Growing up in Ohio, the 5th of May just came and went like any other day.  When I first moved to California, this day came and there was much ado about it everywhere. Cinco de what-o? was my initial reaction. But now that I’ve lived here 20 years (wow, just did the math on that one, and I surprised myself), a little Mexican fare is almost obligatory on this much-feted day.

This year though, we had been doing kid stuff all weekend down in San Diego and returned home late Sunday afternoon. Cinco had just snuck up on me.  What to make? I decided to pull out a quick and easy one, and a definite crowd pleaser in our house – fish tacos!

A while back we discovered a winning sauce combination and THAT is what makes these such a favorite in the house.  The 3 year old was once heard proclaiming at the table on fish taco night, “I could eat fish tacos every single night, Mom.”

So here’s the dish on the secret sauce – equal parts mayo and sour cream (we usually do 1/2 cup of each) mixed with the juice of 1 lime and about a Tbsp. of fresh grated lime zest. Try it and you won’t regret it.

The second thing that makes these a fav among the kids, is that they get the joy of assembling their own taco – think culinary Legos. So I serve up lots of options when I serve fish tacos – fresh cabbage (my personal favorite), grated cheese, salsa, corn and beans, cilantro, avocado, rice, and lime wedges to name a few.

While I am prepping all of my accompaniments for the tacos, I have the fish cooking in the oven.  I prefer using Trader Joe’s Breaded Cod Fillets, but really any fish choice will work. After the fish is

crispy, I just cut it into shred-like pieces.

The kids plates look a little different than mine as they create their own taco concoctions, but at least they’re getting a healthy Cinco dinner no matter how it ends up on the plate.

Happy Cinco de Mayo . . . or any other day that “assembling” seems more appealing than “cooking” to you!