Cod Tacos with Black Bean, Corn and Zucchini Salsa

Tacos are so hard to photograph, but I hope you can look past the picture. You can use any firm white meaty fish. The salsa is great the next day as a salad.

1 lb Cod filets
2 tbsp lime juice
1 - 4 oz can of diced green chilies
1 medium zucchini, peeled and cut into small cubes
1 - 14.5 oz corn, drained
1 - 14.5 oz black beans, drained and rinsed
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
salt and pepper for seasoning
Tortillas (corn, wheat or white)
Chili powder for seasoning
Cayenne for seasoning
olive oil
salsa of your choice

Preheat oven to 375.

In a medium bowl, combine green chilies, zucchini, corn, black beans, cilantro and 1 tbsp lime juice. Season with salt and pepper. Place in the fridge to keep cool. Toss every so often while you are preparing the fish.

Wrap tortillas in foil.

Season fish with chili powder, cayenne and season with salt and pepper. Drizzle with the remaining lime juice and some olive oil. Turn to evenly coat.

Place fish on a baking sheet and bake for about 15 minutes until just about cooked through. Turn up the oven to broil and continue to cook for about 5 minutes until the fish gets a nice brown crust. Be sure not to overcook your fish, so feel free to take out sooner. Depending on the size and thickness, your fish may cook faster.

While fish is cooking, place tortillas in the oven to warm.

Top tortillas with fish and corn black bean salsa. Garnish with salsa. Serve and ENJOY!!!!

Wine pairing......I say skip the wine and go with a nice cold beer. Pacifio would be great!

Parmesan Chicken Marinara

This would be great served with some pasta, sautéed zucchini or even a salad. You can easily double this recipe to serve 4. You could sub out the chicken for pork, which would be great too.

1 cup Italian breadcrumbs
3/4 cup shredded parmesan, plus about ½ cup for the topping
salt and pepper for seasoning
1 egg
2 boneless skinless chicken breast
olive oil
2 cups marinara sauce (bottled or homemade)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a shallow bowl, mix breadcrumbs with 3/4 cup parmesan, season with salt and pepper. In another shallow bowl, whisk the egg.

Drizzle oven proof sauté pan with olive oil and heat over medium-high heat.

Coat chicken in breadcrumb mixture, then in the egg and then back in the breadcrumb mixture. Place chicken in the sauté pan and sauté on both sides for about 5 minutes or so. Just until beginning to brown. Pour marinara sauce around chicken and pour about 1/2 cup of the marinara sauce over the chicken. Top chicken with remaining parmesan cheese.

Place in the oven and bake for about 45 minutes or until chicken is completely cooked and cheese is browned and crusty.

Serve by placing about 1/2 cup sauce on a plate and top with the chicken. Serve and ENJOY!!!!!

Wine pairing......Chianti or Sangiovese.

Wheeler Gorge, Ojai, CA. - July 2010

This past weekend we spent a few days at the Wheeler Gorge Campground in Ojai. It was such a great trip. There were 6 of us, plus Rusty our Chocolate Lab. Rusty loves to go camping!

http://www.rockymountainrec.com/camp/padres-wheeler-gorge.htm

We spent one day in downtown Ojai checking out all the shops. In addition, we went to the newly opened Ojai Vineyard Tasting Room. Just so happened it opened the day before we arrived. Great wine and of course we could not resist sharing a purchase of a handful of bottles with Carolyn. I can't wait to open one of those puppies up again so we all can enjoy it.

http://www.ojaivineyard.com/Tasting%20room.htm

On the next day, we decided to stay at camp. Brandon found us all a nice part along the creek where we could put our chairs. Nothing like sitting there, with your feet in the water and sipping on a cold one. We played games down there for a couple of hours or so. It was very nice and relaxing.

Each day we had a themed dinner, along with a wine tasting. Each of us brought a bottle of wine, priced from $20-$50 and in addition, Brandon and I purchased a ringer. Now you may be asking yourself, what is a ringer? It is an everyday bottle of wine that can be purchased just about anywhere at around $10-$13 or so. We narrowed the options down by keeping it in the general area, Santa Barbara County. We ate like royalty and we actually got Scott to join in on the red wine tastings. He did an excellent job and it was great to have him enjoy some of the wine with us.

Dinner 1 - Mexican Fiesta paired with Chardonnay
Chips, Salsa, Guacamole and Taquitos
Carne Asada and Shrimp Tacos
Black, Corn and Red Pepper Salad

Chateau St Jean came in 1st place and was priced at about $28
Kendal Jackson came in 2nd place and was priced at about $13 (Ringer from Costco)
Au Bon Climat came in 3rd place and was priced at about $20
Tower Brook came in 4th place and was priced at about $25

Dinner 2 - Fire Up The Grill paired with Pinot Noir
Potato Skins with Cheddar Cheese and Bacon
Grilled Steaks
Potato and Broccoli Medley

Byron came in 1st place and was priced at about $28
Taz came in 2nd place and was priced at about $25
Iron Horse came in 3rd place and was priced at about $11 (Ringer from Costco)
Hitching Post came in 4th place and was priced at about $28

Dinner 3 - Viva Italia paired with Syrah
Grilled Shrimp and Caramelized Onion Pizza
Cheese Ravioli with Spicy Sausage Sauce
Freshly Tossed Italian Garden Green Salad

Herman Story came in 1st place and was priced at about $35
Zaca Mesa came in 2nd place and was priced at about $20
Cameron Hughes Lot 135 came in 3rd place and was priced at about $10 (Ringer from Costco)
La Fenetre came in 4th place and was priced at about $20

I have not done group camping in quite a while. It brought back many memories of the old "Wagon Master" days that Brandon and I shared with my dad. I miss those times, but know that we can always start a new tradition and get back on the road sharing great experiences with each other.

This trip was a huge success. Awesome company, fabulous food and delicious wine in a beautiful environment. Next stop Table Mountain in August. I am looking forward to another successful trip and this time we will have a larger group, which is sure to add to the whole experience.

Get out and go camping!!!

Grilled Chicken and Zucchini Pistou

boneless, skinless chicken breast
olive oil
21 spice seasoning (similar to Mrs. Dash which you can use as a substitute)
10 oz pesto (homemade or purchased)
2 cups sliced zucchini
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 white onion, diced
salt and pepper for seasoning
crushed red pepper flakes, for seasoning
1/2 cup heavy cream
Rotini (spiral) pasta (this would also be good with penne pasta - I used whole wheat pasta for this recipe)
Shredded parmesan

Season chicken breast with salt, pepper and 21 seasoning. Drizzle with olive oil. Let marinade for about 30 minutes.

Preheat grill and cook chicken until completely cooked. Once chicken is cooked, wrap in foil and let rest.

Begin bringing water to a boil.

While you are grilling chicken, heat a non-stick sauté pan over medium-high heat. Drizzle with olive oil. Add onions, season with salt and pepper and saute until they are starting to brown. Stir frequently. Add zucchini, garlic and season with crushed red pepper flakes. Sauté until zucchini's begin to soften.

Add pesto and heavy cream and reduce to low simmer. Stir occasionally.

Dice cooked chicken and add to pesto sauce.

Cook pasta according to package directions.

Toss cooked pasta and pesto sauce together, coating completely. Serve by topping with shredded parmesan. ENJOY!!!!!

Wine pairing.......Chardonnay.

Not Your Ordinary BBQ Sandwich

These turned out so good. Taylor who does not like shredded beef or BBQ sauce loved these. She even said that they could be on a restaurant menu. She could not resist going back for seconds. I used small buns, so they were almost like sliders. I served these with BBQ corn on the cob. You can also make these using different types of rolls.

Trader Joes Santa Maria Tri Tip
1 cup beef broth
1 - 14.5oz diced tomatoes with green chilies
1/4 cup BBQ sauce
Parmesan Rosemary rolls, sliced (purchased at Trader Joes)
Cilantro sprigs
Avocado, sliced
Chipotle mayonnaise (store bought, or make your own…just a bit of mayonnaise and chipotle chilies in adobo sauce)

In a crock pot, place tri tip, beef broth, tomatoes and BBQ sauce. Stir to mix up liquid. Cover and cook on high for about 5 to 6 hours, until beef becomes shredded.

Grill or toast rolls. Top rolls with shredded beef, chipotle mayonnaise, cilantro and avocado. Serve and ENJOY!!!!

Wine pairing......Zinfandel.

Grilled Sausage, Artichoke and White Beans

baby artichokes (about 1 1/2 per person)

spicy italian sausages
olive oil
1 white onion, chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/4 cup chicken (or vegetable stock)
1 tsp italian seasoning
3 - 14.5oz cans of cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
1/4 cup white wine
1 - 14.5 oz can of diced tomatoes with green chilies
1 tsp 21 seasoning or seasoning blend like Mrs. Dash

Trim artichoke by cutting about 1/2 inch of stem, remove all of the tough leaves and cut top off. Boil artichoke in water for about 20 minutes.

While artichokes are cooking, drizzle non-stick sauté pan with olive oil and heat over medium-high heat. Add onions and season with italian seasoning, salt and pepper. Sauté until onions begin to brown. Add garlic and continue sauté for about 5 minutes. Add white wine and sauté until reduced to almost a completely gone. Add beans, tomatoes and chicken broth. Season with additional salt and pepper to taste. Reduce heat to a simmer and stir occasionally.

Once artichokes are done, remove from water and slice in half. Place in a bowl. Season with salt, pepper, 21 seasoning (or alternative) and coat with olive oil. Toss to completely coat.

Preheat grill. Place artichokes and sausages on grill and cook while turning occasionally.

Once sausages and artichokes are done. Place bean mixture in a shallow bowl, top with artichoke and sliced sausage. Serve and ENJOY!!!!

Wine pairing......Pinot Noir.

I'm Back.......

Hello to everyone!!! I'm back in action. I have had a busy past couple of weeks which have kept me from posting any great recipes.

Recently we took a trip to Santa Barbara. One day we spent cruising State Street and the Harbor. State Street had some amazing stores. Taylor and I both wished we had a money tree and could buy whatever we wanted. At the Harbor we actually tried to take Rusty (our very happy brown lab) to a restaurant. Of course on the patio is where we tried to sit. He actually did pretty well until another dog decided to plant himself right in front of him. Let's just say we were politely asked to remove Rusty from the restaurant. I do have to say that the view and the calamari were awesome for the little time we were there.

One of the other days we spent in Solvang. Cute town, but half of a day was enough for us. Taylor did pick up a delicious smelling bottle of perfume at the Mole's Hole. We enjoyed breakfast when we first arrived in Solvang. Of course, Taylor and I had the same thing. Omelet with bacon, cheese and avocado. And of course we asked for a side of salsa. In fact, for a Dutch breakfast joint, they had the best salsa. Brandon had their popular powdered sugar covered pancake balls.  In fact, walking through the restaurant there was not one table that did not have a plate of these on them.  On our way out we stopped for tasting at Lincourt. http://www.lincourtwines.com/  We are members there and do enjoy their wine. Very friendly and casual.

The big event of our trip was the Santa Barbara Wine Festival.  http://www.santabarbara.com/events/wine_festivals/sb_wine_festival/ I highly recommend this for next year. The venue was amazing. A beautiful garden setting at the Santa Barbara Natural History Museum. Tons of wines and wonderful food. It was so great!!

In addition, we recently celebrated the 4th of July. We had Brandon's Father, two Sisters (Kristi and Jessica) and Kristi's boyfriend Jason for a visit. Our 4th of July menu consisted of BBQ baby back ribs, roasted potatoes and BBQ corn on the cob. There was golf playing, card playing, pool playing and plenty of great food.

So, as you can see, I have been quite busy. I am hoping to be back in the swing of things.

Upcoming adventures for us, is a trip to Ojai. I can't wait.

Eat, Drink and be Merry!!!