Tag Archives: mango

Mango Lime Popsicles

19 Jun

YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY, SUMMER!

Alright. Glad to have that out of my system.

I’m a woman who likes to have a project and I tend to have several on the go simultaneously. This summer’s kitchen project? Homemade popsicles. Who doesn’t love a popsicle and who doesn’t love being able to customize them in whatever way they choose? Need something refreshing? Berries and watermelon! Sweet tooth ruling your day? Nutella and banana popsicle to the rescue! Throwing a party? Toss in some Kahlua and you are good to go.

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I started with what I had in my kitchen: mangoes and limes. It was ridiculously easy to prepare these icy treats; the hard part was waiting the four hours to eat them. The next time I make them, I think I’ll grate a little ginger into the mix for an added dimension.

Makes 8.

Ingredients

2 large mangoes, peeled and choppedIMG_9611
1/3 c lime juice
1/4 c sugar
pinch of salt
1 c water

Directions

1. Toss everything in the blender and puree.
2. Freeze it all for at least four hours.

They’ll be good your freezer for about four days, but it’s unlikely they’ll last that long.

The foodNURDling enjoying his first (of many) popsicles.

The foodNURDling enjoying his first (of many) popsicles.

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Mango Basmati Rice

25 Jun

Let’s face it: rice is…well, it’s just rice. It’s not the most exciting ingredient. But what it lacks in flavour it makes up for in versatility, transforming from modest to extraordinary with a few extra steps. This is a modified version of Tyler Florence’s recipe: I used peanuts instead of cashews as that’s what I had around. He also calls for mint, but you could use cilantro or basil, too. I served this with lemon curry chicken, but it would go well with shrimp, pork or fish dishes.

Ingredients

1 c basmati rice
1 inch piece ginger, peeled and smashed w/ side of the knife
kosher salt
1/2 lb green beans
1/2 red onion, coarsely chopped
1/4 c cashews
1/4 c mint leaves, coarsely chopped
1 mango, peeled, pitted & chopped
2 tb extra virgin olive oil
1/2 lemon, juiced
black pepper

Directions

1. Put rice in a sauce pan with the ginger, 2 cups of water and 1 1/2 ts salt. Bring to a simmer over medium heat. Stir, turn down the heat, cover and cook 12 minutes. (If serving cold, spread the rice on a baking sheet and bring to room temperature.) Discard ginger.
2. Meanwhile, bring a pot of salted water to a boil for the beans. Fill a large bowl with ice water and add just enough salt so that you can taste it. Boil the beans for three minutes and then place them in the ice water for another minute or so to stop the cooking and maintain their bright green colour.
3. Place the mango, red onion, mint and cashews in a large bowl. Stir together with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Add in the rice and beans, seasoning with the lemon juice. Re-season with salt & pepper if necessary.

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Chicken, Mango & Brie Quesadillas

28 Jun

I came across this recipe while surfing the net and knew I had to try it out. I was already planning to do a roast chicken over the weekend, so I knew I’d have some leftovers that I could use. But even if you don’t have any chicken already cooked up, you could just buy a couple of chicken breasts and poach them for 20 minutes or so. Let ’em cool and pull them apart – easy peasy!

Serves 2 hungry people.

Ingredients

4 large tortillas
1/2 cooked chicken, shredded
1 mango, sliced
125g brie, cut into small pieces
1/4 c cilantro, chopped
3 tb picked jalapenos (or fresh – up to you), diced
1/4 c sour cream
zest & juice of 1 lime

 

 

Prepping!

Directions

Lime Dip

1. Heat a non-stick surface to medium-high. (I used my Griddler, but a non-stick pan, sprayed with oil, will work!)
2. Place one tortilla on the heated surface. On half of the tortilla, place 1/4 of the chicken, mango, brie,  jalapeno & cilantro.
3. Fold the tortilla in half over the ingredients. If using a Griddler, lower the top half and press. Leave for 4 minutes. If using  a pan, cook for 2 minutes per side. Repeat process for remaining three tortillas, keeping the cooked quesadillas in a warm oven.
4. Meanwhile, mix together the lime zest, juice & sour cream. Season with a little salt & pepper to taste.
5. When all the quesadillas are ready, cut the halves into quarters and serve with the dip!

 

Finito!

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Black Bean and Mango Salad

20 Jun

We made this salad up for Father’s Day and it was most definitely a hit! It can be done pretty quickly and makes a great summer dish. Add corn to it for a little more bulk, if you like.

Serves 4.

Ingredients

1 can black beans, rinsed & drained
1 mango, peeled & cubed
1 red pepper, cubed
2 green onions, sliced
1/4 c fresh lime juice
2 tb vegetable oil
1 tb soy sauce
1/2 ts red pepper flakes – optional, but add a nice kick
2 tb cilantro, chopped

Directions

1. In a medium bowl, combine beans, mango red pepper and green onions.
2. Whisk together lime juice, oil and red pepper flakes. Pour over the bean mixture and toss.
3. Add in cilantro and toss again.

And, really? That’s it. Crazy simple, but incredibly delicious and healthy!

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Sweet & Spicy Tuna Salad Wrap

10 Mar

Tuna salad was a staple growing up in my house. My dad makes a pretty darned good version and it’s one of the go-to lunches at our place these days. While I do love the creamy, mayo-based tuna salad sometimes I crave something a little lighter and with different flavours.

To that end, I make a tuna salad with a base of sesame oil instead of mayo which gives a nice smooth, slightly nutty quality to the salad that is offset with the bright, sweet mango slices. I also add in some hot sauce for a good bite and avocado to balance out the heat.

Ingredients

1 can tuna, packed in water
1/2 sweet pepper, chopped
1/2 small red onion, finely diced
1 1/2 tb sesame oil
1 small handful cilantro, roughly chopped
1 ts hot sauce
1/2 lime, juiced
salt and pepper
1/2 mango, sliced
1/2 avocado, sliced
1 handful greens
2-3 large tortillas

Directions

1. In a medium bowl, stir together tuna, pepper, onion.
2. Add the sesame oil in slowly, 1 tb at a time. If the flavour is strong enough for you after 1, stop. This is definitely up to personal tastes.
3. Add in the cilantro, hot sauce, lime juice and salt & pepper to taste.
4. Lightly season the avocado with salt, pepper and lime juice.
5. Spread the tuna salad down the middle of the tortilla. Place the mango & avocado slices on top, then the greens.
6. Wrap ‘er up and eat!

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Sunday Dinners: Spice-Rubbed Tilapia with “Papango” Salsa

6 Sep

The first question I expect you’re asking is, “What the hell is papango salsa?” Good question. Glad you asked!
I found a recipe for tilapia with mango salsa and while it sounded delicious, I thought it could be even better with a little more sweetness from a papaya. Thus, papango salsa was born.

On with the recipe…

Serves 2.

Ingredients

2 tilapia filets
3 ts chili powder
3 ts cumin
2 ts oregano
1 ts kosher salt
1 ts pepper
2 ts olive oil
1 small mango, diced
1/2 papaya, diced
1/2 orange or red pepper, diced
1 jalapeno, finely diced
1/4 c cilantro, chopped
1/2 lime (juice)
dash salt & pepper

Directions

Salsa

1. Combine the mango, papaya, pepper, jalapeno, cilantro, lime juice salt & pepper and set aside for the flavors to mix. *Note: if you make the salsa more than an hour ahead of dinner, do not add the salt. It will pull out a lot of the moisture in the fruit and the salsa will be watery. Instead, add it before you start cooking the fish.

Tilapia

1. In a bowl, combine chili powder, cumin, oregano, salt & pepper. Taste and adjust to taste, if desired.
2. Coat the fish in the seasoning evenly. (A fork works really well for sprinkling the seasoning evenly if you don’t want to use your fingers.)
3.Heat up olive oil in a large pan to medium high.
4. Add the fish to the pan and cook for 3 minutes per side.
5. When the fish is cooked through, plate and top with salsa.
 

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Shrimp & Mango over Soba Noodles

27 Aug

You want to make this. Trust me. It’s got lots of different textures, it’s easy to make, it’s healthy and it’s delicious.

Serves 2.

Ingredients

1tb canola oil                               
1 mango, sliced thinly
1/2 red pepper, sliced thinly
1/2 orange pepper, sliced thinly
handful of snow peas
12-16 shrimp, peeled & deveined
1 c roasted peanuts
1/4 c chopped cilantro
2 packages of soba noodles

Sauce

1 lime, juiced
2 tb soya sauce
2 tb hoisin
1 tb oyster sauce
1 tb rice wine vinegar
2 tb ginger
1 ts sesame oil
1 ts hot sauce

Directions

1. In a small bowl, combine all the ingredients for the sauce.
2. Boil a pot of water for the soba noodles and cook to the directions on the package. (Usually two minutes tops.) Drain.
3. Heat up canola oil in a wok or large pan to medium-high heat. Add peppers & shrimp, cooking for 1 minute.
4. Add in mango, snow peas and peanuts. Cook 1 minute.
5. Add in sauce and drained noodles. Cook another minute until all ingredients are coated with the sauce and shrimp are pink.
6. Serve and top with cilantro.

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Mango, Cranberry Pecan Salad w/ Honey Mustard Dressing

16 Aug

Honestly,  the best and most crowd-pleasing salad I have  made. Borrowed from the Bite Me cookbook, which I can’t recommend highly enough!! Please note that the recipe calls for 4 cups of pecans; however, the salad does not actually need that much. Save the leftovers for a ridiculously addictive snack.

Serves 6.

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Ingredients

Toasted Pecans
4c pecan halves
1 large egg white
1 tb water
1 c sugar
1 ts cinnamon
1 ts salt

Dressing
1/4 c canola oil
1/4 c seed mustard
1/4 c honey mustard
1/4 c honey
1/4 c rice wine vinegar
2 tb orange juice
1 – 2 ts salt

Salad
10 c romaine lettuce or mixed greens
2 mangoes, diced
1/2 c  dried cranberries

Directions

1. Preheat your oven to 250F. Line a baking sheet with foil and coat with non-stick spray.
2. In a bowl, whisk the egg white and water until bubbles form. In a larger bowl, mix the sugar, cinnamon, salt and pecans. Add this mix to the egg white and water, coating all the pecans thoroughly. Spread the pecans in a single layer on the sheet and bake for one hour, stirring every 20 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, peel and dice your juicy, juicy mangoes and toss with the cranberries and lettuce.
4. Mix the ingredients for the dressing together.
5. Add roughly half of the pecans to the salad, along with the dressing. Proceed to snarfle it down…and you will.

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