Auto Pilot Lemon Garlic White Fish

I've been making a concerted effort to incorporate more fish into the KC kids' diets. Sure, I want to broaden their palates and encourage a heart-healthy low-fat diet and the Omega-3s are super too. But realistically, the reason I want them to eat more fish is because it's just so freaking fast. And easy. Everyone needs a couple of good auto-pilot, ready in 10 minutes recipes. This, friends, is one of those.

Start with a few thin, mild white fish filets. I used tilapia because it was both inexpensive and available at my grocery store, but flounder, sea bass, sole...take your pick.

Okay, ready? Grab a lemon, some garlic, and a couple of your favorite herbs and spices. I happened to have Penzey's Trinidad Lemon-Garlic Marinade and a jar of Fines Herbes (I know. I'm fancy) on hand but simple lemon-pepper and parsley would work just as well. In fact, dill, oregano, chives, basil...it's all good. Use what you have and what you like.

Lay your fish filets in baking dish. Squeeze half a lemon over the top. Sprinkle and rub everything else on.

Broil the filets until the fish is opaque and flaky. If you want to get all fancy sprinkle some fresh chives on top and garnish with lemon slices.

 That. is. it. Grab a fork and dig in.

Auto Pilot Lemon Garlic White Fish

2 filets flaky, mild white fish (such as tilapia)
1 lemon
1  tbsp garlic, chopped
1 tsp dry lemon-garlic marinade or lemon pepper
1 tsp dried Fines Herbes or dried parsley
1 tbsp fresh chives, chopped (optional)

Preheat the broiler. Place the filets in an oven-safe dish. Squeeze half a lemon over the top. Sprinkle the fish with the garlic and whichever herb and spice combo you're using. Cook under the broiler until the fish is opaque, flaky, and cooked through (about 7 minutes for a 1/2-inch thick filet). Garnish with lemon slices and fresh chives. 

Mixed Bean and Radish Salad

Fish makes me nervous. It's not that I find most fish to be shady characters, it's more the unscheduled trip to the ER kind of nervous. Not rational. Roo has never tested positive for a fish or shellfish allergy and he has been tested. He's eaten fish multiple times with no reaction whatsoever, but for some reason every time I slip a little fish sauce into a marinade or dare place a flake or two of salmon on his plate my knees get a little quaky. Yup that, friends, is my idea of living on the edge.

My goal is to get the KC kids eating more fish, first, because I need to get over my own irrational fear that Roo's going to go into anaphylactic shock if he ingests an anchovy, and second, because kids who squeal at the sight of fish on a plate are annoying. That's not to be confused with kids whose parents choose not to give them fish for religious or moral reasons, sheer personal preference, or obviously, because they are allergic to fish. Those kids are not annoying. Well, maybe they are annoying, I really don't know. That's for you to decide. Anyway, that my kiddos balk at the smell of fish cooking is decidedly irritating and I'm taking steps to remedy it. Baby steps.

So here we go. Anchovies. Look, there they are right up top. Rest assured there is no way my children, particularly my girls, would entertain the notion of trying a bite of salad (or chocolate cake for that mattter) if they had the slightest inkling that there were tiny hairy fish in it. That's why I didn't mention it.

And fortunately they didn't ask.

Mixed Bean and Radish Salad
adapted from bon appetit

2 anchovy fillets, packed in oil, drained
3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 tbsp capers, drained
2 & 1/2 cups fresh flat-leaf parsley, divided (pack it into the cup to measure if you're a perfectionist)
1/3 cup red wine vinegar
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 bunch radishes, trimmed and sliced
1 15-ounce can garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained
1 15-ounce can Great Northern beans, rinsed and drained
1 15-ounce can Cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
1 cup black olives, pitted and halved

Put the anchovies, oil, capers, and 1 cup of parsley into a food processor or blender. Puree until you have a slightly coarse, pulpy puree. Transfer to a small bowl, stir in the vinegar. Season with salt and pepper to taste, but watch the salt. Between the anchovies and capers, this is already one salty dressing.

Put the radishes, all the beans, olives, and remaining parsley in a large bowl. Pour the dressing over the top and toss gently. Do not mention the anchovies to anyone under 10 until they've finished eating.

In fairness, this wasn't the kids' favorite salad but they all managed a few bites (yeah, a few bites of briny, beany, radish salad with secret anchovies!) and that is progress. Happily, Roo survived yet another uneventful fish exposure. Though the idea of him and a bite of lobster still makes me start to lose my hearing. I'm working on it. And still the push for more fish on the KC table continues.

Chickpea Salad (Balilah)

I have a problem.

Despite the hundreds of post-it-notes peaking out from recipes waiting to be made in the scores of cookbooks I already own, I can't stop myself from bringing home just one more. Ever. But it could be worse - orphans, kittens, Maseratis.

I read cookbooks cover to cover. Based on the number of flagrant typos I come across, it seems not many other people do that. Shelf space is long gone so my most recent acquisitions reside in the middle of the kitchen island as a centerpiece of sorts. Mufasa's been kind enough not to mention it.

My current obsession is Jerusalem by Yotam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamimi. The photos are reason enough to buy the book but the message of hope, tolerance, and community is why you need to own it now. And the recipes!

Despite all the food challenges I run up against on a daily basis (textural sensitivity, nut allergy, egg allergy, eosinophilic esophagitis, diabetes, 4-year-olds...) it's awesome that Roo and Bean both love beans. Looly is another story but she's easily satiated with other forms of protein as long as they're accompanied by lemon wedges. Lemon steak? Don't knock it til you've tried it.

Beans, though. Beans are such perfect 4-year-old sustenance. Protein, fiber, folate, and no knife skills required. Garbanzos are Bean's absolute favorite and thanks to this fresh, lemony recipe courtesy of Jerusalem, they were in her lunchbox all last week.

Keep in mind that when using dried beans they're going to need to soak overnight. Try not to used canned beans here if you can help it. It's worth the wait.

Chickpea Salad (Balilah)
adapted slightly from Jerusalem by Yotam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamimi

1 cup dried chickpeas (AKA garbanzo beans)
1 tsp baking soda
1 cup flat-leaf parsley, chopped
3 green onions,thinly sliced
1 large lemon
3 tbsp olive oil
2 & 1/2 tsp ground cumin
1 clove garlic, minced or microplaned to a pulp
salt and pepper

1. Put the beans in a large bowl and cover them with plenty of cold water. Add the baking soda and let them sit out to soak overnight or at least 8 hours. They will have nearly doubled in volume by morning.
2. Drain the chickpeas and put them in a large pot covered once again with lots of cold water. Bring to a boil over high heat. Skim the foamy goop off the top of the water, turn down the heat and simmer for about 1 hour and 15 minutes. The beans will cook faster or slower depending on how fresh they are. Check them often after the first hour of cooking. They should yield when pinched between your fingers but fight the urge to cook them until they are mushy.
3. Meanwhile, put the parsley in a large bowl. Use a lemon zester or Microplane grater to zest the lemon (about 1 tbsp zest) into the parsley. Cut both ends off the lemon and using a sharp knife, remove the skin, the bitter white pith, and any seeds and discard. Chop the lemon flesh and add it to the bowl with the zest and parsley.
4. When the beans are soft (but not mushy!), drain them and add them while they're hot to the bowl with the parsley mixture. Add the olive oil, cumin, and garlic. Toss gently to combine. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Don't be stingy with the pepper. Serve at room temperature or in a lunchbox.