Kay Wheeler Moore

Welcome to my blog

Hello. . .

The Newfangled Country Gardener is for anyone who has a garden, would like to have a garden, or who simply enjoys eating the garden-fresh way. I don't claim to be an expert; in this blog I'm simply sharing some of the experiences my husband and I have in preparing food that is home-grown.

About the author

Kay Wheeler Moore is the author of a new cookbook, Way Back in the Country Garden, that features six generations of recipes that call for ingredients that are fresh from the garden. With home gardening surging in popularity as frugal people become more resourceful, this recipe collection and the stories that accompany it ideally will inspire others to cook the garden-fresh way and to preserve their own family food stories as well. The stories in this book center around the Three Red-Haired Miller Girls (Kay's mother and aunts) who grew up in Delta County, TX, with their own backyard garden so lavish that they felt as though they were royalty after their Mama wielded her kitchen magic on all that was homegrown. Introduced in Kay's previous book, Way Back in the Country, the lively Miller Girls again draw readers into their growing-up world, in which a stringent economic era--not unlike today's tight times--saw people turn to the earth to put food on the table for their loved ones. The rollicking yarns (all with recipes attached) have love, family, and faith as common denominators and show how food evocatively bonds us to our life experiences.

Thursday, December 13, 2012

Butter box underside reveals how-to's for spicy fish tacos

These fish tacos were just the best. Sweet-and-spicy tilapia was nestled on a bed of coleslaw with a sour cream/lime/cilantro sauce drizzled over it. Corn tortillas, of course, formed the packaging.

Something about fish tacos provides a nice break in the pre-Christmas fare. The meal was easy to drum up on a busy December night. Hubby was all agog and was very remorseful when the supply ran out. A carved-up avocado was just the right garnish.

The recipe hailed from another most unlikely place—the underside of my Land O Lakes unsalted butter box. I was just about to toss out my box when I noted that the underbelly of it had writing on it. On the perpetual hunt for new recipes, I thought just maybe . . . yes! The recipe said “Sweet & Spicy Baked Shrimp Tacos”. I had tilapia on hand and decided to sub it for the shrimp. Great substitution but would love to try it with shrimp sometime.

Sweet and Spicy Baked Shrimp Tacos

Spice mixture:
1/3 cup sugar (I used sugar substitute)
3 tablespoons firmly packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons plain breadcrumbs
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/2 teaspoon coarse ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon ground red pepper
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

Shrimp: 
1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted (tested with Land O Lakes brand)
1 (16-ounce) package uncooked thawed medium shrimp (I used 1 pound fresh tilapia)

Sauce:
1/2 cup sour cream (I used fat-free)
1 tablespoon lime juice
2 teaspoons chopped fresh cilantro
1/2 teaspoon chili powder

Tacos: 
16 (6-inch) corn tortillas, warmed
2 cups coleslaw mix

Heat oven to 500 degrees. Line baking sheet with aluminum foil; set aside. Combine all-spice mixture ingredients in a small bowl. Dip shrimp in butter and then in spice mixture. Place onto prepared baking sheet. Bake for 5 to 6 minutes or until shrimp are pink and coating is bubbly. Meanwhile combine all sauce ingredients in small bowl. To assemble tacos, stack 2 warmed tortillas onto each individual serving plate. Top with 1/8 of the baked shrimp and 1/4 cup coleslaw mix. Drizzle with sauce. Makes 8 tacos. 



No comments:

Post a Comment