Tilapia with mango salsa

This one is a favorite around my household (at least part of it).  I usually make the tilapia with rice and some steamed broccoli.  I decided this time to add a bit of a twist with it.  So this time we leave out the broccoli, and add in a amazingly flavorful mango salsa.

First up is the salsa.

• 1 Mango - peeled, seeded and chopped.
• 1/4 cup finely chopped red bell pepper
• 1 green onion - chopped
• 2 Tbsp chopped cilantro
• 1 fresh jalapeño Chile pepper - finely chopped  (for this I substituted the Thai green Chiles used in the pineapple salsa recipe from this weekend.)
• 2 Tbsp lime juice
• 1 Tbsp lemon juice

directions : In a medium bowl mix mango, red bell pepper, green onion, cilantro, jalapeño lime juice and lemon juice.  Cover, and allow to sit at least 30 minutes before serving

Next up is the fish:

• Tilapia fillet (I use Frozen fillets, as i live in a land locked state, and fresh fish is pretty hard to come by, unless you have the money to spend)
• Lemon juice
• Pepper
• Salt
• Olive Oil

Directions : Take tilapia fillet and season both sides with salt, pepper and lemon juice (i'm not putting specific amounts, because that depends on your taste).  Cover bottom of frying pan with olive oil, add a few drops of lemon juice to oil.  Now I would add the fillets prior to turning the burner on, or add them at a very low heat.  If you get this pan hot enough, that oil and lemon juice will start popping and make a nice mess everywhere, so a low heat is your best bet here.  Place the fillets in the pan, and flip after 5-7 minutes, or until you can tell the fish is starting to cook evenly.  With the fillets I use, the edges start to get a little flaky, so that is usually my indicator that it is done.

Rice is rice.  I'm not going to say anything on how to make it, nothing special here.  Once everything is done (and obviously you want to plan it so the fish and rice are done pretty close to each other.)  Plate it all up, and enjoy.  The flavors really mix well, and with those Thai Chile peppers in that salsa, there is some nice spice to the meal.

I usually make this meal with 2 fillets, so the serving size would be 2 people.  However you will have plenty of rice left over, and the salsa makes enough for a few extra servings.

Caramelized bananas with pineapple salsa

This was an interesting mix I saw while watching 'Iron Chef America' on Food Network. It looked interesting, and extremely colorful, so i decided to give it a go.

First up is the salsa.

1 cup finely chopped fresh pineapple

• 2 tablespoons finely chopped purple onion
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped green onion
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped red bell pepper (optional)
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh cilantro
• 1 tablespoon honey
• dash of ground red pepper, cayenne pepper or chipotle pepper
• 2 teaspoons finely minced jalapeño pepper (optional)
• juice of 1 fresh lime, about 1 1/2 to 2 tablespoons
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Now I used some green chile pepper instead of the jalapeños, which give it a little bit more of a bite.

Now for the bananas, which are incredibly simple.

• 3 tablespoons melted butter
• 3 tablespoons brown sugar
• 4 ripe bananas

Most recipes I found out there for caramelized bananas advise you to cut the banana long way.  Well, with the way I saw them being served, I opted to cut them coin sized.  So chop up your bananas coin style.  Melt your butter and your sugar in a saucepan over medium-low heat.  Once you get the butter melted, and the sugar mixed it the mixture will be nice and thick.  Start adding in your bananas.

Make sure you flip them over in the pan so they get that nice caramel coating on both sides.  Cook until you can see a little golden brown on the outside.  Now they will be a little soft when pulling them out of the pan, so be a little careful.  I threw them all on a plate, and set them in the freezer for about 10 minutes to cool down, and harden up for easier handling.

Once they are a little more firm, take a tortilla shell (I used the smaller style of tortilla, built for fajitas).  Add a few slices on the banana to the tortilla, and top with a scoop of the salsa.  Fold up, and enjoy.