Fish Burritos with Black Bean Salsa and Cole Slaw

I thought I’d pass along another of my favorite healthy recipes. My kids love this too. Except for my 7-year-old, Janelle. But she doesn’t count as a real eater because if it’s not bread, pasta, cereal, sugar, yogurt or eggs, she’s probably not going to eat it. She often sits at the dinner table and just stares at it, slumping, her face in her hands and whines, “There’s nothing here that I like.”

Uh huh, too bad. I have no sympathy for her. I’m not running a restaurant and I know she doesn’t mind some healthier choices, she just doesn’t prefer them. Well, no kidding. I’d prefer to eat ice cream, cookie dough, coffee and wine every day too, but that’s not what my body needs. (Say it with me people:  Food is not entertainment. Food is energy. Amen.)

So when my family tries a dish and declares it a family favorite that means everyone liked it, except Janelle. Frankly, getting the seal of approval from a 12-year-old, a 9-year-old and my meat-and-potato-loving husband is pretty good.

This is one of those recipes.

Fish Burritos (original recipe from Rachel Ray, but I modified it to include some healthier ingredients)

There are three components to the dish: fish, black bean salsa, and cole slaw. I know it sounds weird, but trust me, it’s fantastic.

Black Bean Salsa

1 Tbls canola oil

1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and finely chopped

1/4 small red onion, finely chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

1 (15 oz.) can black beans, drained

1 tsp ground cumin

salt & pepper

½ cup mango peach salsa

Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat and add the jalapeno, onion and garlic. Cook 3 to 4 minutes, then add the beans and cumin. Season the beans with salt & pepper and fold in the salsa. Reduce the heat to low to keep warm, stirring now and then to keep them from burning. If the beans dry out before you are ready to use them, add a splash of water.

Cole Slaw

2 limes

1 Tbls hot sauce (Tabasco or equivalent)

3 Tbls honey

1 Tbls canola oil

salt & pepper to taste

½ red onion, thinly sliced

a handful of fresh cilantro, finely chopped

a small package of regular cole slaw mix (or ½ medium head of cabbage, shredded)

Zest one of the limes and set it aside for use with the fish.

In a medium bowl combine the juice of both limes, the hot sauce, honey, oil, salt & pepper. Whisk to combine. Add the onions, cilantro and shredded cabbage. Toss well and set aside.

Fish

4 fillets of white fish (tilapia, cod, or orange roughy, all work well)

McCormick’s Montreal Steak Seasoning

Lime zest (from above)

Ole X-treme wellness low carb tortillas (at Kroger in the Mexican food aisle)

Preheat the broiler. Place the fish on a cookie sheet. Lightly coat the fish with cooking spray (oil works too). Sprinkle the lime zest and steak seasoning over the fish. Broil the fish for 5-8 minutes, depending on the thickness of the fish. It’s done when it flakes apart easily.

Shred the cooked fish into a bowl and serve with the tortillas, black beans and cole slaw.

Final assembly

In each tortilla put some fish, black bean salsa and cole slaw. Enjoy.

Notes:

The black bean salsa and cole slaw can be made ahead of time. The cole slaw is actually better if it’s been sitting out for a few hours as the flavors have a chance to blend.

I typically serve this with a spinach salad: baby spinach, fresh cut strawberries, blueberries, a can of mandarin oranges (drained), toasted almonds, and thin strips of red onion. Serve with balsalmic vinegarette on the side. Yummy!