Baja-style Shrimp Tacos

So...

A long time ago I promised my Facebook friends a recipe for Baja-style shrimp tacos. I'm finally getting around to posting it. But I must say, it seems rather inappropriate at this time of year. Here in northwestern Montana, we've gotten a lot of rain. The apples in my mother's orchard are almost ready to be harvested. Everyone seems to be canning and the blackbirds are flocking together in the wheat fields. I think fall is here and something as fresh and sunny sounding as Baja-style shrimp tacos just doesn't fit. But a promise is a promise, so here it is:

This recipe comes from goop.com.* I'd never visited this site before. It was linked to by Tsh at Simple Mom...a blog I'm a regular at. I figured, since someone from Simple Mom was posting the recipe, it had to be - well - simple. And it was, except for the fact that I had no idea how time consuming it is to de-vein shrimp. So plan ahead to prepare this dish, but know, it's totally worth it.


Baja-style Shrimp Tacos

• 2 pounds medium shrimp, peeled and deveined

• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

• the juice of 1 lime

• 1 teaspoon coarse salt

• 1 dozen corn tortillas

• Pico de gallo (recipe follows)

• easy black beans (recipe follows)

• fresh guacamole (recipe follows)

• lime wedges for serving

• Cholula hot sauce (or your favorite hot sauce)

• crumbled cojita 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 trying 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. Serve with black beans and fresh guacamole.

Makes 4 servings

**Yeah, it says it's optional. But I'm telling you, the feta cheese makes this dish! We didn't try cojita, so I can't say from personal experience how that is.


Pico de Gallo

• 1 pint grape tomatoes, quartered

• 2 tablespoons roughly chopped cilantro leaves

• 3 tablespoons finely chopped white onions

• coarse salt

• squeeze of lime

• as many finely chopped red jalapenos as you'd like (optional)
  

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


Easy Black Beans

• 1 can of black beans

• 4 cilantro stems

• 1 garlic clove, crushed

• pinch of salt
  

Combine everything together in a small pot and simmer for 15 - 20 minutes. Simmer long enough that the beans aren't watery.

This works in a pinch. But home-cooked beans are still the best.


Fresh Guacamole

• 2 ripe avocados

• 2 tablespoons minced white onions

• 3 tablespoons cilantro leaves, roughly chopped

• 1 lime

• coarse salt
  

Cut each avocado in half, remove and reserve the pits and score the flesh inside of the shells. Scoop the avocado into a bowl and mash gently with a fork - you don't want it to be completely smooth. Stir in the onion and cilantro. Cut the lime in half and squeeze in enough juice to taste. Season the guacamole with salt and either serve immediately or stick the pits in to keep in from turning brown.

*Okay, after tonight, I might become a regular at goop.com...I just discovered that this is Gwyneth Paltrow's site!!!