Summer Baja Tacos

It's officially summer and Sunday Night Taco Night is a staple for us. Simple, fresh, quick and easy, it's the ultimate "get-ready-for-your-week" yet still feel like you're enjoying yourself kinda meal. You can make it your own, which is ideal for James and I. He adds the cheese and the shrimp and I usually keep things vegan-ized. Left-over tomato salsa can be used to top salads later in the week or used as the base of a quick tomato sauce. Great to have in the fridge for weeknight dinners.

Ingredients
1 lb shrimp, peeled and deveined
extra virgin olive oil
juice of one lime
course sea salt
corn tortillas
fresh guacamole
1 can black beans
1 garlic clove
Fresh Tomato Salsa (see recipe)
crumbed cotija cheese (optional)
hot sauce (Cholula is my fav)

Start with preparing the black beans by simply pouring into a small saucepan with one crushed garlic clove and a pinch of sea salt. Simmer over low heat for 15-20 minutes, or as long as it takes to prepare the rest of the meal.

Fresh Tomato Salsa
1 pint grape tomatoes, quartered
3 Tbsp finely chopped white onion
course sea salt
squeeze of a lime
finely chopped jalapenos, depending on how hot you like it

Combine the tomatoes and onion in a bowl and season with salt and lime. Add the jalapeno in small amounts until it reaches the heat of your liking.

Preheat your grill over high heat. Toss shrimp with a splash of olive oil, lime juice and pinch of salt. Grill until cooked through, about 2 minutes on each side.

To serve, heat the tortillas in a dry frying pan and wrap in a kitchen towel to keep warm. Pile a few shrimp on top of each tortilla and serve with the tomato salsa, squeeze of a lime, guacamole, black beans, dash of hot sauce and an optional crumble of cojita cheese on top. Easy as pie!

Taco Night Twist

Taco Night Sundays has become a weekly staple for us. This Sunday I wanted to change it up a bit, still keeping it simple but a tad bit healthier. Instead of using the familiar ground turkey and caloric crispy taco shells, I opted for a lighter tilapia fish in corn tortillas. My fiance was a bit bummed at the sound of it, but when I watched him scarf down dinner raving about how good it was...well, let's just say "I told you so".

Fish Tacos with Tomatillo Salsa and Black Bean and Corn Salad

Cooking spray
1 garlic clove, minced
fresh corn kernels (about 2 large ears)
6 (6-inch) corn tortillas
juice from one lime
1/2 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
1 Tbsp red wine vinegar
1 3/4 tsp ground cumin
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup grape tomatoes, halved
1/2 cup red pepper, diced
1/4 cup red onion, diced
1 Tbsp jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced
1/2 Tbsp fresh oregano, chopped
1/2 (19-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 lb tilapia fillets, cut into bite-sized pieces
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 Tbsp vegetable oil
1 Tbsp fresh cilantro leaves
3/4 cup avocado, halved, pitted and sliced
Tomatillo Salsa, store-bought or homemade

To prepare salad, heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat and coat with cooking spray. Add garlic; saute 30 seconds. Add corn; saute 8 minutes or until browned. Remove from pan; cool completely.

In a small bowl, whisk together the lime juice, olive oil, red wine vinegar, 3/4 tsp cumin, and 1/4 tsp salt. Combine the corn, tomatoes, red peppers, onion, jalapeno pepper, fresh cilantro, oregano, and black beans. Drizzle juice mixture over the corn mixture, and toss gently to coat.

Heat the tortillas by wrapping in foil and bake in the oven at 350 degrees for 10 minutes or until heated through.

Sprinkle fish with 1/4 tsp of salt. Combine the rest of the salt, flour and 1 tsp cumin in a medium bowl; dredge fish in mixture and set aside. Heat vegetable oil in the large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat, and add fish. Cook 2 minutes on each side or until fish flakes easily with fork.


Build your tacos by folding the tortillas in half and placing the fish down the center first, followed by slices of avocado and topping off with tomatilla salsa. You can pile on the black bean and corn salad or serve alongside. I used store-bought tomatilla salsa to save time. You can create your own by combining tomatillo peppers, onion, cilantro, lime juice, salt, garlic, and jalapeno pepper.


Use leftover Black Bean and Corn Salad for lunch the next day! I piled salad in a warm corn tortilla, wrapped tightly and sliced into small bite-sized pieces. Top with tomatillo salsa. Enjoy!

Taco Night!

Long weekend. Stressed with big decisions. Not ready for another work week... Sunday night done right. Get your week started on a healthy and filling foot!

Homemade guacamole and sweet corn tortilla chips. Crispy or soft corn taco shells topped with lean ground turkey and spices, fresh tomato salsa, crisp and cool shredded iceburg.

Homemade Guacamole

4 avocados
8 tablespoons chopped red onions
8 tablespoons chopped tomatoes
About 2 1/2 chopped jalapeno chiles
Pinch garlic salt to taste
Fresh squeezed lime juice to your liking
Freshly chopped cilantro leaves (optional)

Half and seed the avocados and place in a bowl. Add the chopped onions, chopped tomatoes, chopped cilantro, garlic salt, chiles and lime juice, to taste. Now mix and smash together. Enjoy!

Summer Nights

It was my official last weekend spent in the Hamptons and it seemed only right to end on a high note with long beach days, fresh food, local wine and of course prokadima contests. We spent Friday night cooking in. It's always a gastronomic affair with our group. The grocery shopping on the way in only started the process... Waldbaum's for the essentials, The Seafood Shop for the fish, and a final stop at our local wine store for bottles of their best. Once the wine was corked, culinary cheer filled the room. I had the honor of sharing the chef's hat this summer with my friend's boyfriend, Ben. He pulled out his own set of knives and I knew it was on. Simplicity, healthsome, tastefulness. We had the same mindset. It was gonna be gooooood. Fish tacos with Ben's spicy cole slaw and avacado. His tuna ceviche; my summer salad. Fresh, tasty goodness. We used talapia for the fish. Simply pan seared with olive oil, salt and red pepper flakes. I used a fork to pull into perfect pieces. I am still trying to convince Ben to share his slaw and ceviche recipes with us. Hopefully this will be soon to come! There is nothing better than old fashioned S'mores for dessert. We weren't camping out on the beach like our previous weekend at a friend's Lobster Bake, so we had to settle with the good ole' gas stove. (I have to say it was a step up from our only other option...the microwave.) This was the treat of the weekend...every late night snack, as well as the final morning's breakfast. An absolute hit.

The summer in the Hamptons will be one not to forget. Jitney rides, beach days, cooking out, eating in, Surf Lodge, watching sunsets, Pierre's, Physique 57, Yama-Q, Della Femina, 3 dogs too many, bike rides, Turtle Crossing, summer playlists, Talkhouse....now looking forward to being back in the city for the start of fall in September: "The hottest party month in the city" -Chris Sweet.