Mojito Tilapia

I got this recipe for Mojito Grilled Pork Tenderloin with Strawberry Salsa and decided to try it out with tilapia instead of pork.  It was a nice light supper, although I'm not sure the Mojito Rim Trimmer really added much to the overall taste.  I usually season my fish with Cuban Seasoning and lime juice, so this wasn't much of a deviation from the norm at our house.  The salsa was a nice touch though!

Coconut-Crusted Cuban Tilapia with Fruit Salsa

This is one of my favourite recipes, and it's perfect for today since my husband doesn't eat meat on Good Friday.  I was going to make grilled fish instead, sprinkled with some Cuban seasoning and a splash of lime juice, but I opted for this instead:

COCONUT-CRUSTED CUBAN TILAPIA
4 tilapia filets
Cuban seasoning
1 egg, beaten
coconut
Panko breadcrumbs

Season fish with Cuban seasoning, then dip it in egg and coat it with a mixture of coconut and Panko.  Heat oil in a frying pan and cook fish for a few minutes on each side.  Serve with a generous portion of fruit salsa.

FRUIT SALSA
granny smith apple (1)
mango (2)
cucumber (1/2)
red onion (3 thin slices)
avocado (1)
jalapeno (1)
red bell pepper (1/2)

Chop everything up (finely dice the jalapeno and red onion, but the rest can be larger pieces).  Squeeze in the juice of 1 lime.

This recipe is very forgiving... the salsa recipe I made was enough for at least 6-8 people (and since my kids didn't eat any, we've got a whole swack of it left!)  You could add more/less of any of the ingredients, or switch things up a bit.... add some cilantro or mint, use different bell peppers, add some tomato.... whatever you like.  My husband said he could just eat the salsa and forget about the fish (but only because the salsa is so yummy, not because the fish was crap.)  You could also use this salsa for chicken or pork or just to snack on with some tortilla chips.

Have a wonderful Easter weekend!

Tilapia Ceviche

Today is more of a "hearty soup" kinda day (yes, it's April 14, but the temperature is around the freezing mark and there were wind gusts over 50km/hr today!)  But I didn't make soup, I made ceviche.  Ceviche is seafood that is "cooked" by soaking in a citrus juice.  Today I used tilapia and lime juice, after seeing this recipe on "Mexican Made Easy" on the Food Network.  Here's how I made it:

TILAPIA CEVICHE
2 tilapia filets, finely chopped
4 limes, juiced (about 1/2 c.)
2 tomatoes, seeded and diced
1/4 c. red onion, finely diced
1/4 c. English cucumber, finely chopped
1 tbsp. cilantro, finely chopped
1/2 serrano pepper, seeded and finely diced
1 avocado, diced
2 iceburg lettuce leaves, chopped
salt & pepper

Pour lime juice over fish and cover with saran wrap.  Refrigerate for 20-30 minutes.  Meanwhile, add remaining ingredients into a bowl.  Pour fish into a strainer and push to drain off all the lime juice.  Add to the vegetables and stir to combine.  Serve on soft tortillas.

If you can chop vegetables, you can make ceviche!  It's so easy, and it tates so fresh and healthy.  I can almost picture myself sitting at a resort in Mexico eating this delicious tortilla filled with seafood goodness!  Tomorrow I might have to make some hearty soup though.... stupid Saskatchewan weather.

Birthday Party Food

It was my husband's birthday party last night, so I made tons of appetizers for the event.  Here are the recipes:

BAKED BRIE WITH APRICOT & JALAPENO
1 brie wheel, with the top sliced off
apricot marmalade
1 jalapeno, seeded and diced
crushed pecans

Spread the marmalade on top of the cheese, and sprinkle with jalapeno and pecans.  Bake until gooey, and serve with crackers or bread.

I took the picture before it went in the oven, because it's not nearly as pretty after it's all melted
(but it tastes soooo good!)


SALSA (this recipe was used to make the world's largest bowl of salsa!)
4 tomatoes, seeded and diced
1 jalapeno, seeded and diced
6 tbsp. red onion, diced
1/4 bunch cilantro, chopped
6 mint leaves, chopped
1 lime, juiced
1 tbsp. olive oil
1 1/2 tsp. balsamic vinegar
salt & pepper

SUSHI ROLLS (see how to make them here)
nori papers
2 c. sushi rice (soak in 3 1/2 c. water for 30 minutes, then bring to a boil, reduce heat and cover slightly with the lid and simmer for 10 minutes or until water is all gone.  Turn off the burner but leave the pot there and put the lid on tight for 10 minutes.  Stir in 3-4 tbsp. seasoned rice vinegar.)
smoked salmon
1/2 cucumber, cut into long skinny pieces
1 avocado. sliced




PINEAPPLE CRAB MUSRHOOMS (adapted from the cookbook "Just Add Rum!" by Angela Spenceley)
1 can crab meat
1/2 small onion, diced
1 garlic cloved, minced
1/8 c. red bell pepper, diced
1/8 c. pineapple, diced
1/8 c. mushroom stems, diced
1 tbsp. fresh parsley, chopped
1/2 c. panko breadcrumbs
2 tsp. butter
2 tsp. rum
pepper
approx. 30 mushrooms, stems removed

Sauté onions, garlic, red pepper, and mushroom stems in some oil in a frying pan.  Add crab, pineapple, and parsley and sauté for 1-2 minutes.  Add breadcrumbs, butter, rum, and pepper and mix well.  Spoon into mushroom caps and place on a baking sheet.  Bake at 350 F for 15 minutes.

EXTRAORDINARY CHEESE DIP (I don't have a picture, but there is one on the link.)

All of these appetizers were delicious (either that, or our friends are just really polite and ate everything to make me feel good!)

Caesar-Crusted Salmon

Tonight's supper is a recipe I got from Epicure Selections, and it only took about 15 minutes to make from start to finish!

I slightly modified this recipe so that it worked with the ingredients that I had at home:

CAESAR-CRUSTED SALMON
2 tbsp. Caesar Dressing Mix
2 tbsp. mayo
1/4 c. grated parmesan cheese
1/4 c. olive oil
1/4 c. milk
juice from 1 lemon
4 salmon filets
1/2 c. panko breadcrumbs
1 tsp. Hot Artichoke Dip Mix
olive oil
romaine lettuce leaves

Combine first 6 ingredients to make the Caesar dressing.  Lay salmon filets on a parchment-lined baking sheet and spread the dressing over each one.  (There should be some dressing leftover that you can serve with lettuce later on.)  Combine breadcrumbs and Hot Artichoke dip mix together and sprinkle generously over the salmon filets.  Drizzle lightly with olive oil, and bake at 450 F for 10-12 minutes.  Serve on a bed of romaine lettuce.

This was very popular with the grown-ups, but my daughter wasn't a huge fan (she liked it, but didn't love it.)  I didn't even bother making a piece for my son - he had plain salmon with some salt sprinkled on top and thought it was the best thing ever!  I loved the crispy panko crumbs, and I'm always a huge fan of the Epicure Caesar dressing.  I would definitely make this recipe again sometime.

One-Pot Fish Dish

My sister kindly signed me up for a subscription to Martha Stewart's "Everyday Food" magazine, and each issue has a meal plan so I thought I'd start off 2011 with one big grocery list and all the ingredients to make a week's worth of meals (actually, I picked out 9 recipes to make, so I was really starting out with a bang!)

I haven't made it all the way through my list yet, but I think I'm scrapping some of the fritattas I had planned (because I really wasn't a big fan of the first one I tried, so I doubt the other flavour combinations will be any better!) It might take me a while to get all the recipes posted, but I had to share tonight's with you because it was so easy and SO GOOD!

SPICE-RUBBED FISH WITH LEMONY RICE

Coriander Spice Mix

1 tbsp. ground coriander

3/4 tsp. ground ginger

3/4 tsp. paprika

3/4 tsp. coarse salt (I found the fish a little salty, so I would use less salt next time)

3/8 tsp. cumin

3/8 tsp. pepper

1 onion, diced

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 c. basmati rice

1 tbsp. lemon zest

1 tbsp. lemon juice

2 c. chicken or vegetable broth

1/2 red bell pepper, chopped (original recipe called for zucchini, but I don't like zucchini and I had half a red pepper in my fridge to use up. I think it was a huge improvement to the recipe!)

salt & pepper, to taste

4 white fish filets (I used basa)

Heat some butter in a dutch oven over medium heat. Add onion and garlic and cook for about 4 minutes, until onion is soft. Add rice and cook for 1 minute. Stir in remaining ingredients (except for the fish) and bring to a boil, then reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 13 minutes. Sprinkle the spice mixture over the fish filets (just on one side). Arange fish snugly in a single layer on top of the rice, spice side up, and put the lid back on. Cook for another 6-9 minutes until fish is opaque.

This was perfect! One dish, no mess, and it took less than 30 minutes from start to finish. And everyone liked it, which is always a bonus!

Shrimp (and Chicken) Linguine Alfredo

I'm not sure whether or not tonight's meal would be counted as a success.... my daughter and I ate it quite willingly, while my son was given the alternative to got to bed (at 5:30pm) or eat his damn supper. He finally chose to eat his supper, and I think he even liked it, but I'm pretty sure he doesn't like me right now.

Despite my son's finicky taste, I think this really was a pretty good supper. The original recipe didn't call for any chicken, but I tossed some in anyway. Here's a general idea of how I made it:

SHRIMP & CHICKEN LINGUINE ALFREDO

1 lb. linguine (I didn't use that much, just because I knew we'd have tons left over.)

10 oz. baby spinach (I used about 4 handfuls, but I should have put a couple more - it really shrinks down when you wilt it)

3 tbsp. butter

3 tbsp. flour

2 c. half & half

1/4 tsp. nutmeg (I used Pumpkin Pie Spice)

salt & pepper

3/4 c. parmesan cheese (I used grated parmesan, not the stuff you shake)

1 chicken breast, cut into 1" pieces

1 c. shrimp (raw, peeled)

1 garlic clove, minced

1 c. grape tomatoes

Cook linguine in boiling water for about 10-12 minutes, and add spinach during the last minute of cooking. Meanwhile, melt butter in a saucepan and whisk in flour. Gradually add half & half, mixing well. Add nutmeg, salt, and pepper, and simmer over medium heat for 5 minutes until slightly thickened. Remove from heat and stir in parmesan cheese. Cover to keep warm. In a frying pan, heat a bit of oil or butter and add garlic. Add chicken and cook for a couple minutes, then add shrimp and grape tomatoes. Cook for a few more minutes until shrimp is cooked and tomatoes begin to burst. Combine everything together and serve.

There was about 3/4 c. of alfredo sauce leftover, but if I had cooked up all the linguine it would have been the perfect amount of sauce. I thought this meal turned out really well, and the kids seemed to like it (William just objected to the "green stuff" even though I hardly gave him any spinach.) It made a huge batch, probably enough for 6 adults, and it was very simple to make. Even though I normally hate pasta, this was actually pretty good!

Cashew-Crusted Tilapia with Orange Salsa

My son bought me a cookbook at our church's Christmas Market last year, and he's been bugging me to cook from it ever since (I love cookbooks, but they tend to get shoved in the back of my cupboard and never used - the internet is so much handier for recipes!)

Ironically, he chose a cookbook of seafood recipes, which is not one of his favourite things to eat. (He prefers steak and "finger chickens".) Anyway, I found a recipe for Walnut-Crusted Halibut with Orange Salsa that sounded super easy and tasty, so I made it on Monday night (with a few changes).

CASHEW-CRUSTED TILAPIA WITH ORANGE SALSA
2 tbsp. flour
1/8 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
2 egg whites + 1 tbsp. water
1 c. cashews, crushed
4 tilapia filets
3 oranges, diced (get rid of as much of the membrane as you can)
3 tbsp. red onion, finely diced
1 tbsp. fresh mint, chopped
1 tbsp. fresh cilantro, chopped
1 jalapeno, seeded and diced
1 tsp. apple cider vinegar

Set out three dishes and put the flour, salt, and cayenne in the first one, the egg whites and water in the second, and the cashews in the third. Line a baking sheet with tinfoil and a little oil. Coat each piece of fish in the flour mixture, then the egg mixture, and then the cashews and lay them on the baking sheet. Bake at 450 F for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, combine the remaining ingredients in a bowl. Serve fish with a scoop of salsa on top.

My kids ate this without any salsa, which I would have found very bland. Cashews are yummy, but they don't exactly add a lot of flavour to fish. The kids missed out though, because the salsa was fantastic! I'm glad they didn't want any because there was really only enough for 2 people (I like a lot of salsa on my fish!) This meal was so easy to make, but next time I would add more salt and cayenne to the flour mixture to try and give the fish a little more flavour. Otherwise, it was a quick and healthy meal!

The Perfect Salad

When I saw my friend Amy post this recipe on Facebook, my jaw almost dropped to the ground. It sounded like the most wonderful salad I had ever heard of! And guess what -- it tastes even better than it sounds!

LOBSTER, GRAPEFRUIT & AVOCADO SALAD WITH CREAMY CITRUS DRESSING

2 lobster tails, boiled (shrimp would also be good in this recipe)

cilantro (I used about 1/2 c.)

1 grapefruit, cut into segments

2 avocados, diced

4 slices of bacon, cooked and cut into small pieces

1 apple, sliced (this isn't in the original recipe, but I added it the second time I made this salad and it was a delicious addition!)

mixed greens

Remove lobster shell and cut the meat into chunks. Toss together with remaining ingredients. Drizzle with this dressing:

1/2 lime, juiced

1 lemon, juiced

1 1/2 tsp. Dijon mustard

1 garlic clove, minced

1 shallot, finely chopped

1/4 c. olive oil

1/4 c. mayonnaise

salt & pepper, to taste

I made this for supper one night, and then made it again the next day for lunch to use up the excess dressing. That's when I added the apple (and left out the lobster, since I don't have an abundance of lobster tails in my freezer), and it was so good I ate two bowls of it! I can hardly wait to make this salad again.

Salmon Quesadilla with Corn & Avocado Salsa

This recipe basically sums up all my favourite things: salmon, Mexican cuisine, lime, avocado... it's got everything I love, and nothing I don't. I hope you'll enjoy it too.

SALMON QUESADILLAS WITH CORN & AVOCADO SALSA

Salsa:

1 cob of corn (cooked), kernels sliced off

2 roma tomatoes, diced

1/4 c. red onion, diced

1 tsp. cilantro, chopped

1 avocado, diced

1 tsp. Chili Lime Sansel

1 tsp. lime juice

Salmon:

1 small salmon fillet, skin removed

olive oil

2 tsp. cumin

1/4 tsp. Chipotle Chili powder

salt & pepper

4 tsp. lime juice

grated cheese (I used Edam)

tortilla (I used a black bean & salsa flavoured tortilla)

Combine the salsa ingredients and set aside. Cut salmon filet into two pieces (so that each piece will fit in a folded tortilla.) Drizzle with olive oil. Combine cumin, chipotle powder, salt, pepper, and lime juice. Brush over both sides of the filets, and cook in a hot grill pan for 3-4 minutes per side. Lay out two tortillas and put some grated cheese on the bottom half of each one. Place a salmon filet on top of the cheese so that it melts a little. Top with salsa and fold each tortilla in half. Slice each quesadilla into two pieces, and serve.

Shrimp Po'Boy

Here's what I had for lunch today, courtesy of the Rachael Ray magazine.

SHRIMP PO'BOY

french loaf of bread

yellow bell pepper, sliced into rings

lettuce, shredded

tomato, sliced

green onion, sliced

shrimp, peeled & deveined

Tex-Mex Rub (or something along those lines)

3 tbsp. mayonnaise

1 tbsp. Sweet & Spicy Mustard (or your favourite mustard)

1 1/2 tsp. water

For each sandwich, take a 4" slice of the french bread and cut it half, scooping out some of the bread on one half. Put the lettuce, tomato, and green onion in the dug-out part of the bread. Lay the yellow pepper slices on the other half of the bread. Heat a little oil in a skillet and add the shrimp, sprinkling with Tex-Mex Rub. Cook for 2 minutes on each side, then place the shrimp on the sandwich. Mix together mayonnaise, mustard, and water and drizzle over shrimp. Top with the other piece of bread and yellow peppers, and enjoy!

This is easy to make for a family meal, or for an individual meal, so you can cook as much or as little shrimp as you need. You could cut the entire french loaf in half and scoop out one half, and then make a big family-sized sandwich (although it might be messy to cut into slices afterwards.) My daughter and I each had one for lunch, and they were awesome! I think I'll make another one tomorrow!

Fish Tacos

I got a seafood cookbook for my birthday last week, and I also picked up a copy of this month's Rachael Ray magazine, both of which had a recipe for fish tacos. So tonight, guess what we had for supper? You betcha - fish tacos!

I'm not sure which recipe I really followed - I think most fish taco recipes are essentially the same: fish soaked in lime juice, chili powder, maybe some cumin, a little oil, and then grilled and topped off with fresh veggies in a tortilla. It's not rocket science, it's just really delicious. Here's a rough idea of how I made them tonight:

FISH TACOS

6 tilapia filets

2 tbsp. olive oil

3 tbsp. lime juice

3 tsp. Cuban Seasoning (or try a mixture of chili powder, cumin, and whatever else you like)

avocado

radishes

coleslaw or shredded lettuce

cilantro

green onions

salsa verde

Marinate fish in a mixture of oil, lime juice, and seasonings for about 10 minutes. Cook in a grill pan over medium-high heat for about 4 minutes per side. Break fish into pieces and place in tortillas with remaining ingredients.

I was all excited that I found corn tortillas at the store instead of just wheat ones. When I lived in Mexico, I didn't like corn tortillas, but that was 10 years ago and my palette has matured since then. Apparently it has not matured to the point of liking corn tortillas, however. They were dry and mealy - but otherwise the fish tacos were delicious! So quick and simple to make, and super healthy too. Next time I'll remember to scrap the corn tortillas, or maybe try using iceberg lettuce instead to make lettuce wraps.

Birthday Salad & Presents for YOU!

Happy Birthday to me, Happy Birthday to me, Happy Birthday dear Kathy, Happy Birthday to me!

Since today is the big 3-3, I decided to treat myself to a little something special for lunch. I made myself an awesome Southern Grilled Shrimp Salad (and I made the kids hotdogs - a special gift to myself, since it meant everyone ate their lunch with no whining!) I love shrimp, I love avocado, I love lime, I love Tex-Mex, and I love cheese, so this salad was sure to be a hit! (And it was!)

I used this recipe from Epicure:

The only thing I changed was the Fajita Seasoning - I didn't have any, so I used Cuban Seasoning instead. You could probably use the same seasoning for the shrimp and the avocado, so anything like Tex-Mex, Fajita, or Cuban would be awesome.

And also, since it's my birthday, I have a special announcement to make! I got my very first product review in the mail today, along with free giveaways for some of my lucky readers! I know the suspense is probably killing you, but you'll just have to wait and see what I have up my sleeve. (And don't get your hopes up too high, it's not Ricky Martin tickets or anything fabulous like that, but it is something that I'm sure you will love!)

Stay tuned for more details!!

Smoky Salmon with Bacon-Corn Couscous

This recipe was on Rachael Ray last week, and I was amazed at how quickly she put it all together. 15 minutes - tops! It's so simple to make, and it's absolutely delicious. Even my son ate it!!!

SMOKY SALMON WITH BACON-CORN COUSCOUS

1 large salmon fillet, cut into 4-6 pieces

salt & pepper

Smoked Paprika

4 slices smoky bacon, cut into pieces (Rachael only used 2, but I thought 4 was a much better number)

1 cob of corn, kernels scraped off (or use frozen corn)

1/2 red onion, diced

1/2 red bell pepped, diced

1 c. vegetable broth

1 c. couscous

Season salmon with salt, pepper, and paprika. In a pot, heat a little bit of oil and cook the bacon. Drain off the fat, and then add corn, red onion, and bell pepper, stirfrying for 2-3 minutes. Pour in broth and bring to a boil. Stir in couscous, remove from heat, cover, and let it sit for 5 minutes. Meanwhile, heat a little oil in a grill pan over medium-high heat. Cook salmon for 3-5 minutes per side. Serve with couscous and a salad of mixed greens dressed with fresh lemon juice.

Like I said, William ate this without too much fuss. I gave him a scoop of couscous that only had bacon and corn in it (no bell peppers), and he turned his nose up for a minute, but eventually ate all his salmon and his couscous. My grandparents were over for supper as well, and they loved it. It was a huge hit, and it seriously took less than 15 minutes to prepare!

I kicked that salmon's ass!

Sorry for the cuss word, but that was the first thing that came to mind after I ate supper tonight. I took that salmon, I showed it who's boss, and I made the best damn meal EVER! And guess what? It's one of those fabulous recipes where it sounds all fancy and your dinner guests would rant and rave over it, and really it was insanely simple to make.

It all started when I got over 300 people to "like" my Facebook page (if you don't "like" me yet on Facebook, please take a minute to remedy that.) I thought this called for a celebration - a fancy new salmon recipe! I googled Salmon Wellington and found this recipe from Canadian Living. I made a few modifications based on what was available at the grocery store, and it turned out perfectly!

SALMON WELLINGTON SUPREME

1 lb. skinless boneless salmon filet

1/2 pkg. (1 square) puff pastry

lots of spinach (recipe called for 8 c. - I probably used 3/4 of a bag of baby spinach)

1 - 1 1/2 c. cooked baby shrimp (recipe called for halibut, but any seafood would do)

1 egg (white & yolk separated)

1 c. whipping cream (divided)

2 tbsp. lemon juice

1 tbsp. fresh basil

salt & pepper, to taste

2 leeks (approx. 3/4 c.), finely sliced (recipe called for shallots, but there weren't any at the store)

1/2 c. white wine

1/2 c. butter, cubed

First, prepare the stuffing: In a food processor, combine shrimp, egg white, 1/2 c. whipping cream, lemon juice, basil, salt & pepper. Blend together and then refrigerate for an hour. (Not sure if that's necessary, but I did it anyway.)

Blanch spinach in boiling water and pat dry on a towel. (I trimmed the stems off the spinach - very time consuming, probably wouldn't bother with it next time.) Roll out puff pastry on a floured surface. It should be slightly longer and almost twice as wide as your piece of salmon. Transfer pastry to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Cover with spinach (leaving a couple inches around the edges) and then spread half the stuffing mixture overtop. Lay salmon on top (I cut slits in the salmon just to ensure it would cook evenly.) Top with the remaining stuffing mixture. In a small dish, mix the egg yolk with a bit of water and brush it around the edges of the pastry. Fold up the top and bottom edges, overlapping in the middle of the salmon to seal it, and then close up the ends. Brush with egg yolk mixture and cut a few slits along the top. Bake at 400 F for 30 minutes.

While baking, sauté leeks in a bit of butter until they are soft. Transfer to a saucepan and add 1/2 c. white wine. Bring to a boil and then simmer until wine has evaporated. Add 1/2 c. whipping cream and simmer for 4-5 minutes, then stir in cubes of butter and stir until melted. Season with pepper, then pour a little on each plate before placing the pieces of salmon wellington on top.

I wish we would have had friends over tonight to share in this wonderful meal. It's perfect for a dinner party - looks fancy, easy to serve, and it makes a huge amount (you could easily have 8 servings.) The whole family ate it (even William!)

Bud Light Lime and Seafood for supper

Many of you know how fond I am of cooking with booze. It makes me feel classy, even though it really proves the exact opposite.

Tonight's meal is brought to you by Bud Light Lime. It was the only beer we had in the fridge, so I figured it would do the trick for some Beer-Battered Tilapia and some Beer-Steamed Mussels.

BEER-BATTERED TILAPIA

3 tilapia fillets

about 2 tbsp. lime juice

2 tbsp. fresh parsley, chopped

2 tbsp. oil

salt & pepper

Batter:

2 egg yolks

1/2 c. Bud Light Lime

1/2 c. flour

1/2 tsp. baking powder

salt

Combine lime juice, parsley, oil, salt & pepper and pour over the tilapia fillets. Mix together the batter ingredients and coat the fillets on all sides. Heat some cooking oil in a fying pan and cook the fish for about 4-5 minutes per side.

BEER-STEAMED MUSSELS

mussels, rinsed under cold water

1/2 c. Bud Light Lime

1 stalk of celery, sliced

1 slice of onion, diced

Put everything in a pot and heat on the stove over high heat for about 5-7 minutes, until mussels open up. Discard any that didn't open up.

I'll be honest with you - this meal was bland. Mediocre at best. My son loved the fish, which tells you exactly how bland it must have been. It needed some lime zest or something to give it a lot more flavour. The mussels were fine, but of course the kids didn't eat those. It certainly wasn't a horrible meal by any means, but I wouldn't rush out and make it again. Next time I'll stick with my favourite tilapia recipe instead.

Bacon & Scallop Lasagna

I was going to make up some Bacon & Scallop pasta, but the only pasta we had in the house was lasagna. I decided to play around with the standard lasagna recipe, and see what I could come up with.

BACON & SCALLOP LASAGNA
2 c. Alfredo Pesto Sauce (follow the recipe on the jar, or use store-bought Alfredo sauce)

8-10 slices of bacon, cooked and crumbled

1 1/2 - 2 c. bay scallops, pan-fried in a bit of the bacon grease

mozzarella cheese, grated

baby spinach, chopped

fire-roasted red pepper (in a jar), chopped

oven-ready lasagna noodles

Put some Alfredo sauce in the bottom of a casserole dish. Lay lasagna noodles on top, then more sauce. Layer with some baby spinach, red pepper, and half the bacon and scallops. Sprinkle a little mozzarella on top, then repeat the layers, starting with the noodles. (I only did two layers.) Top it off with noodles, sauce, and lots of mozzarella. Cover with tinfoil and bake at 350 F for 45 minutes.

This was fantatic. You could easily use whatever you have handy if you don't like/have spinach and red pepper. Marinated artichokes, mushrooms, cooked onions (or all of the above!). If I had more scallops and bacon, I might have added a third layer just to make a nice, thick lasagna. My daughter absolutely loved this (my son ate plain spaghetti that was leftover in the fridge), and my husband and I both thought it was delicious.

Unfortunately my attempt at a creative dessert that night did not go over so well. I found this recipe in the newspaper last week, and thought it sounded delicious. I made the fruit salsa (using blood oranges instead of mangoes) and it was wonderful, but the chocolate "nachos" were attrocious. The chocolate mixture tasted more like butter than chocolate, and have you ever chewed on a hard rice paper wrapper? It doesn't taste good. I had hoped that brushing them with chocolate and baking them in the oven would magically turn them into these tasty little chocolate wafers that you could use to scoop up the fruit salsa. I was so wrong. Luckily I didn't waste too much chocolate, and the fruit salsa was awesome, so I guess it wasn't a total failure.

I've neglected you

I'm sorry I haven't posted any new recipes for a while. Renos have started in the basement, and life has gotten a little crazy. But I do have some new, simple recipes to share with you, some with pictures and some without.

I don't know if you'd even call this a recipe, but it was really good.

TUSCAN PORK TENDERLOIN WITH BABY POTATOES
1 pork tenderloin
Tuscan Rub
olive oil
baby potatoes, cut in half

Drizzle pork and potatoes with olive oil. Place in a baking dish and shake with Tuscan Rub. Bake at 325 F for about 45 minutes.

The next recipe is basically the same idea, but with salmon (and we had a salad as a side dish instead of potatoes.)

I cut a big piece of salmon into smaller pieces, and rubbed some of them with brown sugar. Then I sprinkled a couple with Teriyaki Seasoning and a couple with Smoked Chili Rub (which is sadly no longer available from Epicure Selections.)The other piece I just sprinkled with Seafood & Fish Seasoning. Drizzle with olive oil and bake at 350 F for 20 minutes. Delicious!

The last recipe I have for you is sort of an accident that turned out better than it looked. A friend made this delicious baked brie last year, with nuts and brown sugar and cream on top. She and her husband came over for wine & cheese last night, so I thought I'd try to replicate it but melting some butter and brown sugar in a frying pan, adding some pecans, and a splash of rum and milk. I sliced the top off the brie and put it in my Brie Baker and popped it in the oven for a few minutes to let it melt. Then when I went to scoop the brown sugar mixture on top, it was all hard, so we put the whole concoction (brie with sugar on top) back in the oven. The sugar mixture sort of solidified onto the cheese, and I thought it was totally buggered. But we just broke up the sugar with a spoon and scooped out the melted brie underneath, and it was delicious! I don't have a picture (and it wasn't pretty anyway), but next time I think I just need to add some more milk or butter or something to make it more liquidy.

Hopefully you enjoyed those recipes, because my creative efforts are being focussed on our basement renos (paint colours are overwhelming!), and I don't foresee any fabulous new recipes coming out of my head until Christmas holidays start. But if I do come up with something, I'll let you know!

Raw goodness

No need for an oven today! Here's what I made for lunch:

CHICKPEA SALAD
1 can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
1 tomato, diced
1/4 c. red onion, diced
1 tbsp. fresh mint, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
1/4 c. feta, diced or crumbled
juice of 1/2 a lemon
1 tbsp. olive oil
salt & pepper

Toss it all together and serve. This was inspired by a picture I saw in a magazine at the optometrist's office this week. Someone had ripped out the recipe, so I ripped out the picture and added what I thought was in it. It turned out really good!

And for supper, I made ceviche based on the recipe I found at Simply Recipes. I slightly adjusted some of the measurements, so here's what I did:

CEVICHE

1 lb. (3 filets approx.) snapper, cut into small pieces

1/4 red onion, diced

1 tomoato, diced

1 chili, thinly sliced (you could dice it up, but I left it in slices so I could pick it out later for the kids)

pinch of chili powder

1 tsp. sea salt

juice of 1 lemon

juice of 1 lime

Toss together in a glass baking dish and refrigerate for about 6 hours (apparently if you leave it any longer, the texture will change). After a couple hours, stir it well to coat the fish on all sides and continue letting it sit in the fridge. Just before serving, sprinkle with fresh cilantro. Serve in warm tortillas with shredded lettuce and sliced avocado.

Here's what it looked like before:

And here's after six hours in the fridge (you can't really tell from the picture, but the fish did change colour):

And here's the finished product:
This was good, although I think I prefer cooked fish tacos. It would take less time, and I'm not really a fan of the texture... it was a little rubbery. But I've never had ceviche before, so maybe that's exactly the way it's supposed to be. You never know until you try!

All in a day's work

I finally finished painting our bedroom!! Here's what it looked like before:

(Yes, that's my Ricky Martin clock haning above the mantle. I'm not sure if he goes with the new decor though... I might hang my blue Mexican tile cross instead. I'll find a better place for Ricky.)

And here's what it looks like now:
(In case the picture doesn't show the colours very well, the walls are "Shadowbox" and "Canadian Sky", aka beige and blue.)
And here's the patio doors that go out to our little deck. I don't have a "before" picure, but the trim all around the doors was a hideous not-quite-beige-but-sorta-green colour (you can see it above the fireplace in the other picture), so it looks much cleaner and brighter now.
Anyway, I finished this painting job about half an hour before supper was supposed to be ready, so luckily I had thawed out some basa fish filets and some friends brought over some fresh mint this morning, so here's what I whipped up:

MINT, LAVENDER & LEMON FISH
white fish filets
olive oil
lemon juice
sprig of fresh mint
coarse sea salt (I used Lemon Lavender Sea Salt but you could use regular sea salt if you like)

I didn't include measurements because I didn't use any. Just toss it all in a Ziploc bag and let it sit for 20 minutes or so until you're ready to cook it. Lay it on a baking dish lined with tinfoil and pour some of the juice overtop. Bake at 425 F for about 20 minutes. Serve with rice. (I cooked my rice with a sprig of mint in it too.)

This was a quick and easy meal to make, and the whole family liked it. My bedroom is painted, the kids are fed.... my work is done!