Saturday night I finished a pretty big take-home exam. It was closed-book, which I think is just mean...but anyway, I survived it! After a week of studying, my fridge was getting kind of empty. Now empty is definitely a relative term. I've seen some very empty fridges. And mine always has something in it. But on Sunday, nothing looked good to make into dinner. Of course, this meant I had to look through all of the ads for nearby grocery stores to see who had the best deals. And Harris Teeter had tilapia on sale! I love tilapia - it isn't too "fishy," it's always cheap, and it's easy to cook. I looked through my recipes and found one that sounded amazing - Parmesan Crusted Tilapia with Tomato-Basil Cream Sauce. I found the recipe at
Life's Ambrosia, one of the blogs I read regularly. Des said she served it with mashed potatoes, so I decided why not - I'll try two of her recipes!
I made a few changes, but mostly because of what I happened to have, and because of the time of year. For the fish - I used frozen cubes of basil instead of fresh, half-and-half instead of cream, plus I doubled the amount of fish, tomatoes and garlic but left everything else was fine. It worked out perfectly. I bought a pound of fish - 4 fillets. Which means I have dinner for almost the entire week. It's holding up pretty well, too. I think next time I would use less oil for the sauce, or maybe use butter instead? I don't think my cream liked mixing with the oil. The sauce is delicious - I think it would make a great pasta sauce as well, maybe with some shrimp? The tomatoes are perfect in it - they're little bursts of sweetness throughout the sauce. This would be even better with fresh basil, over the summer.
For the mashed potatoes - I used 1/4 cup instead of 1/2 cup of half-and-half. And I used kerrygold butter. I was expecting the butter to turn it into something extraordinary, but I don't think I could tell a difference between that and the regular old stuff. After the first night, I decided it needed a little extra something, so I added more s&p, and grated some aged white cheddar on top (leftover from my
mac n cheese). I was really excited to make the mashed potatoes, since I had just bought a potato masher from The Happy Cook! It's cute, and fun to use.
Parmesan Crusted Tilapia with Tomato-Basil Cream Sauce (adapted from
Life's Ambrosia)
Ingredients:
6 tbsp olive oil
4 cloves garlic, minced
30 grape tomatoes, halved
1/2 cup half-and-half
2 cubes (2 tsp) frozen chopped basil
4 tilapia fillets (1 lb)
kosher salt and freshly cracked pepper
1/4 cup flour
1 egg, beaten
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup panko breadcrumbs
1/2 tsp granulated garlic
Directions:
Heat 2 tbsp of olive oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and cook 1-2 minutes. Add grape tomatoes and basil and cook for 10 minutes, until the tomatoes have released their juices. Reduce heat to medium low and add half-and-half. Let simmer for 15 minutes (or as long as you need to get everything ready).
Meanwhile, heat 2 tbsp of olive oil in a skillet large enough to fit two fillets.
Rinse and pat dry the tilapia fillets.
Combine the flour, salt and pepper in a flat dish.
Put the beaten egg in another flat dish.
Combine the parmesan, panko and garlic in a third flat dish.
Dredge the fillets in the seasoned flour. Shake off excess. Dip in egg. Press into parmesan/panko mixture.
Place in heated skillet, two at a time, and cook 3-4 minutes per side. (Thicker pieces may take longer to fully cook.) Fish will be golden brown and will flake easily when done.
Add another 2 tbsp to the skillet, and repeat with the remaining 2 fillets.
Lay fish on a serving platter and spoon sauce over the top.
Creamy Mashed Potatoes (adapted from
Life's Ambrosia)
Ingredients:
2 lbs russet potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks (I left the peel on mine, it's up to you)
3 tbsp butter
1/4 cup half-and-half
salt and pepper to taste
Any extras - I added some white cheddar cheese
Directions:
In a large saucepan, add enough water to cover the potatoes. Boil until they are fork tender. Warning - the water tends to get really foamy and attempts to boil over. When they are soft, drain the water and put them back in the pot. Add the butter, half-and-half, salt and pepper, and mash until light and fluffy. Add your desired extras, and fold in.
(Picture with my extra cheese on top!)
Posts
