Fajitas!

 Andy and I made fajitas a few days ago…nothing to crazy or original, but man they were delicious. When Andy comes over, we try to make quick, easy dinners (and in theory fajitas are quick and easy), but somehow they always take us forever. We haven’t exactly figured out why yet. We can’t blame alcohol, because these are nights when I have to go to work in a couple hours. No idea.

 

With two banana peppers, one serrano, and two habaneros, these fajitas were bound to be spicy…yum!!

 

What a beautiful sight!! Mostly peppers and onions, plus a bunch of itty bitty button mushrooms. They were so cute! Everything got sautéed together for a few minutes.

 

I made a mango salsa to balance the heat a bit, and it had mango, red onion, cilantro, lime juice, and salt. So easy, yet so delicious. This got way better over a couple of days too.

 

My favorite part of the fajitas were these AMAZING tortillas! Made by La Tortilla Factory, these corn/wheat blend tortillas were phenomenal. Seriously. I have never been so impressed by a simple tortilla. They were moist, thick, chewy…almost like naan! I’m so in love with these.

 

The tortillas were topped with fat-free refried beans, the veggies, shredded cheddar, and the salsa. We also dabbed some chipotle hot sauce here and there for some extra deliciousness. That’s it! I obviously put way to many toppings on my tortilla, but the difficulty of eating it was worth it. So many flavors…so wonderful!

My mom is going to be here TOMORROW!!! :) Lots to get done before then! I’ll be sure to fill these pages with the crazy amounts of sushi that we’re going to eat.

Glamour Salmon – Return of the Trader Joe’s Cookbook

 Last night I got to make another recipe from my awesome Trader Joe’s cookbook from Lisa. I haven’t really been cooking for myself lately…just eating crackers and hummus for dinner, etc., so this was a nice change to have a real meal. Well…it was a real meal until it was getting late and I didn’t cook any sides with it. But still, I actually used the oven!

I’ve had these salmon fillets in my freezer for quite a while. I like them because they seem to be frozen when they’re very fresh, and the skin is still on them. Cheap too!

 

I used this very simple recipe that the author found in a Glamour magazine years ago. (If it’s illegal to have this picture up, someone please let me know and I’ll take it down – I’m not really sure if that’s a copyright infringement or anything).

 

I definitely didn’t plan this ahead, so I had to use the trusty running cold water to thaw method. It works!

 

While the salmon thawed, I made the super easy and delicious sauce. I added honey to a bowl…

 

then soy sauce…

 

a few drops of sesame oil…

 

the juice of a half of a lemon, and red pepper flakes.

 

The sauce was really great at this point, but I also added garlic powder and fresh ginger.

 

I let the sauce soak in the salmon for a few minutes before baking it at 400 degrees for about 10 minutes. The thin end of the fillet was done way before the middle, so I cut it off (then ate it), and cut the rest into three pieces so the middle could get done a little bit more. It’s so hard to find that balance between undercooked and overcooked – especially with fish that varies in thickness.

 

Very very good!! I poured the rest of the sauce on the salmon, which was great for dipping too. The fish was done perfectly, which rarely happens to me. It was flakey, moist, and amazing with the sauce! I can see this classic sauce being great with tofu, chicken, or other veggies and meats. Yay for success!