Tequila-Lime Chicken Tacos

Hey everyone, I'm finally getting a chance to post another recipe. Let me tell you this is one of those recipes you GOTTA try!

 Here is what you do:

1- Heat up oil in a saute pan or grill.
2- Meanwhile, season chicken with lemon-pepper powder.
3- Brown both sides of each chicken breast on the pan on high heat. Once both sides are brown/charred lower heat to "medium-low" and cook chicken covered for about 15-20 minutes depending on the thickness of the breast.
4- Once chicken is cooked, throw a dash of Tequila and light it up so alcohol can burn off. Then squeeze a lime all over chicken and turn off heat.
5- Let the chicken rest for a couple of minutes before cutting.
6- While chicken was cooking, you had time to cut up your favorite taco toppings. For this recipe I recommend onions, cilantro, avocado, tomatoes, and a little more lime juice. You can also top it off with a little hot sauce if you like spicy. Here's a picture of the toppings:

 You can serve rice and beans on the side. I have a recipe for refried beans here on the blog and the rice recipe is coming soon!

Superbowl Food: Refried Beans Dip

Since we are in Super Bowl mode, I want to share this Refried Beans recipe with you. It has my own twist and little healthier-alternative to the typical refried beans recipe. Also, check out my Homemade Guacamole video--it's another Super Bowl favorite! You can use these beans as a dip, spread, stuffing, side dish, and much more if you get creative!  I'll be adding more recipes today as well! ENJOY!

Homemade Chunky Guac

This is one of my first video blogs! I do sound a little nervous but hopefully that'll improve with time. However, the star of this video is the guac, so test it out at home and ENJOY! 

Shredded Chicken Tostadas

Chicken tostadas are quick, nutritious, and delicious. My little sisters love them too because they get to assemble their own and choose their toppings. When it comes to tostadas there isn't really a specific recipe but it's more about what you like and what you feel like eating at the time and throwing it in a tostada tortilla, which is like a giant tortilla chip; basically, it's a corn tortilla that's been toasted/baked and is therefore super crunchy. Here is a pic of the end results:

In this case, I used my homemade "refried" beans (recipe coming soon), shredded chicken breast (skinless chicken breast, boiled, cooled, and shredded), romaine lettuce, hard-boiled eggs, diced roma tomatoes, diced onions, cilantro, homade guacamole, and "queso fresco" which is a Mexican fresh cheese--you can also just use parmessan cheese. You can pick any ingredients you'd like and just throw them on the tostada and VOILA you got lunch ready! You can always top with spicy sauce and try my recipe for Green Salsa! ENJOY!

Just look at that! So fresh and filling!

Mild Salsa Verde (Green Sauce)

Mexican cuisine is one of my favorites in the world. Long ago I decided I was to learn how to make authentic Mexican recipes from native Mexicans. Here is the recipe for Salsa Verde or "tomatillo sauce" I got from one of the best Mexican cooks I've ever met. She isn't an executive chef at a fancy restaurant or a food writer but her food is so delightful I can never get enough. I'm so glad she shared this recipe with me and I'm even happier to share it with you.

This salsa is so versatile you can use it on so many Mexican recipes but also on other things such as scrambled eggs, rice, salad, you name it. It tastes so fresh and a little "lemony" even though it doesn't call for any lemons. It is also low on calories and fat-free which makes a perfect replacement for salad dressings, dips, or marinades. So let's get started:

Ingredients

4 large/medium tomatillos

2 cups fresh chopped cilantro

1 garlic clove

1 small jalapeno pepper (seeded)

3 cups water (from the tomatillos)

1 tbs salt or to taste

Instructions

Boil tomatillos in medium pot until soft. Meanwhile place jalapeno on a griddle or pan and let it char on each side until outside of skin is all black. Then peel of the outer skin and rinse. In a blender mix tomatillos, jalapenos, garlic, cilantro, salt, and water from the tomatillos (it adds a little more flavor). Blend everything together, pour in container, and refrigerate until cool. If you would like it a little thicker you can use less water or more water for more runny. Also if you are like me and love cilantro feel free to add a little more to taste. Once cold, use it on your tacos, quesadillas, "green" enchiladas,or even on steak, grilled chicken, salad, etc. Buen apetito!!!

Fresh Jicama Salad

Fresh Jicama Salad

Jicama, jicama, jicama...what is that? I had heard the word a couple times from different Mexican friends, but I never really inquired about what it was. The other day, my little sister came home from school RAVING about jicama and how good it tasted with lemon. She also said that some people add both lemon and spicy sauce but she didn't enjoy the latter. For a couple days she kept begging for us to buy some jicama. So, when we finally got it I was a little confused. It looked like a root vegetable--something like a potato or a yam? It didn't look very appetizing as I don't think of foods in that category as appealing unless they are cooked. But my sister insisted I try some with lemon. 

Jicama has a very mild flavor, somewhat that of a potato but not as starchy. It is also crisp and somewhat juice. Kind of like an apple. As I was chewing it I started to feel it'd pair well with yogurt, vinegar, lemon juice, and the such and I immediately thought of a salad! So here is what I came up with. This salad is so fresh and inviting and also very healthy! Here is a picture followed by the recipe:

Ingredients:

Jicama

Green apple

Red onion

Cucumber

White vinegar

Olive oil

Greek Yogurt

Honey (optional)

Salt to taste

Just cut everything in cubes (your preferred ratio of each thing). In a bowl whisk together the Greek yogurt, white vinegar(you can also try lemon juice), honey, olive oil(just a little bit to emulsify but you don't want it oily, about a teaspoon should do), and salt to taste. Once dressing is well combined, add to the rest of the ingredients. Also, I put everything in a closed container, shook it up, and put it in the fridge for over an hour so it would be really chilled by the time I served it. For serving suggestion, I served it  in a bowl and was very generous with the dressing so that everything was kind of "floating" in it.  It was SO delicious, especially picking up the bowl at the end and drinking the left over dressing from it! You can also sprinkle minced fresh mint for garnish and aroma right before serving.This salad is ideal for the summer, a must try! ENJOY <3