Salmon Patties

The two things I have craved most during this pregnancy are margaritas and fish. I can't have margaritas, obviously, so that is just an unfulfilled desire. I have to be careful with fish as well because of the risk of mercury. When I do get to indulge in some salmon or tuna or other fishy delight, I am a very happy camper.

I used the recipe from the back of the salmon can as a starting point for these and then just went completely off on my own. They were lovely. Stone said they tasted "fresh and perfectly cooked".

Salmon Patties
15 oz canned salmon, flaked (I also remove skin and any larger bones)
3 eggs, slightly beaten
1/2 large onion, chopped
1/2 green pepper, chopped
1/2 cup bread crumbs
1 tbsp lemon pepper seasoning

1. Mix all ingredients until they are well combined.
2. Heat 1 inch of vegetable oil over medium heat in a large skillet.
3. Use 1/3 cup salmon mix for each patty, flattening before adding to the hot oil.
4. Fry until golden brown, flipping only once to ensure pattys do not fall apart.

Perch with Marjoram Sauce - 4 points

I am a cheater, but I am an honest one. If you do not understand - here is what I mean. I don't follow the rules, but I can admit that I don't follow the rules. Here is my story about attempting to be a good, rule abiding blogger and failing miserably (interspersed with random pictures to keep you from getting bored.

First picture break, Tennessee sunset:

I was looking over Dom's fabulous, amazing, wonderful blog today and thinking, "I should like to try that challenge he has going on." The challenge was to count through your cookbooks until you reach number 18. Open the book at random and prepare whatever dish is on that page.

Problem...I have already gone grocery shopping for the next week. I do not want to go spend more money this close to vacation. Solution...I shall try the challenge anyway. If the fates decide to give me a recipe for which I have the ingredients, so be it. If not, I will just sit this one out.

I count to eighteen on the shelf and come to a book I thought I had rid myself of. It is a horrid book in which the recipes have long lists of hard to find and seasonal ingredients followed by directions like "twist your arm around the back of your head and peel a lemon without breaking  the rind". I meant to give it to the used book store but must have forgotten. Fine. Whatever. I open the book - a page full of directions. I open the book again - a page full of tips for cutting artichokes. Again, a page with menu for French New Year (I do not think France has its own New Year, further lowering my opinion of this book. )

Second picture break, Tennessee lake:

Cheat #1- I skip to book two. This is a very slim cookbook given to me by Beck's teacher. The title is Go Red for Women and it is published by the American Cancer Society. I open the book and see the recipe "Chicken in Tarragon Sauce". Eureka! I had tarragon on my shopping list, so that is a go. I have all of the other ingredients save one.

Cheat #2 - "Dom, you understand that I don't have chicken, right?" I ask him telepathically. "You do not mind if I use the perch that was 1/2 price today?" Of course, I decide that he completely supports this decision and go ahead with my preparations. Things are going swimmingly until I get to the fruit bowl and reach for the lemon. It is moldy. "Frickenjibbit!" I think.

Cheat #3 There is lemon in the recipe and there is pepper in the recipe, so if I use lemon pepper, that is not really cheating, right? I know it is cheating. I am starting to feel very guilty about my continual rule breaking. Still, I go on. I add the lemon pepper, the onions, the celery, and then the tarragon. No. No I do not. I reach for the tarragon and find that I have rosemary. You know, the spice that sits right next to the tarragon. The spice I grabbed in my haste to get out of the store and to my chicken fajita lunch. I consider crying or cursing or giving up. But the voice in my head says, "It is a stretch, but you are doing your best. Go ahead."


Third picture break, Tennessee waterfall:

Cheat #4 I add marjoram. It looks quite nice, really. Everything is going to be fine. I remove the fish from the pan, and try a bit of the sauce. It lacks something. It is time to add the flour. If I add white flour, the sauce shall continue to lack. If I add seasoned flour, it will have a better flavor. The  voice in my head, now sounding a bit miffed, says, "You've already shot to the whole recipe to hell. Who cares at this point?"

Cheat #5 I used seasoned flour. The rest of the recipe went by the book. Really, it did.

Dear Dom, I am sorry for mucking up this challenge and hope that you will accept my submission despite my flagrant cheating and long winded story. If not, I shall fully understand as I am a self confessed rule breaker and cannot expect people to put up with my foolishness.

Last picture break, a Civil War bullet hole in the Carter House, Franklin, Tennessee.

Here is the recipe, as I made it.

Perch with Marjoram Sauce
1 lb perch fillets
10.5 oz fat free chicken broth
1/2 cup sliced onion
1 medium rib celery, sliced
1 tsp lemon pepper
1 medium bay leaf
1/2 tsp dried marjoram
salt to taste
1 tbsp seasoned flour
5 oz fat free evaporated milk
2 tbsp fresh parsley
1. Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Spray with non-stick cooking spray. Brown the perch for 1 minute on each side; transfer to a plate.
2. Place broth, onion, celery, lemon pepper, bay leaf, and salt in pan. Increase heat to high and bring to a boil.
3. Reduce heat to low and add perch. Simmer, covered for 2-3 minutes, until perch is cooked through.
4. Remove perch and vegetables to a plate. Remove all broth, leaving 2 tbsp, to a bowl. Add flour to pan with a whisk.
5.Whisk in broth from bowl along with milk. Cook over medium heat 6-9 minutes, until bubbly. Stir in parsley.
6. Add fish and vegetables and warm for 1-2 minutes, until fish and vegetables have reheated.
7. Yields 3, 4 point servings

Ta-da!

Now time for menu plan Monday. We are going to be with Stone's parents on Friday. I cannot very well ask them to be meatless on Friday. So

Cheat #6 We are going meatless every day but Friday. I think that is a reasonable solution.

Sunday

perch with marjoram sauce

Monday

sushi

Tuesday

ratatouille

Wednesday

spaghetti squash kugel

salmon burgers

Thursday

quesadillas

Friday

Stone's parents

Saturday

Helen, GA

If you are making your own menu, here are some recipes suggestions.

Monday

garlic mushrooms in creamy sauce

Tuesday

broiled tofu

Wednesday

piperade

Thursday

easy Italian shrimp

Friday

night out!

Saturday

Cornish game hens in cranberry sauce

Happy Monday!

Oven Fried Fish - 4 Points

I hope you are enjoying your Friday. Here is a simple, meatless Friday dish.

Oven Fried Fish
1 lb tilapia fillets
1/4 cup regular soy milk
1/2 cup seasoned bread crumbs
1 tsp salt

1. Pour milk into a shallow dish; mix in salt. Pour crumbs into a separate, shallow dish.
2. Dip fish first into the milk, then into the crumbs to coat. Place fillets on a baking stone or non stick baking sheet.
3. Spray fish using a kitchen spritzer (half a spray). Turn the fish and spray again (half a spray again).
4. Bake, uncovered, for 10 minutes at 400 degrees.
5. Yields 4, 4 point servings

I read in the January/February issue of Health that a kitchen spritzer delivers about 1 tsp of olive oil with a full spray. Therefore, I added that point into the recipe. I was happy to see the magazine list a kitchen spritzer as one of their favorite weight loss tools; it certainly is one of mine! Someday, I really should sell Pampered Chef- I give them so many free plugs!

Ash Wednesday - Creamy Tuna A La King - 4 points

Tomorrow is Ash Wednesday, which means that my family will be attending church services to get ashes placed on our foreheads as preparation for the forty days of Lent. When I decided to join a liturgical church, I knew nothing about Lent. Now, it is my favorite season.

Ash Wednesday is a meatless day, as are all of the Fridays in the Lenten season. I have been watching the blogosphere for some delicious meatless recipes. Here is a list of the ones that particularly caught my eye and tempted my taste buds.

Pasta with Roasted Sweet Potatoes, Feta and Arugula by Joanne

No Cream Creamy Cauliflower Soup by Victor

Chickpea Flour Flat Bread and Five Lentils Spicy Stew by Swathi

Very Veggie “Mac” n Cheese Spaghetti by Jess

Grilled Goat Cheese and Nutella Sandwhich by Amy

Saintly Soup by Brownieville Girl

                                                                                                                                           

Homemade White Mac and Cheese by Tiffanee

Tomato Garlic Soup with Cheese Tortellini by Heather

Red Cabbage and Vegetable Noodles from Rebecca

Black Bean and Corn Soup by Rebecca

Arancini di Riso-Sicilian Rice Balls

Tomato, Barley Soup by Mateja

French Toast Stuffed with Pear, Camembert, and Avocado by France 

Here is one of my own making, a version from a Betty Crocker cookbook. I am a fan of fresh tuna. If you have never had a fresh, tuna steak, you must treat yourself to one. You cannot beat the meaty, thick, bite that you get from a tuna fillet.

Creamy Tuna A La King
1 medium green bell pepper, diced
1 medium red bell pepper, diced
1/4 cup seasoned flour
1 1/2 cups light, seasoned soy milk
1 cube vegetable bouillon
1 1/4 cups water
12 oz tuna steak
16 oz fresh mushrooms, stemmed and quartered

1. Heat a medium skillet over medium heat. Spray with non-stick cooking spray or kitchen spritzer. Add tuna steaks to skillet; cook 3-5 minutes per side, until cooked through. Remove from heat; cube.
2. Wipe skillet, reheat, and spray with non-stick cooking spray or kitchen spritzer. Add pepper and onion, stir frying until peppers are tender crisp.
3. Stir in flour. Cook until flour has fully coated the vegetables and the mushrooms begin to shrink.
4. Stir in milk, vegetable bouillon, and water. Heat to boiling, stirring constantly. Boil and stir one minute. Stir in tuna and reheat.
5. Yields 4, 4 point servings

I think that it is interesting that fish is considered a vegetarian dish. Do fish not live? But, for the purposes of the church and the world in general, fish is apparently a vegetable. Interestingly, according to the Catholic church, beavers and puffins are also considered fish and are okay to eat on Fridays. Alas, I am a Methodist, so I guess I won't be making beaver stew anytime soon.

Simple Fish with Tomatoes and Onion - 4 points, Date Night

First, a simple but delicious recipe for fish.

Simple Fish with Tomatoes and Onions
1 large onion, sliced
2 large tomatoes, sliced
4 fillets tilapia, 4 oz each
seasoning salt to taste
salt and pepper to taste

1. Place onions in the bottom of a cast iron skillet or baking dish. Place in a 400F oven for ten minutes.
2. Layer tomato slices, salt, and pepper on top of onions. Return skillet to the oven for ten minutes.
3. Top tomatoes with fish fillets and seasoning salt. Place in the oven for a final bake of 10-15 minutes, until fish is cooked through.
4. Makes 4, 4 point servings

Now...for date night. Last night Stone and I had a night out. We took the short trip to downtown Nashville. Our plan was to go to a great little cafe for dinner, but they were inexplicably closed. So, we stopped by freshii instead. You won't see me talk about chain restaraunts often becuase I much prefer to patronize independent restaurants where the personality of the chef can truly shine. However, I do love freshii and their fab commitment to the environment. So, I will show you my bowl of delicious rice noodles, grilled tofu, chopped almonds, bean sprouts, cucumbers, carrots, cilantro, and spicy lemon grass sauce:

Stone's wrap of romaine, Buffalo chicken, diced tomatoes, celery, carrots, jack and cheddar, and low fat ranch dressing:

And our frozen yogurt with granola and reeses pieces:

That is, by the way, the best frozen yogurt in the world. Super tangy, fat free, probiotic yogurt.

Then we hopped on over to the Ryman (former home of the Grand Ole Opry) to see Amy Grant and Michael W. Smith - a present from my parents.

Yup, that's all we did.

But, wait, you say to yourself. In the picture where Stone is holding his wrap, is that a ring on his left ring finger? Did they possibly also stop by the courthouse? Do their friends and family think that they are completely insane? Have they known each other for fourteen years and think that they know what they are doing? Are they over the moon happy in love? The answer to all of those questions is...yes.

"Butter" Herb Baked Fish - 3 points

I mentioned that I made my sourdough cornbread to accompany some baked fish – but I left you hanging on the fish recipe. This is a recipe I have used for a long time, but with a major change. In my pre Weight Watchers days, I used to melt 1/3 cup butter in a cake pan and then place the fish in the butter to bake. I had serious doubts about making the fish without the real butter, but I bravely gave it a try. I was so pleased with the results! The flavor was rich and the fish was perfectly flaky. I didn’t miss the butter at all.

“Butter” Herb Baked Fish

16 oz tilapia

½ tsp oregano

¼ tsp onion powder

1 tsp dried basil

¼ cup seasoned breadcrumbs

1 tsp parmesan cheese

spray butter

1. In a shallow bowl, mix bread crumbs, spices, and parmesan.
2. Coat fish with crumb mixture, on both sides, and fillets on a baking stone or nonstick baking sheet. Spray each fillet with 4-5 sprays of butter.
3. Bake 25 minutes at 350F.
4. Yields 4, 3 point servings

I am so excited that my Joe for Jack came today! I really wanted to go ahead and try some tonight, but I am forcing myself to wait until morning. After all, I do want to get a little bit of sleep!





Mahi-Mahi in Sesame Chili Sauce - 3 Points

Mahi Mahi is Sesame Chili Sauce
1/2 cup soy sauce
1 1/2 tbsp white vinegar
1 tsp chili oil
1 tsp sesame oil
2 Tbsp minced onions
5 cloves garlic, minced
4, 4 ounce mahi mahi fillets

1. Combine soy sauce, white vinegar, chili oil, sesame oil, onions, and garlic; mix well.
2. Place mahi mahi fillets in a shallow baking dish; pour sauce over fish. Let fish marinate for 10 minutes. Turn fish and marinated for an additional 10 minutes.
3. Transfer the fillets to a broiling pan or baking stone. Broil at 400F for 5 minutes. Turn fish, broil 5 additional minutes.
4. Pour sauce from marinating dish into a microwave safe bowl. Microwave on high for three minutes. Pour one tbsp sauce over each fillet before serving.
5. Yields 4, 3 point servings

Orange Roughy with Tropical Salsa - 2 points, 0 points

Continuing on my seafood journey - I decided to try the orange roughy. I have never tried this particular fish before, and I loved it! It was very mild with a wonderful meaty texture. The accompanying salsa was excellent. I was surprised by that, because I am not a fan of papaya in general (it smells like feet, in my opinion). Something about the combination of ingredients brought out a flavor from the papaya that I have never experienced before.

 I served this recipe with a black eyed pea salad and my best friend, who was over for dinner, claimed it was one of the best meals I have ever cooked for him.

The original recipe was in Betty Crocker's New Cookbook. I adapted it to my own taste and to make it a little bit more Weight Watcher's friendly.

Orange Roughy
1 1/2 lbs orange roughy fillets

1. Sprinkle both sides of each fillet with black pepper.
2. Place on a baking stone (or a greased pan) and broil at 450 for ten minutes or until fillets flake easily with a fork.
3. Serve with tropical salsa.
Makes 6, 2 point servings

Tropical Salsa
1/2 large papaya, seeded, peeled, and chopped
1 large tomato, chopped
1 large red bell pepper, chopped
1/4 cup parsley, chopped
juice from 1/2 lemon
1/2 tsp Complete Seasoning or other seasoning salt

Mix all ingredients. Refrigerate until ready. Makes six 0 point servings