Tilapia Oreganata & Jazzed Up Whole Wheat Pasta

Sunday is typically my day to do food shopping in the morning – on my own. Yesterday was different because my Husband wanted to join me on my weekly trip to the produce market. Of course, this meant both of my boys were coming as well. Normally, I have my list and I may buy one or two extra things that just look really appealing… I don’t think I have to tell you how many “extras” I bought yesterday! One consolation is that we were at the produce market so the choices were all healthy and the prices can’t be beat! As long as they eat the fruits and veggies, I am not going to complain.

After the produce market is the trip to the grocery store. Fortunately, my list was very short so, I ran in on my own. I couldn’t help but cruise by the fish counter to see if something appealing was in and to see how fresh everything looked. I was in luck! The tilapia was fresh and on sale- now, even though we are on the East Coast that does not always happen so I was very quick to ask the nice man for some fillets.

Now, even though the tilapia was an impulse purchase, I did have a recipe in mind for it. Some time ago, I tried a recipe from my Weight Watchers Make it in Minutes cookbook and it was so simple and so good and I just knew that would make the perfect light dinner. The recipe is Flounder Oreganta, but as you already know I bought tilapia which is a nice substitute for flounder in this recipe. With a bit of EVOO, lemon juice, bread crumbs, chopped parsley and oregano all mixed together you have this nice coating to press on to the fillets. Fish fillets are fairly thin so they really don’t take long to bake, so it’s wise to do a quick check after about 8-9 minutes to see how they are doing. The bread crumb mixture provides this bit of crunch with each bite. You can vary the mixture based on your personal tastes and what you have on hand. I have used Italian seasoned bread crumbs before and it’s been “lick your plate clean” good, when I have used that variation.

In my continuing effort to make whole wheat pasta more palatable to my family (read: Husband), I decided to make a quick sauté of garlic and finely diced shallots. There really is no recipe for it since I just kind of threw it together. I used a small non-stick skillet heated with about 1 tablespoon EVOO. I tossed in the garlic and shallots and sautéed until softened. Then, tossed the garlic and shallot mixture with the cooked and drained pasta. My Husband really enjoyed it, so score one for me! It jazzed it up just enough to make the pasta more interesting and more flavorful than just drizzling a bit of extra virgin olive oil on it.

Tilapia Oreganata



Flounder Oreganta

Recipe by adapted from Weight Watchers Make it in Minutes

Ingredients
  • 4 (6 oz) flounder fillets - any mild white flesh fish can be substituted
  • 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  • 3/4 cup plain dried bread crumbs (Italian seasoned bread crumbs make a perfect substitution)
  • 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
  • 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
  • 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
Cooking Directions
  1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Cover a baking sheet with foil and then spray with non-stick spray.

  2. Place the fillets on the baking sheet.

  3. Combine remaining ingredients (extra virgin olive oil through oregano) in a bowl.

  4. Press the bread crumb mixture into the fish fillets making sure they are covered.

  5. Bake until the fish is just opaque in the center, about 10 minutes.

Comments

test it comm said…
The crust on the tilapia looks nice an crisp and tasty. I normally use the whole wheat pasta. I like both the taste and the texture of it.
Jaime said…
i love the shrimp oreganata at maggiano's so i don't see why i wouldn't love it with fish :)
Leah said…
I have that cookbook too -- it's pretty good although I've never tried the tilapia recipe -- yours looks really yummy! I also have the WW "Take Out Tonight" cookbook; it's excellent!
Cate said…
Mmmm, love tilapia. Always dangerous to take the family to the grocery store. ;)
Looks great...I hope your husband appreciates your efforts! I have a picky eater at home as well, and it's a constant struggle. I'm working on getting him to eat tomatoes, but it's not going well.
Patsyk said…
Kevin - I am starting to enjoy the ww pasta more now, a bonus for me is I feel more satisfied at the end of the meal with less pasta.

Jaime - thanks for stopping by! Do give this one a try, you'll be coming back for more!

Leah - that cookbook is on my list to by next time I get to add to my growing collection!

Cate - That's why I usually shop on my own... it's also my "quiet" time while I figure out what we'll be eating for the week.

Vicarious Foodie - I think he does appreciate my efforts... in just one week of really trying to add the ww pasta, he has begun to at least "tolerate" it! LOL!
Aggie said…
I know you posted this long ago, but I caught a glimpse of it under one of your posts (in those link within boxes)....I am totally going to make this next Friday (b/c of Lent!). I needed a new tilapia recipe, this looks perfect!!

Popular Posts