Blackened Mahi-Mahi Fish Tacos

Today is my first day without feeling the pressure of studying!  Now that may all change by tomorrow when I start my first real day of work on the floor.  But for now, I feel invigorated.  Today, I revamped my exercise routine and am dedicated to the finishing the SELF Challenge (the fitness part).   I also want to visit every free museum in DC by the end of the summer.  Lastly, I am determined to try new kinds of recipes and start a recipe book. So during my workout today I watched the food network for an hour and found 3 new recipes to try this week.

Here is the first.  Eli and I fell in love with blackened fish and chicken when visiting Barbados and then again just a few weeks ago after going to Puerto Rico.  We rated this recipe an 8 out of 10.  Very yummy.  Just realized that this is kind of long, but I promise it is easy.  Don’t get bogged down.

2 pounds fresh fish-I like mahi mahi or red snapper because it is mild (we used about .7 lb for 5-6 small tacos)

1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 teaspoon cumin powder
½ teaspoon allepo (or cayenne) flakes
¼ teaspoon ancho powder
1/8 teaspoon coriander
¼ teaspoon sharp paprika powder
¼ teaspoon allspice
Salt and black pepper to taste

So I got to the spice isle and found that it would have cost about $15 for the spices I didn’t have.  Instead I found Phillips Blackening Seasoning for $6 and decided to go with that.  It was probably a lot better actually buying all those spices.  

Cut the fish into small fillets or even smaller for more spice.  Dip in spices and either cook in pan with a little butter or bake in the oven.  Just cook until the middle isn’t clear.  It was about 5 minutes in the pan for us. 

Use whatever toppings you want.  I used the following items
black beans and corn, cabbage
Monterey Jack or sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
1/2 cup cilantro, coarsely chopped
10 soft corn tortillas for tacos, or ready-made taco shells

Cafe rio dressing for the sauce (listed below)

Ingredients: MAKE HALF FOR A GROUP OF 4 OR LESS
1 packet Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing Mix (mix with 1 cup sour cream and 1 cup mayo - milk makes this too runny)
5 fresh tomatillos
1   7 oz. can salsa verde tomatillo salsa
2 cloves fresh garlic (or more)
2 jalapenos (hotter w/ seeds)
cilantro at least a handful or more
juice from a lime
salt/pepper
chili powder (chipotle if you have it)
Directions:
Mix well in your blender.

You sort of have to play around with this recipe since I got this from a person who watched them make it at Cafe Rio.  If you never have had Cafe Rio.  You are missing out .

This is the fun we had buying the fish at the Fish Market.

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pumpkin bread pudding.

julie provided a meal so i will provide a dessert. which is really my favorite part of eating anyway. bread pudding is one of my absolute favorite desserts of all time. and pumpkin anything is my favorite. period. so when i found this recipe, it was a dream come true and comes courtesy of caroline's bake shop.
and if you just want some really delicious and moist pumpkin bread, this is probably my favorite loaf i have ever had. the good news is that the bread recipe makes two loaves and you only need one for the bread pudding so you will get some scrumptious bread to eat for breakfast in the morning from this process too!

PUMPKIN BREAD.
4 cups flour
1/2 t. nutmeg
4 cups sugar
1 29 oz. can pumpkin
4 t. baking soda
1 cup oil
1 t. salt
1 t. cloves
1 t. cinnamon

mix dry ingredients into a large bowl. stir in pumpkin and oil. beat with wooden spoon (or whisk) until well blended. grease and flour 2 large (same size as the pans for wheat bread) or 3 medium loaf pans. pour in batter and bake in 325° oven for 1 1/4 hours to 1 1/2 hours. put toothpick in center to see if bread is done.

BREAD PUDDING.
even though it is my favorite, i had never made it before so i am going to include lots of pictures so you don't get worried about what yours looks like as i did.

8 large eggs
3 ½ cups milk
2 cups sugar
1 ½ cups whipping cream
1 t. vanilla extract
1 1-lb loaf pumpkin bread

butter a 3 quart baking dish. whisk eggs in large bowl to blend. add milk, sugar, cream, and vanilla. whisk to blend well. stir in bread. pour mixture into prepared baking dish, push down the bread crumbs, making sure they have all been coated by mixture. cover and refrigerate for 1 1/2 hours. cook for 1 hour, 45 minutes, or until it is set – 350 degrees (i had to up the tempurature to 375 degrees for the last 40 minutes). before serving, dribble some cinnamon caramel sauce over the top and serve with freshly whipped cream (we didn't use whipped cream but its probably a good addition...)





CINNAMON CARAMEL SAUCE
1 cup (packed ) golden brown sugar
1 cube butter
½ cup whipping cream
¾ t. cinnamon

stir brown sugar and butter in heavy medium saucepan over medium heat until melted and smooth, about 2 minutes. add cream and cinnamon and bring to simmer. simmer until sauce thickens and is reduced to 1 ½ cups, about 5 minutes. serve warm.

Chicken Cordon Bleu

So I haven't posted in a while because I have to be honest 1. I haven't tried very many new reicipes since Thanksgiving and 2. the ones I have tried haven't been all that great. But this one was definetly a winner. Eli said it was the best I have made in a while.

Prep Time:10 Min
Cook Time:35 Min
Ready In:45 Min
Yields 4 servings

Ingredients
4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
6 slices Swiss cheese
4 slices cooked ham

1 egg
1/2 cup seasoned bread crumbs

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Coat a 7x11 inch baking dish with nonstick cooking spray. Pound chicken breasts to 1/4 inch thickness. (I used a hammer since we are lacking a meat tenderizer). Sprinkle each piece of chicken on both sides with salt and pepper. Bath chicken in egg wash. Place 1 cheese slice and 1 ham slice on top of each breast. (I went to the deli and got four slices of each from the deli) Roll up each breast, roll in bread crumbs, and secure with a toothpick. Bake for 20 minutes with foil covering, take off foil and bake until golden brown (about 15 minutes). Remove toothpicks, and serve immediately with rice and sauce (1 can cream of chicken, 1/2 cup sour cream, lemon juice).

*if you need a visual go to youtube and "how to make chicken cordon bleu" and there are some videos on how to wrap it etc.

Spinach salad

Studying for the NCLEX has made me realize that the answer to all nutrition questions is "green leafy vegetables." Therefore, we made a New Year's commitment to eat more spinach. This is my new favorite salad. (who knew making dressing was so easy!)

Serving size 6

1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1 bunch spinach, rinsed and torn into bite-size pieces
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/2 cup crumbled blue cheese(I use feta)
2 tomatoes, chopped (optional)
1 avocado - peeled, pitted and diced
1/2 red onion, thinly sliced

Dressing

2 tablespoons red raspberry jam (with seeds)
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1/3 cup walnut oil
freshly ground black pepper to taste
salt to taste

Directions
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Arrange walnuts in a single layer on a baking sheet. Toast in oven for 3-5 minutes, or until nuts begin to brown.
In a large bowl, toss together the spinach, walnuts, cranberries, blue cheese, tomatoes, avocado, and red onion.
In a small bowl, whisk together jam, vinegar, walnut oil, pepper, and salt. Pour over the salad just before serving, and toss to coat.

Grilled Mahi Mahi and CousCous

This is easily my new favorite thing to make. I like to buy the mahi mahi bag of fish at Costco and keep it for fish tacos, so I looked up a recipe on the Food Network, then modified it to fit me and make it SUPER easy.
(hopefully we'll have a photo coming soon... I made it last night and it was super cute but I was so hungry I forgot to take a picture)

THE COUSCOUS
2 cups chicken broth or water
2 teaspoons curry powder
1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 cup couscous
2 scallions, sliced on an angle
1 carrot, shredded or grated
1 navel orange, peeled and chopped

Boil the first four ingredients. When it comes to a boil, remove from heat and stir in the couscous. Let sit for ten minutes. Stir in the last three ingredients.
(they also have stuff like some raisins, which I never have so I skip)

THE "SALSA"
1 small red bell pepper, seeded and diced
1 jalapeno, seeded and finely chopped
dash of ginger
1/4 cucumber, seeded, peeled and chopped
couple shakes of chives

Originally, this was a mango salsa, but since mangoes are expensive and rarely in season, I just omitted it. Instead, I mix this stuff all in with the couscous, since it all gets mixed up on my plate anyways.

THE FISH
2-3 mahi mahi steaks (3 because usually I eat one and Brad eats 2)
olive oil
salt
pepper
lime

Heat a grill pan/electric griddle to high. Drizzle oil over fish, rub in s&p, drizzle lime. Cook about 5 minutes on each side, or until fish is opaque.


I usually start the couscous, grill the fish, and cut up the "extras" while those two get going. Seriously, this can be done in as short as 15 minutes. It's good, and adds a nice mix-up from boring everyday same-o same-o.

pesto pizza.

need something ready in less than 30 minutes? this is your answer.

1. preheat oven to 450F.
2. slice a loaf of crusty french bread in half lengthwise (separate the top and the bottom). the one i used is "la brea bakery" that many grocery stores bake fresh daily (smiths, whole foods, costco). place halves on a sturdy jelly roll pan or cookie sheet.
3. mix 1/3 C prepared pesto (also can be purchased at a grocery store near you including sunflower market or costco) and 2 tsp minced garlic.
4. spread pesto mixture evenly on both halves of the bread.
5. top pesto bread with rotisserie chicken (my favorite is the one at costco for $4.99) and diced tomatoes.
6. sprinkle with parmesan cheese.
7. cook in oven for 10-15 minutes or until cheese starts to become golden.
8. slice with your favorite bread knife and EAT.
mm, delicious.

Zucchini Bread

So in my attempt to broaden my limited cook book I joined allrecipes.com, and now receive an email each day with a new recipe. I like this website because people rate the recipes and leave comments on how to make them better. (If you ever get a recipe off of here, make sure you read the comments because some of the changes are essential to the success of the recipe. I learned this the hard way on one recipe). I got an email for this zucchini bread recipe and saw that it has 5 out of 5 starts with over a 1,000 people rating it. Figured it must be pretty good. Eli says says its gets 5 stars.

For the recipe click here

Or here it is with my comments:

Servings: 2 regular bread size loafs (I halved the recipe and only made one because there is no way Eli and I can eat two). Oh other cool thing about allrecipes.com, it lists the serving size, but you can change them and it recalculated the recipe numbers for you. In the past I have totally messed up on a recipe because I forget I am halving or doubling and add too much or too little of one ingredient.

• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 3 eggs
• 1 cup vegetable oil
• 2 1/4 cups white sugar
• 3 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 cups grated zucchini
• 1 cup chopped walnuts

I changed the sugar to only two cups and used half white sugar and half brown sugar (someone suggested it on a comment) and I think it turned out yummy with that. I could just taste a little bit of the brown sugar in there. Other suggestions included, using 1 1/2 cups white flour and
1 1/2 cups wheat flour. Also use 1/2 cup oil and 1/2 cup apple sauce. I am definitely going to try these out next time now that I know I like the recipe.
Lastly, I used a medium to large zucchini (medium to large for a store bought zucchini, not like those crazy sized ones you can grow in the garden) and it made about a 1 1/2 cups grated zucchini. Just add as much zucchini as you like. This is a recipe you can play around with. I just used the cheese size grater for grating since I had no idea and I think it was a good size. Also, I didn't have the nuts which I am sure would have been great, but it is still very good without.

DIRECTIONS
1. Grease and flour two 8 x 4 inch pans. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).
2. Sift flour, salt, baking powder, soda, and cinnamon together in a bowl.
3. Beat eggs, oil, vanilla, and sugar together in a large bowl. Add sifted ingredients to the creamed mixture, and beat well. Stir in zucchini and nuts until well combined. Pour batter into prepared pans.
4. Bake for 40 to 60 minutes (mine was the full 60), or until tester inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool in pan on rack for 20 minutes. Remove bread from pan, and completely cool.

P.S. If you haven't tried Whitney's wheat bread recipe. You have to! Changed my life. I am now making it once a week and not buying bread. So easy and so worth it.