Family Favorite Smoky Tilapia Tacos + Cabbage Slaw and Lime Crema

These are the best!

They are simple and quick. Another thing to love about them.

I combined a couple of recipes - one from Cooking Light, Sept 2014, the other from here.

I've made the spice rub from the Spicy Fish Taco recipe, and can also say it is delicious. I've just never tried it with snapper, since tilapia is so gosh darn easy to find at Costco {wink}. 

I love the fish recipe and cooking technique from Cooking Light, but didn't care for the texture of the completed recipe - no crunch, just mush (it only calls for a mashed avocado topping).

Here's my slightly adjusted combined recipe:

Smoky Tilapia Tacos with Cabbage Slaw and Lime Crema

The thing that takes the most time for me is thawing the frozen tilapia. I'm not on the ball enough to get it in the refrigerator the night before, so I usually thaw it in my sink, covered with cold water, weighted with a casserole dish to keep it submerged, for about an hour. If you are organized enough to skip this step, you can seriously have dinner on the table in 20.

Spice rub:
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. smoked paprika
1/4 tsp. ground coriander
1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1/4 tsp. kosher salt

5 tilapia fillets (easily feeds 5 to 6)

Preheat broiler to high.
Combine spice rub ingredients.
Brush fillets with oil, then sprinkle with spice mixture (both sides)
Place on baking sheet.
Broil 8 minutes or until fish flakes easily with a fork.

Note: Broiling makes this a no-fuss dish. The tilapia cooks so fast, put it under the broiler just before you are ready to serve - literally 8 minutes before you are sitting down to the table to eat.

Cabbage slaw:
4 cups shredded cabbage (I use the coleslaw mix from the store - makes this super quick)
1/3 cup chopped cilantro (I didn't have this for my pictured tacos because my cilantro was slimy - gross!)
2 green onions (I also didn't have this because I had used all my green onion the night prior - seriously adds to the flavor of the slaw, so try not to leave it out!)
3 Tbs. distilled white vinegar
1 tsp. kosher salt
2 tsp. sugar

Toss all slaw ingredients together in a bowl.

Lime crema:
1/3 cup sour cream (I use light)
3 Tbs. mayonnaise (I never use light)
juice and zest of 1 lime
salt, to taste

Whisk ingredients together and season to taste with salt.

Warmed corn tortillas, for serving.
Note: I like to cook my tortillas directly on my ceramic cook-top burners. This technique is super fast if you use two burners at a time. I use a tortilla keeper (I found mine at Bed, Bath and Beyond for about $6) to keep them warm and soft. Corn tortillas are my fave.

Even my daughter who doesn't like fish, likes these tacos (she says it's a texture thing, so the cabbage slaw helps). I made them for a 14-year-old guest last night and she loved them. I ate leftovers for lunch and they were STILL delish (it helps if you know how to reheat meat/fish in the microwave - the trick is a lower cook power {I typically use cook-power 7} for a short period of time {a minute or less} - you can always add more time, but if you nuke it to death it will NEVER taste good).

Easy peasy lemon (or lime) squeezy. And oh-so good!

Brown Sugar Caramel Sauce

We really don't eat that much ice cream around here, although it used to be quite a different story when everyone was home. And during my pregnancy years. When I was pregnant with #3, I ate a quarter gallon of ice cream almost every day during that summer.

When we DO eat ice cream, I like to embellish it a bit. And caramel is my #1 ice cream topping of choice (Leatherby's Grandma Grace's Creamery Sundae with caramel sauce frequents my dreams). This recipe comes pretty darn close to Leatherbys', and is super simple to make. Can't beat that with a stick.

Brown Sugar Caramel Sauce
(for ice cream, waffles, pancakes, or anything else that calls for caramel deliciousness)
Original recipe found here.

1/2 cup butter
1/4 tsp. salt
1 cup (packed) brown sugar
2/3 cup heavy cream
2 - 4 tsp. vanilla extract (optional)

In a small saucepan melt butter with salt. Add the brown sugar, then whisk until combined and thickened (about 2 minutes over medium heat). Whisk in whipping cream until thoroughly blended (another 2 minutes over medium heat). Mix in vanilla, if using. Note: this sauce will thicken as it cools.

Easy. Peasy. And oh-so-good.

Stove Top Mac-n-Cheese

I made this last night in an effort to put dinner on the table FAST. I've used various mac-n-cheese recipes over the years, but thought I would try something different and I knew I had pinned a few recipes on Pinterest. They all, however, called for cream cheese or cream, of which I had neither. I also wanted to avoid the lengthy second step of many recipes that call for baking in the oven. I needed FAST. After spending too much time looking for a recipe, I turned to good ol' reliable google.

"best stove top mac and cheese"

This recipe popped up on top of the list, so I glanced through the ingredients. Hmmmm... interesting. It called for eggs. No flour roux, no cream, no cream cheese. I figured I might as well give it try.

I used this pasta

and doubled the recipe, planning for summer-day-lunch leftovers.

Bill's comment: "I think this is the best mac-n-cheese you have ever made."

Shilo's comment: "I need this recipe for college. This is so good."

Mauri's comment: "I ate more than I thought I would." (She had just had a pancake an hour before dinner - go figure.)

I didn't snap a pic of my final product, and figured a pic of the refrigerated leftovers might not do it justice. Imagine cheesy, creamy deliciousness. Next time I make it I'll try to remember to memorialize it.


The Best Mac-n-Cheese I Have Ever Made (a la Alton Brown)

1/2 lb. elbow macaroni (I used Cellentani, and doubled the recipe)
4 Tbs. butter
2 eggs
6 oz evaporated milk
1/2 tsp. hot sauce (I used Cholula)
1 tsp. kosher salt (I used slightly less)
Fresh black pepper
3/4 tsp. dry mustard
10 oz. sharp cheddar, shredded (I used medium cheddar, since that's what I had on hand)

In a large pot of salted boiling water, cook pasta al dente, then drain. Return to the pot and melt in butter (I pre-melted the butter in the microwave to speed things along). Toss pasta to coat.

Whisk together eggs, milk, hot sauce, salt, pepper, and mustard. Stir into the pasta and add the cheese. Stir over low heat until cheese is melted and sauce is creamy and smooth, at least 3 minutes.

Note: This was super creamy and rich, which my family {loved}. My personal preference (from growing up on milkier/runnier mac-n-cheese) is a slightly "looser" texture. In my double batch next time I'm going to try eliminating one egg, and slightly increasing the milk quantity. I'll post the update.

Easy.
Yummy.
Quick.

Happy family.

Gotta love that.