Baja Style Shrimp Tacos

It's summer. We know this. And I have had absolutely zero desire to blog. z.e.r.o. What's weird is I have tried lots, ok, maybe not lots, how about - several new recipes, I've taken the pictures and then.... just... left the pictures.... on my card. Hmmm, kind of defeats the point, right? I mean, why else would I be taking pictures of my food?? So....here's one of our latest favorites. No big story about life, or food, or how they intertwine. Just the recipes and the two pictures I managed to take before we scarfed down these delicious tacos. GP posted the recipe on her GOOP site a looong time ago and I've been meaning to try them forever. Summer is the perfect time. Little to no cooking with fresh ingredients is a win-win in my book. I also used her recipes for the Pico de Gallo and the black beans-I will definitely use both again.

Baja Style Shrimp Tacos

A southern California classic, grilled shrimp tacos couldn’t be quicker to prepare—and they happen to be very healthy at that. The combination of fresh lime juice and Cholula hot sauce is pretty much unparalleled. www.GOOP.com
serves 4

2 pounds medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
2 tablespoons olive oil
juice of one lime
1 teaspoon coarse salt
1 dozen corn tortillas
pico de gallo (see recipe below)
lime wedges for serving
Cholula hot sauce (or your favorite hot sauce)
crumbled cotija or feta cheese (optional)

Preheat your grill over high heat. Toss the shrimp together with the olive oil, lime juice and salt. Grill until cooked through, about 2 minutes a side.

To serve, heat the tortillas in a dry frying pan and wrap them in a tea towel to keep warm. Pile a few shrimp on top of each tortilla and serve with a bit of pico de gallo, fresh lime juice, a few dashes of hot sauce and a little of the crumbled cheese if you’d like.


Pico de Gallo
Simple to prepare and about a thousand times fresher and more vibrant than any jar of salsa, fresh pico de gallo is worth making from scratch.
serves 4

1 pint grape tomatoes, quartered
2 tablespoons roughly chopped cilantro leaves
3 tablespoons finely chopped white onion
coarse salt
squeeze of lime
as many finely chopped red jalapeños as you’d like (optional)

Combine the tomatoes, cilantro and onion together in a bowl. Season to taste with salt and lime. Reserve some of this mixture for the kids, and then add as much jalapeño as you like to the remaining mixture for the adults.


Black Beans
By adding a few aromatics to a can of black beans, you get that Mexican restaurant flavor without hours of soaking and cooking.
serves 4 as a side dish

1 can of black beans
4 cilantro stems
1 garlic clove, crushed
pinch of salt

Combine everything together in a small pot and simmer over low heat for about 15-20 minutes (I do this while I’m preparing the rest of the meal). Be sure to simmer the beans long enough so that they’re not watery.