Grilled Tilapia with Butter and Key Lime Juice

I've been on a real lime kick this summer.  Lime flavor always makes me think of fruity drinks on the beach...I don't know why, it just does!!

Something you may not know about me:  I'm a big reader.  Wait, scratch that...I'm a HUGE reader.  I will devour books in a day or two, sometimes even in a few short hours depending on the size :)  I recently...when I say recently I mean within the last few years...found Patricia Cornwell's Kay Scarpetta novels.  A friend of mine loaned me all the older ones and I just couldn't get enough of them.  Kay Scarpetta is a medical examiner and she's way smart and way sexy.  The perfect female heroine!  You know what got me each time I read one of her books?  Kay's Kitchen!!!  lol  I know it might sound odd, but the kitchen she described is the kitchen of my dreams!  Like myself, Kay found her peace in the kitchen...and for a coroner, I'm sure it's got to be hard to find peace anywhere!  How better to unwind from prodding the dead all day than to feed the living, right?  (lol)  Her roots are Italian, so she makes a lot of yummy Italian dishes.  Every time I read the descriptions of the food she was preparing, my mouth would water!  Anyway, Patrica Cornwell actually created a cook book based on dishes that Kay made or ate throughout each book. The book is called Food To Die For...and most of the dishes in there are!!  What I really love is that each section is based on one of the books and the food that she either prepared in her kitchen or enjoyed from various restaurant meals her and her boyfriend (later to be her husband) consumed.  All those times I read about it...now I can actually create them myself!  YES!

This recipe was very simple and uses very little ingredients.  When I first saw this recipe I was a bit skeptical about using butter in the sauce and then putting it back in the fridge to marinate.  I mean wouldn't the butter just harden back up???  Well, yes, that's exactly what it did - BUT - it created a key lime butter over the fish and then as they cooked, that creamy, tart mixture just soaked right into the fish!  It was DELICIOUS!  Very fresh, a tad bit buttery, and ooooooohhhh so good!  I, of course, grilled these bad boys, but you can use your oven, that's perfectly fine.  Heck, these would be good pan searing them too....mmmmmm...I'm gonna have to try that next time I make this!

Grilled Tilapia with Butter and Key Lime Juice
Adapted from Patricia Cornwell's 'Food To Die For: Secrets from Kay Scarpetta's Kitchen'
Printable Recipe 
Ingredients:
4 tilapia fillets (about 4-5 oz each)
2 Tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
3 Tablespoons key lime juice
zest from 2 key limes
1 1/2 Tablespoons olive oil
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper

Directions:
Mix all ingredients together except the fish.  Place the fish in a shallow dish and pour mixture over them, making sure to flip them over to get both sides covered.  Let the fish marinate in the fridge for 30 minutes.

If grilling, place fish on squares of foil sprayed with non-stick spray, and close to create a packet.  Place on a grill preheated to 350-400 degrees and cook for 12-14 minutes.  Remove from grill, carefully remove from packet, and enjoy!

If baking, preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  Place fish in a baking dish sprayed with non-stick spray and bake for 12-15 minutes or until the fish flakes easily with a fork.