Panko Tilapia with Veggie Orzo

When you go to the store to buy ingredients for a particular recipe, you more than likely will not use them all so you are then left with a hodgepodge of random ingredients. Well that's the situation we were faced with tonight. We ate out the past 2 nights so we wanted to stay in, and by stay in, I mean cook at home and eat outside because the weather is amazing. So I gathered some ingredients and concocted a pretty flavorful dish.

Cook Time: 20 Minutes
Yields: 2 Servings

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 Tilapia Filets
• 1 Egg
• 1/4 Cup of Panko Flakes
• Salt and Pepper
• 1/4 TSP Oregano
• 2 TBSP Butter
• 1/2 Orzo
• 1/4 Zucchini (Diced)
• 1/4 Yellow Squash (Diced)
• 2 TBSP Diced Onions
• 1 Clove Garlic
• 1/2 Cup Frozen Broccolli
• 1 TBSP Red Wine Vinaigrette Dressing or other favorite salad dressing.

PREPARATION:

Boil 2 cups of water in a small saucepan and add the Orzo, cook for 9 minutes, drain and return to pot.

Heat 1 TBSP of butter in a medium frying pan and add the diced veggie and cook for 3-5 minutes or until softened. Transfer the veggies into the cooked orzo stir and keep warm.

Crack an egg with 1 Tsp of water and lightly beat in one plate, in another plate put the flakes, salt and pepper and oregano. Dip the Tilapia in the egg first and then into the flakes, patting to make sure the filet is covered.

Heat up another 1 TBSP Butter in the medium frying pan, add the fish and cook for 2-3 minutes on each side or until crispy brown.

Cook the frozen Broccolli according to the package and then add to the Orzo with the Red Wine Vinaigrette.

TO SERVE:

Place a tilapia filet over a bed of veggie orzo, and top with a slaw mixture (recipe below).

SLAW RECIPE:

• 1 Cup Shredded Cabbage
• 1 Roma Tomato
• 1 TSP Capers
• Salt and Pepper to taste
• 1 Clove of Garlic
• 1 TSP Red Wine Vinaigarette
• 1 TSP Cilantro
• 1 TBSP Diced Onion

Add all ingredients to a mixing bowl and reserve in the refrigerator until ready to use.

SOME HELPFUL TIPS:

• Be careful when flipping the filets in the pan as to not break them.  
• If after the first turn of the fish in the pan you notice it needs more butter, add some, you want it to sizzle but not burn.

Beef Yakatori Skewers

I was picking up some food at Central Market the other day and I was browsing the pre-prepared food section and I noticed these cute little beef roll ups and I asked to taste one, I was sold! It was just a slice of beef with a green onion rolled up and skewered but it was a cool idea for an appetizer. Of course I immediately thought of how I could make them myself and ways make them better, so I tried it.  We went to a friends to watch the college games and we stopped at the store to get some goodies.  I asked the butcher to cut me some beef really thin and picked out a good teriyaki sauce. My favorite vegetable is asparagus so I thought it would be a good idea to roll some up in the meat before grilling it. Great Idea! Everyone enjoyed them and I think I will have to make it a gameday necessity.

Cook Time: 15 Minutes
Yields 18 Pieces

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 LB Thinly Sliced Beef Tips
• 1 Bunch Asparagus (Tips only)
• 4 Green Onions (Cut into 2 inch pieces)
• Salt and Pepper to Taste
• 3 TBSP Teriyaki Sauce

PREPARATION:

Fire up the Grill.

Cut the beef lengthwise to make 1 1/2 inch beef strips.

Salt and Peeper the strips and place an asparagus tip and a green onion at the end and roll it up. Place it on the skewer and continue until all the beef is used. Using a basting brush, coat them with the teriyaki sauce.

Place them on a heated grill and cook until the meat is fully cooked (about 6-8 minutes per side).

TO SERVE:

Arrange the roll ups on a plate and ENJOY!!

SOME HELPFUL TIPS:

• Dont put the skewers directly over the fire or else the asparagus will burn and it wont look pretty.
• You can substitute the Teriyaki sauce with any of your favorite kind of sauce.

Beer Battered Fish Tacos

There's nothing better than some good fish tacos from a local Mexican restaurant, except for fish tacos made at home with beer! Were still trying to cook light so by adding a light beer to the mix makes for a lighter crispier batter. This recipe doesn't require much and you can get creative with the slaw or sauces you want to use, and since I am in a creative mood lately this was perfect.

Cook Time: 20 Minutes
Yields: 2 Servings

INGREDIENTS:

• 3 TBSP Flour
• 1/2 TSP Cayenne Pepper
• 1/8 TSP Cumin
• Salt and Pepper to taste
• 1/3 Cup Light Beer
• 2 Tilapia Filets (thawed and cut into 1 inch chunks)
• 2 TBSP Vegetable or Canola Oil
• Pre cut Cabbage slaw
• 1/4 Cup Sour Cream
• 2 Cloves Garlic
• 2 TBSP Store bought Salsa
• 1 Roma Tomato
• 1 Medium Avocado
• 2 TBSP Diced Onion
• 2 TBSP Fresh Cilantro
• 1/2 Lime Juiced

PREPARATION:

Mix the slaw, tomatoes, sour cream, salt and pepper, onion, garlic, cilantro,lime juice, salsa into a mixing bowl and reserve. Add the diced avocado when ready to serve.

In another bowl add the flour, cayenne, salt and pepper, and cumin. Whisk in the beer until the batter is the consistency of pancake batter.

Heat the oil in a frying pan over med-high heat. While heating, dip the fish pieces into the beer batter and let excess drip off. Add pieces to the oil and let cook until golden and crispy (about 3-5 minutes a side). Take out and let drip on a baking sheet lined with paper towels to absorb any grease.

TO SERVE:

Serve some fish onto a heated tortilla top with the slaw mixture, with Mexican rice and beans on the side. ENJOY!!

SOME HELPFUL TIPS:

• When the fish come out of the oil while they are still hot...sprinkle with salt or Tony's so that the spice will absorb.
• Wear an apron or have a splatter guard because when frying anything you will have some hot oil splatters.
• To heat the tortillas, take 2 damp paper towels and wrap around the tortillas and heat in microwave for 1 minute.

Surf and Turf with Orzo

So fall has begun, the weather is beautiful and I have actually not been cooking much.  I was at Kroger today and came across some good deals on some shrimp and porterhouse steaks so I decided to make a spin on surf and turf and since we eat alot of potatos normally I decided to get some orzo. Its a rice shaped pasta but it seems lighter than normal pasta and makes for a delicious side item. I have made the orzo before in a previous recipe but i simplified it and made it a little bit different.

Cook Time: 30 Minutes
Yields: 2 Servings


INGREDIENTS:

• 1/2 LB Shrimp (peeled and deveined)
• 1 Porterhouse Steak (divided and marinated with S&P and Worcestershire Sauce)
• 1/4 Box Orzo
• 1 Can Chicken Broth
• 1/2 Zucchini (sliced)
• 1/2 Squash (sliced)
• 1/4 Cup Diced Onions
• 1/4 Cup Grape Tomatoes
• 1 Bunch of Asparagus 
• 1 Clove Garlic
• 1 TBSP EVOO
• Salt and Pepper to Taste
• 1 Dash of Dried Parsley

PREPARATION:

Bring a pot with 1 can of chicken broth and 1 can of water to a boil.  Add Orzo and let boil for 9 minutes or until just shy of al dente, uncover but keep warm.

While the water is coming to a boil, heat up the EVOO in a pan and add the onions, cook until transparent (about 3-5 minutes). Add garlic and heat up until fragrant (30 seconds). Add the veggies, salt and pepper, and cook until just softened (5 Minutes), take out and put into a bowl but leave the tomatoes so they can soften more. Push the tomatoes to the outside making a pocket in the middle, Add the shrimp and cook until pink. Return the veggies to the pan and heat them back up, sprinkle with parsley.

Throw the steaks on a heated grill for about 5 minutes a side or until desired temperature.

TO SERVE:
Spoon some Orzo onto a plate, top with the shrimp and veggies on the side of the delicious and juicy steak. YUMMY YUMMY in our TUMMY!!

SOME HELPFUL TIPS:

• You will know when the veggies are done when the tomatoes start to burst. 
• You can refer back to my other Orzo recipe and make a lemon vinaigrette sauce for extra flavoring.

Tiger Burgers

Good LSU Football calls for good friends and  good food. I've never heard of Brontosaurus Burgers before but if I had to think of what they were they would be very meaty and large burgers.  The burgers we had on Saturday were very meaty, stuffed with cheese, onions, and bacon, and very large... but naming them after a vegetarian dinosaur didn't make much sense so I named it accordingly....TIGER BURGER! Its basically 2 burgers with toppings all in one patty, a very filling and perfect way to celebrate yet another WIN!

Cook Time: 30 Minutes
Yields: 8 Large Burgers

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 lbs of Ground Chuck
• 3 Cloves of Garlic
• Salt and Pepper
• 2 TBS Worcestershire Sauce
• 2 Eggs
• 1/2 Cup Bread Crumbs
• 1 TBSP Oregano
• 1 Onion (Diced)
• 1/2 lb Bacon
• 1 Cup Pepper Cheese

PREPARATION:

Heat a skillet over med-high heat and cut the bacon into bite size pieces and cook until crispy, take out and reserve on a papertowel to absorb the bacon grease. Keep 1 TSP of Bacon grease and cook the onions until transparant, take out with a slotted spoon and add to the Bacon pieces.  Add 1 cup of cheese after everything has cooled and keep to the side until ready to use.

After mixing the ground meat, eggs, garlic, worcestershire sauce, bread crumbs, salt and pepper, oregano together in a large mixing bowl, start forming thin patties in equal pairs because you will be stacking one on top of the other. You chould make about 16 thin patties.

Take one pattie and place a spoonful of the cheese mixture in the middle. Take another pattie and put on top pinching the sides to form one larger pattie. Continut until all the patties are paired up and used.

Heat the grill and cook burgers on each side until meat is cooked throughout.

TO SERVE:

Top with Lettuce, Tomato, Pickles and your favorite condiments on a large sesame seed bun. We served some homemade sweet potato and regular homefries.  MMmmm!!

SOME HELPFUL TIPS:

• Make sure to absorb as much bacon grease as you can or else it will leak out and make the burgers separate.

Italian Dressed Tilapia

So we decided to give running another try...we haven't been since the last time and I think if we keep it up it is bound to get easier. In addition to being able to run longer we might actually drop some post-wedding lbs.  Neither one of us was really hungry but we couldn't go without dinner so I threw together a miniature version of a delicious and healthy dinner. It was probably a good thing that we weren't that hungry because we have gotten down to our last tiny little Tilapia filet and since we are married we split it (I was generous and gave him the bigger half). It came out really good and it  was super easy!

Cook Time: 10 Minutes
Yields: 1 Serving or 2 Mini Servings

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 Tilapia Filet (Thawed)
• 1/2 TSP Butter
• Salt and Pepper
• 1 TBSP Italian Salad Dressing

PREPARATION:

Heat the butter over med heat, salt and pepper both sides of the filet and put into pan. Add the Italian Dressing and let cook for 3-4 minutes per side.

We had some leftover white rice from a previous dish so I tossed it into the pan with some italian dressing, salt and pepper until it was heated.

TO SERVE:

We split the Tilapia and served it with some quick steamed broccoli and the dressed up white rice. I then sprinkled some shaved parmesan cheese over top of everything... MMMmmm!!

SOME HELPFUL TIPS:

• Obviously if you need to make more, than make adjustments to the recipe.
• Use a smaller plate, smaller fork and it will appear as though there is more food than is actually there.

Chicken and Green Enchiladas

Evidently we aren't the only household that acquires problems! Our friends Gomez and Scott are without Internet and cable this week so Gomez has found refuge over at our house. But empty handed he is not, whether he brings candy, angry birds or a treat for Lucy, he is a welcomed house guest. I whipped up something tonight that started as an experiment but wound up being pretty tasty and he and Matt were my guinea pigs!

Cook Time: 45 Minutes
Yields: 3 Servings and lunch for Tomorrow


INGREDIENTS:

• 3 Boneless/ Skinless Chicken Breasts (Cut into Bite sized pieces)
• 1 Onion (Dicedl)
• 2 Cloves Garlic (Minced)
• 1 Stalk of Celery (Diced)
• 1 Bell Pepper (Diced)
• 1 Bunch Asparagus (cut in 1 inch pieces)
• 1/2 Cup Salsa
• 1/4 Cup White Cheese (pepper jack is best)
• 3 TBSP EVOO
• Salt and Pepper to Taste
• 1 TBSP Crushed Red Peppers
• 1 1/2 TSP Oregano
• Corn Tortillas
• 2 TSP Flour
• 1/2 Cup Sour Cream

PREPARATION:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

You will need half of the vegetables for the enchilada's filling and the other half for the cheese sauce, so divide and reserve half for the sauce. Saute one half in 2 TBSP of EVOO for about 5 minutes or until transparent, add half the oregano and pepper flakes to mixture.  Salt and Pepper the Chicken and add to pot, brown for about 10 minutes or until cooked throughout. Remove using a slotted spoon and reserve until later.

While the chicken is cooking, wrap corn tortillas in foil and warm in the oven. Take the other half of the veggies, oregano and red pepper flakes and put into a food processor and mince.

Whisk flour into some cold water (about 2 TBSP) and add to the chicken juice stirring constantly until thickened. Add the minced vegetables to the pot and simmer for 3-5 minutes. Add salsa, sour cream, and cheese stirring in a figure 8 until well blended and cheese is melted.  Put lid on pot and keep warm until ready to use, if sauce is too thick you can add water or chicken broth until desired consistency.

Pile chicken mixture into warm corn tortillas and roll. Line casserole or baking dish with enchiladas, seam side down.  Pour Hot sauce over enchiladas and place in the oven for about 25 minutes or until mixture starts to bubble and tortillas brown on edges.

TO SERVE:

We put 2-3 Enchiladas on a plate and served with white rice with any remaining cheese sauce on top.  MMmmmm!!!

SOME HELPFUL TIPS:

• Mix the white rice with any remaining sauce prior to serving and let cook for a few minutes.
• Make sure tortillas don't get too soft or else they will tear, if they are not hot enough then they will tear (it is a tricky task so if you have a secret...do share)!
• If you prefer shredded chicken you can use precooked rotisserie chicken from the grocery store.