Mojito Tilapia Bites

On Friday, I talked about how easy it is to make authentic tasting mojitos at home. Today, I’m going to share how easy it is to capture the amazing taste of a mojito in a meal!

This recipe came from Jessica at How Sweet It Is. If you haven’t checked out her blog before, you definitely should – her writing always makes me laugh, and she has really creative recipes that are always delicious and make you wonder how you never thought of them before! When I first saw her recipe for mojito tilapia bites, I knew I had to make them – they combined some of my favourite flavours in a fun bite-sized form, plus they looked so easy to make.

After my first bite of these, I was hooked. They’ve become one of my very favourite meals, which is a good thing because they’re pretty healthy too. The marinade for the fish smells just like a mojito, so you may have to restrain yourself from drinking it before the fish goes in there.

This will be much easier if you make yourself an actual mojito to drink while you’re cooking (and another one while you're eating – if there’s ever a time to drink a mojito, it’s with mojito tilapia bites!) Once the fish gets cooked and mixed in with the avocado and mint, you’ll once again have to restrain yourself, this time from just eating the mixture straight out of the bowl before putting it on the pitas. But trust me, the pitas are the perfect vessel for eating this, and they’re so easy to make too (just slice pitas into triangles, spray with some cooking spray, sprinkle on some salt and bake in the oven). The original recipe called for baked tortillas, which would also be delicious – I just like using pitas so I can use the leftover pita chips for dips!

I’m pretty satisfied eating these as a main course, but they’d also be a fun party appetizer. And if you like the idea of cocktail-inspired meals, you should also try Jessica’s crispy margarita chicken tacos with strawberry avocado salsa – they’re a bit more work than the mojito bites but they're also delicious!

Hope everyone is enjoying the long weekend – happy Labour Day!

Mojito Tilapia Bites

Adapted from How Sweet It Is

Serves 2

Ingredients:

2 tilapia fillets

2 tablespoons rum

1/4 cup fresh lime juice

2 teaspoons lime zest

1/2 teaspoon sugar

1 clove garlic, minced

1/2 avocado, chopped

2 tablespoons chopped mint

2 large (8 inch) pitas

salt & pepper

Directions:

For the marinade:

Mix the rum, lime juice, garlic, sugar, and 1 teaspoon lime zest in a small bowl. Season tilapia fillets with salt and pepper, then place in a ziplock bag with the lime juice mixture and let marinate in the fridge for 30 minutes to 2 hours.

For the pitas:

Preheat oven to 400°F and spray a large baking sheet with cooking spray. Cut the pitas into chip-sized triangles and spread in an even layer on baking sheet. Spray with cooking spray and season with salt and oregano (if desired). Bake at 400°F for 8-12 minutes until toasted and crisp.

For the fish:

If you have fresh tilapia fillets, you can either bake them at 400 degrees for about 15-18 minutes, depending how thick they are, or you can pan-fry them on medium heat for about 3-4 minutes per side. The fish should flake easily with a fork when done.

I just use frozen tilapia fillets, which I defrost before marinating, then cook at 425°F for 6-8 minutes, as per the package directions.

Assembling:

Once the fish is cooked, flake it into small pieces with a fork. Mix in a medium bowl with the chopped avocado, mint, and 1 teaspoon lime zest. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Spoon onto cooked pita chips to serve.