Pepper and Parm Crusted Halibut with Cherry Tomato Basil Sauce

Unexpected company is almost always a good thing.  Except when your studio apartment is destroyed after laundry day or you've been busy cheffing the night before, but too lazy to have yet done the dishes.  Which, I have to admit, dish laziness is becoming a real issue round these parts.  I love cooking, but seriously, I am so over doing dishes.  Eating by yourself + no dishwasher = real motivational problems.

So when I had unexpected company AND a relatively clean apartment, I was psyched.  But even more psyched because I looked like a domestic diva when I "spontaneously" whipped up this easy fish dish below.  That and I had a fabulous bottle of chilled white on hand to compliment it. 

(But we all know that this sista is a planner.  Shhhhhhhhh.... I prefer to bask in spontaneous adoration.)

Pepper and Parm Crusted Whitefish with Cherry Tomato Basil Sauce (as adapted from Rachael Ray)

Sauce

• 2 Tbsp EVOO
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 large shallot
• 1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
• a few basil leaves, torn
• salt and pepper

Fish

• 2/3 cup of cornmeal, or parmesean bread crumbs
• 1/4 cup grated parm-reggiano cheese
• course black pepper
• 4 8 oz halibut fillets or other white fish
• EVOO
• balsamic vinegar

Ready to get after it?  Let's go.

 

Heat 2 tablespoons EVOO over medium heat. Add the garlic and shallot and stir for a couple of minutes to saute and get some aromas going to get your mouth watering. Add the tomatoes and basil and saute for 10 to 15 minutes.  The goal here is to break down the tomatoes, getting a sauce 'ablending.

Mix the cornmeal with the cheese and black pepper.  I realized that corn starch and corn meal aren't substitutes for each other, so I made a game time decision and went with bread crumbs.

Side note:  Anytime I say bread crumbs, I start giggling.  In Thailand, there was a menu that listed one of the ingredients as "Bread Grumbs".  BREAD GRUMBS!  Ha.  There was also a menu item called Cream Cheese Magaroni and Fried Chicken, kentuky style.  bahahahaha.  Oh Thailand, your english interpretations crack me up.  I know, you kinda had to be there, but trust me, we couldn't stop laughing our asses off.  Then we proceeded to have the second worst meal of the trip.

You can cook the fish one of two ways:

As Rachael Ray does:
Add the fish (to corn meal mixture) and turn to coat. Heat a thin layer of EVOO in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the fish and cook, turning once, until crisp and brown all over, 8 to 10 minutes.

Or as Kelley does:
Coat fish in bread grumbs and bake at 375 for 8 to 10 minutes.  Rachael goes for crispy, I go for baked. 

Once done, top the fish with the tomato deliciousness and drizzle with some balsamic.  Done and Done.

I was too hungry to appropriately take anytime to plate this for pictures, but there was a bottle of Kim Crawford calling my name.  Anyone who knows me knows that Kim is my favorite bottle of wine and I cannot be stopped in it's consumption - even if you're on glass 5 at $12 a glass on a Tuesday night.

However, you'll have to trust me, this was more YUM-O that the pictures indicate.


 

 

 

 

 

 

Crusted Seared Ahi Tuna

I love Ahi Tuna.  I love it more at restaurants... but if you want to make it at home, it's pretty easy.  A little intimidating because it is best served rare/raw/pink, but it's nothing even a beginner can't handle.  I buy the frozen stuff because it's more affordable.  I am not yet too refined that I snub my noise at frozen fish.  I get it - it's definitely better, but this sista is on a budget.

Crusted Seared Ahi Tuna:
Fresh or Frozen Ahi Tuna
Olive Oil
Egg
Parmesan Bread Crumbs

Quickly rinse your piece of tuna and pat dry.

Lightly whisk an egg in a bowl.

Pour some bread crumbs into another bowl.  Feel free to add a bit of parmesan cheese, salt and pepper.

Like an assemble line, thorough dip the ahi tuna steaks into the egg, ensuring that you coat all sides thoroughly.  Then dip into the bread crumbs, also making sure you cover all sides.

Ready!

Heat olive oil in a pan on medium heat until hot. You know it's ready when you flick water into the pan and it sizzles.

Tsssssssszzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz....................

Slightly too charred..... I call it "Crusted".

Place ahi tuna into pan to sear for several minutes on either side.  Once you place in the pan, DO NOT MOVE.  This allows for better searing and creating a char.

Full Disclosure:  I left mine for too long.... and the pan smoked.... and I set off my fire alarms.

TWICE.

Nothing says Kitchen Amatuer than standing on your bed waving a bed pillow in front of the fire alarm.  Groan.

Flip and sear on the other side.  The middle should be pink.  Pink = Fabulous.  Enjoy!

Satisfying!

Hawaiian Mahi Mahi

I got lucky tonight.

And not with a man (tear!), but instead with what I had in my cupboards. I searched for a mahi mahi recipe on Big Oven (on my iphone) and struck gold with the recipe below.





Ingredients:
Dash of olive oil ( or you can use butter)
1 tsp. garlic (fresh chopped works wells too)
1 tsp honey
1 tsp teriyaki
2 tsp lemon juice
1 mahi mahi fillet






















Easy enough - pour a dash of olive oil into the pan.















Toss in that 1tsp of garlic. (Tip: I prefer the stuff in jar. If I chop or press the fresh stuff, I feel like my fingers smell like it for days.)















Stove on, medium high. Let the aroma party begin!

















Let the garlic brown up. Turn off the heat when browned.















Perfection. Add 1 tsp teriyaki. This can range. Just use the teriyaki sauce of your choosing.
















Add 2 tsp lemon juice. I love this stuff in the plastic lemon. Real lemons don't keep long enough (to use for one person) and you can't really tell the difference.

















Add 1 tsp honey.

Wave HI over enthusiastically to your neighbor in the courtyard from your window (even though you don't know him). Pretend he is Bradley Cooper and that he's been secretly stalking your kitchen skills. Pretend your buzzer will ring and he will show up with a bottle of Kim Crawford asking you to make him a lasagna dinner. Oh. He's just a regular guy parking his car in your courtyard where cars get robbed? Who cares? Have another glass of wine and keep daydreaming.


















Don't be scccurrreed. mix it up! Make it even, make it nice.



















Mahi Mahi. Due to both my budget and my "cooking for one", I prefer frozen mahi. I got this at whole paychex for $8.99 and it contains two servings at 150 calories each. Typically, I find this at a MA grocery store for $7.99 or thereabouts. I defrost in hot water in a bowl or leave in the fridge when I go to work. Some of my friends don't do frozen fish, but I typically find it to do just as well in any recipe.

Despite it being packaged, make sure you open and wash. Pat completely dry. This allows the marinade to fully soak in.

















Add the marinade mix to the fish. If you are doing two servings you should probably double the recipe for the marinade. Let this sit for 30 minutes. (I kept spooning and flipping to allow for maximum marination.)














There are different ways to cook this fish. You can grill it if you are one of the lucky people to have access to one. Or, if you live in a 350 square foot studio with no outside access space, you can sear it like I chose to do. Just heat up the pan (add a little EVOO, if need be), make sure it's HOT, HOT, HOT, and then add your fish to the pan. Dump all the extra marinade in as well. It will reduce and add nice flavor.

Yes. Allow a few minutes for each side to sear on medium heat. You can watch the sear from the side of the fish. You will see it go from opaque to white. Once it's halfway through -

FLIP! By now the marinade is reducing. Spoon back into the middle. Allow to sear for a few more minutes. (I think in total I did mine 8 minutes). Check fish by cutting down the thickest part. Fish should be white.

Serve. This meal looks boring. I served it with rice pilaf from a box. (It took 25 minutes and the fish was way tastier.) When you bite into the fish, it should be moist, but not slimy. If it feels slimy or slippery, it needs a few more minutes to cook. I love the sweet taste of this. I typically do not like honey, but the honey in this marinade blends nicely and you can't single it out.

Ewww. The downfall of living in that 350 sq foot apartment is that there is no dishwasher and everyday I am stuck with this. Enter wine.

Calorie count: 300 ish.