Wasabi Almond Crusted Grouper

My local grocery store sometimes lacks in certain departments. Sometimes, I really wish I could afford to shop at one or two of the 'upscale' food stores; not because of the brand/notoriety of the place, but simply because they are the only places I can sometimes find things I want.

Alas, these pricey stores are so out of my budget, that I can only dream of going actual weekly shopping there.

I stick to the normal food store and sometimes the grocery section of the local Wal-Mart superstore (which is also seriously lacking items on a normal shopping list - I mean, really? They don't even carry sofrito?).

So on a normal trip to a normal (but lower cost) food store chain, I of course can't purchase the fish that I originally wanted for this recipe - halibut. The only acceptable choices in the fresh fish case were flounder or grouper, so I opted for the grouper.

Don't get me wrong... I like grouper! But I had my heart set on halibut. You could use any firm white fish in this preparation. The grouper came out fantastic though, so we weren't disappointed in the least. The fish stayed firm but flaky, and the texture of the almond coating was crunchy and spicy sweet.

As a point of reference, Blue Diamond almonds are what I pulverized in a food processor and used as the coating.

I cut 3 rather large fillets into 6 smaller portions, but you could leave them larger.

Salt and pepper them up.

Coat in flour and shake off excess.

Dip in beaten egg to coat.

Dip into crushed almonds, pressing to coat and stick to fish.

Heat oil in pan and add the fish when it's good and hot.

Cook for a few minutes and flip when the coating gets a nice toasted color. Do the same for the other side.

Serve while the gettin' is good!

Wasabi Almond Crusted Grouper

serves 4

4 grouper fillets
Salt and pepper
1 cup flour
2 eggs, beaten
1 can wasabi almonds (I used Blue Diamond), ground in food processor
4 tbsp olive oil

Rinse off your fillets and place on paper towel to pat dry. Season with salt and pepper.

Place fillets in the flour, and coat both sides. Shake off excess.

Dip the fillets in the egg and thoroughly coat all sides.

Place fillets on top of crumbs, and coat every side, pressing crumbs firmly on fish. Place fillets on clean plate.

In a large skillet, heat oil, over medium high heat. When oil is hot, place fillets in skillet. Cook about 3 minutes per side (depending on the thickness of the fish) and brown all sides until dark golden brown.

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Chicken Piccata

You gotta love the types of dishes that are interchangeable. You can do this dish with chicken or veal, and I think it (untraditionally, of course) would be rather tasty with a firm fish or even shrimp. It is also acceptable to use pork instead of chicken or veal. Vegetarians or vegans can prepare the dish using thin slices of tofu or eggplant. 

Piccata translates to piquant or piquancy, which (in one definition) means tart or zesty. Piccata does have a tart sauce, with traditional additions of lemon juice, white wine and capers. It’s also quite easy to prepare, especially in small batches. The dish takes about 20 to 30 minutes to make, so it's a speedy weeknight meal.


Pounding the meat to the desired thinness is probably the most time consuming process. Instead of spending more money at the grocery store for the already thin cutlets, I usually horizontally slice a  chicken breast in half and then pound it out to the thickness I want, usually about an 1/8 of an inch thick. You can reduce any chance of a flying chicken mess by placing the meet in a sealable plastic bag, or by putting it between two layers of plastic wrap.

If you want a good laugh, hand your kids the mallet and then let them do the flattening for you...hilarity will follow! Plus, it's a great way to have them (or you) work out any pent up aggression...

Seasoned and dredged chicken makes for sticky fingers.

Brown those birds, remove from pan and keep 'em warm while the rest of the magic happens.

Brown some shroomage - remove and set aside.

Add garlic and wine to the pan and reduce by about half.

Stir in broth-flour mixture, lemon juice and salt. Simmer and stir in parsley, capers and butter.

Bring chicken back to the party and heat through. We do have mushroom haters, so I only added the mushrooms to the party when those that do not like them were served. Otherwise, throw them in when you reintroduce the chicken.

Serve the chicken over pasta and smother with sauce!

Chicken Piccata

serves 4

1/3 cup all-purpose flour, divided
2 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth
1/2 teaspoon salt, divided
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
4 chicken cutlets, (3/4-1 pound total), trimmed
3 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
1 10-ounce package mushrooms, sliced
3 large cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup white wine
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
2 tablespoons capers, rinsed
2 teaspoons butter
Hot cooked angel hair pasta

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add pasta and cook until just tender, 4 to 6 minutes or according to package directions. Drain and rinse.

Meanwhile, whisk 5 teaspoons flour and broth in a small bowl until smooth. Place the remaining flour in a shallow dish. Season chicken with 1/4 teaspoon salt and pepper and dredge both sides in the flour.

Heat 2 teaspoons oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add the chicken and cook until browned and no longer pink in the middle, 2 to 3 minutes per side. Transfer to a plate; cover and keep warm.

Heat the remaining 1 teaspoon oil in the pan over medium-high heat. Add mushrooms and cook, stirring, until they release their juices and begin to brown, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a plate. Add garlic and wine to the pan and cook until reduced by half, 1 to 2 minutes.

Stir in the reserved broth-flour mixture, lemon juice and the remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt. Bring to a simmer and cook, stirring, until the sauce is thickened, about 5 minutes.

Stir in parsley, capers, butter and the reserved mushrooms. Measure out 1/2 cup of the mushroom sauce. Toss the pasta in the pan with the remaining sauce. Serve the pasta topped with the chicken and the reserved sauce.

Herb Crusted Petite Sirloin

So easy and so good...

You can do this method with any cut of steak; rib eye, filet mignon, sirloin...whatever you have.

Heat some butter and olive oil over high heat.

Swirl it together and keep cooking until butter starts to brown and oil starts to smoke.

Carefully toss in some finely minced garlic.

Keep swirling and stirring so it doesn't burn!

While your oil and garlic is cooling, combine your herbs.

Toss your herb mixture into the garlic and oil.

Stir everything together.

Pour mixture over steaks in a Ziploc or shallow bowl. Make sure every inch gets coated!

Add steaks to a super-hot pan when you're ready to cook.

Flip after about five minutes (or however you like them done).

Let 'em rest for a few minutes.

Dig in....

Herb Crusted Petite Sirloin

Serves 4

4 petite sirloins, about 1 1/2 inches thick

4 tablespoons olive oil

4 tablespoons unsalted butter

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 teaspoon rosemary

1 teaspoon thyme

1 teaspoon marjoram

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Heat olive oil in a small fry pan. Just before it begins to smoke, add garlic; stir constantly and cook 1-2 minutes until garlic starts to brown. Remove pan from heat  and allow to cool. Add herbs and stir.

Place steaks into a shallow dish. Pour herb mixture over and turn steaks to coat. You can also do this in a Ziploc bag. Let marinate for 1-4 hours in refrigerator.

Preheat dry pan over high heat. Remove steaks, shake off excess oil. Place in hot pan and cook for 5-6 minutes per side. Remove from heat and serve.

Almost Vegetarian Lasagna (because I just can't get rid of the carnivore in me...)

I have really never been a big fan of Italian food. I have issues with tomato sauce. I don't care for Alfredo sauce much either. There are some Italian dishes that I do crave every once in awhile. Lasagna is one of them.

Before I was ever interested in cooking, I had always heard what a pain in the butt making lasagna was, how expensive, blah blah blah. I even feared making it the first time. But it really isn't a big deal to put together. It's a one-dish meal, comfort food, and use-what-you-have-on-hand type of dishes that appeals to me.

Like I have mentioned before, I have issues with tomatoes and The Heartburn Monster, so I usually tend to shy away from tomato acid heavy dishes. I think I have mentioned before that ground beef isn't a favorite either (I just don't care for the taste or texture, so I always try to find ways around it).

This recipe solves the ground beef issue. The Heartburn Monster will still lay in wait after consumption...still have not found a way around that issue. I tend to go insanely overboard with cheese (you can never have too much cheese, right?) in almost any dish, be it pizza, tacos, grilled cheese, and of course...lasagna.

The reason this is not a true vegetarian lasagna? There is one egg used. Oh, and goat cheese. If you wanted to make this a real vegetarian lasagna, you could simply omit the egg and goat cheese. I like the extra creaminess it adds, but it would be really good without it too.  I am not up-to-speed on what a vegan/vegetarian can or can not eat, so I'm not sure if cheese is included in the 'don't' item list.

This particular recipe makes a humongous 9x13 pan of good eating. You could prepare 2 smaller pans (or 3 loaf-sized pans) and freeze what you don't want to cook right away and save it for a quick dinner another night.

Combine ricotta & spices in your magic bowl.

Add a beaten egg.

Add a log of creamy goat cheese; plain or herbified will work.

Combine both pasta sauces in another magic bowl.

Schmear some pasta sauce on the bottom of a 9x13 baking dish.

Top with 3 noodles.

Spread some cheesy love on top of the noodles.

Sprinkle with crumbled veggie burger.

Sprinkle in some artichoke hearts.

Then the shrooms...

Say "Cheese!"

A smattering of pasta sauce...

Repeat two more times and top off with the last three noodles.

Top off with any remaining pasta sauce and cheese. Cover with foil and pop into the oven.

Lasagna Heaven Awaits...

Almost Vegetarian Lasagna

serves 10-12


15 oz. ricotta cheese
Basil, oregano, garlic powder to taste (I eyeball about one tablespoon per)
1 egg
4 oz. goat cheese, room temperature
1 jar prepared pasta sauce with chunky vegetables
1 jar prepared vodka sauce
1 package no-cook lasagna noodles
1 package any brand Veggie burgers (like Morningstar Farms or Boca Burgers)
1 can artichoke hearts, chopped
1 pint sliced mushrooms
2-1/2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

Thaw burgers according to manufacturer's instructions. Crumble into small pieces. Set aside.

Mix ricotta, spices, egg and goat cheese in a small bowl. Set aside.

Combine jarred pasta sauces in another bowl. Set aside.

Place 1/2 cup pasta sauce in bottom of a 9 x 13 baking dish.

Line dish with one layer of lasagna noodles.

Top lasagna noodles with 1/2 cup ricotta cheese mixture, 1/2 cup  crumbled burgers, 1/2 cup artichoke hearts, 1/2 cup mushrooms, 1/2 cup cheese and 1/2 cup pasta sauce. Repeat these steps two more times (which leaves you with 3 noodles left for the top).

Top with any remaining pasta sauce & cheese. Cover with foil and bake at 350°F approximately 30 minutes.

Remove foil and continue to bake until browned, approximately 20 minutes.