i’m so honored that my first guest blogger (of, i hope, many!) is a friend and colleague in whose yearbook i would totally write “most likely to open a zagat-rated restaurant.” although she’s off on an exciting new adventure at the moment, this girl has potential like none other, both in and out of the kitchen!
in the spirit of shark week, here’s a fishy, summery snack!
not to brag, but the recipe you’re about to experience is an award winning creation. it was scarfed down, raved about, and awarded a golden trophy at the 4th annual miller family tapas party. it beat out homemade breads with infused olive oils, baked crab stuffed cherry tomatoes, and “bambi balls” (i won’t elaborate). this award winner is called “shark bites” and they are prepared like this:
chipotle slaw
chipotle slaw: begin with one bag of store bought shredded cabbage cole slaw mix. add 1/2 cup diced red onion, two tablespoons chopped cilantro, and a good bit of lime zest to cabbage. in a separate bowl, combine slightly less than a 1/2 cup mayo, a heaping 1/2 cup sour cream, 1/4 teaspoon salt, 1 tablespoon white vinegar, 2 tablespoons honey, 1/4 cup fresh squeezed lime juice, and 2 teaspoons dried chipotle pepper. wisk together and add as much as desired to slaw mix. cover container with lid and shake ferociously until slaw and liquid mixture are, well, mixed. refrigerate.
black bean smash
black bean smash: cook down a half cup diced onion, two cloves minced garlic, and one minced jalapeno in a pan. add one can of mostly drained black beans. cook for a few minutes, until soft. add a couple teaspoons of cumin and stir. once beans are soft, smash mixture with a fork and voila!!, black bean smash.
mahi mahi
i grilled mahi mahi filets dressed with just olive oil and salt & pepper. whatever flaky white fish fits into your budget will do. pan cooked works too for those without a grill.
assembly can go one of two ways:
for the true shark bite experience, grab a bag of tostitos scoops and layer ingredients in each scoop chip. start with a teaspoon of black bean smash, a heaping teaspoon of chipotle slaw, and a small, scoop size chunk of fish. these bite size poppers will be gone faster than you can assemble.
another option for assembly is to apply black beam smash liberally on a small, soft tortilla. wrap this around a hard taco shell filled with the fixin’s for the fish taco. the BBS acts as glue for both taco shells and you get the soft-yet-crunchy experience in each bite. i don’t pretend to take credit for this brilliant soft-yet-crunchy-in-each-bite concept; i know it’s very taco bell.
garnish with an ice cold beer and enjoy!
