Tilapia with a Lemon-Tarragon Cream Sauce

On September 25, 2019 By Living The Q Life Travel AdventuresIn RecipesLeave a comment

When we’re traveling, we love eating at restaurants that use a lot of fresh herbs with an abundance of taste. People don’t often use fresh herbs as much as they should at home, but we try to as often as possible. We grow several different herbs and enjoy using them in many of the recipes that we prepare. One of the herbs that we have been growing is Mexican tarragon and we wanted to find a way to incorporate that into one of our meals. We decided to make a cream sauce and have it with some breaded tilapia. It was a very light and refreshing dish.

INGREDIENTS

3 Tilapia Filets
1 cup All-Purpose Flour
1 cup Panko Bread Crumbs
1 Large Egg – whisked
1 tbsp Whole Milk
1 tbsp Garlic Powder
1 clove Fresh Garlic – minced
2 to 3 sprigs of Fresh Tarragon
Juice of 1 Lemon
3 tbsp Unsalted Butter
1/2 pint Heavy Cream
1/4 cup Chicken Stock
1 tbsp Vegetable Oil
Salt and Pepper to taste

INSTRUCTIONS

Strip the tarragon off of the stems and chop the leaves. Combine the cream, butter, lemon juice, chicken stock, minced garlic, salt and pepper, and 2 sprigs of chopped tarragon in a small sauce pan and heat just to a simmer and then reduce the heat to low. Cook until the sauce reduces and thickens. Create a dredging station with three shallow bowls. Put the flour on the first bowl, whisk the egg and milk together on the second bowl, and mix the panko with one of the sprigs of tarragon, the garlic powder, and salt and pepper in the third bowl. Heat the oil and 1 tablespoon of butter in a large skillet to medium-high heat. Dredge the tilapia through the dredging station, coating with flour first, then the egg wash, and finally coating them with bread crumbs. Sauté the fish in the skillet until the breading browns and the fish is fully cooked, about 3 to 4 minutes per side. Serve with the cream sauce and your favorite side dishes.

Tilapia with Tarragon Cream Sauce and Roasted Beets

The Food of Breckenridge

On August 28, 2019 By Living The Q Life Travel AdventuresIn Colorado2 Comments

Like any resort town, there are a lot of restaurant choices in Breckenridge, Colorado. You can also find just about any type of food that you might desire, but the vast majority of them are what we’d consider to be western in style. We consider western style to be a lot of steaks, burgers, and chicken, but also a lot of gamier meats such as elk, duck, trout, and even things like rattlesnake. When people come to Colorado, they associate it with ranches and cowboys, which is absolutely correct, so that is the type of food they often want to eat.

BBQ Chicken and Chicken Andouille Sausage

One thing that you find about restaurants in Colorado, and especially in the resorts, is that they are quite casual even if the food is upscale. When you come to the mountains, you wear blue jeans to any restaurant that you visit, no jacket or tie required. Also, many of them have outdoor seating that allow you to enjoy the wonderful views of the mountains and they use heat lamps to ensure that the scenery can be enjoyed even in the winter months. We really enjoy eating in such a relaxed atmosphere with the views of nature all around us.

Pizza with Rattlesnake, Elk, and Italian Sausage

We had our fair share of traditional western food, but we also ate a few other things as well. One of our first meals was an American style meatball sandwich that certainly didn’t skimp on the meat and cheese. We ate a wonderful BBQ chicken with spicy chicken andouille and potato salad, very western. Even a pizza in Breckenridge can be a western adventure like the one that we ate with rattlesnake, elk, and Italian sausage with red peppers, onions, and jalapenos. We did enjoy a seafood dinner with fresh oysters (not Rocky Mountain oysters), scallops with capers and a roasted corn relish, and fresh mountain trout.

Needless to say, since it is Colorado there was no lack for options to quench your thirst. We went to the Breckenridge Brewery where we enjoyed a flight of beers with four different styles. Even when not going to a brewery, every restaurant carried a variety of locally brewed beers as well. A perfect way to unwind from a long day of hiking. Breckenridge certainly had plenty to offer as far as restaurant choices and everywhere we ate was truly wonderful.

Homemade Sloppy Joes

On August 7, 2019 By Living The Q Life Travel AdventuresIn Food, Recipes2 Comments

You can find various styles of beef sandwiches, beef on a stick, or beef pockets like empanadas throughout the world. The sloppy joe sandwich is uniquely American, though, and something that many people will relate to their childhoods. Most people grew up making sloppy joe sandwiches using sauce from a can, but it is possible to make it from scratch with fresh ingredients. We found that making homemade sloppy joes was not only easy, but the taste was better than what you can get from a pre-made sauce. You also have the option to make a different twist on the dish as well, perhaps making it a little spicy, but we chose to go with a traditional approach.

INGREDIENTS

1 lb Ground Beef
1/2 Medium White Onion – diced
2 cloves Garlic – minced
1 Red Pepper – diced
3/4 cup Ketchup
1 dash Worcestershire Sauce
2 tbsp Brown Sugar
1 tsp Dijon Mustard
Salt and Pepper to taste
2 cups Water

INSTRUCTIONS

Place the ground beef and onion into a large skillet and heat over medium-high heat, breaking the ground beef up as it cooks, until the meat is browned and the onion is soft, about 10 minutes. Add the garlic and pepper and cook for another 2 to 3 minutes. Add 1 cup of hot water and stir, being sure to scrape the bottom of the skillet to incorporate all of beef bits into the sauce. Add the ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, brown sugar, Dijon mustard, salt and pepper. Add another cup of hot water, bring to a simmer, reduce the heat to medium-low and cook until the sauce is thick and the liquid has been reduced, about 40 minutes. Serve on buns.