Cornmeal Crusted Fish Sandwiches with Lime Butter

Here fishy, fishy, fishy. My hubby used to have a hat that said that. It was lost in one our moves while we were in the navy. Speaking of fish though, I have a fun fish sandwich recipe for you to try. Fish, white fish, in specific has been a part of our weekly rotation for over a month now. It is a nice change. I had gotten out of the habit since moving away from the coast of Southern California almost a year ago now. It was so much easier when it was local, and warm all the time (hahaha). You don't realize what you have, until its gone. Oh well. At least I have this crunchy, flavorful sandwich to console me. The real great thing about this dish is that you can make in approx 15 minutes - a weeknight happy meal. This is something you can throw together instead of doing a drive thru, that after having a few bites, you realize has messed up your order, or really just doesn't taste all that great. This healthier than drive thru twist will make your taste buds rejoice. Personally I thought this was brilliant. I love compound butters. I suspect this lime butter would be awesome over grilled corn in the summer time. 

This recipe is from a cooking light magazine and the original can be found here. 

Serving size: 1 Sandwich. Recipe makes 4 servings. 

The recipe: 

3 Tb yellow cornmeal

1 tsp chili powder

1 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp ground coriander

1/8 tsp ground red pepper

1/2 tsp smoked sweet paprika

1/4 tsp heaping chipotle chile powder

4 (4-6 oz each) tilapia fillets

cooking spray or foil and butter (whatever your go to is for non stick)

2 Tbs butter, softened

1/2 tsp lime juice

1/2 tsp grated lime peel

toppings for the sandwich: cheese, tomato, lettuce

bread: 4 french bread rolls

1. Preheat the broiler

2. Combine all the seasonings and cornmeal in a shallow dish

3. Pat the fish dry and then coat each one in the seasoned cornmeal

4. Use the cooking spray to prevent sticking on a broiler pan or baking sheet. I used foil, and a cooling rack over a baking sheet to help the air circulate and create that crunchy crust. 

5. Broil for approx 10 minutes for until the fish flakes easily with a fork

6. While the fish is cooking, set the table, whip up a side dish such as a salad or fresh fruit, or grapes (like the picture in the magazine), and combine the butter, lime peel, and lime juice in a small bowl. If you have more time this would be great with fries, onion rings, or sweet potato fries.

7. Serve the fish sandwiches with the rolls and let each person top their french bread buns with the lime butter. 

8. Serve immediately and enjoy

In conclusion, here is a good easy fun recipe for weeknights when you look at the clock and wonder if it is better to eat out or attempt to eat at home. no reservations or fast food restaurants are needed when you can do dinner in 15 minutes!! 

Even though the 15 minute promise seems a bit fishy, 

that i am telling a tall tale or a fish story, do try it. 

 From my kitchen to yours

Fabulous (almost) Flawless Fish Sandwich & Fries

Fish Sandwich and Fries 
New recipes don't have to be complicated or hard. This one is easy and will slide into across your menu as smoothly as a fish swims in the ocean. Doesn't it sound friendly? A nice fish sandwich and fries. We eat a lot of fish in my house. Okay not as much as when we lived in California - Arizona is kind of lacking in well an ocean to really get fresh seafood.

my sandwich

Since you are my closest friends, and we are talking about fish, I have to tell you about the seafood thing. Its not completely off topic as it is a food/fish thing but its also a being married thing. Here goes... I was born and raised in the northwest, so I am very very familiar with salmon. When I got married I was shocked that my husband (not from the northwest) didn't share my love of this great fish. But, he liked almost every other kind of seafood possible. I do try new recipes constantly, but I don't really enjoy seafood except fish. So of course his favorite restaurants are ones that have seafood in the title. I know. I know. Seafood is good and healthy  But it gets worse, most of my intermediate family loves seafood too, things like clams, prawns, fish, oysters, and shrimp. (grimace). I swear its a texture thing. So here is the married part. Seafood is healthy, and I don't want to completely ignore everything that comes from the sea, so fish is our compromise.Compromise isn't always easy but at least this one tastes good ;) 

my hubby's sandwich - no veggies

Flounder was on sale this week so that's the kind of fish I used in these sandwiches, but do grab whatever is fresh and on sale. You want a mild/white fish like tilipia, or cod. Read the recipe below, and try it, or change it up like I have done with this one that I have adapted from the magazine: Rachael Ray Everyday Magazine "Deviled Fishwich" October 2007. Please click here for another recipe from this same fall issue. 

Fries: healthy. easy. fresh.
The three of us were really hungry I used two huge russet potatoes.

1.  Rinse potatoes off and cut into strips. The thickness is up to you. Thick steak fries are awesome but be aware they take longer to cook. Thinner shoe-string fries are great too - just keep an eye on them. Whatever you decide - cut them all the same size so you have even cooking!
2. Soak the strips in very cold water in a large bowl. You want the water to completely cover them. I do this for 15-30 minutes depending on how much time I have. This time it was exactly 15 minutes because the football game was coming on at 5:30 and I didn't want to miss kick off.

wet fries

getting dry fries

  3.   Heat the oven to 400 degrees and dry the fries off completely. I use a towel for this.
  4.   Lay the fries out in straight lines on a cookie sheets - so there is no overlap. I recommend doing this first so you can make sure they all fit. Its amazing how many fries you can get out of only 1 or 2 potatoes. Trust me you don't want to have your hands covered with salt, pepper, and olive oil and have to wait for someone to hand you another pan because you thought they were all going to fit. Just trust me.
  5.   Drizzle 1-2 Tbs olive oil, salt (approx 1 tsp), and pepper (approx 1/4 tsp) over the fries. Then use your hands to make sure every fry is coated with seasoning and oil. Then place the fries back out in rows with no overlap on the baking sheets. 

6. Bake in the oven for 15 minutes then pull them out and flip them over
7. As you are flipping them over carefully (they are hot) crank the oven hotter to 450 for 10 minutes or until they are brown and crispy and yummy. This time will be determined by the thickness you cut your fries. 

Totally easy, right? Didn't that sound easy? You got this! Don't buy the frozen stuff anymore.

Fish Sandwich.
Ingredients:

- tarter sauce bought or homemade
- hamburger buns
- 4 fish fillets
- 1 Tbs melted unsalted butter
- 1/2 tsp herbs de Provence
- tomato thinly sliced
- lettuce or spinach 
- cheese ( I used mild cheddar)
- panko breadcrumbs 1/3 cup at least

1. Preheat your oven if you hadn't started the fries or aren't making them to 450. 
2. Melt your butter in the microwave or the stove 
3. Get your baking pan ready with foil AND some sort of cooking spray. My fish stuck bad so I would HIGHLY recommend this step. 
4. Put your breadcrumbs and seasoning mixture into a bowl. 
5. Dredge the fish into the panko breadcrumbs & seasonings ( I had five fillets and so I needed more breadcrumbs than a 1/3 cup). So all of the fish is lightly covered. 
6. Poured the melted butter over the fish (to help it get crispy in the oven)

7. Bake them at 450 for 5 minutes 
 8. Then turn up the heat to 500 for about 5 minutes until they all look like the bread crumbs are light brown and toasty. 
 9. Serve them on the buns with toppings (cheese, tomato, lettuce or spinach, and tarter sauce) and fries! 
10. Eat! 

from my kitchen to yours

enjoy!