Fish Taco Salads

I kind of made this up when my taco shell crumbled and I thought why not make it a salad. You could easily just get soft taco shells to have fish tacos. We love them.

About 4-5 Tilapia filets

garlic salt

lemon juice

Fry the tilapia filets in a skillet over the stove in a tablespoon of olive oil. I sprinkle them with garlic salt and lemon or lime juice (has to be fresh).

Dressing: (from Liz Edmunds, the Food Nanny)

3/4 c. mayonaise ( I use Greek yogurt for a no fat better tasting variation)

1/2 c. buttermilk (1 Tbsp. vinegar and enough skim milk to make one cup is good too, but only use 1/2 cup of that)

1 T. lime juice

1-2 T. fresh cilantro

1 tsp garlic

3/4 tsp. oregano

1/2 tsp. dried onion

1/4 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. pepper

Avacado-Mango Salso

2 Mangos skinned and diced

2 Avacados cubed

1 red pepper

3/4 of a red onion

fresh cilantro

2 T. sugar

2 T. olive oil

4 T. red wine vinegar

2 tsp. salt or garlic salt

Mix it altogether and let sit about 30 minutes before serving.

I used cabbage, crumbled tortilla shells, tomatoes, fish, dressing, and salsa. Yummmmy!

Hostess Chocolate Cupcakes

These cupcakes take me back to my childhood days when I could eat as many as I wanted since my dad worked for Hostess. They are the real deal, with cream filling and everything.

The Cupcake:

You can use any chocolate cake recipe you like. This is the one I used:

-2 cups sugar
- 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cup HERSHEY'S Cocoa
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup milk
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 cup boiling water

1. Heat oven to 350°F. Line cupcake pans with paper liners.

2. Stir together sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt in large bowl. Add eggs, milk, oil and vanilla; beat on medium speed of mixer 2 minutes. Stir in boiling water (batter will be really thin). Fill cups about 3/4 full with batter to get bigger cupcakes.

3. Bake 22 to 25 minutes. Cool completely. (Makes 24 cupcakes.)

The Cream Filling:

- 2 large egg whites
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/4 cup light corn syrup
- 2 tablespoons water
- 1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

While waiting for cupcakes to cool, combine filling ingredients with a pinch of salt in a metal bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water and beat with a handheld electric mixer at high speed until frosting is thick and fluffy, 6 to 7 minutes. Remove bowl from heat and continue to beat until slightly cooled. Reserve 1/2 cup of the filling to use for piping the swirls on top of the cupcakes at the end. Once cupcakes are cool, prepare a piping bag with a 1/4" tip, and fill bag with the vanilla filling. Squeeze filling into middle of cupcakes.

The Chocolate Ganache:

6 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped (you could even use milk chocolate if you like it sweeter.)
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Place the chocolate in a stainless-steel bowl. Heat the cream and 1 tablespoon butter until just boiling, then pour over the chocolate; let stand for 5 minutes. Whisk until smooth. Add 2 teaspoons vanilla; let stand until cool but still glossy and liquid. Use a spoon to put some on top of the cupcake, then smooth with a knife.

Prepare another piping bag with a small tip. Fill with the reserved 1/2 cup of cream filling. Pipe swirls across the top of the cupcakes. Allow chocolate ganache to set before storing.I stored them in the fridge. Enjoy!

McDonald's Sugar Cookies

OK, I have a confession. My kids eat at McDonald's a lot. It is down the street and we sure take advantage of how close it is. Spencer loves the sugar cookies there and we found a recipe that is pretty close. If you'd like them a little sweeter, roll them in sugar before you bake them. We love these because you don't have to go through all the work of rolling them out. Enjoy!

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 large egg

2 tablespoons milk

3/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 cup butter or 1/2 cup margarine

1/2 cup Crisco

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Sift dry ingredients, all except sugar, together. Cream margarine, shortening and sugar until light and fluffy. Add egg and vanilla. Beat in dry ingredients until smooth. Blend in milk. Drop by tablespoon about 3 inches apart onto a greased cookie sheet. Bake 10-12 minutes or until lightly browned. Don't kid yourself, just double it. This doesn't make nearly enough.

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