Mashed Potato Tacos

In a truly inspired gift-giving moment, G gave my mom and me each copies of the same cookbooks for Christmas. Since we've been in the same place we decided we'd give a recipe a whirl (ok, I didn't make anything, just ate...but still). My mom whipped up these Mashed Potato Tacos for an appetizer on my final night in Connecticut and the five of us stood in the kitchen together, oohing, aahing and trying really, really hard not to keep making them so that we'd have room for the fabulous salmon she was making for dinner.

This is just one of those recipes that should be wrong. Mashed potatoes as tacos? Really? Let's just say it worked and thank you Sam "The Cooking Guy" Zien. Don't think, readers. Just make these and be prepared to be awed.

Basically you warm some corn tortillas, spread some sour cream on them, spoon on some mashed potatoes and top with chopped scallions, hot sauce and crushed potato chips. The recipe is here. We have already begun to fantasize about additions. Bacon? Melted cheese? Swoon.

Just a Little Innovation...

Hey Ma-

So, innovations in our kitchen are few and far between these days. We largely stick to tried and trues and, more often than not, these are pretty basic.

As I'm sure you've noticed, one of the go-to dinners in our house is something along the fajita-taco-burrito-quesadilla lines. The other night I went the taco route, using chicken (as you might've guessed from the above photo). I diced tomatoes and sauteed onions and quartered a few limes. This was all par for the course.

The little innovation occurred, however, when I grated half a head of purple cabbage and tossed it into the skillet, adding a dash of oil and then salt and rice vinegar to taste.

It was so yummy! Like, seriously, I'm always going to do this from now on, I think. It added this nice different flavor to the whole meal and, a tartness and texture that we both really enjoyed.

Plus, the cabbage didn't give M bad gas (as it did when she was teeny), so successes abounded.



XXOO
-R

We're Completely Lost

Janet here: On the off chance that you don't have cable or internet access, this week is the last week of Lost, ABC's multi-year series about a group of people stranded on a mysterious island. This means that Rachel and I are in the last throes of Lost obsession. Will the island be saved? Will good triumph over evil? Is this series even about good vs. evil?

Sunday is going to be a crazy multi-hour Lost extravaganza that will put the Super Bowl to shame for its pre-game hype. Apparently ABC is going to re-air the pilot, air a two-hour recap show and then present the 2.5 hour finale. I personally can't wait.

To honor this event, we decided to try to cook food with an island theme this week. It's been harder than we thought and some of the recipes will admittedly stretch this conceit a tad, but hey it's our blog and our obsession.

Fish obviously is a source of food if you're stranded on an island, assuming of course you can spear it, which I know I wouldn't be able to do so I would probably snuff it pretty quickly if stranded. At any rate, we decided to make fish tacos, which I have eaten and loved but never made myself. I got my inspiration for this recipe from Ellie Krieger's The Food You Crave, which I amended a bit.

Fish Tacos
serves 4

Ingredients
for the fish
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
salt and pepper to taste
1 pound white, flaky fish (like tilapia, mahi-mahi or halibut)

for the chipotle cream
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
1/4 cup sour cream
1 teaspoons finely chopped canned chipotle chile in adobe sauce

for the tacos
8 soft taco shells, warmed in the oven
1 cup shredded green cabbage or lettuce
1/2 cup cooked corn kernels (I microwaved mine.)


Method
To make the fish, whisk together the oil, lime juice, salt and pepper. Pour over the fish and let marinate at room temperature for 20 minutes.

To make the chipotle cream, mix together the mayonnaise, sour cream and chipotle chile.

Fry the fish in a frying pan in the marinade. Ellie suggests grilling it, which would probably be very tasty too.

While the fish is cooking, heat the tortillas in a 300-degree oven for about five minutes.
Flake the fish with a fork. Spread each shell with one tablespoon of chipotle cream. Top with the fish, cabbage and corn and serve with lime wedges.


Rachel here: I don't even know where to begin for this post. Two of my favorite things ever have come together and it's a little overwhelming. Lost is my favorite television show and fish tacos are one of my favorite meals. I'd never eaten them until I moved to California and, after my first, I have eaten them whenever the opportunity presents itself. When I make them at home, I always do pretty much the same thing and this time was not different. I am definitely going to have to give my ma's recipe a try, though...once I can pull myself away from the tv, that is.

Fish Tacos with Mango Salsa

Ingredients
Roughly 1/2 lb. of fresh wild rock cod snapper filet (per two people)
cornmeal (to coat fish, approximately 1 c. per 1/2 lb. fish)
salt and pepper
mango (1 large or 2 small), diced
1 medium white onion, diced
1 jalapeno pepper, minced
3 limes (2 for salsa, plus 1/2 a lime per person to garnish with)
3 roma tomatoes
cilantro (to garnish)
cheese of your preference, grated (I used this cheese called Duet that was fantastic...pretty mild, but with enough flavor)
corn tortillas


Method
I like to make the salsa a few hours early so it can macerate and get good and flavorful. In a medium bowl, combine half of your mango, onion, tomatoes, and jalapeno with a hearty dash of salt and the juice from one lime. Stir well and taste. From here, add the rest of these ingredients until you have a balance that you like. Stir well, cover and chill for later.

For the fish, heat your skillet and melt some butter in it. Coat your fish in cornmeal (that has some salt and pepper in it for flavor) before placing in pan. Cook until done. Heat tortillas towards the end (I just throw these in my skillet, but if yours isn't big enough toss them in the oven until they're warm).

To serve this meal, I pile two tortillas on each plate ad then divide the fish over them. I sprinkle the cheese on so it melts before adding generous spoonfuls of salsa and garnishing with cilantro. I like to add some slices of avocado and black beans on the side. It's a quick dinner that's good for you and incredibly satisfying.


Oh, and in case anyone's keeping track, I used wild fish instead of farmed (*ahem, Mother*)...not only does this clearly make me a bigger fan of Lost (I'm pretty sure there aren't fish farms on the island), but also the more ethical consumer. If I'm being honest, I'm not sure which of these facts pleases me more.