By now, you’re aware I’m not a fan of breakfast foods… so this post should not be at all surprising at this point.

After my wife left this morning for 30 hours of surgical call, I had trouble falling back asleep. Our dog, Rafiki, wasn’t ready to climb out of my bed at that particular hour, so at 5 a.m. I hit the kitchen by my lonesome.

Determined to make a sans egg breakfast, I searched our fridge for things I could whip together. My eyes lit up when I noticed the three fillets of Tilapia, the cardboard fish. I also spied some cilantro, pickled jalepeno pepper, red onion and tortillas. Yes, Fish Tacos would be my breakfast.

Ingredients:

• 1 fillet of Tilapia (think 6 to 8 oz per serving if you’re increasing the recipe)
• 1 teaspoon of ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon of cayenne pepper
• 1 tablespoon of lime juice
• 1 tablespoon vegetable or olive oil
• 1/8 cup of diced red onion
• 1/8 cup chopped cilantro
• 1/8 cup shredded lettuce or greens
• Diced jalepeno to taste
• Salt & Pepper to taste
• 1 small Roma tomato, seeded and chopped

Preparation:
1. Preheat a grill pan or indoor grill to high heat or if you’re not crazy enough to want to eat fish tacos for breakfast at 5 a.m. you can prepare your outdoor grill. Drizzle fish with extra-virgin olive oil to prevent it from sticking to the grill pan or grill. Season fish with salt and pepper, cayenne and cumin (which adds a really nice smoky richness to the fish) to your taste.

2. As your grill preheats (if you’re indoors) heat a small pan and season two tortillas with salt, pepper and cayenne. Don’t add oil to your pan, but season it and rub tortillas into pan, allowing them to brown and crisp.

2. Grill fish 3 to 4 minutes on each side or until opaque. Squeeze the juice of 1 lime down over the fish and remove from the grill pan or grill. Be sure you’ve rolled the lime on your counter to get the juices flowing.

3.Flake fish into large chunks with a fork and spread on fried tortillas. Add cilantro, salsa, sour cream and your veggies and you’ve got a really quick, really different breakfast.

Another variation would be to simmer the fish in enchilada sauce and then serve it with the tortillas. Either way, it’s a fairly quick and nutritious meal that breaks the normal breakfast molds.

Happy eating.