Lunch At Mi Casita’s
We went to lunch at Mi Casita yesterday over in Dunn. A perfect way to welcome the 81° weather to match our blue spring dresses. That was our first time to eat at Mi Casita. Our usual Mexican digs are La Cocina and Fiesta Mexicana. There’s another Mexican restaurant in Dunn that we went to months ago but it’s so terrible I can’t remember the name anymore. It’s either Las Brisas or El Charro. Maybe the acid reflux I got afterwards is contributing to my memory loss.
Anyhooo, the second we entered Mi Casita I knew I was going to like it. The ambiance is fresh, smooth, and quiet. The seating is booth style with tall back wall. Tall enough to keep kids away from the other booth. I’m sure you know what I mean. There’s a bar just like the aforementioned Mexican restaurants but it’s not that close to the booths. I like the open space going to the booths. Unlike at La Cocina or Fiesta Mexciana where there are added tables and chairs in the middles of the walking area. I can’t help but feel awkward when walking to my table at those places. I try to walk sideways to avoid accidentally hitting someone in the head with my huge and full purse. There’s also that awkward feeling not to look at a table while walking just in case a person is chowing down something and couldn’t help but have an open-mouth at that exact moment. Know what I mean?
Leftover Chicken, Salsa, & Green Onions Quesadilla
Besides fried rice, soup, or frittata, quesadilla is what I make to use up leftover meats. Just chopped up the meat, tomatoes, and green onions, then throw ‘em on top of a flour tortilla, then bind everything together with shredded cheese on top, and another flour tortilla to finish it. In this quesadilla, I used the leftover southwestern chicken and salsa instead of fresh tomatoes. This is perfect for quick lunch or those weekend munchies with the family. It’s quite easy so let me show you how.
Buffalo Chicken Tacos W/ Blue Cheese Aioli
If you have leftover buffalo wings from a pizza & wings night or just regular hot wings night, you can easily turn the meat into Buffalo Chicken Tacos. But, if you don’t have leftovers and craving for these tacos, here’s an easy way to make some. Boneless chicken breasts not necessary. I used chicken leg quarters which worked out perfectly so let me show you how.
| Buffalo Chicken Tacos W/ Blue Cheese Aioli |
- 3 leg quarters
- 1 cup of flour
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1/2 stick of butter
- 1/2 cup buffalo sauce
- 1 avocado, cubed
- a bowl of chopped up salad mix
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- a little bit of oil
- 12-15 corn tacos
- 1/2 cup blue cheese dressing
- 1/4 cup sour cream
- sprinkle of slat and pepper
- sprinkle of Italian seasoning
BLUE CHEESE AIOLI
- Preheat oven to 365 degrees.
- Combine flour, with salt and pepper. Drench the chicken quarters with the flour mixture. Place the chicken pieces in a foil lined pan. Stick the pan in the oven to bake for 35-40 minutes.
- Once the chicken quarters have baked, let them cool on top of a cutting board for a few minutes. Pick off the meat from the bone. Roughly chopped ‘em up to get medium chunks. I reserved one leg quarter for my children who couldn’t eat the hot stuff.
- Melt butter in a pot then stir in the buffalo sauce. Add the chicken meat into the sauce. Stir gently to coat the chicken with the sauce. Taste and adjust according to your hot sauce preference.
- Blend together blue cheese dressing, sour cream, salt and pepper, and Italian seasoning. Transfer in a bottle dispenser or in a bowl(cover), then store in the fridge until ready to serve.
- Assemble the buffalo chicken tacos: corn tortilla, chicken, salad mix, avocado, aioli, and shredded cheddar cheese.
CORN TORTILLAS:Brush a little bit of oil into a heated pan, lightly toast eash side of the corn tortilla, about 6 seconds each. Do this in batches.
AIOLI:
Duo Of Tacos: Baked Trout & Leftover Chicken Wings W/ Wasabi Aeoli
These fish tacos are very light because the trout were baked instead of the usual drench-battered cod(or salmon) filet and deep-fried version. I only had 4 baked trout when I made this so I decided to pick the meat off of the leftover chicken wings from a hot wings night to serve a substantial dinner. This would be great for lunch too by the way. At the last minute, I decided to experiment and made wasabi-aeoli as a creamy condiment in lieu of regular sour cream to go along with the pico de gallo. The tacos were delicious.
| Duo Of Tacos: Baked Trout & Leftover Chicken Wings W/ Wasabi Aeoli |
- 4 trout fillets
- meat for 5 leftover fried chicken wings(optional)
- pico de gallo (chopped tomatoes, green onions, cilantro, salt and pepper)
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- sprinkle of garlic powder
- sprinkle of Italian seasoning
- sprinkle of salt and pepper
- shredded cheddar cheese
- 15-20 corn tortilla
- oil to warm up the tortillas
- WASABI-AEOLI
- 2 spoonfuls of sour cream
- 1 spoonful of mayonnaise
- 1 tsp of wasabi
- 1 strings of cilantro
- 1 tsp of red wine vinegar
- sprinkles of salt and pepper
- Make the pico de gallo in advance. Just combine chopped tomatoes(2), green scallions(2 strings), a few strings of cilantro, then season with salt and pepper. Sprinkle red pepper flakes too if you want. Mix everything in a bow, cover then store in the fridge until ready to serve.
- Preheat the oven to 355°.
- In a small bowl, combine olive oil, Italian seasoning, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Rub both sides of the trout fillets. Place in a sheet pan, then bake in the oven for 12-15 minutes or so.
- For the Wasabi-Aeoli: Blend together the sour cream, mayonnaise, wasabi, cilantro and seasonings until well combined. Transfer it in a bowl or a condiment bottle, then store in the fridge until ready to serve.
- CORN TORTILLAS: Brush a little bit of oil into a heated pan, lightly toast eash side of the corn tortilla, about 6 seconds each. Do this in batches.
- If you have leftover chicken, pick the meat off of the bones, warm up in the microwave.
- Layer the tacos: corn tortilla, baked trout or chicken, pico de gallo, shredded cheese, then a drizzle of wasabi-aeoli.
Use other leftover meat like steak or pork.
Chicken & Green Peppers Tacos W/ Mango Salsa
A simple chicken & green peppers tacos with homemade mango salsa on top for an added crunch and flavor. I actually wanted to add cut up avocado in the salsa too before serving but I decided to just leave it as it is. No biggie coz the tacos were good without the avocado. Maybe next time, but for now, here’s how to make this version.
Cajun Spiced Beef Fajitas & Tacos
When I make fajitas or tacos, I usually just season the meat as I cook it. I changed it up a bit the other night by marinating the beef strips in Cajun spices seasonings that I mixed up myself. The entire dinner was really good coz I didn’t just serve the beef as fajitas but as tacos as well. My husband slightly toasted the corn tortillas while I cooked the beef with peppers and onions in between setting up all the condiments for our Mexican dinner.
Pork Chops W/ Salsa & Onions
I’ve combined salsa with chicken a few times and I’ve always liked the flavors. Like the baked chicken with salsa and honey, and the baked chicken quarters with salsa verde. Here’s a pork variation, not baked and with onions.
Pam Anderson’s Flan With Cream Cheese
When The Pioneer Woman Ree Drummond advised her readers to make Pam Anderson’s flan with cream cheese, I obediently followed. And I am so glad I did coz O-M-G, this flan with cream cheese is absolutely DIVINE!
Chicken & Scrambled Eggs Tacos
I have to say first and foremost that these Chicken & Scrambled Eggs Tacos are so simple yet oh soooo good. If I’m not following my moderation diet, I could’ve eaten a dozen + 2 of these tacos. These are good for breakfast, lunch, brunch, snacks or dinner. Pick any time of the day and enjoy.
Cilantro Rice Pilaf
Cilantro Rice Pilaf is the side dish I made to accompany the Mexican Lasagna I cooked for Cinco de Mayo. Usually, I’d make cilantro rice on the dry side by cooking it as a fried rice. Meaning I’d cook the rice first in my rice cooker then sauté it with garlic, onions, salt and pepper then generously garnish it with coarsely chopped cilantro. This time around, I went the pilaf way. It’s almost on the runny and wet consistency.
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