Maple Salmon

Despite the overabundance of sweets found on this site that might speak to the contrary, I really do try to cook healthy for my family.  It's just so much more fun to blog about and read about yummy sweets though, right?

So please bear with me while I break away to a less exciting post. I love fish of any kind.  However, my husband does not.  But a few years ago I had read some research about how good salmon is for an autoimmune disease that he has.  So I convinced him that we needed to add more fish in our diet.  I made a few recipes that did nothing in terms of pushing him towards wanting to eat fish.  But then I broadened my search and found this amazing salmon recipe!

It is really, really good!  And my husband (after many failed fish attempts on my part) even loves it.  The maple glaze on it is phenomenal! The soy sauce adds just the right amount of saltiness that fish needs and combines really well with that little bit of sweetness from the maple syrup.  I know it might sound a little bit strange.  But I was desperate for a recipe that would convince my husband that fish is okay.  This one did the trick in every way.  In fact, my daughter has stuck to this as being her favorite meal that I make.  She calls is "pink chicken" and requests it often. And any recipe that gets my five year old to eat salmon is a keeper in my book!

Maple Salmon from Allrecipes


1/4 cup maple syrup
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 teaspoon garlic salt
1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 pound salmon (4 filets)

Directions
In a small bowl, mix the maple syrup, soy sauce, garlic, garlic salt, and pepper.

Place salmon in a shallow glass baking dish, and coat with the maple syrup mixture. Cover the dish, and marinate salmon in the refrigerator 30 minutes, turning once.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).

Place the baking dish in the preheated oven, and bake salmon uncovered 20 minutes, or until easily flaked with a fork

Serves: 4 (4 fillets at 4oz each); Weight Watchers Points+: 7

Pecan Crusted Tilapia

 Okay, so you might see FISH in the title and already have stopped reading... My hubby would agree with you. However, he loved this recipe (and that's saying quite a lot). We agreed that it seemed like it came from a restaurant. I love the slight crunch on the outside. The tilapia doesn't have a fishy taste at all (which is why my hubby will eat it willingly). The combo of the pecans with salt, pepper, and garlic powder is a perfect pairing.

Pecan-Crusted Tilapia from "The Best of Cooking Light; Everyday Favorites"

1/2 C dry breadcrumbs

2 T. finely chopped pecans

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp garlic powder

1/4 tsp black pepper

1/2 C low-fat buttermilk

1/2 teaspoon hot sauce (I didn't do this)

3 T. all-purpose flour

4 (6 oz) tilapia or red snapper fillets

1 T vegetable oil, divided

4 lemon wedges (I didn't do this either)

1. Combine first 5 ingredients in a shallow dish. Combine buttermilk and hot sauce in a medium bowl; place flour in a shallow dish. Dredge 1 fillet in flour. Dip in buttermilk mixture; dredge in breadcrumb mixture. Repeat procedure with remaining fillets.

2. Heat 1 1/2 tsp oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-heat. Add 2 fillets; cook 3 minutes on each side or until fish flakes easily when tested with fork (I used more oil as it seemed it might be starting to stick). Repeat procedure with remaining oil and fillets. Serve with lemon wedges.

**I like to use the Costco tilapia filets that are individually packed. Just make sure that you defrost them all the way before cooking--I didn't this time and it took a lot longer to cook.