Seared Tuna Tacos with Pico de Gallo

I'm assuming you like tacos, because...tacos.  But maybe you haven't yet tried any tacos del mar, in which case it is time to change that.  Pick your fish.  I chose tuna, because it's kind of tangy and just a little bit fishy and 100% delicious.

Tacos are best when you carefully choose ingredients from the ground up.  Fresh corn tortillas from a tortilleria in Mexico are the best.  I found some corn / wheat tortillas that looked similar and while they are nothing like the real thing, they are pretty good.  Next layer is the tuna, seared then fully cooked with some cumin and garlic.

You will definitely need some pico de gallo in the mix, which is basically a salsa fresca with fresh tomatoes, onions, a jalapeno, and cilantro (a little salt and garlic powder are good too).

Don't skip the queso.

Avocados might go out of style, but not in my kitchen.  A little salsa verde seals the deal.

And there you have it:  a meal fit for a king.  Or at least fit for a beach side shack, on a warm day, with your toes in the sand, listening to the waves lazily hitting the shore.

I won't embarrass myself by telling you how often we've had tacos for dinner in the past two weeks, but suffice it to say we've gone through more tortillas than is socially acceptable.

In other news, today is my last day of work.  We're trying out another Carolina - this time the southern one.  In two weeks, I start work down in Charleston, SC.  I'm sorry to leave my friends and family - we've had such a great time here - but I'd like to live somewhere where summer is more than just a memory for nine months of the year.

Spicy Chicken Vindaloo

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March in Summary

March was definitely a wild ride.  Lots of big things!  Starting with the bus.

Here's the quick and dirty on March:

• I had two books I wanted to read.  And I read 1 of them.
• I added another tasty soup recipe!  Check out the wild rice and chicken soup here!
• Plan out my garden!  Check out the photos below for the progress on the garden front.
• Quick jaunt down to Indiana.  We went not once, but twice!  The second time was just in passing...on our way to pick up our new VW bus ("new" is relative here!).
• I started doing Jillian Michaels 30 Day Shred and I'm working my way through levels 2 and 3 this month.  Level 3 is now kicking my butt!  I'm definitely feeling the pain.

And if March was a wild ride, then April is going to be a party.

• A lunch date w/ the fam.  We don't get together enough!
• A block party w/ the friends.  We're hoping to take the bus!
• I'm hoping to recreate a recipe for these awesome seared tuna tacos I had this month.
• Some montepulciano wine needs to be bottled.  I'm not quite sure how this one will turn out.
• This will be an intense month for the plant babies.  I've never been able to successfully grow starters of anything, so maybe this is my year!
• Hopefully the lake will finally melt.  I'm ready.  But I hear there's two feet of ice separating me from happiness.

Okay, enough of the boring things, on to the fun photos!  We started out the month by bottling the last of our hard cider.

We went snowshoeing on the coast of Lake Michigan.

It was such a beautiful hike.  We had a great day for it.  The lake landscape is just surreal.

We followed this up with a fantastic lunch in Frankfort, MI - after checking out the lighthouse, of course.

And lastly, we hit up the brewery in town.

Nothing like beer to reward a hard morning's snowshoe trek!

We had a couple warm-ish days in March.  They took their toll.  Snow sculpture suffered.  (for reference: building, finished product, end of February)

Oh yeah!  We went to Chicago and enjoyed some hot coffee on a cold day.  Dressed in green, hit up the river, saw the sights.

Later in the month, I had some excellent seared tuna tacos with pico and avocado.  Can't wait to try making my own version.

And last but not least, here are my plant babies, on March 2 and on March 27.  What a difference a month makes!

Still having a hard time getting those peppers to grow, but the herbs are out of control!  Happy Spring!

The Bus Story

Every bus has a story.  Our story is just getting started, but it's already been an adventure. 

Here's how our bus story begins.

Wild Rice and Chicken Soup

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Return of the Revenge of the Polar Vortex

February is such a short month.  And yet, it feels like it's been such a long time since my last goals post - for instance, snow sculpture seems like forever ago!  Probably because I stayed pretty busy this month.  We've been to Sleeping Bear Dunes in the summer - this year we decided to try it out in the winter!  The wind and cold were brutal, but the photos are unbeatable.

But hey, let's whip through those goals:

• Get the photobook ordered.  Done and done!  And it should arrive today!
• Go through my clothing and get rid of the stuff I don't wear. Um yeah.  I'm sure you saw this coming - didn't happen.
• Win first place with our snow sculpture.  We're so good, we got first AND second place! 
• Bottle the peach wine.  Okay, so this isn't exactly done, but I have it stabilized and backsweetened so it's ready to go.  
• Make a nice warming soup to survive the revenge of the polar vortex.  Check out this Szechuan hot and sour soup - it's sure to warm you right up.

Okay!  So let's make some March goals:

• I've got two books I want to read - I'm hoping to get through them in March.
• In honor of this week's Return of the Revenge of the Polar Vortex (sounds like a bad Syfy remake...) I've got another tasty soup recipe!
• Plan out my garden!  I'm a little behind on this game - gotta get those peppers started!
• Quick jaunt down to Indiana - as long as the weather doesn't interfere, we've got a quick family trip planned.  I hear the menu is Mexican!
• I started doing Jillian Michaels 30 Day Shred and I am SO sore.  I'm hoping to work my way through levels 2 and 3 this month.

Goals out of the way, let's get to the photos!  Let's start with the sculpture.  It's still standing and I have a feeling it will be up until April or May.

Kyle and I went for a walk on one of the sunny days this month and I snapped this shot with my cell.

And while we were out for a walk, we were stopped by a photographer for the local newspaper.  This is what we get for going outside on the first sunny day in a long time.

In case you missed it, I made some awesome cupcakes for my friends gender-reveal party.

As a Christmas present from my parents, the whole family went to see a hockey game and partake in some fun post-game activities.

So that brings us to SBD.

The landscape looked and felt like Mars - barren, hostile, unforgiving.

The ice shelf was a testament to how violently the waves are driven into the shore.

At the same time, the formations were phenomenal, and the waves breaking inside the ice caves were amazing to watch.

The sun peeked out from the clouds occasionally, but there was nothing warm about it.  However, it really brought out the color of the water.

All in all, it was a wonderful trip that I hope to never do again - at least not when it's that cold and that windy.

Update:  stupid polar vortex...

Chocolate Tangerine Truffles

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