Time to show off the house! Part One

Okay, so I'm starting to fall behind on these things, man, for someone who talks so much when given the chance, it's really hard to sit down and write something every day (or even every couple days). So the weekend before last, we finally had our house mostly finished with everything, cleaned up, and ready to go for some guests. Since we were having a cookout/housewarming bash last weekend, we had Caitlin's parents, her mom's parents, and her mom's BFF Aunt Ra (who was our Realtor and saw the house in it's 'Before' state) over for dinner. Now, that's a diverse group, and frankly, not one dish would feed them all, so I whipped up a couple different dishes and let everyone go to town. I made smoked chipotle-lime tilapia filets and smoked chicken leg quarters with my spice rub along with some tomato-basil-mozzarella-balsamic salad, some baked spiced red skin potato wedges and chocolate mousse for dessert.

It seemed like everyone had a good time. The In-laws were impressed with our deck and master bedroom now that we're finished, and Aunt Ra raved about the changes we implemented in the house since we bought it. Also, the Seahawks won at home against the Chargers and I actually got to watch some of it thanks to the magic of NFL Sunday Ticket online streaming and my brother having to work overtime (sorry dude!). So, all in all, a fine day with no complaints. On to the recipes:

Chipotle-Lime Smoked Fish

4 or 5 pieces of Fish (I used Tilapia, but swordfish, or just about any other white fish would do)
1/2 Cup Chipotle Mayo (Recipe Below)
1/4 Cup Lime Juice
1/4 Cup Olive Oil
Spice Rub for crust

In a small bowl, mix together the Chipotle Mayo, Lime Juice and Oil and brush on the fish. Shake or sprinkle with spice rub to give a nice crust while cooking. Smoke fish at 200 to 220 degrees for 60 to 90 minutes and remove from smoker. Once removed from the smoker, brush on more of the sauce mixture and sprinkle with another coating of spice rub. Then cook on either the grill or the oven broiler for 5 or 6 minutes to crisp up the fish. The sauce mixture should keep the fish hydrated while forming a nice crust on the top.

Smoked Chicken Leg Quarters

The smoked chicken leg quarters are quickly becoming a favorite in my kitchen. First of all, the chicken leg quarters (ie a leg and a thigh still connected) are extremely cheap compared to other more "desirable" chicken cuts (namely boneless skinless chicken breasts) at a regular price of about $1.29/lb. Second of all, they're also perfect because they'll smoke in about 2 hours (so I can make them for dinner on a week night) and for most people it's just the right portion, and for those that it's too much, they can just cut the leg or the thigh off.

So, if you have a smoker, it's pretty easy to make these. First thing you do, is mix about 1/3 C of vinegar (I use apple cider vinegar because it's a little sweeter, but you can use whatever kind you want) and 1/3 C olive/peanut/avocado oil together and then brush liberally onto the room temperature leg quarters. Then shake on as much spice rub as you can get to stick and let that sit for about 20 minutes so the spices can soak into the chicken and skin a bit. If you are making these by themselves, or with other high-temperature items in the smoker, you'll want to smoke them at 275 degrees for about 2 hours (until their internal temperature is at least 165 degrees).

However, if you're going to make them with the fish, as I did above, well, you have to make them a little differently. In that case, you'll smoke them with the fish at 200 degrees for about an hour and then remove them from the smoker and place them in the oven for about 30 minutes at 350 degrees. In addition, while they're baking, put in a 13x9 pan (preferably glass/pyrex so it won't warp) on the bottom shelf half full of water. That will help keep the chicken moist and mimic the water bowl most smokers use. Just check the internal temperature with a meat thermometer and make sure they're 160 or higher and you're good to go!

Festive Low Carb Fish and Shrimp Tacos!

Hankering for something festive, spicy and moderately healthy?  Try Fish Tacos!  They're great for having people over on the patio, and they go great with a bottle of Corona or two (. . . or three, or four. . . ).  They're easy to make and they're quickly becoming a summer favorite of mine because you get the spice of tacos with lower carbs and all the healthy aspects of the fish!  Also, they're really customizable to what you like.  Here's what I made:

What You'll Need:
2-3 Tilapia Filets
and/or
3-4 Pre-cooked Frozen Shrimp (thawed with tails removed) per Shrimp Taco you want to make (so if you want to make 4 shrimp tacos, then that'd be 12-16 shrimp)

Marinade:
I used McCormick Grill Mates Baja Citrus Marinade Mix (they're about $1 at the grocery store in the spice aisle) but you can also make up your own:
1/4 C Lime Juice
1/4 C Olive Oil
2 Tbsp Vinegar (rice vinegar is what I've used, but wine vinegar would also work)
1/4 C of my Rub Mix
OR
3 Tbsp of Taco Seasoning plus 1 Tbsp of Chili Powder or Chipotle Powder

Place the fish and/or shrimp in a ziploc bag and pour in the marinade and then shake/turn the bag back and forth to make sure all the stuff is coated in the bag.  Marinade in the fridge for 20 minutes to 2 hours.  When you're ready to cook, turn on the broiler to warm it up.  Pull out a broiler pan (and I recommend wrapping the top piece of the broiler pan in foil, it just makes cleanup easier in the end) and lay out the fish (if you're cooking shrimp too, don't put it on yet, it doesn't need to cook as long).  For the first part in the grill, don't pour extra marinade on the fish, just take them with what they've got on them from the bag.

Once the broiler is hot and ready to go, put the fish under the broiler with the rack on the 2nd position from the top for 5 or 6 minutes and then remove from the broiler and flip the filets.  If you're also cooking shrimp, now add them to the broiler pan and drizzle any remaining marinade over the shrimp and/or fish so that they're all covered on top as much as possible and return to the broiler for another 5 or 6 minutes.

While the fish/shrimp is in the oven, it's time to make up the toppings! 

Toppings:
You'll definitely need:
Bok Choy or Cabbage (roughly chopped into 1/2" pieces)
Roughly Chopped Fresh Cilantro
Diced Red Onion
Roughly Chopped Orange Peppers (they have a sweeter spice to them and they add to the color of the dish)
Chopped Plum Tomatoes

Optional Add-ins:
Chopped Avocado
Sharp Cheddar Cheese
Salsa
Ranch Dressing

If you want to have a low-carb fish taco, then I used 8'' Soft Taco Carb Balance Flour Tortillas, they're great!  They only have 7g Net of carbs per tortilla, and yet they still have a soft fluffy tortilla taste and texture. If you don't care about carbs, then I really recommend using Taco size Corn Tortillas, they add an extra flavor that really puts these over the top. Stick a few of these in the microwave covered with a moist paper towel for about 20 seconds to soften them up and then layer in the Cabbage, chunks of the fish and/or shrimp, peppers, onions and Cilantro and then top with any of the optional add-ins and enjoy!