Pan Fried Rockfish with Olive Medley

I found some wonderfully fresh wild-caught-rockfish at Whole Foods and was inspired to make it Greek style by pan frying it in a bit of butter & topping it with a medley of chopped olives and cilantro.  The sweet delicate fish tastes almost perfect with a pat of butter and lemon while the brined olives bring in saltiness and the cilantro makes the whole thing pop with freshness.  This dish takes less than 10 minutes to prepare and it tastes gourmet.  Now that's my kinda meal!

A beautiful fresh dish that is easy to make and tastes fabulous!

Ingredients (Serves 1):
1-3oz rockfish fillet
1/2tbs organic butter
1/4tsp minced garlic
a sprinkle of Italian seasoning
a sprinkle of sea salt
1 lemon wedge
4 pitted kalamata olives, chopped
1 large green olive, chopped
2tbs chopped cilantro

Directions:
1. Heat your butter in a saute pan just large enough to fit your fish over medium high heat.  Add your minced garlic and cook for a minute, making sure it doesn't burn.  Sprinkle your fish with Italian seasoning and sea salt and add it to the pan.  Cook about 3 minutes per side (more for a larger fillet) or until done.  At then end of cooking add a squeeze of lemon.
2. Meanwhile, in a small bowl combine olives and cilantro.
3. Serve fish with chopped olive medley on top.  Enjoy!

Nutritional Information:
1 serving = 1 3oz fillet of rockfish topped with olive medley
Calories: 193
Fat: 13g
Carbs: 2g
Protein: 19g
Sodium ~ 600mg

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Chicken Souvlaki in Pita

Chicken Souvlaki is a staple dish in my house.  It is healthy, hearty and satisfying.  Although not gluten free, you could easily wrap this in a rice tortilla or place it in a salad or on top of some gluten free bread.  Enjoy!

Best sandwich on the planet

Ingredients:
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
4 whole wheat pita breads
1tbs red wine vinegar
2tbs fresh lemon juice
1 1/2 tbs fresh oregano (or 1 1/2 tsp dried)
1 1/2 tbs fresh thyme (or 1 1/2 tsp dried)
sea salt and black pepper to taste
3 tbs olive oil
2 tomatoes, cut into thin wedges
1 red bell pepper, cut into thin strips
1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
1/2c feta cheese
1/2c black or kalamata olives, sliced
1/4c plain yogurt
1/4c light sour cream
1/2 small cucumber, grated
juice from 1/2 lemon
minced garlic, to taste (about 1/2 tsp)


Directions:
1. Heat oven to 250F.  Wrap each pita individually in foil and place in oven to warm.
2. In a large bowl, combine vinegar, lemon juice, oregano, thyme, salt and pepper.  Add oil in a stead stream.
3. In a separate bowl, combine red onion, feta, olives, tomatoes and bell pepper.  Pour 1/2 of the dressing over the chicken and 1/2 of the dressing over the vegetables to marinate.
4. Heat grill to high.  Cook chicken on both sides until done (10 minutes per side for large breasts).
5. Meanwhile, combine the yogurt, sour cream, cucumber, lemon and garlic to taste.  Add salt if desired.
6. To serve, add sliced grilled chicken and marinated vegetables inside each pita half and top with yogurt sauce.  Add lettuce or mixed greens if desired (I had arugula on hand so I added it here).

Tandoori Chicken Thighs with Spicy Tomato Chutney and Cool Yogurt Sauce

I'm Gearing...I mean grilling...up for Memorial Day Weekend.  Enjoy!

Perfect accompanied by Grilled Asparagus & Baked Potato

Tandoori Spice 
(I make a big jar full and store it with my spices for a quick spice rub)
2 tbs onion powder
2 tbs garlic powder
2 tbs ground ginger
2 tbs ground coriander
1 tbs ground cumin
1 tbs ground cayenne
1 tbs ground turmeric
1 tbs ground white pepper
1 tbs salt

Boneless skinless chicken thighs (I grilled 8.  Delicious with chicken breast also.)
5 plum tomatoes
1 small onion, diced
Pinch saffron
1 serrano pepper or a few sprinkles of cayenne pepper.
3-4 tbs balsamic vinegar
1/2 packet sweetener (I used Truvia)
1c greek yogurt
Sour cream to taste (optional)
Juice of 1/2 lemon
Garlic powder and onion dip mix to taste
Cilantro (optional)


Directions:
1. Grill tomatoes on the grill until charred on all sides.  Dice.
2. Rub chicken with spice mix until thoroughly coated (I used a few tbs of the mix, not all of it!)
3. Grill chicken on medium-high (thighs about 5 minutes per side, large breasts about 10 minutes per side) until done.
4. Meanwhile, saute onion in some oil.  Add tomatoes and simmer with pinch saffron.  Add balsamic vinegar and sweetener to taste.  Add salt as well.  Sometimes I add a Serrano pepper if I have one.  Otherwise add a few shakes of cayenne depending on how spicy you like it.  Let set to room temperature.
5. Make yogurt sauce.  Mix in greek yogurt with lemon juice, garlic and onion mix to taste.  I usually add a few tbs of sour cream for richness as well, but this is optional. I also add cilantro to the sauce.
6. Serve chicken topped with spicy tomato chutney and chilled yogurt sauce to counteract the spiciness of the dish.  Sprinkle with Cilantro if desired.


NOTE: I always serve this dish with bread or a potato and some grilled vegetables.  Tonight I sprayed some fresh asparagus with olive oil and sprinkled it with sea salt.