Spring is in the air on my mind.

I am looking out my window at 6:30am, and the only reason it can’t possibly be February is that it’s already light out.  Other than that, the diagonal rain lashing at the window speaks more of mid-winter here in our little rainforest, instead of where we should be — walking the dog in short sleeves – late in this season of renewal.

Of course, it hasn’t all been dismal grey.  The sun has poked it head through the clouds for a few days here and there, but at this point, the anticipation stage needs to be over and the warmth stage needs to begin.

Perhaps if we start making the lighter dishes of summer, the weather will follow suit.  We can only hope.

You’ll find the recipe for these on my “other” blog.  You know about that one, right?

Outlander Kitchen is my other labour of love, where I bring the food from the pages of Diana Gabaldon’s best-selling Outlander Series to your screen and dinner table.  Follow WWII nurse Claire Beauchamp Randall Fraser on a wild time-traveling ride through 18th Century Scotland and back again.  Along the way, you’ll encounter authentic historical recipes, modern interpretations, as well as some character-inspired dishes that keep the journey fun and light.

These tuna tacos are a riff on OK’s recipe for Baja Fish Tacos inspired by book 4 in the series, Drums of Autumn.

If you like a good ripping yarn, a romantic tale, historical fiction, fantasy or pretty much any other genre, chances are you’ll find something in Outlander.

And that’s my literary recommendation of the day. :D

The entire dish, including making the tortillas, took me less than 45 minutes, working leisurely with a glass of white in hand.

Make the corn tortillas first, rolling and stacking them between sheets of wax paper or plastic. (Wax paper is easier to handle, and it’s easy to fold it up for reuse later.)  Cook them, as instructed, in a hot dry cast iron pan and wrap them inside a tea towel to keep warm.

Then, with the cast iron pan on staying warm on medium-low in preparation for the tuna, make the white sauce (mayo-based) and toss together the slaw.

Increase the heat under the pan to med-high, roll the loin in the spices, then sear all 3 sides of the fish for 2-3 minutes.   Rest the tuna off the heat while you assemble the tortillas and slaw on a plate.  Slice the fish on a slight diagonal, about 1/4″ thick, lay on top of the slaw and drizzle with sauce.

Sound easy?  It really was — and over the top delicious — and if you don’t have access to tuna, keep heart.  These are also delicious with cod and halibut (and I suspect salmon would be mighty fine too).