#108 :: Baked Tilapia

This is a good, quick fix (only 12 minutes!) when you want something light and healthy! We had brown rice on the side. A little plain, even though the fish has good flavor....but perfect when you need dinner PDQ and are avoiding the fast food like we are!

Ingredients

• Butter cooking spray
• 4 (6 to 8-ounce) tilapia fillets
• Salt and freshly cracked black pepper
• 1 lime, finely grated zest and juice
• 2 tablespoons butter

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Coat a large cast iron pan with a nonstick butter spray.

Rinse fish and pat dry; place on the prepared baking sheet. Season each fillet with salt, cracked pepper, lime zest and lime juice. Add fish to the pan. Place a pat of butter on each fillet and cook in the oven for 8 to 12 minutes.

Makes 4 servings

Recipe from Paula's Best Dishes on Food Network

Star Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

#103 :: Lime Cilantro Marinade

This was an O.K. marinade. We both agreed yesterday's was better, but this was good for a change from the regular plain grilled chicken breast. They didn't get to marinate as long as they did yesterday (today we left them in the marinade for an hour, yesterday was 3 hours) so that might have a little to do with it. The recipe mentions using the chicken for fajitas, which we didn't do but I think would make even better use of the flavor of this marinade. It would have been great for fajitas!

Ingredients

nocoupons

• 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 3 large cloves garlic, minced
• Juice of 1 lime
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 2 teaspoons dried oregano
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1 tablespoon olive or other oil

Directions

Place the chicken in a shallow bowl. Combine the remaining ingredients in a small bowl and pour over the chicken, turning the breasts to coat both sides. Let set about 30 minutes. Heat a grill to high heat. Grill the breasts until just cooked through, turning to brown both sides. (The amount of time depends on the thickness of the breasts and the heat of the grill.) Remove from grill, tent with foil, and let rest about 5 minutes before serving. If using in the fajitas, carve into thin slices.

Note: Breasts can also be cooked in a grill pan, skillet or under a hot broiler.

Makes 4 servings

Recipe from Teri's Kitchen

Star Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

#99 :: Watermelon Mint Agua Fresca

Cool and refreshing...perfect for hot summer days!

Ingredients

• 4 cups watermelon, seeded and cubed (about 3 pounds)
• 1/2 cup water
• 24 mint leaves, divided
• 8 tablespoons super-fine sugar (adjust if too sweet when using a naturally sweeter watermelon), divided
• 4 very thin lime slices, halved into half moons, divided

Directions

Add the watermelon and the water to a blender, and puree until smooth. Divide the mint leaves, sugar and lime slices among 8 glasses and muddle the ingredients. Add ice to each glass and pour in the watermelon agua fresco. Stir and serve.

Makes 8 servings

Recipe from Mexican Made Easy on Food Network

Star Rating: 5 out of 5

#58 :: Tortilla Soup

Finishing off our Mexican week is Tortilla Soup {and for dessert, Buñuelos}. This is hands down the best tortilla soup I think I've ever eaten, and the leftovers the next day taste even better! I was really proud of us on this recipe, too! We used a whole chicken for this, made our own stock, fried our own tortilla chips and strips....everything was fresh and homemade. It was great!

Ingredients

For the Stock:

• 1 (4 to 5 pound) whole chicken, innards removed and rinsed
• Salt
  
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1 cup medium diced carrots
• 1 cup medium diced celery
• 4 cloves garlic
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
• 8 cups water

For the Soup:

• 8 (7-inch) corn tortillas, recipe follows
• Vegetable oil, for frying
• 2 cups chopped onions
• Salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano leaves
• 1 tablespoon chopped garlic
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 jalapeno, seeded and minced
• 2 cups chopped fresh tomatoes, peeled and seeded (about 6 to 8 Romas)
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves

Garnishes:

• 1 large avocado, peeled and diced
• 2 fresh limes, cut into quarters
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro leaves

Directions

For the Stock: Season the chicken with salt. Place in a large stock pot and add the remaining ingredients. Season with a teaspoon of salt. Place the pan over medium heat and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium low and simmer until the chicken is tender, about 2 hours. Remove from the heat and cool completely. Remove the chicken and set aside. Strain the liquid into a another pan, discarding the vegetables. Remove the fat and bones from the chicken. Dice the chicken into 1/2-inch pieces. Set aside.

For the Soup: Preheat the fryer. Cut half of the tortillas in quarters and thinly slice the other half. Fry both cuts of tortillas in batches, until golden brown. Remove and drain on paper towels. Season with salt and set aside. In a stock pot, over medium heat, add the oil. When the oil is hot, add the onions. Season with salt, pepper and oregano. Saute until soft, about 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in the garlic, bay leaf and jalapeno. Continue to saute for 1 minute. Stir in the tomatoes. Season with salt and pepper. Saute for 2 minutes. Crush the reserved fried tortilla quarters over the tomatoes. Stir to mix. Stir in the reserved chicken stock and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium low and simmer for 30 minutes. Using a hand-held blender, puree the soup until smooth or leave chunky. Re-season the soup. Stir in the reserved diced chicken and cilantro. Simmer for another 5 minutes. To serve, ladle the soup into individual bowls. Garnish with the avocados, squeeze of lime juice, fresh cilantro and the fried tortilla strips. Serve warm.

Makes 6-8 servings

Recipe from Emeril Live on Food Network

Star Rating: 5+ out of 5 stars

#55 :: Pico de Gallo

Last night's dinner consisted of 3 different recipes -- Pico de Gallo, Creamy Poblano Pepper Strips (Rajas) Tacos, and Sauteed Potatos with Chorizo Tacos. This first recipe for Pico de Gallo is really simple, and different because of the golden tomatoes. I did try it personally,{because I don't like raw onions} but Jamie said it was great.

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 pounds yellow or red tomatoes, seeded and chopped
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves
• 3 tablespoons fresh lime juice
• 2 serrano chiles*, seeded and minced
• Pinch kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper

Directions

Add all the ingredients to a medium bowl, and toss to combine. Cover and chill until ready to serve. This salsa can be made 4 hours ahead.

Cook's Note: In Mexico, pico de gallo is used to describe a wide variety of regional salsas, which are always made with fresh cubed fruit and/or vegetables. The most common version is made with any red tomato, onion and green chiles and is sometimes called "salsa mexicana" or "salsa bandera," because the colors in the salsa represent the Mexican flag.

*The serrano chile is a fresh, small, green chile. Traditionally used in salsas it is slightly hotter than a jalapeno chile and can be found at most supermarkets, Latin specialty markets or online.

Makes 3 cups

Recipe from Mexican Made Easy on Food Network

Star Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

#54 :: Avocado Salad

I realized at the last minute that our Poblano peppers should probably have some sort of a side dish served with it. I wanted to keep it light, and I had an extra avocado, so avocado salad was my first thought.

Ingredients

• 1 avocado, halved, pitted and sliced
• 4 leaves of Romain lettuce
• 2 Roma tomatoes, sliced
• Juice of 1/2 lime
• A sprinkle of fresh cilantro
• Salt & pepper to taste

Directions

Lay the Romain on the plate as a base for the salad. Cut the avodado in half, remove the pit, then score the avocado into slices while it's still in the skin. The slices can easily be peeled back from the skin this way. Layer them over top of the lettuce. Squeeze the juice of 1/2 lime over the avocados, this will keep them from turning brown so quickly. Mix in a few slices of Roma tomatoes and top it all off with a sprinkle of chopped fresh cilantro and salt & pepper.



Makes 2 servings.

Star Rating: 4 out of 5 stars