Shrimp and Kale Taquitos
February 8, 2018 by Nicole Collins
I'm back!
And, I'm so ready to go back to Florida, that's for sure.
Like permanently.
I won't overload you with all of the details of my trip. Though, I have soooo much that I want to tell you! But, I'll just give you a quick(ish) recap. There was one major accomplishment throughout the weekend.
We. Ate. Everything.
I arrived on Thursday. And, my first meal was tacos. If you ever want to know how to bring joy into my life, just feed me tacos! But, don't forget the margarita!
So, we ordered these dynamite shrimp tacos with jicama. We thought it was going to be regular tacos with a bang bang type shrimp and maybe some kind of jicama slaw or something. Nope! The taco shell was a really thin slice of jicama! It was a little strange, and we couldn't really eat it like a taco. But, it was really good!
On Friday, we had 2 adventures! We started with high tea at a tea room in Celebration. And let me tell you, that high tea pretty much fed us for three days! We each got a full pot of tea (I chose a pina colada tea), 4 finger sandwiches, a scone, a muffin, a cookie, and a cupcake. The serveware was adorable. The rooms were Alice in Wonderland themed. And there was a teapot light fixture with a sneaky Cheshire cat that would appear and disappear. So much fun!
Our next stop on Friday was Epcot for the Festival of the Arts. They had specialty food booths set up around the World Showcase, so though I wanted to try 1 of everything; I only had room (and money) for a couple of items. So, I had the most amazing wild mushroom risotto with truffle, a hummus trifle with spiced beef and pita chips, some kind of a peach/wine/vodka situation, and a cucumber lime margarita. I wanted a traditional margarita, but would you believe they weren't serving a classic margarita on the rocks?!? Weird.
Saturday also had 2 adventures on the agenda. We ate so much in the morning, that it lasted us all day! We started at the farmer's market. I've told you before that the farmer's market in Winter Garden is pretty much what started my obsession with farmer's markets. I absolutely love it! And, they have lots of stuff out to sample. So we tried truffle artichoke dip, tandoori grilled chicken, and some fresh made queso. MMMMM!
Our next adventure kept us in downtown Winter Garden as we did a Winter Garden Food Tour! I was so enamored by all of the amazing food, I forgot to take pics! It was that good. We started at a farm to table restaurant where we had more truffle artichoke dip, hummus, fresh baked lavash, pita, baguette, and cranberry bread. Then, we went to this restaurant call the Tasting Room where we had the best shrimp and grits I've ever had, and a pretty incredible chicken and waffles. The tour ended at an olive oil/vinegar tasting room where we had persian lime olive oil and coconut balsamic vinegar drizzled over vanilla bean gelato. OMG it was amazing! It was all so amazing!
On Sunday, we had pretty much everything known to man to eat. We ate allllll afternoon. We bought a Indian yogurt spread and garlic naan, spinach and feta samosas, some of that truffle artichoke dip, cheddar pierogis, and rosemary foccacia from the farmer's market on Saturday. Then, we made some of my Crabby Devils, my Maryland Crab Dip, some guacamole, and some shrimp tacos with slaw using the olive oil and balsamic we bought from the tasting room. I probably shouldn't tell you this, but this whole spread was only for 3 people. The girls can eat...what can I say!
On Monday, it was leftovers. And, some incredible leftovers they were!
So, needless to say, I got A LOT of recipe inspiration on my trip. But, I also got a MAJOR need for some detox.
But, you can't just go “stuff your face” to “healthy” overnight. You need to ease in to it.
Enter Shrimp and Kale Taquitos!
These taquitos are so easy to make, so full of flavor, and they're really pretty good for us thanks to being baked and not fried.
We start with some peeled and deveined raw shrimp. They get sauteed with a little chili powder, garlic powder, and cumin. That's it! We don't need to add any extra salt to these because we're using such flavorful spices.
Once the shrimp are cooked, we remove them from the pan to cool. We add some chopped kale and a little water to the same pan to help pick up the leftover spices from the shrimp and to help wilt the kale.
The shrimp gets chopped up and mixed with the wilted kale plus a squeeze of lime juice. Then, everything gets rolled up in a corn tortilla. But, not without a little sprinkle of pepperjack cheese first!
Taquitos are traditionally fried, but we're baking ours. Once they're rolled, they get spritzed with cooking spray which helps them get nice a crispy without having to drown them in oil. They get a sprinkle of kosher salt on top, for good measure. Bake them up, and they're ready to devour!
You could serve these with sour cream on the side. Or some guac. Or you could just dig in as is with no dips. But, really why not dip when you have the chance!
Alright, I've given you food envy overload today. But, hopefully it was worth it. Check out my pics on Instagram if you want to see all of our yummy food! (Well, except for the food tour pics, because I failed there.)
P.S. Happy Birthday Mama! :-) xoxoxo
Enjoy, and let's eat!
Shrimp and Kale Taquitos
Serves: 16 taquitos Print
Ingredients:
1 tbsp olive oil
1 lb raw shrimp, peeled, deveined, and tails off
2 cups packed kale, chopped
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp garlic powder
½ tsp chili powder
juice 1 lime
1 cup pepperjack cheese, shredded
16 corn tortillas
3 tbsp-1/4 cup water
salt, to taste
cooking spray
sour cream, for serving
Directions:
Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil, and spray with cooking spray. Heat olive oil in a non stick skillet over medium high heat. Add shrimp, cumin, garlic powder, and chili powder, and toss to combine. Cook shrimp 2-3 mins per side until pink and fully cooked through. Remove shrimp from skillet, and set aside.
Add 3 tbsp water and kale to hot skillet. Scrape up the browned seasonings from the bottom of the pan. Saute 3-4 mins until kale is wilted. Add more water if the pan seems too dry, and the kale is not wilting. Remove from heat, and place kale in a mixing bowl. Chop shrimp in to small pieces, and add to kale. Add juice of one lime, and toss to combine.
Heat corn tortillas in the microwave with a damp paper towel over top for 20 seconds. Stuff tortillas with 1-2 tbsp of shrimp mix in a line across the center, and top with shredded pepperjack. Roll tightly in to a cigar shape. Place on prepared baking sheet, and repeat until all tortillas have been rolled.
Spray tops of taquitos with cooking spray, making sure to get the sides, as well. Top each taquito with a pinch of salt. Bake for 12-15 mins. Serve with sour cream!
Recipe notes:
*If you're not a fan of kale, you could use spinach too.
*These are a great (and sneakily healthy) appetizer, but you could serve them as a meal with some fruit on the side. 3 taquitos would equal 1 serving.
*The aluminum foil is not required, but it makes for easier clean up. Spraying the pan and taquitos with cooking spray is a necessary step though! That's how our taquitos get nice and crispy.
