WOD-MOD wk 8 {tabata and tacos}

Go with the flow! Life doesn't always go as planned and you just have to go with it.  This WOD-MOD was a clear testament to this. Meredith got off a little later than expected, then missed the bus up to my place...so we were running late on our workout. Our plan was to hop in my car and go to the Y for a workout but because it was pushing almost 7pm when she arrived at my place I put together a little workout and we did an impromptu at home WOD. No excuses

WOD {touched by tabata}

We did a little warmup and stretching, turned on a Lady Gaga Pandora station  (don't hate, she is amazing to workout to) and got to 24minutes of some tabata awesomeness.

8 rounds of: 20-seconds work w/ 10-seconds rest for each exercise

• squat
• jumping pull-ups (could substitute pushups or dips) 
• sit-ups 
• burpees 
• hallow rock 
• mt climbers

WOD {off the cuff fish tacos}

Just like the WOD, we had to do a little ad-libbing with our meal-of-the-day.  As planned, Meredith brought some fish for us to make some delicious fish tacos, which we had been craving for a while.  Since we didn't leave the house to go to the Y, we didn't pass by the store to pick up the ingredients that we still needed for our planned fish taco meal, nor did we have the desire to go to the store that is a measly 1-block away from my place.  So, we just made due with what we had. We had the intention of making an avocado sauce/dip to put on top of the tacos...but did not have any avocados. Time to get creative. We raided the kitchen and pulled out ingredients that we could throw together for little sauce/dip concoction. 

The off the cuff tacos were a hit. We enjoyed our spiced cod pieces in a lettuce "shell" on top of fresh carrot, zucchini and cabbage slaw and topped with a cilantro-mole sauce. It was a success! You will notice that we don't have many measurements with these recipes. It was a lot of "a little of this and a little of that."  This can be such a fun way to cook.  You start by adding a little, tasting and adding more if you want. You don't always have to follow the rules...just go with the flow or taste in this case. 

The fabulous meal for the evening! 

Perfect meal, not too heavy but sooo tasty!

carrot, zucchini and cabbage slaw 

1 small head of cabbage, thinly sliced

2-3 carrots, julienned (if you don't have a julienne peeler, grating them would be fine)

1 zucchini, julienned

dressing:
1/3ish cup apple-cider vinegar

1/2-2/3ish cup olive oil

1-2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

salt and pepper

lemon juice

Method

1. In a large bowl combine the cabbage, carrots and zucchini.
2. In a separate bowl whisk together the dressing ingredients. Taste and add to it if desired.

3. Pour over the vegetables mixing well. Coleslaw is best if you let it set for a while. 

Additions/Variations: 

• Cilantro would had a nice touch.
• Play around with what vegetables you add.  Red cabbage, beets, celery...
• Apples would be tasty as well!
• Orange juice would add a nice tang!

guacamole cilantro-mole (pistou)

aka Meredith's concoction 

cilantro 

sun dried tomato

red pepper 

garlic 

hot sauce

squeeze of lime

cumin

pepitas

salt and pepper

2-3 tablespoons full-fat coconut milk

"Method"

1. Process all the ingredients, except the coconut milk, in the food processor until well blended. 
2. Add the coconut milk, add more or less depending on how creamy you prefer.

Notes:

• This was totally off the cuff. We, mostly Meredith, threw in a bunch of goodies into the food processor and processed way. She tasted it and added to it as she saw tasted fit.
• This was a great way to use up produce that was on it's last leg!

blackened fish tacos 

cod pieces, from good ol' trader joe's!

1ish tablespoon cumin

2ish teaspoons red pepper (more or less depending on preference)

salt & pepper, to taste

a little lemon juice

for taco assembly:

lettuce for wraps: cabbage, leafy green

zucchini, carrot and cabbage slaw

cilantro-mole

hot sauce

Method

1. Heat skillet (cast iron preferred) over medium-high heat and lightly coat with oil.

2. Mix together cumin, red pepper, salt and pepper.  Sprinkle fish with a little lemon juice and very liberally with the spice mixture making sure all sides are covered withe spice.

3. Once the skillet it hot, cook the fish, be careful not to move it too early, about 3-4 minutes per side.

4. Enjoy the fish pieces in a taco or by themselves. 

Variations:

• Other fish options: halibut, tilapia, blue marlin, mahi-mahi.
• Have fun with the spices! Curry (I love curry) would be a tasty one!
• We used large romaine lettuce as our shell. Other options: butter leaf, cabbage, endive, tortillas...or you can make a salad!

Tips/tricks:

• To get the fish "blackened" make sure to liberally coat the fish with the spices.  I think we needed to add a little more spice to ours.
• Make sure your skillet is hot - this will also help in "blackening" the fish.