Tequila lime chicken with green onion slaw

Another great dinner.  I'm on a roll!

I was a little skeptical of the slaw at first but I think it turned out great and it got a thumbs up from my husband.

The idea for this meal came from Smitten Kitchen and I followed the recipes almost exactly.  I have made tequila lime chicken in the past and was never very impressed with the flavor, but the flavor in this recipe was really good.  Perhaps it helped that I used chicken tenders instead of full breasts since there is more surface area exposed to the marinade.  Recipes below with my notes in italics

Tequila Lime Chicken
Ina Garten, Barefoot Contessa

1/2 cup gold tequila
1 cup freshly squeezed lime juice (5 to 6 limes)
1/2 cup freshly squeezed orange juice (2 oranges)
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 tablespoon minced fresh jalapeno pepper (1 pepper seeded)
1 tablespoon minced fresh garlic (3 cloves)
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3 whole (6 split) boneless chicken breasts, skin on (I used chicken tenders)
Combine the tequila, lime juice, orange juice, chili powder, jalapeno pepper, garlic, salt, and pepper in a large bowl. Add the chicken breasts. Refrigerate overnight.


Green Onion Slaw
Bobby Flay

My only eensy concern about this dressing below is that the next day, it looked a bit gritty. It certainly tasted as good as the first day, but didn’t look as pretty, thus if appearance is a primary concern, I’d just make the dressing right when you need it. (I didn't have any problems with this.  I made the dressing the night before and it looked fine the next day)
One more slaw suggestion: I always store my chopped cabbage and vegetables and dressing separately, mixing them a few minutes before I serve it so they don’t get watery or soggy. (again, I think it's fine at least overnight)
1 cup green onions, coarsely chopped
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
2 serrano chiles (seed them if you want less spice, leave the seeds if you want it spicy.  I deseeded one and left the seeds in the other)
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
Salt and pepper
1/2 cup pure olive oil (I used 1/4 cup and I think it had plenty of fat)
1 head purple cabbage, finely shredded
1 small red onion, halved and thinly sliced
1/4 cup chopped cilantro leaves
Blend green onions, vinegar, chiles, mayonnaise, salt, pepper and oil in a blender until emulsified. Place cabbage and red onions in a bowl, add the dressing and stir until combined. Fold in the cilantro and season with salt and pepper to taste

Mango sorbet, like ice cream but better!

The only difficult thing about this recipe is getting the consistency right.  If it's placed in the freezer after it's made and gets too cold, your taste buds get a little numb and can't detect the flavors as well.  You really want to aim for a soft serve consistency so you can fully experience the flavors.  Additionally, I've found that it gets rock hard if stored in the freezer, and that's no fun to try to serve!

The mango slurry itself can be made ahead of time and kept in the fridge until you are ready to put it in the ice cream maker.  The bowl of the ice cream maker should be placed in the freezer the night before you need it.

Mango sorbet

4 to 5 ripe mangos
1 can of full fat coconut milk
juice and zest of 1 or 2 limes

Place the juice, zest, coconut milk, and most of the mangos in a blender or food processor.  You may have to process in two batches depending on the size of your appliance.  I have a dying blender so I had to coax it a little bit to get everything to blend smooth.  Blend all ingredients until you reach a smooth consistency and place in a large storage container in the fridge until you are ready to make your sorbet.  It should reach a pudding-like consistency in the fridge and is quite yummy this way too.

10 to 15 minutes before you are ready to serve, place the desired amount of cold-from-the-fridge sorbet in your frozen ice cream maker bowl and process per the manufacturer instructions.  For the model I have I just put the paddle in, put the lid on and turn it on for 15 minutes or so.  When the sorbet has reached a soft-serve consistency, it's ready to serve.  This is especially delicious with some fresh blueberries!

 

Homecoming plus a delicious jicama slaw recipe

Today was my third day back at CrossFit.  I can't even fully explain how happy and excited I am to be back in the gym.  I've missed my CF friends and I've missed being put in a position to really challenge myself.  There are a dozen other reasons but that's enough for now. 

I discovered this Jicama Slaw recipe online two weeks ago when I was looking for a side dish to go with the puerco pibil I made.  This slaw recipe was so good I decided to make it again this week.  Please excuse the crappy photo

The prep is time consuming but worth it!

Jicama Slaw

2 carrots, peeled and julienned

1 small jicama (about 1 1/4 lbs.), peeled and julienned

1 large red bell pepper, cored and very thinly sliced

1/4 head red cabbage, cored and very thinly sliced

1/2 red onion, halved lengthwise and very thinly sliced lengthwise, rinsed, and patted dry

6 tablespoons olive oil

6 tablespoons unseasoned rice vinegar

3 tablespoons fresh lime juice

1 tablespoon minced cilantro leaves, plus more for garnish (I use a lot more)

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 teaspoon chili powder

1/2 teaspoon red chile flakes

Prep all veggies and place in a large bowl.  Combine remaining ingredients and whiz up in a food processor or blender.  Pour over the veggies and toss to combine.  This keeps great in the fridge for a few days.

Enjoy!