I know it’s been a while since I’ve done a post on this blog, and my other blog as well. I apologize for the lapse in time but life has a way of getting in the way more often than I would like some times and had just haven’t had the time and energy to keep up with the blogs is much as I would like to. Anyway, I am going to make a concerted effort to try to do better as far as posting recipes on here and other posts on by personal blog if you follow that one as well. For now I’ll try to go back and cover some recipes that I’ve done in the past few weeks that I haven’t had a chance to write about on here. We’ll start off with a nice easy recipe that I tried not that long ago that I picked up from Cooks Country. It’s a recipe for fish sticks with tartar sauce.

Fish Sticks with Tartar Sauce

4 slices of white bread, torn into large pieces
16 Saltine crackers
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 large eggs
1 cup mayonnaise
2 pounds skinless cod or other thick white fish, cut into 1 inch thick strips
1/4 cup finely chopped dill pickles, plus 1 tablespoon pickle juice
1 tablespoon capers, minced
1 cup vegetable oil

Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 200°. Pulse the bread and the saltines in a food processor until they are fine crumbs; transfer the mixture to a shallow dish Place the flour in a second shallow dish. Beat the eggs with 1/4 cup of the mayonnaise in a third shallow dish.

Pat the fish dry with paper towels and season well with salt and pepper. Taking one piece at a time, coat the fish strips lightly with the flour, then into the egg mixture, and then dredge in the crumbs, pressing on both sides to make sure the crumbs adhere properly. Transfer the breaded fish to a clean plate. Combine the remaining mayonnaise, pickles, pickle juice, and capers in a small bowl and set aside.

Heat 1/2 cup of the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat until just smoking. Fry half of the fish strips until a deep golden brown and crisp, about two minutes per side. Drain the fish on a paper towel lined plate and transfer them to the oven to keep them warm. Discard the oil, wipe out the skillet, and repeat the process with the remaining oil and fish. Serve with that tartar sauce on the side.

I have to admit I was a little skeptical whether or not Sean and Michelle would like this particular recipe. Fish sticks are not always the most popular thing in any home. I think too many of us are used to growing up with what would come out of the box in the freezer and the taste that went along with these particular fish sticks. I can remember most of the time that they weren’t that great, but this recipe using the fresh fish and the saltines in the breadcrumbs really seem to come out nice crunchy and have great flavor. If you are not a big fan of tartar sauce, you can always eliminate that or make a simple cocktail sauce with some ketchup and with horseradish if that is something you prefer.

The next recipe is also quite a simple one. I got this one from the March issue of Bon Appétit magazine. They have a bunch of recipes in there that are great for family dinners, including the one I posted a while back for a shrimp fried rice. This one in particular is for sweet potato wedges with lime mayonnaise, although I did not make the lime mayonnaise as it didn’t seem like something the rest of the family would go for.

Sweet Potato Wedges with Lime Mayo

3 sweet potatoes, peeled, each cut lengthwise into eight wedges
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
1/3 cup mayonnaise
1/4 teaspoon finely grated lime zest
2 teaspoons fresh lime juice
Chopped fresh cilantro (for serving)

Preheat the oven to 450°. Toss the sweet potatoes and oil on a foil lined large rimmed baking sheet; season the potatoes with salt and pepper to taste. Roast the potatoes, turning once, until golden brown and crisp, approximately 25 to 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, whisk the mayonnaise, lime zest, and juice in a small bowl. Season the fries with salt, top with those cilantro, and serve with the lime Mayo for dipping.

I think the fries tasted just fine without the lime mayo, and we used ketchup as a replacement without any problem at all. All you need to round out this meal is a fresh vegetable to complete the meal, such as broccoli, asparagus, or some roasted carrots. You could even just go with a nice side salad and I think everything would be fine.

That’s the recipe for today. I am planning on making a lamb tonight. I should be able to get the recipe up for that either tonight or tomorrow. I have posted lamb recipes before, but I think I’m going to try something new as I have gotten a couple of new recipes lately for a few different things. I also have some other recipes that we have done in the last few weeks that I think would be good to post. Unfortunately I do not have pictures of a lot of the things I have made lately, but I hope to get back into that tonight with the lamb and keep going from there. Thanks for stopping by and checking out the blog and sticking with it. I hope you enjoy the recipes and get to try out some things on your own. If you ever have any recipes you would like to share, please feel free to leave a note in the comments section below with your email address and I would be happy to get back to you about posting the recipe or even doing a guest blog post on your own if you would like to do that. Thanks again, enjoy the rest of your day, and enjoy your meal!