Curried Swai and Curried Mashed Sweet Potatoes

In regards to my last post, I feel like there might be something I need to clear up about the foods I post in this blog. Or maybe it isn't, but I'm going to anyway.

The food I make in this journal is Americanized. Each and every thing I serve is in no way authentic of anything, other than this food is authentic Americanized food. Everything is cooked in California. Nothing is intended to be authentic ethnic food. Everything is just the food I eat.

With that being said, I made curried swai and sweet potatoes. The curry with the sweet potatoes was amazing! It always surprises me when I combine sweet potatoes with a flavor I wouldn't think sounds like it would mesh at all... And it just does. Like my sweet potato tacos, for instance.

Curried Swai

Ingredients

2 swai fillets

1 green onion, minced

1 garlic clove, minced

pinch of curry powder

pinch of red pepper

1/2 tbsp flour

1/4 tbsp Brummel&Brown yogurt spread

Directions

1. Rinse the fillets in cold water. Pat dry and place in a shallow baking dish.

2. Combine the green onions, garlic, curry powder, and red pepper. Rub over the surface of the fish. Cover and refrigerator for an hour.

3. Remove the fish after an hour and coat with flour.

4. Melt the yogurt spread or other margarine or butter in a baking dish in a 350 oven. Add fillets, turning once. Bake at 350 for 5-10 minutes.

CALORIES: 82 calories
CHOLESTEROL: 49 milligrams
FAT: 9 grams
SODIUM: 71 milligrams

Curried Mashed Sweet Potatoes

Ingredients

3/4 lb sweet potatoes, peeled and quartered

1 1/2 tsp vegetable oil

1/2 onion, chopped

1 tsp curry powder

1/4 cup sour cream

1/4 tsp salt

Directions

1. In a boiling pot of water, cook the sweet potatoes until tender - about 15 minutes.

2. In a skillet with the vegetable oil cook the onion for about 4 minutes. Add the curry powder and cook for 2 more minutes. Remove from heat.

3. Mash the sweet potatoes with the sour cream and salt. Stir in the onions.

CALORIES: 156 calories
CHOLESTEROL: 7 milligrams
FAT: 4 grams
SODIUM: 238 milligrams

Honey-Lime Fish Tacos with Tomatillo Salsa

One of the meals I was asked to make by my MFP friends included fish tacos. I'm a big supporter of tilapia, so that's what I decided to go with.

I mean, I like other fish too. But for me, salmon is typically too strong of a flavor (though sometimes I will play around with it and try something out anyway). Tuna is another favorite of my mine, but I'll be honest - I've never actually cooked tuna before. I mean, I've composed dishes that have used canned tuna. But I've never seared a tuna, or grilled tuna, or done whatever else you might do with tuna.

But like I said, I'm a strong supporter of the tilapia. So I decided that because I had some in the refrigerator and because I typically have good luck with it, it's the fish I opted for.

Last time I was in San Francisco my dad shared with me a bag of baby tomatillos. I decided this would be the perfect opportunity to use them. They were about 1/8 of the size of a normal tomoattilo (or maybe 1/4...) My dad was telling me the lady he bought them from in San Francisco's Mission district told him the baby tomatillos were the way to go. It's been a long time since I've used tomatillo before this dish, so I can't really compare if I like the bigger tomatillos more than the small ones.

I can tell you though, this was SO good.

On a side note: the cookbook has not been sent out yet, but will be on Friday. UGH - I hate being busy during the work days!

After I get that book sent out, start looking out for another giveaway..

Honey-Lime Fish Tacos with Tomatillo Sauce

Ingredients

1 lb tilapia

6 corn tortillas

4 tbsp lime juice

2 tbsp olive oil

honey

salt and pepper

garlic powder

2 tomatillos (or 2 handfuls of baby tomatillos)

1/2 cup sour cream

1/4 cup cilantro

2 cloves garlic

3 tbsp lime juice

1/4 cup sweet onion, diced

1 tsp dried parsley

1 tsp dried red pepper flakes

Directions

1. Cover each side of fish with salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Place in a shallow dish and add lime juice and olive oil. Drizzle honey over fish. Place in refrigerator and marinate for 6+ hours.

2. For the salsa combine the tomatillos, sour cream, cilantro, garlic, lime juice, sweet onion, parsley, and red pepper flakes in a food processor. Pulse until smooth.

3. Add a small amount of olive oil to a pan. Once warm cook the fish until flaky and completely white.

4. Place on top of tortilla and cover with the salsa. I added avocado for garnish.

* serves 2

CALORIES: 503 calories

CHOLESTEROL: 106 milligrams
FAT: 22 grams

Mustard Crusted Tilapia, Potato Salad, and Grilled Asparagus Salad

I told you yesterday, I really love spinach lately. I'm all about it. Typically I don't make such involved dinners, because I work all day and I'm tired all night and frankly, who has the time?

When you look at this dish you probably think it's involved and time consuming, because hey, it's three freaking parts! But you know what? This was actually one of the quickest meals I've made. It was also one of the lowest calorie dishes. Take a guess. How many calories do you think this entire meal has in it?

Well, if you guessed 358 calories you were right. Yes, that's right. This entire meal, the potato salad (WITH MAYO - but obviously this depends on WHAT mayo you use!), the spinach salad, and the fish has less calories than most one-piece meals I make.

To save time I boiled the potatoes and put them in the refrigerator as soon as I got home from work. Then I changed my clothes, sat on the couch, and watched some TV for a half hour. Then I made the rest of the meal in less than a half hour.

Also, my normal potato salad recipe usually has both hard boiled egg and celery in it. This version is missing both of those ingredients because I was out of celery and if I included the egg, my cholesterol would have been too high for the day. So here is my simplified (perhaps too simple?) potato salad.

Mustard Crusted Tilapia

Ingredients

2 tilapia fillets

1 tsp mustard

1 tsp Worcestershire sauce

1/2 tsp lemon juice

1/4 tsp garlic powder

1/4 tsp dried oregano

1/2 tsp shredded Parmesan

enough bread crumbs to create a crust

Directions

1. Preheat oven the 375 degrees. Spray a baking dish with cooking spray.

2. Combine the mustard, Worcestershire sauce, lemon juice, garlic powder, oregano, and Parmesan in a small dish. Smear the tilapia fillets with the mustard combination.

3. Bake for 10 minutes. Remove and sprinkle with the bread crumbs. Bake for 5 more minutes.

* serves 2

CALORIES: 107 calories
CHOLESTEROL: 58 milligrams
FAT: 1 grams
SODIUM: 147 milligrams

Potato Salad

Ingredients

1/2 lb red potatoes, diced

1 1/2 oz sweet pickles, cubed

1/4 tsp mustard

1 1/2 tbsp mayonnaise

1/8 tsp sugar

salt and pepper, to taste

Directions

1. Bring a large pot of water to boil. Add potatoes and cook for 15 minutes. Drain and pour into a big bowl. Place in the refrigerator until cold.

2. Stir the pickles, mustard, mayonnaise, sugar, salt, and pepper in with the potatoes.

* serves 2

CALORIES: 140 calories
CHOLESTEROL: 3 milligrams
FAT: 3 grams
SODIUM: 181 milligrams

Grilled Asparagus Salad

Ingredients

2 tbsp olive oil

1 tbsp lemon juice

6 asparagus spears, cut into inch-long pieces

3 cups fresh spinach leaves

1 tbsp grated Parmesan cheese

Directions

1. Combine lemon juice and olive oil on a plate. Roll the asparagus around in the liquid.

2. Grill the asparagus for 5 minutes, coating with the lemon and oil mixture.

3. In a large bowl combine the spinach, Parmesan cheese, the remaining lemon and olive oil, and the asparagus. Toss to combine.

* serves 3

CALORIES: 111 calories
CHOLESTEROL: 1 milligrams
FAT: 10 grams
SODIUM: 54 milligrams

Tilapia Tostadas w/Roasted Corn Relish and Mexican Sour Cream Rice

Tostadas may becoming one of my new favorite things to play with. Empanadas are also on this list. I like dishes that can be the same like.. a tostada is something on that fried tortilla. Or an empanada, something stuffed inside that little pastry crust and baked. But I love how they can be so different.

For instance, with the empanadas I originally made a chicken one. From there I moved to making a potato and pesto empanada. And most recently I made an empanada stuffed with jambalaya.

I feel like tostadas have that similar element; it will ALWAYS be a tostada but there's so much I can do with it. Last week I made a ground beef tostada with beans and cheese. This tostada, with breaded tilapia, corn, onions, and sour cream was an entirely different twist on the dish.

What other kinds of tostadas could I make? What do you suggest?

The original recipe actually called for avocado mixed in with the corn relish. This would have been delicious and had I just been cooking for myself I totally would have included the avocado. However, this was a meal for both my boyfriend and me and he has the worst allergies ever. By "worst" I don't mean symptomatically worst, but he's just allergic to weird stuff: avocado, peaches, mango, cherries, and apples to name just a few. He's only allergic to these things in their raw state, but have you ever heard of cooking avocado?

By the way, make sure you're following me to be entered in my giveaway. I need 19 more followers before I announce the winner!

Tilapia Tostadas w/Roasted Corn Relish

Ingredients
1/4 cup sour cream
1/4 cup green salsa
1/2 cup frozen corn
2 tbsp chopped red onion
3/4 tsp minced jalapeno
1/4 tsp salt, divided
1 tsp lime juice
3/4 lb tilapia fillets, cut into 2-inch pieces
1/8 tsp ground black pepper
1/3 cup cornmeal
3/4 tsp vegetable oil
4 tostada shells
1/2 cup shredded cabbage

Directions

1. Combine sour cream and salsa in a bowl. Set aside.

2. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat, coating with cooking spray. Add corn, onion, jalapeno, and a pinch of salt to pan. Saute for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove mixture from pan. Stir lime juice into the corn mixture.

3. Sprinkle fish evenly with remaining salt and black pepper. Place cornmeal in a shallow dish. Dredge the fish in cornmeal. Heat 1/4 tsp of oil in a pan over medium-high heat. Add half of fish to pan and cook for 3 minutes. Carefully flip the fish and cook for 2 minutes, or until done. Repeat procedure with the rest of the fish.

4. Place 2 tostada shells on each plate. Arrange 2 tbsp of slaw on each shell. Divide fish evenly. Top each serving with about 3 tbsp of the corn relish and about 1 1/2 tbsp of sour cream mixture.

* serves 2

CALORIES: 427 calories
CHOLESTEROL: 93 milligrams
FAT: 16 grams
SODIUM: 821 milligrams

Mexican Sour Cream Rice

Ingredients
1/2 cup uncooked white rice
1 cup chicken broth
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 jalapeno, seeded, deveined, and minced
1/2 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese, divided
1/2 cup frozen corn
2 tbsp fresh cilantro, minced

Directions

1. In a large pot bring the rice and broth to a rolling boil. Reduce heat to low and cover, cooking for 20 minutes.

2. Preheat the oven to 350. Grease a casserole dish.

3. In the pot with the cooked rice, mix the sour cream, jalapeno, 1/4 cup Monterey Jack cheese, corn, and cilantro. Transfer to the casserole dish and top with remaining cheese.

4. Bake uncovered for 30 minutes.

* serves 6

CALORIES: 102 calories
CHOLESTEROL: 13 milligrams
FAT: 4 grams
SODIUM: 76 milligrams

Paprika Roasted Salmon over Wilted Spinach and Orange Mashed Potatoes

Tonight's dinner was actually fairly atypical. The flavors weren't ones I would normally put together (like.. potatoes and orange, for instance). But I'm really glad I jumped out of my comfort zone a little and made this recipe.

Tonight's dinner was really just full of flavors. Matt was kind of put off by the cinnamon, but how was I to know that he didn't like one of the best spices known to man? He has some growing up to do!

:D

Paprika Roasted Salmon over Wilted Spinach

Ingredients
2 tbsp orange juice
1 tbsp olive oil + 1/2 tsp olive oil (divided)
1 tsp thyme
1/2 lb salmon fillets
1/2 tbsp brown sugar
1/2 tbsp paprika
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp orange zest
1/4 tsp kosher salt
5 oz spinach leaves

Directions

1. Mix the orange juice, 1 tbsp of olive oil, and 1/2 tsp of thyme together in a small bowl. Place the salmon in a large bowl and pour marinade over the top. Put in the refrigerator for half hour.

2. Mix brown sugar, paprika, cinnamon, zest, 1/2 tsp thyme, and salt in a small bowl. Remove salmon from marinade and place in a greased foil-lined baking pan. Rub top of salmon with paprika mixture.

3. Roast salmon in a preheated oven at 400 for 15 minutes.

4. Heat remaining olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add spinach and cook for 2 minutes, until wilted. Serve salmon over spinach.

* serves 2

CALORIES: 280 calories
CHOLESTEROL: 73 milligrams
FAT: 16 grams
SODIUM: 1 milligrams

Orange Mashed Potatoes

Ingredients
2 tbsp Brummel&Brown yogurt spread
1 onion, finely chopped
1 1/2 lb red potatoes
1/4 cup light sour cream
6 tbsp orange juice
1/2 tsp kosher salt

1. Cook the chopped onions in the melted yogurt spread until soft.

2. Skin the potatoes and chop into quarters. Boil a pot of water and cook potatoes for approximately 15 minutes, or until soft.

3. Mash the potatoes with sour cream and orange juice.

4. Mix in the salt and the onions.

* serves 3


CALORIES: 327 calories
CHOLESTEROL: 7 milligrams
FAT: 5 grams
SODIUM: 707 milligrams