Balsamic-tossed cucumbers with mint and olives

A light and refreshing spring/summer salad. Would pair great with ham and cheese sandwiches or burgers or fried chicken. 

I used dried mint instead of fresh (never as fragrant, but certainly will do). I especially appreciate Jamie Oliver's tip to smash pit-in kalamata olives with the palm of your hand to remove the seeds.

http://www.jamieoliver.com/recipes/vegetables-recipes/balsamic-dressed-cucumber-with-olives

Ceviche Tostadas

There's basically one thing to say about these little treats. And that's Oh. My. Gosh. This dish makes a great appetizer, main course, party food, or mid-day snack for anyone who loves a little kick of lime, spice and fresh seafood.

Here's how Pedro's maternal grandfather (Jose Ricardo Berain) from Muzquiz, Coahuila, taught Pedro to make this very delicious meal.

Start with fresh (or thawed frozen) seafood, preferably a simple Tilapia-type fish that will absorb lime juice and other flavors quickly and easily (you can mix in uncooked shrimp chunks, small bay-style scallops or other types of fish if you like). We made this ceviche with 2 lbs of Tilapia.

• Start by chopping partially frozen fish into small cubes. 
• Once chopped, cover with lime juice and cover bowl with plastic wrap and allow to sit in the refrigerator for 4 hours (Pedro prefers to move the lime covered fish to a large ziploc bag).
• While the seafood "cooks" in the lime, go ahead and start preparing a pico de gallo to mix with the seafood once it's ready.
• Chop equal parts white onion, cilantro, tomato and add one or two chopped serrano chile peppers (Pedro also likes to crush one clove of garlic into this mixture).
• Drizzle a little olive oil on top of the pico de gallo and add salt to taste.

Back to the fish - once the lime has cooked the fish through, drain the lime juice from the bag or bowl as it can become bitter after sitting with the fish for some period of time. Add new lime juice to nearly cover the fish, mixing in the desired amount of pico de gallo.

To serve, spread a thin layer of mayonaise on a sturdy tostada. Then top with ceviche mixture and finally drizzle with a few drops of tapatio hot sauce. A couple thin slices of avocado on top also taste great.

ENJOY!

Delicious ceviche tostada

You'll need lots of limes for this recipe. Start with large persian limes to cook the fish and then switch to smaller key limes for an extra special, more authentic flavor with the actual ceviche mixture.

Use a citrus press to cut down on the labor of squeezing fresh lime juice over the fish.

Fresh cilantro (if you don't like cilantro you can substitute parsley, but it's definitely NOT the same :-)

The Tiger (a take on the Pegu Club's "Old Cuban" in Manhattan)

We were introduced to this drink by a friend of ours, Tiger Batlas. Tiger has a bubbly and refreshing personality (not unlike this drink!) and so we decided to rename the delicious cocktail in honor or Tiger's lovely personality and presence.

Tiger discovered this drink during a girls trip with friends to Manhattan at a bar called Bemelmans inside The Carlyle Hotel. Most internet cocktail recipes cite the Pegu Club as home for this drink. Wherever the origin, here are a few shots of our version below.

Note that we followed the recipe almost exactly, however included slightly less simple syrup (I don't like sweet drinks, but half an ounce of simple syrup is the perfect amount to soften the pucker from the lime just a bit and it helps to meld the flavors). Also - feel free to top this one off with prosecco vs. champagne. Pedro just happens to keep a keg of homemade champagne on hand, so it helps to minimize the expense of champagne cocktails like the Tiger.

Also, Pedro and I made a fun trip to a nearby thrift store, just before making these drinks, to pick up some old style coupe cocktail glasses for $.49 each. This drink doesn't taste the same without the right glass! (as recommended by the NYT :-) 

Tiger cocktail served in a chilled coupe glass

A few of the ingredients we used in our Tiger cocktail