The Bank Holiday weekend was just great wasn't it? I mean the weather... Well, we couldn't have asked for better, could we?
I hope it was good wherever you are? It was the kind of Bank Holiday you just imagine it's going to be like. Blue skies, sun shining, leaves rustling in the breeze and a fun lunch outside using the garden furniture on the Sunday... Just the perfect setting for some family FUN and at lunch...
Hubbie dutifully assembled the wooden garden table on the Saturday, ready for our Cinco De Mayo celebration, (that's 5th May to you and me) on the Sunday. I had it all planned, and I am slowly realising that the more you plan, the better the day, although admittedly the higher the expectations too!
What was the plan then?
I was rustling up a special Mexican celebration lunch thanks to Discovery Foods, and for our family Sunday lunch too! I gathered up all our Mexican memorabilia - the turtle, the mug, the Mexican flag, the maracas, and even the party poppers, and decorated our table hoping I'd create that sense of occasion we so often need, to break up the routine and highlight the day as special in our minds. Who knows hopefully I've helped create lots of memories...
We were kindly sent the Discovery Perfect Fajita Kit to try, along with the delicious Garlic and Herb Soured Cream, which in my mind is essential for cooling down that mexican kick you get when you bite into your fajita. But maybe that's just me? (I was told by Gannet and Parrot at the Chinese Cookery Masterclass recently that I am a bit of a wuss when it comes to hot spices, and chilli in particular...) So perhaps I need more of the soured cream than others?!
So as I was aiming for a special Mexican Celebration lunch. I nipped out to the shop and added in some extra ingredients, including the red and green peppers, guacamole, some lambs lettuce (our favourite salad leaf) and also purchased the Discovery Complete Nachos Kit, as that would be perfect as our starter. (This comes complete with tortilla chips, cheese sauce, salsa and can be warmed up in the microwave in minutes!) Spike very kindly created our favourite tropical smoothies, along with the essential jug of iced water - always handy!
Our Cinco de Mayo Mexican Celebration Lunch became:
Starter
Nachos drizzled with melted cheese sauce, salsa, dipped in soured cream and guacamole
Main
Chicken fajitas, with red and green pepper, red onion, topped with guacamole, salsa and soured cream with lambs lettuce in french dressing on the side
Dessert
polished off with delicious Cornish vanilla ice cream in a cone, to help cool down our tingling tongues after all those taste sensations!
So to our Succulent Chicken Fajita Recipe:
Ingredients we used
500g chicken breast, carefully sliced for extra tenderness
1 red onion, finely chopped
1 green pepper, finely sliced into slivers
1 red pepper, finely sliced
olive oil for frying
fajita mix, mixed with vegetable oil for the marinade
Fajita Kit included the 8 tortilla wraps, salsa sauce, fajita spice mix
Method:
Make up the marinade mix first, and slice up the chicken so this can be marinading. Best to allow 15 minutes for it to marinade.
Meawnwhile prepare all the vegetables ready for stir frying.
As it says on the pack, don't be shy of the pan being hot! Allow the pan to get really hot before adding the oil and then nimbly toss the chicken for 2-3 minutes until browned, then add in the red onion and green and red pepper (we used these colours to replicate the Mexican flag!) and cook for a further 2-3 minutes.
Warm the tortilla wraps in the microwave. We opted for the stack on a plate for 45 seconds on 650W power in the microwave.
Serve the chicken mix with the warmed tortilla, salsa dressing, guacamole dip, soured cream and the salad below. Feel free to grate cheese of your fajita before slowly rolling up your fajita! Enjoy!
For the Lambs lettuce Salad:
150g Lambs Lettuce
Good squeeze Lemon Juice
Glug Olive Oil
Pinch Salt
Freshly Ground Black Pepper
Pinch Oregano
All tossed together in a salad bowl to get a good coating of the French Dressing
It was a special celebration and it didn't take a lot of time. The Nachos are ready in the microwave in a minute per plate. The fajitas took maybe 15-20 minutes tops, including the prep time. So it is not a marathon in terms of cooking in the kitchen.
But what I am also chuffed about is I sneekily managed to get EVERY member of the family involved:
King Julien is always keen to help set the table, and Spike loves making up the fruit smoothies. Tuna helped prepare the chopped and diced ingredients, ready for tossing in the hot pan. Me? Well I was doing the Nacho's, getting all the side dishes ready for King Julien to then rush to the table, as well as handling the hot pan...
And Hubbie? well, he assembled the table and demonstrated how we need to wrap our fajita's!
So how did you spend the Bank Holiday? Have you tried Discovery Fajita's yet?
The Lunchbox Lady and her trusted team of reviewers! x
Note: The Fajita Kit and Garlic and Herb Soured Cream were kindly sent from Discovery for us to review on the Cinco De Mayo. We are grateful the weather was kind! Our opinions are honest and our own.