Quick and Healthy Mediterranean Style Tilapia

If you are like me, the last thing you feel like doing after a long day is spending hours getting a healthy, delicious dinner on the table. This dish can be prepared in as little as 30 minutes and is healthy as well as beautiful. I do love pretty food! The ingredients are simple and easy to obtain and the preparation can be shortened by buying bagged, washed spinach and precut veggies. This dish can be made for one as well as a crowd, and you can play around with the ingredients, by adding or omitting the vegetables and playing around with the amount of garlic and herbs and adjusting the seasonings. You can also substitute haddock or cod for the tilapia.
You will need:
4-6 tilapia fillets (depending on the number to be served)
1 bag of prewashed spinach
1 red pepper sliced into sticks
2 medium tomatoes coarsely chopped or 1 15 oz can drained (I used a red and a yellow because thats what I had on hand)
1 small onion thinly sliced
fresh or dried oregano (1 1/2 tsp dried or 1 TBS fresh) If you are like me you don't really measure anyway
1 lemon sliced ( I used a meyer lemon because I love the subtle sweetness)
salt and pepper to taste
1 tbs minced garlic
2 tbs olive oil
1/3 cup white wine (you can substitute chicken or seafood broth, or the juice from canned tomatoes)
DIRECTIONS:
Season fish with salt and pepper
In large frying pan heat olive oil over medium heat
Add onions, peppers, tomatoes. garlic and oregano and saute until onion is translucent ( about 5 min.)
Add spinach (It will wilt down so don't worry if it seems like a lot)
When spinach is wilted add liquid and bring to boil over high heat
Reduce heat to medium-low and place seasoned fish fillets on top of veggies , top with lemon slices and cover with lid or foil
Cook over med-low heat for 15-20 minutes (depending on thickness of fish)
Fish is done when it is opaque and flakes easily with a fork
I served this with rice but pasta makes a wonderful accompaniment to this dish and makes use of the wonderful sauce the tomatoes and herbs create.

Simple Pleasures and Rediscovered Treasures

Sometimes the most delicious food you eat is food that has history. Our backyard holds many secret treasures. There are several pecan trees that bear every other fall and a rather frail looking peach tree that seems to sag under the weight of the small peaches it presents us with each year. The fig tree in the very back of the yard is a favorite spot for the boys to play under in the summer and the pomegranate tree is watched longingly by the boys (and me) for signs that fruit is forthcoming. This house was built by J's grandfather and lovingly tended for many years so that we can enjoy these things. J often tells stories of helping his grandfather in the garden, planting and weeding and hoeing. He talks of the things he learned at his grandfathers side as they tended the tomatoes and peppers and greens. He spent his childhood in this backyard. As I watch my boys spend their childhood in this backyard I realize that J's grandfather knew they would be here one day. He knew that just like their dad, they too, would rescue the few tiny, gloriously sweet peaches from the birds and ants. He knew also that they would be watching that pomegranate tree like hawks from the appearance of that first bright orange bloom until late summer when the fruit hangs heavy on the tree and can be eaten on the back porch with juice from the jewel like sweetness staining hands and mouths. He foresaw his great-grandchildren solemnly presenting me with grocery bags full of thin shelled pecans and asking if this is enough for both a pie and brownies. As J's grandfather tended the backyard with his grandson he knew that someday J would camp out in this same backyard with his children on warm nights when the smell of honeysuckle is so thick and heavy in the air, you can taste it on the back of your tongue. J's grandfather knew that one day J would watch his children rediscover the very same treasures that J found in this backyard as a boy. As I watch my sons brave the blackberry brambles that run along the fence and weave through the hedges to pick the tiny jewels or listen to them wonder aloud how many peaches we think we can rescue this year, I am thankful for this wonderful gift, for these treasures. I am thankful for the legacy left for J and our boys.

Bolognese sauce, roasted eggplant and my favorite spring salad

Today for lunch I made myself a gorgeous spring mix salad with fresh strawberries from Dekalb County Farmers Market and toasted pecans (not from our trees, but still tasty). Since I was home all day I decided to make a Bolognese sauce and finally use those herbs I've been growing. It was well worth the effort of using fresh roma tomatoes as well as canned, crushed tomatoes and well worth the 3 hours of simmering to get that deep, rich color and flavor that only fresh ingredients and time can provide. El Chupa Cabra , my 4 year old rarely eats anything out of the preschoolers 4 food groups of chicken nuggets, mac and cheese, bacon, or hot pockets, but he likes my bolognese sauce. Could it be because it is chock full of pepperoni? I know pepperoni isn't traditionally found in a classic bolognese, but I am not a traditional kind of girl. I also made some heavenly roasted eggplant that we found at the farmers market as well. Olive oil, kosher salt, fresh cracked pepper and 20 minutes in a 450 degree oven is all it took. I can't wait for dinner! (click on the photos to embiggen and experience the full yumminess) When cooking with herbs it is a good rule of thumb to add dried herbs early in the process to release all of their flavor and fresh herbs at the end as the flavors tend to fade during long cooking and adding them about 15 -20 minutes before the dish is done not only brightens the flavors of the dish, but adds a lovely touch of color!

Ingredients:

1-1/2 lbs of ground beef

1 large can of crushed italian style tomatoes (about 20 oz)

1 large can of diced tomatoes

1 med. onion chopped

3-4 roma tomatoes roughly chopped

3-4 cloves or 2 TBS garlic minced (if you like garlic use more)

2TBS italian seasoning or 2 sprigs fresh oregano removed from stem and chopped and about 6 leaves of fresh basil (shredded)

1 small pkg pepperoni (optional)

1/2 cup of good red wine (optional)

1 bell pepper chopped

1-2 TBS olive oil

1-2 bay leaves (2 if small)

In a large pot heat olive oil over med. heat

Add onions, peppers, garlic and pepperoni and saute until onion is translucent. Take care not to burn the garlic.

Add ground beef, season with salt pepper, italian seasoning (if using dried) and adjust the heat to high stirring to break up meat.

When meat is no longer pink, drain

Add fresh and canned tomatoes,bay leaf and wine (if using)

Lower heat to low, cover and simmer anywhere from 45 minutes to 3 hours making sure to stir every so often or the sauce might stick. If using fresh herbs add them about ten minutes before turning off the heat.

Serve over pasta . Spaghetti, rigatoni and ziti are all great for holding on to this meaty sauce.