Jana: Chicken Flautas

After a long day at work, sometimes I just want some yummy Mexican food. Who am I kidding... I could go for Mexican food any time.

And, although Rob and I have recently found our favorite Mexican restaurant in this "new" town of ours, we can't justify the cost or calories of going too often.

So, here's our make-at-home answer... chicken flautas with a pick-two combination of black beans, fire-roasted corn, cilantro lime rice, and baked tortilla strips.

Chicken Flautas

Time: 10 minutes prep. 15 minutes cooking.

Servings: 2 or more, depending on how many you make

Ingredients:

• 8" flour tortillas, 2 per person
• cooking spray
• Southwestern flavored chicken strips, we've tried several and found we like the Oscar Mayer DeliFresh brand best

Optional add-ins:

• salsa
• chopped onions... about half of a small onion does the trick for us
• chopped cilantro
• squirt of lime juice
• shredded cheese... if you're into that sort of thing
• avocado slices/guacamole
• other taco-like toppings

Directions:

Spray the tops and bottoms of the tortillas with the cooking spray. Fill the tortillas with chicken and other tasty toppings. Roll them up. Garnish the top with a handful of shredded cheese.

Bake on a cookie sheet at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for about 15 minutes.

Jana: Honey Lime Tilapia

Drop everything, and put this on your meal plan this week!!

We've been trying to add a couple of fish recipes into our regular dinner routine. However, I am not a huge fan of "fishy fish," so I've been on the lookout for recipes with lots of flavor. When I ran across this recipe for Honey Lime Tilapia, it seemed to fit the bill. Quick, just a few ingredients, and flavorful!

Honey Lime Tilapia (adapted from One Lovely Life)

For marinade:

• 2-4 defrosted tilapia filets
• 1 lime or 1/2 cup of lime juice
• 1 tablespoon of olive oil
• 1 1/2 tablespoon of honey
• 1/2 teaspoon of salt
• 1/2 teaspoon of pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon of garlic powder

For dredging and cooking:

• 1/2 cup of flour
• 1/4 teaspoon of pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon of Tony Chachere's Creole Seasoning
• 1 tablespoon of olive oil

Combine lime juice, olive oil, honey, salt, pepper, and garlic powder in a Ziploc bag.
Add fish filets, and marinate for at least 1 hour.
Just before cooking, combine flour, pepper, and Tony's in a shallow bowl.
Lightly covered both side of the fish filets with the flour mixture.
Heat olive oil in a skillet. When shimmering, add fish filets. Cook each side for 4-5 minutes per side, until browned.

To complete our meal, I served the tilapia filets with white sweet potato fries, sauteed green beans, and fresh rolls. Everything was so yummy... it was difficult to decide which bite to take next. I will definitely be making this again!!

Jana: Cilantro Lime Rice

After years of instant rice, I think I've finally perfected the non-instant kind. And, I've figured out how to spice up my rice recipe to match the flavors of the rest of the meal!

One of my favorite versions pairs nicely with a Mexican meal. The original recipe called it a copycat recipe of Chipotle's Cilantro Lime Rice; however, my adapted version doesn't taste exactly like that. Dare I say... I actually think it's yummier.

Cilantro Lime Rice

• 1 tsp of olive oil
• 1 lime or 1/2 cup of lime juice
• 2 tbsp of fresh minced cilantro
• 1 cup of jasmine rice
• 1 1/2 cup of water
• 1/2 tsp of salt

Pour olive oil and lime juice in a sauce pan.
Mix rice with the oil and juice... I think that this step is the key! (Sometimes I let the rice "marinate" for over an hour, depending on how long it takes Rob to get home.)
Add water and salt, bring to a full rolling boil.
At boiling, lower temperature and simmer for 15 minutes.
Remove from heat, and stir in the minced cilantro. Let sit for at least five minutes.
Serve and enjoy!

This week we served the rice with chicken flautas and black beans. You really can't go wrong with such an easy and delicious weeknight meal!

Jana: Spicy Garlic Lime Chicken

Welcome back to Iron Chef Sisters! As I mentioned before, I've had a food crush on limes this summer. I bookmarked a recipe for Spicy Garlic Lime Chicken from AllRecipes.com a few weeks ago. (And, I'm embarrassed to say it even made it on the meal plan a couple of weeks in a row, but was repeatedly pushed aside for other things.)

However, Thursday night was the night! I made the spice mixture and rubbed it on the chicken tenders (shake-and-bake style!) right after work. Then, when Rob got home after his bike ride, basically all I had to do was throw it in the pan.

I paired the tenders with two of my favorites: mashed potatoes and sugar snap peas. The final product had a wonderful spicy, garlicky, tangy flavor and was especially juicy. My one complaint was that the layers of spices on the top was a little gritty. And, for someone like me who is easily offended by the textures of food, it distracted me from the flavor. Maybe it needed to cook a little longer to get a charred and blackened crust.

Spicy Garlic Lime Chicken (adapted from AllRecipes.com)

• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon chili powder
• 1/8 teaspoon paprika
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/8 teaspoon onion powder
• 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1/4 teaspoon dried parsley
• chicken tenderloins

• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 teaspoons garlic powder
• 1/4 cup chicken broth
• 3 tablespoons lime juice

1. Mix together salt, black pepper, chili powder, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, thyme and parsley in a gallon-sized bag. Shake spice mixture generously on both sides of chicken tenders.
2. Heat butter and olive oil in a large heavy skillet over medium heat. Saute chicken until golden brown, about 6 minutes on each side. Sprinkle with garlic powder, lime juice, and chicken broth. Cook 5 minutes, stirring frequently to coat evenly with sauce.

Final verdict: It was good. I'll probably attempt something similar again, but next time, I will experiment with the spice mixture, either tweaking the spices themselves or blackening the surface. Or perhaps I will even try to make a sauce to pour on top.

Month 8

I'm back! And, Iron Chef Sisters is back... at least for the month of September. Maybe beyond, but while I'm juggling a new job and several freelance gigs, I'm not making any promises. (Callie may join us, too. However, she's also learning to balance a new schedule these days.)

The Iron Chef Sisters challenge infuses creativity into my kitchen (and even my grocery trips), and I've missed that spark recently.

The ingredient of the month is limes. I've had a total love affair with limes the last couple of months, and even though it's already September, I thought I'd try to "squeeze" out a few more weeks of summer. I've got big plans... look for the first recipe toward the end of the week.

I hope that you'll join us!