Working late really messes with my dinner making plans. When I get home later than expected, I can’t justify making a big meal, mainly because I’m already hungry and just want to eat as soon as possible. This recipe for Chicken and Guacamole Tostadas is perfect for nights like that, it uses shredded rotisserie chicken so that the recipe comes together in no time!
You’ll still notice that the photos are, well, crummy. I was super hungry and had to eat ASAP; the tostadas looked so good!
Ingredients:
1 ripe peeled avocado
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons finely chopped tomato, divided
3 tablespoons minced fresh onion, divided
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
the juice of 2 limes, divided
1/2 teaspoon salt, divided
1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro, plus more for garnish
There are some really fantastic sounding recipes in this cookbook. Just look at how I tabbed this book trying to decide which to make for this post!
Included in the cookbook, which features 120 recipe, are:
Forbidden Rice with Hearts of Palms, Mushrooms and a Jalapeno Vinaigrette
Bay Shrimp with Cannellini Beans dressed in Shallots and Cayenne Pepper
Red Miso Short Rib Braise
Lemon Poppy Seed Bundt Cake
Unique Lemonade concoctions like Peach Ginger, Pear Basil, and Cantaloupe Sage
With descriptions like that, I have to point out that these recipes are surprisingly unfussy and manageable to make at home. I decided to make the salmon because 1. it sounds delicious and 2. I have never poached fish before and I love trying out new techniques.
This recipe takes about 40 minutes from start to finish so it is great for a special weeknight dinner (or as a mid-week pick me up!) I changed the ingredients ever so slightly so to see the original, check out the cookbook, available in stores now!
I am excited to announce that I will be a Perfect Protein Blogger for the summer, to help promote a book called The Perfect Protein: The Fish Lovers Guide to Saving the Oceans and Feeding the World. Written by Andy Sharpless, the CEO of Oceana, and Suzannah Evans, the book discusses how protecting, maintaining, and consuming wild seafood can help to fight both famine and obesity globally.
I am only a few chapters in to the book and already find it fascinating. The general idea behind the book is to try to eat seafood, but to try to eat WLLS: Wild, Local, Little, and Shellfish. Many supermarkets, such as Whole Foods, label their seafood which makes sticking to these more sustainable choices a cinch. But even without the labels, you can still find sustainable options at your local grocer.
As a food blogger, I immediately went to the back of the book, where there are 21 sustainable seafood recipes from some of the nation’s top chefs. They all sounded delicious, but I decided to start off my Perfect Protein posts with a recipe that is simple but packs a ton of flavor into the dish: Sam Talbot’s Thai Coconut Mussels. I love making mussels because they cook up so quickly. This recipe takes about 30 minutes from start to finish. (For another take on mussels, check out my recipe for Mussels in White Wine Garlic Sauce)
I altered the recipe a bit to make it into a meal for 2 instead of an appetizer. I also subbed in some ingredients for what I could find. All of these ingredients can be found in Whole Foods.
Ingredients:
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons peeled and grated fresh ginger
4 large garlic cloves, minced
1 shallot, finely chopped
2 tablespoons lemongrass
2 tablespoons unsweetened coconut
1 pound mussels, debearded, scrubbed well, and washed clean
1/3 cup dry white wine
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon fish sauce
1 teaspoon sambal (chile-garlic paste)
1 (13.6 oz) can coconut milk, divided
2 tablespoons torn cilantro leaves, stems discarded