Kitchen Confessions: Easy Fish Tacos

It's been a minute since we've been on here.  Lots of life happening and just not a lot of time for blogging, but we're slowly settling into a summer routine and that means just a little more free time on the horizon. Time to enjoy family, time to enjoy the sunshine, and time to actually cook a good dinner! 

There is something about summer that makes me feel like we should be eating more seafood. We've had some Mahi Mahi in the freezer for a while from a fishing trip the Mr. took this spring and I found THIS recipe online for fish tacos. 

They were SO good. My family was so impressed and they tasted like something you'd have at a restaurant. So yummy! The fish was seasoned just right and I think the other key was having all the best toppings including the tacos sauce that the recipe shared.

Fish Taco Ingredients: 

small flour tortillas 

1 1/2 lbs. white fish of your choice 

1/2 tsp ground cumin 

1/2 tsp cayenne pepper 

1 tsp salt 

1/4 tsp black pepper 

1 Tbsp olive oil 

1 Tbsp butter 

Fish Taco Toppings: 

1/4 purple cabbage 

2 avocado, sliced 

tomato, diced 

1/2 diced read onion 

1/2 cup Catija cheese, crumbled

1 lime cut into wedges

Fish Taco Sauce Ingredients: 

1/2 cup sour cream 

1/3 cup mayo 

2 Tbsp lime juice 

1 tsp garlic powder 

1 tsp Sriracha sauce 

Instructions:

1. Line baking sheet with parchment paper. In small dish combine seasonings and sprinkle evenly over both sides of fish. 

2. Lightly drizzle fish with olive oil and dot each piece with butter. Bake at 375 for 20-25 mins. 

3. Combine all taco sauce ingredients in medium bowl and still until well blended. 

4. To serve tacos, quickly toast the corn tortillas in large dry skillet over medium/high heat. 

5. Assemble starting with pieces of fish then add toppings and taco sauce. Serve with fresh lime wedge to squeeze over tacos. 

6. Enjoy! 

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Kitchen Confessions {Air Fryer Salmon}

I mentioned a few weeks ago that I've been loving my air fryer and we've tried all sorts of things in it. Last week I shared my Air Fryer Brussels Sprouts (SO GOOD) and the Mr. made wings in it for the Super Bowl. For me it has made weeknight dinners easier to put together because it cooks things so much faster. I have the Cosori air fryer and have been really happy with it.  It thousands of great reviews on Amazon, too! 

One of my favorite things to cook in it that is super easy and quick is salmon!  I've always been a salmon fan, but after trying this new way of cooking it, I won't ever be going back.  This recipe calls for a little bit of brown sugar and it caramelizes so nicely. The top of the salmon browns, but it keeps in all of the juices and it is really tender.  

Air Fryer Salmon 

Ingredients: 

-2 salmon fillets with similar thickness 

-2 tsp olive oil 

-salt and pepper 

-2 tsp paprika (I don't really measure though...just kind of sprinkle some on)

-1 Tbsp brown sugar 

Directions: 

1. Rub each fillet with olive oil and season with salt/pepper, paprika and brown sugar. 

2. Place fillets in the basket of the air fryer, skin side down. 

3. Cook at 390 degrees for 8-12 minutes depending on your desired doneness. As you can see from the picture, I prefer mine more done so did them the full 12 minutes, but you can adjust the cooking time to fit your preference!  If you prefer your salmon a little less done I would start with 8 minutes and check it before adding a few more minutes to the cooking time. 

That's it!  Just add a veggie or salad and you have a great healthy meal.  Let me know what you are cooking in your air fryer...I'm always looking for new ideas! 

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Kitchen Confessions {Air Fryer Brussels Sprouts}

Any brussels sprouts fans out there? I really like them, but only if they are "well done." There is something about that crispy and kind of charred taste on the outside of them that I love.  Before I had an air fryer I would cut them in half, toss them in olive oil and cook them in the oven until they were nice and crispy. Then I'd season with my family's favorite Everything But The Bagel Seasoning from Trader Joes. I put this stuff on EVERYTHING and if you haven't tried it, you definitely should! 

Then when I discovered hot honey I started drizzling that on just about everything, too. Including my brussels sprouts. 

Now that I have an air fryer I've been cooking them in that because they just cook so much faster and crisp up a lot better.

  

I love ordering brussels sprouts when we are out at restaurants because everyone puts their own twist on them, but I think I had my very favorite brussels when we were at Barnsley Resort over New Years.  We all shared them as an appetizer on the first night and they were SO good that we decided to get them again on night number two! 

Brussels Sprouts from Woodlands Grill at Barnsley Resort 

We didn't even really read the description on the menu so when they arrived that first night with something on top we weren't quite sure what it was until the first bite.  We discovered it was Granny Smith apples on top which was such an unexpected surprise, but oh so tasty!  

The next time I made brussels sprouts at home I decided to try to recreate something similar and they were so good! I might have hurt my shoulder patting myself on the back at recreating this dish.  Ha! 

Air Fryer Brussels Sprouts 

*Wash and cut brussels in half

*Stir brussels with 1 tablespoon of olive oil. 

*Transfer brussels to air fryer basket and cook on 350 for about 15 minutes (or until desired crispness is achieved), shaking halfway through. 

*While they are cooking julienne 1/2 of a Granny Smith apple. 

*Transfer brussels to serving dish and season with salt, drizzle with hot honey and top with the apples.  

I know it sounds like such a weird combination, but the mixture of different flavors is really good! Let me know if you give this a try!  

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Summer Recipe: Hawaiian BBQ Chicken with Pineapple Coconut Rice

Labor Day weekend is here! For some this is the official end of the Summer. However, for us in the South it will still be going strong for at least another month or so. But we aren't mad about it - that just means more poolside fun and yummy dinners on the grill. 

The BBQ chicken recipe and rice side dish are some of our favorite summer grilling recipes. They are both easy to whip up and have just a hint of tropical flavor. We decided to save this tasty little combo from our Summer Recipe series until the end, so you could savor one last little bit of Summer. Kind of a go out with a bang situation. 

A yummy bang in this case. 

HAWAIIAN BBQ CHICKEN

INGREDIENTS

- 4 Boneless, skinless chicken breasts

- 1 cup of barbeque sauce

- 1 cup of pineapple juice

- 2 tsp of soy sauce

-1 tsp of garlic

- 1/4 cup of olive oil

- Optional garnish: pineapple slices

DIRECTIONS

1: In a bowl, whisk together barbeque sauce, pineapple juice, soy sauce, and garlic. 

2: Pour half of the mixture into a large resealable bag. 

3: Add oil and chicken to the bag. Seal and chill for 30 minutes (or overnight if you are prepping ahead). Cover remaining mixture until ready to use. 

4: Remove chicken from bag and discard contents (do not use any portion of bag's mixture). 

5: Grill chicken breasts on preheated grill for approximately 8-10 minutes on each side, or until thoroughly cooked. 

6: Brush chicken with remaining chilled mixture and serve.

7: Optional: Grill pineapple slices for garnish!

This recipe pairs well with this yummy Pineapple Coconut rice (recipe below) and the Mango Slaw recipe we shared a few weeks ago! 

PINEAPPLE COCONUT RICE

INGREDIENTS

- 2 cups of cooked rice

- 1 8oz can of sliced pineapple

- 1/2 cup of flaked coconut

- 2-3 green onions, chopped

DIRECTIONS

1: Cook rice according to package directions. 

2: Grill pineapple on grill or pan until charred. 

3: Chop grilled pineapple and green onions. 

4: Toss pineapple, onions and coconut with rice. 

5: Optional: Season with salt and pepper to taste. 

6: Serve and enjoy!

In case you missed it - here are the other recipes in our Summer Recipe Series!

Mango Slaw Recipe

Blue Hawaiian Drink Recipe

Pineapple Mimosa Recipe

Happy grilling friends! 

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Slow Cooker Pizza Pasta Recipe

Easy dinner alert!! Naturally I'm not a food person. I eat like a five year old, and my cooking skills are about equivalent. I have friends that are excellent cooks, and have tried to teach me their ways, share their dinner secrets, and even bring me meals because otherwise they know my poor family would be eating tacos Monday through Friday.

Not that there is anything wrong with tacos. Because...well, tacos.

But, long time readers know I love a good slow cooker recipe. Carrie Beth and I both do. As busy moms who play mom taxi from 2-9p.m. respectively each nice, it's nice to just take a handful of ingredients, throw them in a pot and call it a day. Or in this case dinner.

A few weeks ago, I was looking for a recipe on Pinterest to shake things up in my slow cooker repertoire, and I found a recipe called "Pizza Pasta". I screen shot the recipe on my phone or else I would go back and give the creator a huge shout out. 

The Slow Cooker Pizza Pasta was a huge hit amongst the entire family. Even Mr. Magnolia. And he's a tough sell when it comes to all things involving a crockpot. 

It is really really simple (see those five year old cooking skills) and easy to adjust to your own tastes. 

And it tastes like pizza. Which everyone knows is the second major food group behind tacos. 

Here's the quick and easy recipe...

SLOW COOKER PIZZA PASTA

Prep Time - 10 mins

Total Time - 1.5 hours

INGREDIENTS

• 1 jar of pizza sauce
• 1 box of penne pasta
• 1 pound of ground meat (I used a mixture of ground sausage and ground turkey.)  
• 3 cups of shredded mozzarella cheese
• Optional: sliced pepperoni 

INSTRUCTIONS

• Cook pasta according to instructions.
• Brown meat(s).  

• Mix pasta, meats, and sauce in a large bowl. 

• Layer pasta mixture with cheese in slow cooker.  

• Cook on low for 1 - 1.5 hours.  

• Serve and enjoy! 

Have any slow cooker recipes that even a five year old can make? If so, share with me! It's always good to have a little something up my sleeve to really "wow" the fam. ;) 

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Kitchen Confessions: Simple Taco Soup

It's been quite a while since our last Kitchen Confessions post so I figured it was high time to share something we've been eating lately. Weeknights are the hardest because we are so short on time. Between practices for three kids in multiple sports, finding a night that I am home with nothing to do except cook dinner is rare!  I love quick and easy meals that are a crowd pleaser and this simple taco soup is just that.  I can put it all together in my crockpot in the morning after the kids get off to school and know that it will be ready for us to eat anytime we happen to get home that evening.

We actually had this for the first time at my good friend A's house on Halloween. She had made a big batch of it for us to eat before trick-or-treating. I got the recipe from her and altered it just a bit to fit my kids' tastes, and have made it several times since then.  Starting back to school this week I knew I needed to plan for some easy meals and this was on the top of the list!

Simple Taco Soup

Ingredients:
1 pound ground beef
1 envelope taco seasoning
1 1/2 cups water
1 can (16 ounces) mild chili beans, undrained
1 can (15 1/4 ounces) whole kernel corn, drained
1 can (15 ounces) pinto beans, rinsed and drained
1 can (10 ounces) Rotel
1 envelope ranch salad dressing mix

Directions:
1. Brown ground beef in a skillet over medium heat until no loner pink. Drain.
2. Add taco seasoning and mix well.
3. In a crock-pot, add all ingredients including ground beef. Cook on low for about 8 hours or on high for 4-6 hours.
4. Stir and serve with Fritos.
5. Garnish with sour cream and/or shredded cheddar cheese.
6. Enjoy!

If your kids are anything like mine, they will love this because they get to eat it with chips!  That makes everything taste better, right?!

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Kitchen Confessions: Creamy Sausage Rigatoni

Happy Monday friends! We had the best weekend - we cheered on our favorite soccer star, caught up on house projects, and celebrated Carrie Beth's birthday. It was a good one. Daylight savings though has rocked my world. As always it has taken me by surprise and has me all thrown off.

Can we not do away with this mean little trick? It's voting week...can we add "Do away with Daylight Savings" to the ballot? I mean, if a candidate made that as their platform they've got my vote. I have a feeling all the parents will be behind the movement.

We wrapped up the weekend with a yummy Sunday night dinner. Sunday nights tend to be our only calm dinner night of the week. Typically it's the only night of the week the whole family is home, so we try to at least attempt to sit down to a good meal. At an actual table.

I've share this dinner on Instagram before, so if you've seen it there, I apologize. But I feel it's just too good not to show it a little more Internet love.

This Creamy Sausage Rigatoni is delicious! It's quick and easy to make - my main requirements for dinner when I'm in charge.  And it's a meal the whole family enjoys. That alone qualifies it for meal of the year.

How to make Creamy Sausage Rigatoni

Serves: 6-8

Total Time: 25 mins

Ingredients

• 1 lb. of Rigatoni pasta, uncooked
• 1 lb. of Italian sausage
• 1 24 oz. jar of Marinara sauce
• 1 8 oz. package of Philadelphia Cream Cheese, cubed
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1/2 cup of Basil leaves, torn
• 1/4 cup of Parmesan cheese, shredded

Directions

1. Cook pasta as directed on package. 
2. Remove sausage from casings (if necessary), and crumble over stove top in a large skillet. Cook on medium heat, stirring until brown.
3. Add garlic and stir for 30 seconds. 
4. Add pasta and cream cheese. Mix well. 
5. Cook on low heat stirring frequently until cream cheese is melted. 
6. Drain pasta and place in large bowl.
7. Add sauce mixture to bowl and stir frequently until well mixed. 
8. Top with Basil leaves and Parmesan cheese. 
9. Serve and enjoy! 

Happy Eating! 

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Kitchen Confessions: Simple Sheet Pan Supper

It's no secret I don't love to cook. It's not really that I don't like to cook, but that I usually don't have the time. Between running kids around, helping with homework and getting everyone to their practices and games every evening, I'm usually rushed to figure out something for everyone to eat.

I finally found something that is an easy week night dinner and one that makes *most* everyone happy.  Simple Sheet Pan Suppers are my new go-to.

Literally you just chop up some vegetables, add some meat and seasoning, and bake.  One dish, one healthy meal, one less night to have to worry about dinner.

Plus, it's so very colorful that makes me feel good about feeding my family!  There are so many variations of this meal. Just by swapping the vegetables, meat and marinade you can come up with a ton of different meals!

I'm sharing this recipe and a few ideas for switching it up over on Savvy Sassy Moms. Be sure to head over and check it out!

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Kitchen Confessions: The BEST Baked Ziti Recipe

You guys...I made a dinner that the WHOLE family enjoyed. Every single member. And asked for seconds! Do you even know how rare that is?!

It's like seeing a unicorn. Or winning the lottery. Or the Braves making it to the World Series. All rolled into one.

I mean, I've been making the same five meals each week for the last few months. The fact that it was something new in rotation could have been part of the excitement. However, if I have to say so myself it was pretty tasty. 

This Baked Ziti recipe is a play off of the Pioneer Woman's recipe. I just made mine a little easier and a little spicer. (I like a small kick to my pasta.)

I also used jar sauce. Because, as I've said before, there are professional people out there who make a living off doing this. Who am I to recreate the wheel? 

Or spend nine hours attempting? 

In fact, way back in the day a blog/real life friend shared this sauce and it's been my go-to ever since.

The recipe was so easy, and obviously tasty. It will definitely be put into rotation again soon! The only hard part is seeing which recipe I have to boot out. Because mama doesn't cook more than five nights a week.

Really three.

THE BEST BAKED ZITI RECIPE 

Serves 4-6

Prep Time: 10 mins

Total Time: 35 mins

Ingredients
-1 lb of ground beef 
-1 lb of ground sausage -1 can of diced tomatoes w/chili peppers 
-2 jars of Raos Marinara Sauce 
-1 16oz box of Ziti -2 tsp ofItalian Seasoning 
-1 16oz bag of shredded Mozzarella 
-1 16oz bag of shredded Italian cheese 

Instructions 
1: Preheat oven to 375 degrees. 
2: Boil Ziti according to instructions. 
3: Brown both beef and sausage. 
4:Mix meat with tomatoes, seasoning, and 1 1/2  jars of marinara. 
5: Mix remaining marinara with noodles. 
6: In a 9x12 baking dish, place a layer of ziti noodles. Cover with a layer of the meat mixture. Then place a layer of Italian cheese on top. Repeat until baking dish is full. 
7: Bake for approximately 20 mins. 
8: Remove and place a thin layer of Mozzarella cheese on top. 
9: Heat for approximately 2 mins and then remove. 
10: Let sit to settle for 5 mins before serving. 
11: Serve and enjoy!

Do you have a recipe that your whole family just loves?? Share with us! 

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