Grilled Fish Tacos

This recipe is courtesy of Wegmans (one of the great wonders of the world). It's super easy and light, especially on hot and humid nights like tonight.

You need:

4 tilapia fillets
1/2 c. Wegmans Mojo marinade
1 c. mayonnaise
3 tbsp. milk
1/2 c. chopped cilantro
juice of 1 lime
6 taco tortillas, soft
2 c. shredded cabbage
1 small red onion, sliced
1 avocado, sliced

Preheat your grill. Marinade the fish, covered, for 20-30 minutes (or up to 2 hours). Right before you are ready to cook, make the sauce. Combine mayonnaise, milk, cilantro, lime juice, and salt and pepper (to taste) in a small bowl. Grill fillets 3 min on one side. Flip and cook an additional 5 min. Make sure the internal temperature reaches 130 degrees. Transfer, when cooked, to a plate and cut into bite sized pieces. Warm tortillas on grill for 10 seconds on each side. Top tortillas with fish, cabbage, onion, avocado, and a drizzle of sauce.

Serves 6

Frosted Banana Bars

Although this is not V's recipe (she's out of town and I'm home stuck with bananas), it delivers moist bars that are a great way to use up overripe bananas, especially when the heat and humidity (which has FINALLY arrived) turn bananas in less than a week. Just a hint - don't substitute the sour cream if you can help it. In most recipes that aren't baked goods, you'll notice that I substitute Greek yogurt for sour cream - a healthier and tastier change. However, when baking, there is something about the sour cream that cannot be matched with yogurt. And make it real sour cream. If it's low in fat, it's high in something else.

By the way, this is is NO way a super healthy treat. It might start out that way, but the frosting alone takes it to dessert decadence. Still, if you use good ingredients, it's a great way to make a snack that lasts for a while and allows you to feel like because there are bananas in it, it's healthier than brownies :-)

Let's start with the bars...

You need:

1 stick unsalted butter, softened
1 1/2 c. sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 c. sour cream
2 c. flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
4 ripe and mashed bananas

Cream the butter and sugar. Add the eggs one at a time. Then, add the vanilla extract and the sour cream. Sift together the flour, baking soda, and salt. Add to the mix. Finally, add the bananas. Mix together and pour into a 10x13" baking pan. Bake for 20-25 min.

While the bars are cooking, start on the frosting. For the frosting, you'll need:

1 stick unsalted butter, softened
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
4 c. powdered sugar
2 tsp. vanilla extract

Cream the butter and cream cheese. Slowly add the powdered sugar. Then, add the vanilla extract. Mix well until fluffy. After the bars have cooled, generously frost the bars and then cut to your desired size.

Creamy Ravioli with Squash, Lemon, and Chives

This recipe comes from Real Simple magazine. I chose it because it was a quick meal, with simple and inexpensive (yet healthy and delish) ingredients, and it was something that I could easily throw together before the art show at A's school tonight. It's a great way to use all of that summer squash and zucchini that seems to grow in number throughout the summer. And A gives it two thumbs up!

You need:

1# frozen ravioli
1 tbsp. olive oil
1 shallot, chopped
3 summer squash (I used yellow and zucchini), thinly sliced
1 c. heavy cream
1 tbsp. lemon zest
1/2 parmesan, grated
2 tbsp. fresh chives, grated
salt and pepper

Cook the pasta according to the package directions. Reserve 1/2 c. of the pasta water, drain the pasta, and return to the pot.

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the shallot and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft, about 3 minutes. Add the squash and some salt and pepper to taste. Cook until tender, about 5 minutes. Add the cream and lemon zest and cook for another minute or two, until the cream is thickened.

Add the squash mixture, parmesan, reserved pasta water, and a little more salt and pepper to the pasta and toss gently to coat. Serve with a sprinkle of chives and parmesan cheese.

Serves 4

Summer's Bounty Tomato Sauce

Ok, technically we're not even close to summer yet, but a local greenhouse has great hydroponic tomatoes that make for a great transition to the delicious tomatoes of summer. Granted, they aren't nearly as sweet and luscious as those vine-ripened ones you get in late July or early August, but they are wonderful cooked. This recipe is good all summer long!

You need:

5 vine-ripened red tomatoes, chopped
3 yellow tomatoes, chopped
1 orange tomato, chopped
1 tsp. chopped garlic
1 small bunch of basil, chopped
salt and pepper to taste

Saute the garlic in a little olive oil, just for a minute or two. Add the tomatoes and cook over medium heat until they soften. Season with salt and pepper. Add basil just toward the end of the cooking. Serve over your favorite pasta, hot or at room temperature!

15-Minute Burritos

Wow. It's almost May. And FINALLY I'm cooking again. And most of you know why. From early December through early April I was suffering from the most uncomfortable and exhausting....morning sickness. Yep. We're expecting again! A little boy, to be exact. So, fellow readers, that's EXACTLY why I haven't been posting. I was barely eating. However, my appetite seems to be making up for lost time, because I've been cooking up a storm. Many of the recipes have been old standbys (I'm so tired after work!) but I've tried a couple of new things that I've really enjoyed.

Last night, we made Jamie Oliver's Sizzling Beef with Scallions and Black Bean Sauce . We made it with cilantro-lime rice instead of noodles, and we had LOADS left over! Today, we had our first warm day - 83 degrees - since late October. The sun even came out. I had forgotten what it looked like. I wanted to make something that was quick with minimal cooking, and this recipe was born. It was fresh and light and yet remarkably filling.


You need:

4 whole-wheat burrito-sized tortillas
1 can black beans, drained and heated through
1.5 c. cilantro-lime rice
1 avocado, chopped
5 baby roma tomatoes, chopped*
1 c. chopped romaine lettuce*
1 c. shredded cheddar cheese (we love to shred up Dubliner cheese - perfectly sharp!)
1/2 c. plain greek yogurt

Simply fill each tortilla with a spoonful or so of each of the ingredients, top with greek yogurt, wrap it up, and eat. SOOOO good!

Serves 4

*just a reminder - tomatoes and lettuce are two of the "dirty dozen," so be sure to get organic or local produce!

The World's Easiest Potato Pancakes

I have to admit that I haven't been in the most experimental food-mood lately. But I'll get to that at a later post. However, I'm sitting in the living room, staring out at the whipping snow, and trying to figure out what to make for dinner. However, I've almost forgotten about a recipe I got from Runner's World. Probably the easiest recipe for potato pancakes I've ever used. Rather than spending time shredding and drying potatoes and fighting the splattering oil from the pan, this recipe uses mashed potatoes as the base. With a side of sour cream, applesauce, and sauteed spinach, it's the perfect cold weather comfort food, but high in nutrition and taste.

You need:

2 c. mashed potatoes
2 eggs
1/2 c. milk
1/4 c. chopped scallions
salt and pepper to taste


Beat the eggs and the milk. Add the potatoes and scallions. Season with salt and pepper. Drop the batter into a heated skillet with a tablespoon of sunflower oil (a light and healthy alternative to olive oil, with a much higher burn temperature). Cook for about two minutes on each side or until golden brown.

Serves four as a main course

D's Delicious Chicken Salad

Last week, at a play date with J and M, D made the most delish chicken salad I've had in a long time. And I was amazed to find out how little went into it. Here's my rendition (I don't have her recipe; I just watched her make it).

You need:

1 3/4 # boneless chicken breasts, preferably grass fed/free range
1 small bunch of celery, separated
1 onion
3 cloves of garlic
1 apple, preferably honey crisp
Mayonnaise
Salt and pepper (to taste)

In a large pan, place your chicken breasts, 2-3 ribs of celery (roughly chopped), 1 onion (quartered), and the garlic (peeled). Salt and pepper everything in the pan, and then cover with water. Bring to a boil, and then simmer on low heat for 25-30 minutes.

Once the chicken is cooked, place the chicken on a cutting board and discard the rest of the ingredients. Chop the chicken finely. Chop one or two ribs of celery and the apple into small pieces (I used the food processor). Mix together the chopped chicken, celery, and apple. Add mayonnaise to your liking and season with salt and pepper.