Well tonight was something different. With Alex's PT test in the morning I tried to keep it super healthy. So I asked him what kind of fish, hoki or tilapia. He chose tilapia. The interesting thing was when I pulled it out of the freezer I realized we had not bought tilapia at the Mexican market...we bought Sea Bass! Score! I wasn't exactly sure what I was gonna do with it. I looked online and thought about something Cuban style. But I couldn't figure out what I would eat with it that would be healthy enough for tonight. I even had the misfortune of finding a Gordan Ramsey youtube video of him cooking it with some gadget to grind the spices.
But I do't like star anise or fennel, so that recipe went right out of the window! I finally decided on macadamia nut crusted. So while I was perusing the wide and vast selection of produce at the Neighborhood Market Wal-Mart....yeah you guessed from my sarcasm there isn't much there at all...I noticed a lovely bunch of beets. That's right....beets. Now go ahead and pick your jaw up off the floor. Xandrea willingly and with purpose bought beets!! Now if you know me at all, you know 5 years ago I would've run in the other direction screaming at the mention of beets. And if you had told me then that a 5 years older version of myself would be making them I would've made a bet and be licking your bare toes today. So I guess it's a good thing I made no such bet.....toe jam isn't exactly my favorite!
But back to beets. So I finally decided to roast them and make a warm beet salad. And let me tell you it was a huge risk.
4 beets, tops and bottoms cut off
2-4T blue cheese, goat cheese, or other strong cheese
2-4T toasted pecans or walnuts
2T olive oil
2T balsamic vinegar
Wrap beets in foil and bake at 400 degrees for about an hour until soft. Unwrap and let cool slightly. Gently rub the outer skins off. Cut into wedges and place on serving dish. Sprinkle cheese and nuts over beet wedges. Drizzle olive oil and vinegar over salad. Serve immediately.
As for the fish...super simple.
2 fish filets
salt and pepper
1/4c crushed macadamia nuts
1/8c panko or regular bread crumbs
2 cloves garlic, minced
Season the fish with salt and pepper. Mix together in a small bowl nuts, panko, and garlic. Heat a large oven safe skiller on medium with olive oil. Lightly sear one side of fish about 5 minutes. After flipping the fish over, top with 1/2 the nut mixture and place whole skillet into a oven at 425 degrees. Cook for another 5 minutes and remove from oven.
Dinner trned out to be fabulous!! Who knew beets could be so dadgum tasty!! The fish was slightly oversalted...my fault there, but the beets were really good. Alex said the only way he had ever had beets was raw, so this was completely new for him. But he really liked them. We both agree that you need a small bite of blue cheese with evry bite. And if it gets too cold it is not quite as good. I believe it eclipsed the fish! Then again maybe it was because the fish was oversalted....hmmm......I'm gonna go with beets were just that good!
I did take a little plate next door to my columbian neighbor. She answered and started laughing. She said the last two things I brought to her house to try were two things she didn't like: eggplant and now beets. But she was up for trying it. She loved it! She couldn't believe how sweet they were and how well they went with the pecans. She did not like blue cheese to begin with so she wasn't crazy about the blue cheese in the dish. It was nice to get a second opinion on a new dish.
I think I will make this again...maybe even for some family members who haven't tried beets or don't want to try beets.....maybe my unsuspecting mother!! HAHA!! So I absolutely recommend trying the beet salad...packed full of vitamins and minerals and tasty to boot!!
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