Parmesan Pesto Broiled Fish

Welcome to a brand new week!  

Hope that your weekend was fabulous and you are re-charged for a new week!

Mine was a great combination of all of the wonderful things in my life!  

Friday night was our annual mom's Christmas shopping adventure, 

which is one of the best gifts in itself, to just have time together!  

In general, we are a pretty low key group, so the fact that we didn't get home until midnight 

speaks volumes about this tradition.  

Good clean fun and lots of laughter!  

The kids formed an assembly line on Saturday to help me with Christmas cards.  

They excitedly stuffed, stamped and labeled the envelopes, 

but no one was willing to seal, so that job came back to me.  

It was so great to see them all smiling and working together,

 even as they called 'switch' to change tasks. 

Another weekend highlight included the Nutcracker collection display at Milton College, 

where we saw a friend's collection along with a couple of the kids' classmates.  

It was also super cool to check out a bit of Milton College, 

something I had only seen or heard of from afar. 

Saturday was also a beautiful winter evening for the Janesville Jolly Jingle Holiday Lights Parade.  

To the best of my knowledge, this was Janesville's first holiday parade and 

we can't wait to see this grow!  

We were excited to check out the holiday events that were planned and 

see lots of familiar faces along the way.  

The flat tire when we got back to the car, however, was not part of our evening plans! 

While the tire was being changed, Alayna and I brainstormed the silver linings, 

including that we were with some wonderful friends who came to the rescue.  

He helped Jerry put on the spare while she dropped off another friend, scoped out dinner spots and ultimately picked up pizza to just hang out at home.  

Just can't complain about those little bumps in the road, when blessings are so abundant!

Now, here we are, back at the start again with another week of meals ahead of us.  

This broiled fish recipe was a huge hit with my whole family!  

The creaminess of the sauce along with the crispness of the cheese was a perfect combination 

to go with any white fish of your choice. 

Best part…it is quick! Ready in just about 10 minutes!  

The fillets of fish are just lightly seasoned with salt and pepper on a baking pan.  

I prefer to line my baking sheets with foil for ease of clean up. 

Pop the fish under the broiler for just about 5 minutes. 

While the fish are getting started, 

so shall the sauce. 

One half cup of mayonnaise, 

one tbsp of Pesto

(this can be store-bought or click here to make your own!)

and one quarter cup of grated Parmesan. 

Finally, add 2 tsp of lemon pepper seasoning.

After the first 5 minutes of broiling, 

top the fish with the sauce and spread into a thin layer, 

then back under the broiler it goes. 

While broiling, 

the sizzling of the cheese could be heard…

music to my ear! 

Love the gorgeous color and texture that came out of the broiler after just 

2-3 minutes. 

Just serve it up with some rice and edamame for a quick, fabulous, healthy weeknight meal!

RECIPE:

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Bake Time: <10 minutes

Serves: 4

Ingredients:

1# of fish fillets of your choice

Salt and Pepper - to taste

1/2 cup of mayonnaise, 

1 tbsp of Pesto

1/4 cup of grated Parmesan

2 tsp Lemon Pepper seasoning

Directions:

Preheat oven to broil. 

Lightly season thawed fish fillets with salt and pepper. 

Broil for 5 minutes or longer for thicker fillets. 

While broiling, mix up mayo, pesto, parm and lemon pepper sauce for topping. 

Remove fish and spread a layer of Parmesan Pesto sauce on top. 

Return to the broiler for 2-3 minutes until the cheese is lightly browned. 

Serve up with your favorite veggie and starch for a healthy, balanced, quick and easy meal.  

Naked Fish Taco Bowl

These naked fish taco bowls were another amazing meal.  Perfect for all seasons and occasions.  

I love making up all the parts of a dish and letting everyone put their own finishing touches on their meal.  Something about that lets everyone feel like they had a hand in the cooking.  

The rice, the beans, the corn, the fish, the toppings...just keeps getting better and better!

I won't keep you waiting any longer….

Started by grilling 4 - 6 oz cod loins over medium heat

then seasoning with chili power, cumin, salt and a little bit of ground red pepper.

(gotta love me some SP.403)

Flip and continue to grill on the other side until the fish were sufficiently 

opaque and flaky.  

Probably about 5-7 minutes on each side.  

Once the fish were done, they were plated and set aside…

in my favorite warming box, the microwave.

Next, it was time to grill up the veggies, right in the same pan.  

One tablespoon minced garlic, 2 cups of corn,

 1 medium onion and 2 medium tomatoes - chopped 

and 1 can of rinsed black beans 

were all tossed together and seasoned with the leftover fish seasonings.  

As for a dressing, just stir up

 1/3 cup sour cream with 1/3 cup salsa and juice from 1/2 of a lime 

for the perfect consistency and flavor. 

To put it all together, this bowl started with about 1/2 cup of cooked rice

and a healthy layer of grilled veggies.

Then the chunks of seasoned and flaky cod…

Finished with a couple of spoonfuls of the creamy salsa dressing, 

as well as some chopped avocado and cilantro.  

So good!

So fresh!

So healthy!  

RECIPE:

Ingredients:

4-6 oz cod loins

Chili power - to taste

Cumin - to taste

Salt - to taste

Ground red pepper - to taste

1 tablespoon minced garlic

2 cups of corn

1 medium onion - chopped

2 medium tomatoes - chopped 

1 can of black beans - rinsed

1/3 cup sour cream

1/3 cup salsa

Juice from 1/2 of a lime 

2.5 cups of Spanish Rice - cooked

1 avocado - chopped

1/4 cup cilantro - chopped

Directions:

Grill the fish over medium heat, season with chili power, cumin, salt and a little ground red, to taste. About 5 minutes per side. 

Once opaque and flaky, remove from pan and keep warm in microwave. 

Then add garlic, corn, onion, tomato and black bean to the pan to grill up. 

While that is grilling, mix up the salsa, sour cream and lime juice dressing.

In a bowl, layer rice, veggies, fish, dressing, top with avocado and cilantro.  

**We can't wait for Naked Fish Taco Bowl night again in our house!**

Fish Tacos and AWESOME Sauce

Happy almost spring!  I'm sure that you are at least as excited about it as I am!

I have been humbled, to say the least, by all of the positive reviews of the corned beef casserole.  It has left me at a bit of a loss, as how do I follow my biggest recipe yet.  That is a huge feat, as generally I have a dozen recipes up my sleeve, ready to go, but not this time.

Well, they are there, but I surely don't want to disappoint all of you corned beef lovers out there.

In fact, I've spent a lot of time contemplating...do I switch gears completely and go with a dessert as to not even attempt to compete with the Irish dish?  Do I go with a pasta salad, gearing up for spring picnics and get togethers?  Or stick with the season and go with fish.  Yep, that's the ticket.

Fish is not a seasonal meal for us, or maybe it is...EVERY season!  We love fish...grilled, baked, broiled, boiled, pan fried, in soups and even raw, for all of you sushi lovers out there.

One of my favorite entrees to order out has become a household staple, fish tacos.  They are easy, light, filling and fresh.  I love all of the textures and favors that can be wrapped up into one lil tortilla for a fabulous meal.

The secret for an amazing fish taco is AWESOME SAUCE!  Creamy, spicy, tangy and cool, the perfect accent to finish the dish.

Before I start the fish, let's get the sauce whipped up so that all of the spices have a chance to come alive, as they absorb moisture.  Other terms for that would be hydrate or meld, but they sound so technical.  I prefer come alive!

So, into my favorite, yellow, old-school, 6-cup, Rubbermaid, handled mixing bowl, I start by combining 1/2 cup sour cream with 1/3 cup mayonnaise and 1 tbsp lemon juice.

Then comes the real fun, especially for someone who used to develop seasonings! I went through my spices and poured a random amount of anything that intrigued me into the palm of my hand.  I generally adjust the amount according to my own personal affinity for a given spice.

For duplication purposes, I'd say nearly 1 tsp each of ground coriander, dill weed, ground oregano, garlic, chili pepper and black pepper.  More like a half teaspoon of cumin and red pepper.  I'm acutely aware of how too much cumin can ruin a dish and if I go too crazy with the red pepper, I'm just giving my kids an excuse for not eating their dinner.

Don't let all those spices intimidate you, for simplicity purposes, you could just use a seasoning blend that you already have in your cupboard.  Some examples might be Old Bay, lemon herb, lemon rosemary or Adobo seasonings.

Whip this all up together and then, add my secret weapon...dill pickle juice to thin the sauce to your preferred consistency.  I went with 3 tbsp of the flavorful nectar, as I really appreciate the tang that it brings to the sauce and I have it in my head that fish tacos are supposed to be messy.  The sauce running down my hand is a sign of a great taco!

The sauce is set a aside to come alive and the fish is prepared.  This time I used Pollock, but not sure I'd recommend that, as it was a little too flaky during the preparation process.  I've used Tilapia on the past and recall it being a bit more user friendly. Really, any fish that suits your fancy or that you have on hand works great in these tacos, especially with the AWESOME sauce!

The thawed fillets were cut into tender-sized pieces for ease of breading, cooking and eating.  The breading was the beloved Shore Lunch, a family favorite for years of shrimp and fish fries.

Just pour a packet into a loaf pan, or something similar sized, but nothing deeper.  The higher the sides the harder to handle.

All I was going for was a quick, single layer in order to provide texture and a little flavor to the fish.

With the pan lightly coated with 3-4 tbsp lemon-infused oil, love using flavored oils for stuff like this, be sure it is nice and HOT before adding the fish.  The high temps keep the breading crisp and deliver a nice color.

Since the fish tenders are small, it only takes a few minutes on each side to achieve the opaque color and flaky texture, which are the key signs of doneness.

Then, transfer to a towel lined plate, to cool or just hang out while the second batch is cooking.

To put all of this deliciousness together, one layer of crispy fish tenders are arranged on a warm corn tortilla.  A small amount of dry coleslaw mix is sprinkle over the fish and the AWESOME sauce is applied as generously as you like.

 Fold 'n' go! They are ready to be devoured.

I can only hope your family enjoys them as much as ours does.

RECIPE

Awesome (Fish Taco)Sauce
1/2 cup sour cream
1/3 cup mayonnaise 
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp each of ground coriander
1 tsp dill weed
1 tsp ground oregano
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp ground red pepper
2-3 tbsp dill pickle juice

Mix all of the ingredients together and set aside while preparing fish.

Crispy Fish Tenders
4 fillets of fish of your choice, cut into tenders
1 packet of Shore Lunch (Fish breading/batter mix) 
4 tbsp of your favorite high temperature oil, garlic or lemon infused is nice

Lightly bread tenders with Shore Lunch and pan fry for 4 minutes on each side until opaque and flaky.

Fish Taco
Corn Tortillas
Pan Fried Fish
Coleslaw Mix
Awesome Sauce

Assemble, according to order listed above, and enjoy!