Tilapia Tacos with Cilantro Lime Slaw

Happy Easter, friends. 

During the winter, weekends can be pretty uneventful around here.  We usually cook at home to save money, and I often have lots of school work to catch up on.  Adam travels for work during the week, so he likes to spend time at home on the weekend.  We frequently spend most of the weekend around the house and watch a movie on Netflix Saturday night. 

But, spring is here, and I'm in my last few weeks of school now.  While I certainly have work I could be doing, I'd much rather spend the weekend doing fun things outside. Adam worked from home last week, so there was no excuse not to get out and enjoy the weekend.

Friday night we picked up dinner and drove out to Jordan Lake to watch the sunset, one of our favorite things to do. 

It had been cloudy all day, and as we drove, I kept saying "It's such a shame it's so cloudy. We won't really be able to see the sunset."

When we got there, we could see a pink sun mostly obscured by clouds, but as the minutes wore on, the sky became more and more colorful, until we were looking out at this:

What a gift. 

Saturday morning, we drove out to Saxapahaw, NC to have breakfast at the Saxapahaw General Store. 

We walked along the Haw River then ended at the Left Bank Butchery, which sells pork and beef from nearby farms. We bought some meat and some still-warm sourdough bread from the Village Bakehouse.  I've been seriously considering attempting to make my own sourdough starter to make sourdough bread.  Any advice?

Saturday night, we went to Fullsteam and I had a brandy barrel-aged persimmon winter ale that was SO good.  It was also 11% alcohol.  ; )

Today, we went to church and hosted family Easter lunch at our house.  We served the sourdough bread, broccoli cheddar quiche, ham, salad, and strawberries. My mom made a pistachio cake, and we all ate too much Easter candy.

It was perfect. Is tomorrow really Monday?

One thing that will make my Monday better is eating these leftover tilapia tacos with cilantro lime slaw for lunch.

I love fish tacos and order them frequently at restaurants, but I had never attempted to make them at home.  For a long time, I was intimated by the idea of cooking fish at home, but I don't know why. It's so easy!

I used tilapia in these tacos because it's a mild and flakey white fish that is good for non-fish lovers like Adam.  For this recipe, you cut the tilapia into bite sized pieces, dredge it in a mixture of flour and spices, and pan fry in a bit of butter and olive oil.  Super easy.  The pickled red onions and cilantro lime slaw can be made ahead of time, so this could be a quick week-night meal.

I hope your coming week is really good, and filled with tacos and friends and maybe exploring a new place in your neighborhood.

Some comfort for us this week, especially appropriate today:

"The worst isn't the last thing about the world. It's the next to the last thing. The last thing is the best. It's the power from on high that comes down into the world, that wells up from the rock-bottom worst of the world like a hidden spring. Can you believe it? The last, best thing is the laughing deep in the hearts of the saints, sometimes our hearts even. Yes. You are terribly loved and forgiven. Yes. You are healed. All is well."

--Frederick Buechner, The Final Beast

Tilapia Tacos with Cilantro Lime Slaw

Ingredients:

Cilantro Lime Slaw:

juice from 1 lime

2 tablespoons mayo (or sour cream or greek yogurt)

dash of hot sauce

salt & pepper

1/2 head of cabbage, thinly sliced

1 carrot, shredded

handful of cilantro, chopped

Tilapia:

1/4 cup flour

1 teaspoon cumin

1 teaspoon chili powder

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon paprika

1/2 teaspoon salt

pinch of black pepper

pinch of cayenne

1 tablespoon butter

1 tablespoon olive oil 

1/2 pound tilapia (or 2 individually wrapped filets) patted dry and chopped into bite-sized pieces

For the tacos:

corn tortillas

chopped avocado

easy pickled red onions

cilantro

crumbed queso fresco

pepitas

Directions: 

Cilantro Lime Slaw:

In a medium sized bowl, whisk together the lime juice, mayo, hot sauce, salt and pepper.  Add cabbage, carrot and cilantro and stir to combine. Refrigerate. 

Tilapia:

In a small bowl, combine flour, cumin, chili powder, garlic powder, paprika, salt, pepper, and cayenne.

Add butter and olive oil to a saute pan over medium heat.

Dredge the chopped tilapia pieces in the flour/spice mixture and add to the pan. Cook for 2-3 minutes on each side or until white inside.

Add tilapia to corn tortillas and top with cilantro lime slaw, chopped avocado, pickled red onions, and extra cilantro.