Steamed Cod w/ Mango Salsa & an Egg Tutorial!

yum yum yum!

If it ain’t broke…don’t fix it! That was the thinking behind our repeat dinner tonight. My dad brought home a gorgeous wild, ocean caught, cod fillet from Lobsta Bakes. I took one look at its flakey, butteriness, and BAM!….it was mango salsa time.

mouth watering yet?

You can find this amazing recipe here. The way I prepared the cod was by steaming it. Here’s how:

I put 1 tsp EVOO, salt, pepper, lemon zest, and juice on the cod. I placed it on a bed of lemon slices on a big pice of tin foil. I then folded the tin foil up to make a tent, put it on a baking sheet, and then baked it in a 350 degree oven for 20 minutes.  I then unwrapped the tin foil and placed it under the broiler for 3-5 minutes just to give it a golden crust.  Amazingly moist and flakey. Wow. And with theMango Salsa….get outta town!

GF Cilantro Lime Rice & Cod w/ Mango Salsa!

And now, an egg tutorial. As you all know, I’m in an Ulcerative Colitis flare, and so I need to eat protein to heal. Since the introduction of farm fresh eggs into my diet, I have literally eaten an egg for breakfast and lunch every day.  And of course, being GF, I can’t have bread…so I have half a tortilla. Here are several of my favorite ways to prepare eggs!

The Original...Un-Fried egg

This is probably my favorite way to have an egg…a “fried” egg.  Except, I don’t use any oil — just a light spray of olive oil spray.  For a good fried egg, make sure your egg is fully cooked on the bottom before you flip it.

Tomato & Basil Open Omelet

Travel to Italy for Breakfast!

This next way was introduced to me by my amazing sister-in-law.  This is a beautiful, open omelet with diced tomato and basil. I beat an egg in a bowl with s&p and pour it in an olive oil sprayed pan. I then place the tomatoes and basil in the eggs.  Again, only flip once the bottom is completely cooked. Take a silicone spatula and run it along the cooked edges, and then carefully flip. Delish. Thank you L!

Beautiful orange color from the organic salsa!

Fiesta Salsa Open Omelet!

Next, my fiesta salsa open omelet with cilantro.  I beat 1 egg in a bowl, and then beat in 1 1/2 T of organic salsa with salt and pepper. Pour it in the pan and sprinkle with cilantro. Sometimes I get a little crazy and also sprinkle in some cumin too!  Again, wait to flip until the bottom is fully cooked.  When its finished, I crumble 1 rice tortilla chip on top, just for some nice crunch.

Egg in a Hole! (in a tortilla!!)

This next way was just for fun. You know “egg in a hole” with bread?  Well, I made an “egg in a hole” with a tortilla. This made me smile:)  I cut a bit circle (freehand) out of the tortilla, put it in an olive oil sprayed pan, and then cracked the egg in the center. When the egg has fully cooked on the bottom, flip the entire tortilla, supporting the egg with your spatula.

Cumin tortilla frittata with cilantro

Finally, this was an experimental preparation. This is what I like to call a cumin tortilla frittata. I shredded my 1/2 tortilla. It wasn’t shredding the exact way I wanted, so I did a fine dice with the rest.  In a bowl, I beat 1 egg, salt, pepper, and cumin.  I then stirred in the tortilla shreds and put it in an olive oil sprayed pan.  This was so interesting! The tortilla acted like a sponge and just soaked up all the egg, and so it became almost like a dense bread! For someone who can’t eat bread, it was so yummy! I could see using other herb/spice combinations, like curry, maybe cajun.

So those are the egg dishes I’ve dreamed up so far. Eating eggs every day for B & L can be verrrry monotonous, but I think I’ve come up with all the different ways to eat an egg and a tortilla!

GF Chocolate Macaroon with Choc-PB filling!

Finally, tonight, I made chocolate macaroons! Its the same macaroon recipe found here, but with the chocolate option.  I filled them with a chocolate-peanut butter icing.  I just melted a few chocolate chips with 1 T almond milk, PB, and about 3/4 c confectioner’s sugar.  If you want a GF, nearly fat free cookie, you’ve gotta make them yourself!

One of the essential tools to make my eggs turn out great is my nonstick KitchenAid skillet. It is incredible. Light weight, durable, and nothing sticks to it! I also used my KitchenAid Stand Mixer to whip the egg whites for the Macaroons. It's an investment, but absolutely worth it if you are going to be doing some serious cooking. Here are the tools I use:

Until Tomorrow!

Grilled Mahi Mahi w/ Mango Salsa & LIme Rice!

I now understand why they say dogs are (wo)man’s best friend.  I have a confession: my dog, Roxy, has not always been my #1 fan. In fact…you could say we had a love/hate relationship. I bought her with my own money when I was in 7th grade. I fell in love with “the cute papillon in the window”…goodbye savings, hello Roxy.  Well, lets just say she bonded with my mother…and ONLY my mother.

my new best friend...she CHOSE to lay there!

To make a long story short, it seems that Roxy has a sixth sense and can tell that I am in pain. She has been my steadfast companion while I’ve been in my Ulcerative Colitis flare: staying by my side all day. And she now comes up and lays on my chest! I was able to snap a couple pictures of my new best friend. :)

Roxy...hanging by my side:)

It may have taken 9 years, but she finally has come around.

mahi mahi with amazing mango salsa

For dinner tonight, I made Grilled Mahi Mahi with Mango Salsa, and crisp cilantro lime wild rice! Ooooh boy this was amazing. My parents raved, saying this was the best meal I’ve made yet!

For the salsa:

1/4 red onion – fine dice–almost minced

1/2 yellow pepper, dice

1/2 cucumber, seeded and diced

1 mango, diced

juice of 1 lime

1 tsp EVOO

chopped cilantro

salt and pepper

Combine all in a bowl and pop in fridge for a half hour. This recipe originally calls for red pepper, but we only had yellow.

moist, flakey, and completely delicious

This was the garnish for my Grilled Mahi Mahi! Oh boy! Our friends atLobsta Bakes have done it again! They provide Cincinnati with fresh-never frozen, wild, ocean caught, flown-in-daily-from-Maine, antibiotic-free fish! They have been an absolute lifesaver since I’ve been in the flare and eating The Maker’s Diet. Anyway! I grilled the Mahi Mahi steaks till they were flakey and juicy.

This is my dad’s favorite fish. He likes the meaty texture, (and the mango salsa didn’t hurt either :) )

cilantro lime rice and gorgeous mahi mahi

Finally, I made wild rice that was flavored with cilantro and lime. Holy Cow. Zesty!! First, wild rice is so fantastic because of its nutty flavor and crunchy texture. Not to mention the drama it brings to the plate with its dark, deep hue. I made it with veg stock, and then after it had evaporated all the liquid, I stirred in the zest of 1/2 a lime, the juice of 1/2 a lime, and a big bunch of chopped cilantro.

This meal brings a great *zing* to your palate with the sweet mango and the tangy lime and fresh cilantro. You definitely will not be disappointed!

light, airy, and so adorable!

Finally, I had the urge to make french macaroons again yesterday, and they came out much prettier than the first “rustic” batch! The recipe is here. I left them on the counter for a bit longer than 15 minutes, and that made the difference!

chocolate peanut butter macaroon!

I filled them with chocolate icing, peanut butter icing, and “swirl.” I just mixed the named ingredient with a touch of almond milk and confectioner’s sugar. How pretty!

I used my Kitchen Aid Stand Mixer to whip the egg whites for the Macaroons. It's such an amazing machine, I highly recommend it! And I grilled my Mahi Mahi on my grill pan! A grill pan is so convenient...especially in the winter! Here's the one I use: