Monday, March 14, 2011

Getting Fresh with your Food


This is the season of anticipation.

The smell of mulch wafts down the street, birds deliberate atop treetops and bushes, sending down encouraging chirps to baby buds, and seed packets get pulled out of the freezer to be tested for viability.

The mouth anticipates as well. As the palette turns its nose from hearty soups, root vegetables, and velvety flavors that sustained it through the winter months, it turns to lighter fare and the fresh flavors that compliment spring lettuce, spinach, and sugar snap peas.

But, as we say at work when plugging in plans to the calendar year. . . we're just not there yet.

So last week, I decided that if my food couldn't be fresh, then I would have to bring fresh to my food. The theme was faux fresh Mex.

To bring on the fresh, I started with a favorite cooking strategy, "component cooking." Make a mixture of xyz, and throw it into several dishes throughout the week.

Frozen peppers and corn were roasted, mixed with black beans, freshened up with a cilantro lime vinaigrette and chopped avocado (throw in an avocado to anything, and i'm somehow transported to a beach in san diego), and the cooking began.

This Faux Fresh Mex filling created a delicious dinner salad (with tofu added for more protein) and fish tacos that were superb.

While my fresh flavor additions were quite unlocal, walking to the market to greet Virginia farmers is a mere month away. So at least as my pregnant feet swell up in size this summer and bulge out of my flip flops, my carbon footprint will be under control.

Here's the fish tacos:



1. Roast veggies

1 bag frozen corn (16 oz)
1 bag frozen peppers (16 oz)
Roast corn and peppers in 400 degree oven for 30 minutes.

2. Make veggie and black bean mixture

2 cups of roast veggie mix (above)
1 15 ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 avocado diced


3. Make Cilantro Vinaigrette

1/2 cup cilantro
3 TBS olive oil
4 limes, juiced
4 TBS apple cider vinegar
salt and pepper to taste

Combine in a blender or food processor. Stir into veggie and black bean mixture.

4. Cook Fish

2 Tablespoons olive oil
12 ounces tilapia
salt and pepper
garlic powder
1 can chipotle chilis packed in adobe sauce
1 Tablespoon tomato paste
1 Tablespoon water


Heat an electric skillet with olive oil over medium high heat

Sprinkle salt, pepper, and garlic powder on both sides of fish.

Combine 3 Tablespoons adobe sauce, 1 Tablespoon tomato paste, and 2 Tablespoons of water.

Add fish to skillet and cook 4 minutes each side. Add tomato paste mixture and cook 3 more minutes.




5. Assemble Tacos

6 soft corn tortilla shells
1 romaine heart

Heat 6 corn tortillas on a skillet or in microwave for 15 seconds.

Fill corn tortillas shell with fish, romaine lettuce, and black bean veggie mixture.

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