Tilapia is a mild, white fish that usually picks up the flavor of what it is cooked in. It is inexpensive as well - but often because it is farmed.
This is a dish based on an Olive Garden recipe combining herbs, tomatoes and tilapia.

Ingredients

Directions

1. Rinse fish, pat dry. Season both sides of fish fillets with salt and pepper, set aside on plate.

2. Combine garlic, onion and basil in small food chopper and pulse until chopped.

3. Heat oil on medium in a large skillet. Add chopped vegetables and sauté until they begin to soften.

4. Add tomatoes and cook until they are fully cooked. If you used the canned tomatoes, simmer for about 2 minutes.

5. Add wine & oregano, cook 1 minute more.

6. Add broth and cook 1 minute more. (Shown at right is our sauce simmering with some added brussel sprouts to have as a side dish.)

7. Add fish to sauce. Sauce should barely cover fish. Simmer until fish is cooked throughout. This usually takes about 6 minutes on one side, then flip it for 6-8 more minutes on the other side. You’ll know when it is done because the fish will be white and easy to flake with a fork.

Serve fish with wild rice or over whole wheat angel hair pasta. Spoon sauce over the top. Make it a meal with french cut green beans on the side.

For those of you who don’t need real recipes and just like to play around in the kitchen, here’s one for you:

When the kids make their school lunches, they don’t eat the end pieces of the loaf of bread, so we save them in the freezer. I defrosted a bunch of slices of whole wheat bread (8?) and a banana (if you find a banana getting too old on the counter, just freeze it and bake with it later). 

Mash the banana. Tear up the bread in little pieces in a large glass bowl. Add a few eggs, a bit of milk, sprinkle on cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger.

Cook it up in a buttered pan like french toast and serve with maple syrup, almond slices and raisins.

So much faster than baking bread pudding in the oven! And keeps your kitchen cooler too!

I went shopping for bok choy at my local, organic store - but every bunch seemed sad and wilted. Instead I bought baby bok choy and created this yummy, chilled lunch with an Asian twist.

Ingredients

• 1 package ramen noodles (any flavor)
• 1 TB Rice wine vinegar
• 1 TB Red Wine vinegar
• 1 tsp ground ginger
• 1/2 of 10 oz. can mandarin oranges (look for those NOT packed in syrup), separated fruit/liquid
• 1 head baby bok choy, chopped
• 1 carrot, chopped
• 1 TB chopped onion
• 1 cooked chicken breast - shredded, or one large can chicken
• 2 TB sesame seeds

Directions

1. Unwrap a block of ramen noodles. Throw away the seasoning packet. Break noodles up with hands in bottom of large bowl.
2. Pour 1 TB Rice wine vinegar, 1 TB Red Wine vinegar and 1 tsp ground ginger on noodles. Toss well. Noodles will begin to soften.
3. Add mandarin oranges and juice. Here’s what we did: open a 10-11 oz. can of mandarin oranges packed in pear juice (not sugary syrup). Drain the juice into a measuring cup. Add half of the oranges into the bowl with the ramen noodles. Add 1/4 cup of the juice from the can. Place remaining oranges and juice in container and refrigerate for a future use.
3. Chop baby bok choy into bite-size pieces. Use leaf and stem. Stems can be chopped as small as you like. Add to bowl on top of ramen noodle mixture. (Don’t toss yet, we want the noodles in the liquid)
4. Drain chicken, add to bowl on top of bok choy. Add chopped carrot and onion. Add sesame seeds.
5. Toss the whole salad. By now the ramen noodles will have softened and salad is ready to serve or can be refrigerated and eaten over the next 2 days.

Also great with: 1/2 C french cut green beans, 1 TB teriyaki sauce, or replacing the ramen noodles with 1-2 cups wheatberries