Shrimp Tacos with Mango Salsa

I'm on the look out for more no cook dinners! This one requires cooking but not very much. I love cooking with shrimp because it doesn't take much time at all.

For the Mango Salsa

2 mangoes, peeled and diced
1 jalapeno, stemmed and diced (leave seeds if you want it spicy)
1/2 medium red onion, diced
1 tbsp lime juice
1/2 tsp salt
3 tbsp cilantro, chopped

For the Taco

1 lb of shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 tsp salt
3 tbsp olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, sliced
Dash of Worcestershire
Dash of Tabasco
1 red bell pepper, sliced
8 corn tortillas
2 cups shredded Monterrey jack cheese

Combine all of the ingredients for the mango salsa in a bowl and stir. Cover and refrigerate for a few hours.

Take the shells off of the shrimp and sprinkle salt on top. In a large pan over medium heat, saute the shrimp in 1 tbsp of olive for about 3 minutes, until they are pink. Transfer the shrimp to a plate and add the remaining 2 tbsps of olive oil to the pan. Add the onions, Worcestershire and Tabasco and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the red bell pepper and cook for 5 more minutes. Remove from heat and salt and pepper to taste.

Assemble you tacos with shrimp, onion and pepper mixture, cheese and salsa. Or make them into quesadillas.

If you are the low-carb type...this taste great without the tortilla.

Tropical Chicken Wrap

I live in an apartment that has one of the AC units in the wall.  It cools a 8 foot radius of the living room.  It's not even worth having the dang thing on...unless it's over 100 degrees and I'm stuck to the leather couch.

Cooking...has become ridiculous.  I really can't even boil water without heating the kitchen so much that I swear I'm going to pass out.

We've been ordering a lot of pizza and eating lot's of cereal.

I can't keep doing this....so I decided to come up with some no cook options!

The first one....a wrap! This one was loved by all and contained the contents of my pantry.  I have a crap load of oranges and nuts. I'm excited to see what else I can add to this once I actually go grocery shopping.

Tropical Chicken Wrap

2 cups of cooked chicken (i boiled mine), shredded
1 can of mandarin oranges, drained
1/4 cup cashews, chopped
1/4 teaspoon salt
pepper to taste
1/3 cup of mayonnaise
1 cup romaine lettuce, chopped
flour tortillas


Combine chicken, oranges, cashews, salt, pepper and mayonnaise in a bowl.  Warm tortillas and place handful of lettuce in the middle, add chicken and roll it up!

Serves 4

What To Do When Your Box of Wine Springs A Leak

Monday morning I woke up to find a puddle of Pinot Grigio in my refrigerator. My first thought was....what would Ramona do?

I decided that Ramona would drink that box of wine as fast as she could so that none of it would go to waste.

Then I remembered that it was 8am.

I thought about it for a few minutes as my fridge continued to fill with wine and I had my A-Ha moment!

I turned that frown wine upside down!

Grand Marnier Zabaglione

We spent Father's Day at my brother in law's house eating our weight in deep fried and grilled fresh fish from his recent fishing trip to Alaska.

I made a couple dishes to go with it that I was not happy with. I'm planning to rework the recipes before sharing them because I think they have the potential to be great!

For dessert...I wanted something light and creamy. This fit the bill and was super simple and fast.

By the way...if you're wondering, Grand Marnier does come in a small bottle. It's not cheap so I'm going to looking for more ways to use it.

Grand Marnier Zabaglione
 adapted from Epicurious and Bon Appetit Magazine June 2009

Serves 4

Strawberries, Raspberries or Blueberries
6 large egg yolks
6 tablespoons Grand Marnier or other orange liqueur
4 tablespoons water
3 tablespoons sugar
3 tablespoon sour cream
4 fresh mint sprigs (for garnish)

Whisk egg yolks, Grand Marnier, 4 tablespoons water, and sugar in medium metal bowl. Set bowl over large saucepan of gently simmering water. Whisk until mixture becomes thick and foamy, for  3 minutes. Remove from heat; whisk 1 minute longer. Whisk in the sour cream and pour warm zabaglione over fruit. Garnish with mint sprigs. Serve immediately.

Pho Duy 6

I've been hearing about Pho (FAH) for a while now and I was curious. I've never eaten Vietnamese food before but I love trying new things so it was on my list of *things to eat before I die*.

In doing a little research....I discovered that many people that eat Pho, fall in love and want to marry Pho.

I was on a mission to find out if Pho and I were compatible. Would it be love at first sight?

I get together every six weeks or so with a group of local bloggers for some good food.  I thought this group would be the right people to have my Pho experience with and I was right.  A couple of us were Pho Virgins.

Jolene, Rachel, Aimee

Jolene, Rachel, Aimee
Not Pictured: Ratna and Denise

We met in Broomfield at Pho Duy 6.  It is located right next to the Pacific Ocean Market Place....I'm told it is the most complete Asian market in the north Denver area.  I can't tell you if that is the case for sure....because I was too busy having happy hour drinks at 3 Margaritas.

Back to the Pho.

I ordered the Beef Pho (the non tripe one) in a medium.  It was more than enough food and I should have ordered the small. A plate is brought to the table containing Thai Basil, Bean Sprouts and Lime. Throw it all in your bowl....along with some of the sauces, some sweet, some spicy.  Heaven!

I adore Bubble Tea (they called it Boba) so I ordered that too. It was wonderful and I just love those little tapioca balls. There were many *ball* jokes thrown about. I do love balls.

Because I'm a glutton for punishment and my eyes are much bigger than my stomach. I ordered Shrimp Spring Rolls. They were good...but not great. I still say that Talk of The Thai in Lakewood has the best ones...but they call them Summer Rolls.

I enjoyed my meal at Pho Duy very much....even though our server insulted me for being old. This place doesn't have a liquor license and when one of my friends asked why...he said they don't like to embarrass people by asking for their identification. He gestured around the table, saying that he'd have to card all of us but then pointed towards me and said well....except for you. Awesome.

I really would have loved a beer with this meal so next I'll be trying out Pho Pasta in Denver. It's closer to my house anyway.

I found this funny video about Pho. I feel the exact same way!

Tuna Salad

This recipe is from the 20 Years Younger book and it's turned out to be my husband's favorite meal.  It's perfect for summer because it requires ZERO cooking. It's also worth noting that 50% of my children like it. And ask for more.

Tuna Salad
This is for ONE serving.  Increase amounts accordingly.

4oz tuna (i use water packed Albacore)
1 teaspoon capers (i chop mine)
1 medium tomato, diced
1 teaspoon dijon mustard
1/2 cup diced cucumber
1/2 cup diced celery
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1 cup romaine or arugula

Mix all of the ingredients together and serve on a bed of  lettuce.  Serve with a whole wheat roll and fruit.

Easy Kale Salad

I want to like Kale. It's only $1.29 a bunch and when cut up....makes a large amount of greens. Once you get past the fact that Kale kind of looks like a weed...you find that it's very nutritious and has anti-inflammatory powers. Kale is high in beta carotene, Vitamin K, Vitamin C and Calcium.

Kale can block the growth of cancer cells! My husband is always afraid that he's getting cancer so I plan to make him eat as much Kale as possible.

I found this recipe and thought it sounded really good and since it has apples in it...my kids might eat it. I was right! Everyone liked it. I loved it.  I recommend cutting this recipe in half if you are feeding a family of four.  Unless you want to eat Kale Salad for the next three days.



Easy Kale Salad
adapted from Irreverent Vegan

1 bunch of kale, chopped
juice of one lemon
1 avocado, chopped
1 apple, chopped
1/4 cup walnuts, chopped or crushed
salt and pepper to taste

Put the chopped kale in a large bowl then add the lemon  juice.  Add salt and avocado pieces.  Massage mixture together.  The salt and oil in the avocado will soften the kale.  Throw in the apple, walnuts and salt and pepper and toss salad with tongs.  Chill in the fridge for a half hour before serving.