Pan Fried Trout with Tomato Basil Saute

Courtesy of Cooking Light

Rainbow trout is one of my favorite types of fish -- I know it's simple and basic, but when you can find it fresh, it's so yummy. This recipe looked light and healthy, so I thought I'd give it a go. It was fantastic! I could've easily eaten seconds -- and thirds. The pancetta really makes this a delicious dish. This would be great with a side of vegetables or rice. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

• 2 ounces chopped pancetta (I used Boar's Head -- always a great choice)
• 2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic 
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, divided
• 1/2 teaspoon salt, divided
• 1/4 cup small basil leaves
• 1 tablespoon canola oil, divided 
• 4 (6-ounce) trout fillets, divided
• 4 lemon wedges

Directions:

1. Heat pancetta in a medium skillet over low heat. Cook 4 minutes or just until pancetta begins to brown. Add cherry tomatoes, garlic, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, and 1/8 teaspoon salt; cook for 3 minutes or until tomatoes begin to soften. Remove from heat, and stir in basil leaves.
2. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1 1/2 teaspoons oil to pan; swirl to coat. Sprinkle fish evenly with remaining 1/2 teaspoon pepper and remaining 3/8 teaspoon salt. Add 2 fillets to pan; cook 2 minutes on each side or until fish flakes easily when tested with a fork. Remove fish from pan; keep warm. Repeat procedure with remaining 1 1/2 teaspoons oil and remaining 2 fillets. Top fish with tomato mixture. Serve fish with lemon wedges.

Poached Halibut with Lemon-Herb Sauce

Halibut Courtesy of Cooking Light
Snap Peas Courtesy of Plated Perfection

Greetings! I hope everyone is off to a good 2014! What better way to kick it off than cooking healthy, light meals for dinner? Now that we have a wedding on the horizon, we're really trying to make an effort to be healthy -- at least during the week ;) I saw some fresh fish today and had to have it. This recipe had been on my mind, so I figured it would be a good chance to try it out! At first, it sounded kind of strange to me, to be honest, but it ended up delightful! Definitely give this a shot :) I had some of the sauce left over, so I'm going to save that and put it on some other things this week -- it would be great on scallops, or any other seafood! I served this with some sauteed snap peas. Enjoy!

Halibut Ingredients:

• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 1/2 tablespoons chopped seeded jalapeño pepper
• 1 tablespoon grated lemon rind
• 1 1/2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 4 teaspoons chopped fresh cilantro
• 4 teaspoons chopped fresh parsley
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3 lemon sections, finely chopped 
• 6 cups water
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon black peppercorns
• 2 green onions, coarsely chopped
• 1 parsley sprig
• 1 cilantro sprig
• 4 (6-ounce) halibut fillets 

Snap Peas Ingredients:

• Package of snap peas 
• dash of salt and pepper
• dash of Italian seasoning
• 1/4 cup chicken broth (low sodium)
• dash of lemon juice

Directions:

1. Combine first 8 ingredients.
2. Combine water and next 5 ingredients (through cilantro sprig) in a large skillet; bring to a low simmer (180° to 190°). Add fish; cook 10 minutes or until desired degree of doneness.
3. Heat 1 tb olive oil in a saute pan and add the peas. Add in the rest of the ingredients and stir. Cook on medium heat for about 5-10 minutes, depending on how you like them.
4. Remove fish from pan with a slotted spoon; drain on paper towels. Serve with sauce and peas.