cup sour cream
¼ cup tomatillo salsa
pinch of salt

For the Baja Fish Tacos:
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced
1 pound mild fish, I used cod, but would prefer red snapper
½ teaspoon salt
8 small corn or flour tortillas
1 cup shredded cabbage (I used a cole slaw bag, so it had some carrots as well)
1 avocado, peeled, seeded and diced
1-2 limes, cut into wedges

Whisk together the sour cream, salsa and salt. Set aside.

Add butter and oil to a large non-stick skillet and heat over medium-high heat. Add the garlic to the pan for 30 seconds. Season the fish on both sides with the salt. Sauté the fish 2 to 4 minutes a side until cooked through.

Take a tortilla and add a small amount of the cabbage, squeeze a little lime over it (this helps flavor it a bit), then add the fish pieces and top with the avocado. Top with a drizzle of tomatillo cream and a squeeze of lime juice.

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Thai Basil Shrimp

Long time, no post... It's been a crazy month or so. We took an amazing vacation to Thailand, Cambodia and Laos for two and a half weeks and then drove up to our house in Colorado, where we will be spending the next five weeks.  It made for lots of amazing eating, but not so much in the way of cooking.  Miss F devoured basil shrimp when we were in Thailand, she couldn't get enough, so I decided to try and replicate the recipe at home and I think I was pretty successful.  I used a mild Fresno chile, but feel free to amp up the heat if you are so inclined.  This dish was successful, the rice, not so much.  Cooking rice at nearly 9000 feet is proving to be very tricky.

Thai Basil Shrimp

2 tablespoons fish sauce
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
2 teaspoons brown sugar
½ cup basil leaves
2 tablespoon vegetable oil
¼ cup minced onion
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons minced ginger
1 chile, seeded and chopped (I used Fresno)
1 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined
2 cups cooked white rice

In a small bowl, stir together the fish sauce, soy sauce, brown sugar and basil leaves. In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the onion, garlic, ginger and chiles to the skillet, sauté for 1 minute, until fragrant. Add the shrimp, stir fry 2 minutes more. Pour the sauce over the shrimp, stir fry 2 to 4 minutes more, until the shrimp are cooked through. Serve over rice.

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Salsa Verde Tortilla Soup

As soon as I saw this Salsa Verde Tortilla Soup on The Barbee Housewife, it went onto our meal plan. Miss F is obsessed with salsa verde, so I knew it would be a huge hit in our house. And I was totally correct.  For the first time ever, Miss F tried avocadoes on her soup and she loved it.  I am known to be a bit of an avocado hog, so now I will have to buy an extra avocado whenever we have tortilla soup.  I usually give C a few slices and hoard the rest for myself.  I adapted the recipe a bit from the original because I never have cooked chicken and it was easy enough to cook and shred the chicken breasts while the soup cooks.  I am going to try this with traditional salsa as well, I bet it will be equally fantastic.

Salsa Verde Tortilla Soup

4 cups chicken broth
2 cups salsa verde
2 teaspoons cumin
1 teaspoon chili powder
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon pepper
1 pound skinless boneless chicken breasts
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 package frozen corn
1 cup shredded cheddar jack cheese
Tortilla chips
1 lime, cut into wedges

In a Dutch oven, stir together the chicken broth, salsa verde, cumin, chili powder, salt and pepper. Add the chicken. Bring the soup to a boil over medium-high heat, reduce heat to low, cover and simmer for 30 minutes. Shred the chicken with two forks, return to the pan. Stir in the black beans and corn, simmer for 5 minutes more. Serve topped with cheese and tortilla chips, with a lime wedge on the side.

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Crockpot Cuban Shredded Beef

This recipe was a massive hit in our family. Miss F, C and I all really enjoyed this meal. I didn't partake in the beans, but I was just as happy to have the beef over rice alone.  Make sure you add a generous squeeze of lime juice before you eat it, it makes a huge difference.  We used the leftovers in quesadillas the next night, but the qould be equally good in tacos, burritos or taquitos. The meat is amazingly tender, thanks to being cooked low and slow all day.  Next time I will try and prepare it in the Instant Pot, for a dinner when I don't have time to mess with the crockpot in the morning.  Thanks to Little Spice Jar for the amazing recipe.

Crockpot Cuban Shredded Beef

2 to 2 ½ pounds beef chuck roast
6 cloves garlic
1 tablespoon oil
2 (8 ounce) cans tomato sauce
1 green bell pepper, thinly sliced
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
1 (4 ounce) can chopped green chilies
2 tablespoons tomato paste
2 teaspoons dried oregano
2 teaspoons salt
1 tablespoon cumin
1 tablespoon white vinegar
½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
¼ cup chopped cilantro
white rice
black beans
1 lime, cut into wedges

Using a paring knife, score three small “X” marks into the meat, press one garlic clove into each “X”. Heat the oil in a large pan over medium-high heat. Add the roast and sear on each side for 5 minutes.

Chop the remaining cloves are garlic. Add the chopped garlic, tomato sauce, bell pepper, onions, chilies, tomato paste, oregano, salt, cumin, vinegar, red pepper flakes and cilantro to the crockpot. Add the seared roast, cover and cook on low for 8 hours. Shred the beef with two forks and stir into the sauce. Serve with white rice, black beans and lime wedges.

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Chipotle Lime Shrimp Fajitas

I am obsessed with having seafood whenever C is out of town. Miss F is equally obsessed, thank goodness, so even though this dish screams summer to me, we had it in December. Which in Houston, is much like summer sometimes, even in the winter (hello, high of 80 degrees this coming Saturday!)  I love the smoky flavor of chipotle, C is not a fan, so even better that I can incorporate it in a dish that he won't be around for.  These fajitas come together in 20 minutes, including marinade time.  It couldn't get any easier!

Chipotle Lime Shrimp Fajitas

1 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined
juice from 1 lime
1 chipotle, minced, plus 1 tablespoon adobo sauce (from a can of chipotles in adobo)
1 teaspoon chili powder
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 large avocado
1 tomato, seeded and chopped
8 corn tortillas, warmed

In a shallow bowl, toss the shrimp with the lime juice, chipotle, adobo, chili powder, salt and pepper. Let sit for 10 minutes. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the shrimp with the marinade and sauté , stirring often, for 5 to 7 minutes, until the shrimp are cooked through.  Mash the avocado. Spread each tortilla with the avocado, add the tomato and top with the shrimp. Serve.

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Cucumber Lime Vodka Spritzer

A month or so ago, I went to Lake Charles for the weekend with a group of girlfriends. We stayed at the Golden Nugget and had an amazing time, I highly recommend it as a much cheaper alternative to Vegas. The drive was short and the hotel was quite lovely.  We ate a Vic and Anthony's one night and three of us ordered a cucumber lime cocktail.  And three of us looked at each other in horror when we tasted it, it was awful.  I love tart tart tart cocktails, but this was too much for even my taste.  We sent the drinks back, replaced them with something much more tasty, but I still craved a cucumber and lime cocktail.  I hosted a 40th birthday for a friend and decided to try something similar, but not terrible, on my own.  This cocktail is refreshing and tasty, without being terribly tart.

Cucumber Lime Vodka Spritzer
makes 16 cocktails

8 12-ounce cans club soda
2 cups vodka
½ cup fresh lime juice
1 English cucumber, thinly sliced

In a pitcher, combine the club soda, vodka, lime juice, and cucumber. Serve over ice.

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Skillet Salsa Chicken

I knew as soon as I saw this recipe on Taste of Home Cooking, it would be a huge hit with Miss F. And I wasn't wrong. She inhaled it, comparing it to one of her favorites, crockpot chicken enchilada soup.  I served it over plain white rice because I am not a huge cilantro fan and neither is anyone else.  I used Greek yogurt instead of the sour cream because I didn't have any on hand, no one was the wiser.  I loved how easy this was, in the time that it took the rice to cook with the magical Fasta Pasta, dinner was ready.  It doesn't get any easier than that!

Skillet Salsa Chicken

2 teaspoons vegetable oil
1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite sized pieces
1 medium sweet onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon oregano
1 teaspoon chile powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups salsa
1 cup chicken broth
1 cup corn kernels
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
2 tablespoons sour cream
1 tablespoon lime juice
1 avocado, for serving
Steamed rice, for serving

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add the chicken and cook for 4-5 minutes until no longer pink. Add the onion and saute for another 2-3 minutes until onion is soft and chicken is cooked through. Add minced garlic and stir for 30 seconds until fragrant. Add the seasonings, salsa, broth, corn and black beans to the pan and stir to combine.

Turn the heat down to medium low and simmer for 10 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the sour cream and lime juice. Serve topped with sliced avocado and over rice.

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Chicken Fajita Kabobs

Isn't food more fun when served on a stick? And it certainly is quite more fun to cook, especially when you have a seven year old helper that loves skewering.  These skewers don't take a long marinade time, so your fajitas can be ready for an easy weeknight meal.  I broiled them, but they would be lovely on the grill, perfect for summer.  This whole plate full was gone in one sitting, they were quite a huge hit.  Be sure to use fresh lime juice, it really makes a difference. This recipe was inspired by Two Peas and Their Pod.

Chicken Fajita Kabobs

2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
2 teaspoons chili powder
2 teaspoons cumin
½ teaspoon garlic powder
½ teaspoon dried oregano
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon ground black pepper

1 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into 3/4 inch pieces
1 red onion, cut into ¾ inch pieces
1 red pepper, cut into ¾ inch pieces
1 green pepper, cut into ¾ inch pieces

Whisk together the oil, lime juice, chili powder, cumin, garlic powder, oregano, salt and pepper. Add the chicken to a re-sealable plastic bag and pour the marinade over the chicken. Allow to sit at room temperature for 30 minutes. Grease a broiler pan with cooking spray. Thread the chicken, onion and bell pepper onto skewers and place on the broiler pan. Broil on high for 5 minutes, flip and broil for 4 minutes more. Serve.

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Crockpot Mexican Chicken Soup

Miss F is a huge fan of the Food Network. Her favorite shows are Cake Wars and Chopped Junior.  She also really enjoys watching Pioneer Woman, most of her recipes are right up Miss F's alley.  When she saw this recipe for Mexican Chicken Soup on a recent episode, she insisted we put it on the menu for the following week.  She thought it would be much like her favorite soup, Crockpot Chicken Enchilada Soup, or as she calls it, "Crocky."  This soup was a huge hit!  She devoured a couple of bowls and then ate all the leftovers for lunches.  I keep chipotles in the freezer, then I can just take one or two out as needed.

Crockpot Mexican Chicken Soup

1 pound boneless, skinless whole chicken breasts
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper
One 28-ounce can whole or diced tomatoes, with juice
3 ½ cups chicken broth
One 15-ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed
One 10-ounce can Rotel
4 ounces tomato paste
1 medium onion, chopped
1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1 green bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1 canned chipotle pepper in adobo (you may add 2 to 3 if you like)
½ lime, juiced
1 cup shredded Colby jack cheese

Place the chicken in a crockpot. Sprinkle with chili powder, cumin, salt and pepper. Add the tomatoes, broth, beans, Rotel, tomato paste, onion, bell peppers and chipotles to the crockpot and stir well to combine. Cover and cook on high for 5 hours or on low for 8 hours. Stir in the lime juice. Serve, topped with cheese.

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Citrus Chicken Thighs

I made quite a few changes from the original recipe so that I could roast potatoes and broccoli along with the chicken thighs.  Miss F had fun squeezing the citrus and she was a big fan of the chicken, as long as hers didn't have any scallions on it.  I roasted the fingerling potatoes in the same pan as the chicken, which provided a nice brightness to them.  It would also work well with carrots in the same pan.  This chicken would also be great on the grill, as long as it is still grilling weather where you are.

Citrus Chicken Thighs

1 bunch scallions, thinly sliced
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1 teaspoon finely grated lime zest
1 teaspoon finely grated orange zest
¼ cup fresh lime juice
¼ cup fresh orange juice
¼ cup reduced-sodium soy sauce
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 tablespoon kosher salt
2 pounds skin-on, bone-in chicken thighs

Set aside ¼ cup sliced scallions. Pulse the garlic, citrus zests, citrus juices, soy sauce, oil, salt, and remaining scallions in a food processor until well combined. Set aside ¼ cup of the marinade; place remaining marinade in a large resealable plastic bag. Add chicken, seal bag, and turn to coat. Chill at least 20 minutes. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Spray a 9x13 baking dish with cooking spray and place the chicken in a single layer in the dish. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes. Serve the chicken with the reserved scallions and marinade.

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Tomatillo Chicken

Miss F is obsessed with the creamy green sauce at Pappasitos. And when I say obsessed, I mean it. She insists on having her own bowl of sauce to eat with her chips and she eats it prison style, with her arm crooked around the dish. She devours the whole bowl and usually asks for a second. I decided to try and make a similar sauce to serve over baked chicken.  She loved it.  She kept stealing bites of the sauce as I was preparing it.  I may have become a little obsessed with it too.  The sauce was also delicious over Mexican sour cream rice.  I adapted the recipe from Le Crème de la Crumb.

Tomatillo Chicken

½ cup mayo
½ cup sour cream
½ cup buttermilk
1 package buttermilk ranch dressing mix
2½ teaspoons garlic
3 tomatillos, husked and chopped
½ teaspoon lime juice
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
chopped tomatoes

Whisk together the mayonnaise, buttermilk, ranch dressing mix, garlic, tomatillos and lime juice. Pour half of the dressing in a large Ziploc bag, add the chicken, tossing well to coat. Let marinate at room temperature for 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Grease a shallow baking dish and place the chicken inside. Discard the marinade. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes. Top with the reserved dressing, tomatoes and serve.

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Seared Salmon Salad with Avocado Vinaigrette

All salads need avocado in them. I could probably eat any combination of vegetables and with lettuce as long as there were chunks of avocado nestled somewhere in the greens. I first discovered avocado vinaigrette in a recipe swap I participated in. This salad is simple and delicious, perfect for night's when C is out and it is just Miss F and myself. She will eat salad, but only with ranch dressing. She is okay with salmon, but it isn't her most favorite fish. Her favorite fish is fish sticks, go figure. I tried one the other day, I hadn't had one since I was a kid. They were pretty much breaded bread, not an ounce of fish inside.

Seared Salmon Salad with Avocado Vinaigrette

1 avocado
½ teaspoon sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lime juice
1 tablespoon water
2 teaspoons rice wine vinegar
3 tablespoons olive oil

½ pound salmon, portioned into 2 filets
2 tablespoons olive oil
salt and pepper

4 cups mixed greens

Peel, seed, and dice avocado and place half of it in blender or food processor. Add sugar, salt, lime juice, water, and vinegar. With the machine running, slowly drizzle in oil until a creamy emulsion forms.

Rub the salmon filets with the oil and generously season with salt and pepper. Heat a skillet over medium high heat, add the salmon to the pan skin side down and sauté for 3 to 5 minutes. Flip the salmon over and sauté for 3 to 5 minutes more, until the salmon is cooked through.

Toss the mixed greens and remaining diced avocado with the vinaigrette. Divide among two plates and top each with the cooked salmon filet. Serve.

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Tomatillo Chicken

This may be one of the ugliest meals I have made in awhile. And it was also one of the tastiest. I ate over half of my chicken breast during dinner and decided to save the remainder for lunch the next day. It didn't make it to lunch. About an hour after dinner, I went into the fridge and devoured the rest. The chicken was full of flavor from the brine and the sauce, based on my favorite Deluxe Tomatillo Sauce from Chuy's, was perfection.  Thanks to Confections of a Foodie Bride for the brining inspiration and thanks to my friend Jen for always agreeing to meet me for lunch at Chuy's.

Tomatillo Chicken

4 cups water
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon salt
juice from one lime
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 can (28 ounces) tomatillos, drained
1 cup chicken broth
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon fresh lime juice
1 clove garlic, minced
½ jalapeno, minced
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon sugar
1 cup sour cream
3 cups cooked white rice

Stir together the water, sugar, salt and lime juice in a sealable plastic bag. Add the chicken breasts and refrigerate overnight.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Grease a baking dish and add the chicken in a single layer. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until cooked through.

In a saucepan, combine tomatillos, broth, cumin, lime juice, garlic, jalapeno, salt and sugar. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes. Remove from heat. Puree until smooth with an immersion blender. Return to heat, stir in the sour cream and cook 3 minutes more until heated through. Serve the chicken over the rice with the tomatillo sauce poured over top.

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Beef Fajitas with Corn Salsa

I will order pretty much any kind of fajitas before I will order beef fajitas. Pork, shrimp or chicken are my usual go tos, or some combination of those three. I will even throw in lobster when we are eating at El Tiempo. This fajita recipe may change my mind. The rub provides the perfect fajita flavors and the flank steak is tender and delicious with the overnight marinade. What really stands out is the corn salsa. It is sweet, crunchy and tastes like summer. I am so thrilled to have a grill at our new condo in Colorado. I would grill on it every night if I could. And these fajitas are going to be in regular rotation this summer.  The salsa would also be fantastic on pork, shrimp or chicken fajitas, but I think I prefer it best on beef.

Beef Fajitas with Corn Salsa

1 pound flank steak
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 clove garlic, minced
2 teaspoons cumin
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
1 teaspoon kosher salt

1 teaspoon vegetable or canola oil
1 cup corn kernels
1 avocado, cut into a small dice
1 tomato, cut into a small dice
1 small onion, cut into a small dice
juice from half a lime
dash of hot sauce

tortillas
shredded cheese
sour cream

Trim the fat from the flank steak, set aside. Whisk together the oil, garlic, cumin, chili powder, pepper and salt together. Pour over the steak and let marinate overnight.

Heat the oil in a small saute pan over medium heat. Saute the corn for 5 minutes or so. Set aside to cool. When cool, toss with the avocado, tomato, onion, lime juice and hot sauce, salt and pepper to taste. Set aside.

Remove the steak from the refrigerator 30 minutes before cooking. Preheat the grill to medium, grill the steak about 5 to 7 minutes per side. Cover the steak with foil and let rest for 15 minutes. Slice the steak into ¼ to ½ inch-thick strips and serve with warm tortillas, corn salsa, cheese and sour cream.

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Cranberry Margaritas

I have been wanting to make Confections of a Foodie Bride's Cranberry Margaritas for quite some time. My friend Courtney hosted a booze exchange last Christmas and it was so much fun. She was in the middle of moving this year, so I deicded to take over hosting. I served TexMex appetizers, chips and queSNOW, short rib FELIZ empanadas, chicken and spinach SANTAquitos, vegetables with jalapeNOEL ranch, with Mexican HOHOHOt Chocolate cupcakes for dessert. It was great to get all my girlfriends together for an evening of fun. I thought I had made too many margaritas (2 gallons,) but we polished them all off.

Cranberry Margaritas

1 ¼ cup cranberry juice cocktail
2 to 3 tablespoons sugar, to taste
1 ¼ cup fresh cranberries
¾ cup fresh lime juice
¾ cup tequila
½ cup orange liqueur

Add the cranberry juice, sugar, 1 cup of the cranberries, lime juice, tequila and orange liqueur into a blender. Blend for a minute or so, until smooth. Pour through a strainer to catch the cranberry pulp. Pour over ice and garnish with the reserved ¼ cup of cranberries.

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Crispy Skin Salmon with Avocado Remoulade

I have been lucky to dine at Nobu a few times, the most interesting being in Hong Kong with Miss F. Now that she is eating salmon, I have something else to offer her when we return =) This recipe is loosely based on the recipe for Nobu's crispy skin salmon. I didn't have time to get to the Asian grocer for daikon, so I decided to try the fish with avocado remoulade instead. It was wonderful. I know I will use this remoulade the next time I make po-boys. It is rich and creamy, the perfect accompaniment to the salmon.

Crispy Skin Salmon with Avocado Remoulade

2 large avocados, cut and peeled
3 tablespoons lime juice
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon minced shallots
1 tablespoon minced parsley
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
dash of hot sauce
Salt and pepper to taste
1 pound salmon, cut into 4 filets
Canola oil

Put avocado pieces and lime juice into a food processor or blender and pulse until blended. Slowly add -olive oil, pulsing, until you reach desired consistency of sauce. Add minced shallot and parsley, pulse just until combined. Remove to a bowl, add mustard, hot sauce, salt and pepper to taste.

Heat a large nonstick skillet over high heat until hot, and swirl oil in. Place salmon, skin side down, in skillet; cook, undisturbed, for 2 minutes. Cook remaining 3 sides of fish until 70 percent cooked (it should be opaque on the outside yet slightly rare inside), 1 minute each side; fish should cook 5 minutes total.

Serve salmon on top of avocado remoulade sauce.

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Cajun Red Snapper with Lime Beurre Blanc

This recipe is loosely inspired from the Tabasco website. I adore Tabasco, I will add it to most anything. And you cannot go wrong with a Beurre Blanc sauce, anything with that much butter in it has to be amazing. I love how quickly snapper cooks up, even with the marinade time, this came together in under 45 minutes, which was the exact time needed to bake the Hassleback Potatoes.  The sauce also went well with the green beans and potatoes.  I was not a fan of mixing foods when I was a kid, but now I do it all the time.  I may have had a fork full of fish, potato and a green bean.  No divided plates for me!

Cajun Red Snapper with Lime Beurre Blanc

1 tablespoon Cajun seasoning (such as Tony Chacheres)
1 teaspoon Tabasco
Juice of 2 limes
3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
4 (8-ounce) fillets red snapper

Lime Beurre Blanc
½ cup chopped shallots
½ cup white wine
Juice of 2 limes, divided
½ cup heavy cream
1 cup butter, cut into small pieces

To make marinade, combine Cajun seasoning, Tabasco, lime juice, and 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a shallow dish and mix well; add fish and marinate for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, prepare beurre blanc and set aside.

Just before serving, heat a large nonstick skillet over high heat. Add remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil to hot pan. Place two fish fillets at a time in pan, skin side down, and cook 3 to 4 minutes. Turn fish over and cook 1 to 2 minutes longer.

Spoon some beurre blanc on 4 plates; top with fish fillets and more beurre blanc.

Lime Beurre Blanc: Combine shallots, wine, and juice of one lime in a small saucepan; cook over medium heat until mixture is reduced to 1 ½ tablespoons. Add the heavy cream and cook 2 minutes. Reduce heat to low and add butter a piece at a time, whisking until all is incorporated, stir in juice from remaining lime. Season to taste with salt and pepper and heat for 30 seconds.

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Slow Baked Salmon with Lime Cream

Slow baked salmon was served at my wedding, that is how much I adore it (recipe here.) My friend Courtney had a dinner party for my birthday and prepared this amazing slow baked salmon. It was cooked on a bed of onions, which added this wonderful flavor to the fish. She prepares it with lemons, but I had a bunch of limes leftover from Key Lime Pie, so I decided to switch it up. It was equally good. And drumroll....Miss F tasted it AND liked it. I am so thrilled she finally tried fish and that it was my favorite fish, salmon. Courtney got the recipe from Steamy Kitchen, which provides a multitude of ways to prepare slow baked salmon.

Slow Baked Salmon with Lime Cream

1 onion, sliced
2 limes, one sliced and one juiced
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon salt, divided
¼ teaspoon pepper
1 ½ teaspoons cumin, divided
½ cup sour cream
¼ teaspoon sugar

Preheat the oven to 250 degrees. While the oven is preheating, set the salmon out to come to room temperature. Arrange the onion slices and lime slices on the bottom of a baking dish. Place the salmon on top of the onion and limes. Brush each filet with oil. Sprinkle with ½ teaspoon salt, pepper and 1 teaspoon of the cumin. Bake for 30 minutes.

Whisk together the sour cream, lime juice, ½ teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon cumin and sugar together. Top the cooked salmon with the lime cream.

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Key Lime Pie

Since childhood, my favorite dessert to order at a restaurant has always been Key Lime Pie. When I came to Houston to visit the University of Houston, we went out for a big seafood meal. I ended the evening with Key Lime Pie. And some allergic reactions. I thought it was the shrimp, but it turned out it was a reaction to pecans. My dad has allergic reactions to nuts as well, but I couldn't figure out where I had eaten any. Once I moved to Texas, I quickly realized 9 out of 10 restaurants add pecans to their Key Lime Pie's graham cracker crust. Besides eating my weight in stone crab at Joe's Stone Crab in Miami, I also knew I wanted some non-pecan tainted Key Lime Pie. And it was the best slice of pie I have ever eaten. I was so happy to see that Joe's Stone Crab shares their amazing pie recipe and I was even happier to learn that it was amazingly easy to make. I may have eaten all but one slice from the entire pie I made.

Joe's Stone Crab Key Lime Pie

1 wax paper-wrapped package graham crackers (1/3 of a pound box)
or
1 cup, 2 ½ tablespoons graham cracker crumbs
5 tablespoons melted unsalted butter
1/3 cup sugar

3 egg yolks
1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
2/3 cup freshly squeezed lime juice

Whipped cream

For the graham cracker crust:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter a 9-inch pie pan. Break up the graham crackers; place in a food processor and process to crumbs. (If you don't have a food processor, place the crackers in a large plastic bag; seal and then crush the crackers with a rolling pin.) Add the melted butter and sugar and pulse or stir until combined. Press the mixture into the bottom and sides of the pie pan, forming a neat border around the edge. Bake the crust until set and golden, 8 minutes. Set aside on a wire rack; leave the oven on.

For the filling:
Meanwhile, in an electric mixer with the wire whisk attachment, beat the egg yolks at high speed until very fluffy, about 5 minutes. Gradually add the condensed milk and continue to beat until thick, 3 or 4 minutes longer. Lower the mixer speed and slowly add the lime juice, mixing just until combined, no longer. Pour the mixture into the crust. Bake for 10 minutes or until the filling has just set. Cool on a wire rack, then refrigerate. Freeze for 15 to 20 minutes before serving. Serve topped with whipped cream.

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Baja Fish Tacos

I adore fish tacos. Fried or grilled, doesn't matter to me. I do get picky with the sauce though. I need it to have a good kick and I am generally prefer something with a sour cream base. I don't like plain sour cream on tacos, but mix it with lime and chipotle...winner.  Any mild white fish works great with this taco, I used red snapper since I can get it for under two bucks a pound.  Even Miss F liked the fish, though she had hers separate from the taco.  I have a giant bag of limes from Costco from making Key Lime Pie, this was a great way to use a couple up.  Miss F loves to squeeze the lime...even over her beans!

Baja Fish Tacos with Chipotle Crema
adapted from My Life as a Mrs

For the Chipotle Crema:
½ cup half and half
¼ cup sour cream
1 whole chipotle pepper in adobo sauce, minced
½ lime, juiced
pinch of salt

For the Baja Fish Tacos:
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 pound mild fish, I like red snapper
1 tablespoon Tony Chacheres
6-8 small corn or flour tortillas
1 cup shredded cabbage (I used a cole slaw bag, so it had some carrots as well)
1-2 limes, cut into wedges

For the Chipotle Crema:
Whisk together the half and half, sour cream, chipotle and lime juice. Salt to taste. Set aside.

For the Baja Fish Tacos:
Add butter and oil to a large non-stick skillet and heat over medium-medium high heat. Season the fish on both sides with the Tony Chacheres. Sauté the fish 2 to 4 minutes a side until cooked through.

Take a tortilla and add a small amount of the cabbage, squeeze a little lime over it (this helps flavor it a bit), then add the fish pieces. Top with a drizzle of chipotle crema and a squeeze of lime juice.

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